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dweber

Pub Member / Supporter

Last reply Jun 28, 2023 · posted in Over the Air Television By RabbitEars.Info

Silicondust started testing for Nextgen certification on June 3, 2023

Silicondust has started testing their HDHomerun ATSC 3.0 box for Nextgen certification on June 3, 2023. The testing appears to be going well. They will be adding parental controls to satisfy the Nextgen standards. Once it passes all the tests they will be able to sell their box as Nextgen certified.
Unfortunately being able to decrypt encrypted broadcasts is considered an optional feature for Nextgen certification according to Nick at Silicondust. So they could be Nextgen certified but still unable to show broadcasts that use encryption. They still plan to be able to decrypt broadcasts that use encryption but no date has been issued for when that will occur.
Remember that TV's that have ATSC 3.0 tuners are able to receive encrypted broadcasts. DVR boxes are the ones having issues. Broadcasters don't want you to skip their commercials.

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ancient

Jun 20, 2023

dweber said:
Silicondust has started testing their HDHomerun ATSC 3.0 box for Nextgen certification on June 3, 2023. The testing appears to be going well. They will be adding parental controls to satisfy the Nextgen standards. Once it passes all the tests they will be able to sell their box as Nextgen certified.
Unfortunately being able to decrypt encrypted broadcasts is considered an optional feature for Nextgen certification according to Nick at Silicondust. So they could be Nextgen certified but still unable to show broadcasts that use encryption. They still plan to be able to decrypt broadcasts that use encryption but no date has been issued for when that will occur.
Remember that TV's that have ATSC 3.0 tuners are able to receive encrypted broadcasts. DVR boxes are the ones having issues. Broadcasters don't want you to skip their commercials.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The big question for me is will the new devices be able to internally (without the use of a "cloud" server) convert AC4 audio to 5.1 AC3. If not, then I have zero interest in the new box. And I will also have zero interest if they can't decrypt encrypted broadcasts.

Sorry, but it's my opinion that the FCC really screwed the pooch when it comes to ATSC3, and I have no plans to get ATSC3 anything at this point, although if SiliconDust ever does come out with a ATSC3 box that can handle decryption AND convert AC4 to 5.1 AC3 (NOT STEREO, I am not paying good money to hear a format that began in the 1950's or 1960's, and I don't want my audio being sent to a "cloud" server anyway), I might reconsider. In fact I probably would reconsider if that type of device came out.

Yeah I know, licensing costs blah blah blah, but the thing is, not everyone buys a stupid soundbar for audio, and calls that good enough. That's like using the cheapest plastic tile you can find for your kitchen backsplash, it's functional but not the best experience. I'm not one of those people who has a dozen speakers around my room but I do have a 5.1 system and I do want to hear surround sound out of the side/rear speakers, and if nobody wants to provide a device capable of delivering that, then when ATSC1 goes dark I'll just stop watching broadcast TV (which I find myself getting more sick of every year anyway. Seriously, I think the networks have forgotten how to make entertaining programs).

As for the broadcasters, they have held a privileged position for far too long, and I have always hated that local broadcasters act as gatekeepers between viewers and network programming. I predict that if the broadcasters don't get off their high horses and start listening to what viewers want (definitely NOT encryption!) it will not be that long before they are going to be as irrelevant as Western Union for most Americans. I think Western Union is actually an apt comparison because at one time they were a service almost everyone used, and if they had played their cards right they could have become a major ISP, but that would have meant not doing business the way they'd always done it. I'm sure broadcasters will have a niche market long after most people are watching everything via the internet (with no annoying local station pre-emptions or local banner overlays or weather radar bugs or putting the network program in a shrunken box so they can show the ONE area upcoming school closing continuously throughout the entirety of prime time, with a banner ad on the side, just to mention a few common annoyances I've seen) but I honestly think the only thing local stations are even marginally good for these days is local news, and even that isn't what it used to be.

Anyway, if broadcast TV dies, or becomes a shadow of what it used to be, I fully blame the FCC for allowing encryption and a proprietary audio format in the ATSC3 standard.

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dweber

Jun 20, 2023

ancient said:
The big question for me is will the new devices be able to internally (without the use of a "cloud" server) convert AC4 audio to 5.1 AC3. If not, then I have zero interest in the new box.

