conflicting info from sat dealers...can anyone clear this up for me?

[dumb girl]

While I am a very handy person, tv/cable/satalite is not my thing--give me power tools and I am great...but I am lost right now and need help. Here is the story--I live part time in Ohio, part time in Texas. I am a Texan and would much prefer to rcv Texas stations as my local. I understand that in the part of Ohio where I reside part time, I cannot purchase Texas channels as local channels (such as they are) are offered. Where I live in Texas local channels are not availible, but through Dish Network I can choose to have Dallas as my provider of major channels (I don't even know what that is really called). OK, so my question is, if I buy Dish Network in Texas, can I bring the 'guts' of the system with me to Ohio and still pick up Dallas channels--one guy says 'yes', one says 'no'. The guy who says 'yes' says that since Dallas is not just a local channel but one of their 'major market channel selection' (things) that there is not a problem. Another guy says that due to 'spot beaming' (or something similar) that is not an option. Third guy said that the best solution was to buy a motor home/travel trailer and choose to have the Dish Network installed in the motor home....it seems a desperate idea to buy a motor home to get Dale Hanson (sports guy)...but desperate times may call for desperate measures.

So, what are my options really? I really don't want to be running two accounts--one to each location, especially since there won't be anyone there to watch TV when I am gone.

Thanks for your help.
dumbgirl

[SimpleSimon]

Each of the people that you talked to has part of the puzzle.

By referring to
http://www.dishchannelchart.com/

I determined that the Dallas locals are indeed on a spotbeam. 110-8s6. That's the bird at 110W, transponder 8, spotbeam 6. Now I refer to
http://ekb.dbstalk.com/297


and find that 110's spotbeam #6 is central and eastern Texas only. So, as far as Dallas locals are concerned, ain't no way you're gonna see them in Ohio.

First guy is wrong, second guy is right, third guy's solution won't work either. Sorry.

Now, other than locals, moving the receiver is easy enough - as long as both dishes have identical LNBFs. Still doable if not, just not quite as easy.

You then have 3 options to get the broadcast networks:

• Two accounts (undesirable)
• Cable (undesirable)
• OTA (Antenna - might work well depending on where you are)
• Waivers to get the "Distant Networks" - this can get complicated

[dumb girl]

thanks Simon--the "Distant Network" waiver shouldn't be a problem (per the 800 number at Dish) as the house in Texas is very rural--very rural...like one and a half hours at 70 mph from a trauma unit at a hospital kind of distant...over an hour to a mall kind of distant...way out in BFE kind of 'out there'. So if I get a "distant network waiver", that would give me the Dallas channels in Texas (or I could pick NY or Los Angelos, several other spots)--but would that give me access to the Dallas channels in Ohio? I don't know how 'spot beaming' works, so I don't know if they are beaming out Dallas as a 'waiver' station in my area or not...I know I sound like an idiot--especially since reading the archives I don't even understand most of the posts...sorry.
I should say that the reason for going with Dish rather than DirectTV is that Dish offers Dallas as a provider when you do have a "distant network waiver". DirectTV only offered NY & LA (or something like that).

[Bobby]

Give him the flashlight analogy Simon......

[Iceberg]

The only true distants on Dish are NY, LA, Chicago & Atlanta. These can be picked up (if you qualify) no matter where in the 48 you are (just like regular programming)

Dallas, Denver, KC, Portland OR are "regional distants", if you live within the beam area (think flashlight), you can receive them. If you are outside of the area, it doesn't work.

[dumb girl]

OK, I didn't realize that there was a difference in the types of distants--too bad I am not jonesing for LA sports and news.

So, I guess that the only answer is to suffer through Ohio without Texas news...or go with DirectTV, buy the football package, and at least get the Cowboys.

Thanks for your help guys--I appreciate you being so nice to me when it is obvious that the questions are way elementary for y'all.

[SimpleSimon]

It's OK - to help you understand the "flashlight" a bit more, go to the ekb link I posted and then hit the link for Echostar @ 110 - it'll bring up a map of the beams. Loking at that while reading my post will help your light turn on.

[dfergie]

An alternative method of getting Americas team would be to purchase either dbs service. Get a Replay tv box (Preferably 5040, 5060 or 5080) that is if you have broadband ava where you live in Ohio. Then get on Poopli a site where you can contact other Replay users and "request" whatever Cowboy game is on that week. If someone else has what you want they can send it to you over the net.

[dumb girl]

OH MY! What you can't do with the internet! And folks say it is only for porn and shopping! OK, being a complete noobie to all this, you are saying that if I subscribe to Dish (or whoever), with the replay box, go back to broad band internet service, then I what? Have to subscribe to the Poopli sight? Pay for individual games/newscasts/whatever? or is it just a 'bartering' system where if I can get the Browns or the Steelers (cause I can...always...no Cowboys, but I got da browns)....then I can be a good citizen and send my copy of the Browns off to someone who wants them and someone else sends me the cowboys? It is like a whole new world for me. To think, I just hooked the TV up to the cable coming out of the wall and sat my vcr (blinking 12:00) and the DVD player in the cabinet with it.

[cspiteri]

In post #3 "Dumb Girl" refers to a "Distant Network waiver". I thought that if you lived in an area unable to receive "Locals" that you automatically qualified for DNS. When I enter my ZIP the response is that I qualify for DNS. Is it still necessary to apply for a waiver?? Just how does that work??