That is why I have no interest in the Silicondust AC 3.0 box. But I am considering getting a new Sony TV. The new Sony TV's all have ATSC 3.0 tuners. The ATSC 3.0 tuner internally converts AC4 audio to 5.1 AC3. Plus encryption is not a problem with TVs.
It should also help my reception from both Dayton and Columbus, Ohio since it handles multipath. Plus several stations have upgraded their broadcast to 1080P.
The one negative that I will miss is the ability to DVR and skip commercials.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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ancient

Jun 20, 2023

dweber said:
That is why I have no interest in the Silicondust AC 3.0 box. But I am considering getting a new Sony TV. The new Sony TV's all have ATSC 3.0 tuners. The ATSC 3.0 tuner internally converts AC4 audio to 5.1 AC3. Plus encryption is not a problem with TVs.
It should also help my reception from both Dayton and Columbus, Ohio since it handles multipath. Plus several stations have upgraded their broadcast to 1080P.
The one negative that I will miss is the ability to DVR and skip commercials.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A new TV is fine if you feel like replacing a perfectly good ATSC1 TV just to get ATSC3, and if you are willing to watch TV at an appointed time, including all the commercials.

I am not willing to do any of that. Particularly the "appointment television" thing. I can't even begin to express how much I despise the idea of having to be in front of a TV at an appointed time, for a fixed amount of time, in order to watch a show. I did that for much of my life, and then I found out how freeing a VCR and then a PVR is. Maybe you are willing to go back to that, but I would rather never watch a television show again in my life than go back to that. And I'm a senior citizen - do you really think any younger people are going to do that? They are used to getting what they want when they want it from the Internet. If a broadcaster says "you will turn on your TV (or even your cell phone) at an appointed time and sit there for a full hour (or half hour) or you won't see the show", I would say you can F right off and take your effing TV show with you, and I was raised watching that kind of TV (originally in black and white)! There is absolutely NO TV show I'd want to see badly enough that I would go back to doing that.

I do realize that some people use TV's for background noise and could not care less if they actually get to watch a show or not, so maybe they will be the people who wind up buying new ATSC3 TV's, but people like me sure as hell won't.

That said, however...

It occurs to me that if SiliconDust will not make the product people really want, either because they can't figure out how or because they don't want to pay licensing fees or because of some stupid regulations or laws keep them from doing it, I would not be terribly surprised if the people who make "pirate" boxes get into that business. When ATSC1 stations start going dark, there are going to be a LOT of very pissed off people who don't give a flying f about laws, regulations, patents, or royalties; they just want to be able to DVR their TV shows and maybe hear good audio. It would not shock me one bit if the skull-and-crossbones crowd starts making converter boxes with built in PVR capability, using the ffmpeg hack to convert the AC4 audio to something older receivers can handle, and selling them on the dark web and at county fairs and flea markets, the same way they have been selling streaming boxes using pirate addons for Kodi. But the difference is that while the streaming pirate boxes usually stop working as soon as the illegal streams are shut down, a box that converts ATSC3 in ways that customers actually want will not be using "illegal" streams, they will be using the very legal ASTC3 streams that all ATSC3 TV's will know how to encrypt, So all they have to do is figure out how to make their boxes pretend to be a real ATSC3 TV. I sure couldn't do it but we all know there are many very clever people out there who will do damn near anything to get around artificial limitations.

I suppose the broadcasters could come up with some kind of card access scheme where in order to watch encrypted local TV you have to insert a conditional access card of some kind that's changed out every so often, but that's what was done for small dish satellite TV and from what I read, even that did not stop some of the pirate boxes from working (at least not until considerable time had passed) and I don't think even the brain dead bureaucrats at the FCC would try to foist that kind of scheme on over-the-air TV viewers (plus you could never make that work with any current cell phones). Anyway, the point I was attempting to make is that if SiliconDust can decrypt encrypted stations, they had best do so, and if they can convert AC4 audio to AC3 5.1 or 7.1 without using a cloud server they had best do that too. Otherwise there's going to be a huge incentive for the skull-and-crossbones guys to come up with the type of device that can't be purchased from a legitimate company like SiliconDust, but that many viewers will want. And I don't know about anyone else, but believe me, I'd much rather buy a product like that from a legitimate company like SiliconDust than from some shady guy on the dark web or at a flea market!

And also, this doesn't even consider the possibility of some kind of software defined TV receiver, where all the hardware is "legitimate" but oh look, there are ways to hack the device using software to make it do whatever you want. All I am saying is if ATSC1 goes dark and there are no good converter/PVR boxes out there, that's a big "need" that somebody's going to fill!

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primestar31

Jun 21, 2023

ancient said:
A new TV is fine if you feel like replacing a perfectly good ATSC1 TV just to get ATSC3, and if you are willing to watch TV at an appointed time, including all the commercials.

I am not willing to do any of that. Particularly the "appointment television" thing. I can't even begin to express how much I despise the idea of having to be in front of a TV at an appointed time, for a fixed amount of time, in order to watch a show. I did that for much of my life, and then I found out how freeing a VCR and then a PVR is. Maybe you are willing to go back to that, but I would rather never watch a television show again in my life than go back to that. And I'm a senior citizen - do you really think any younger people are going to do that? They are used to getting what they want when they want it from the Internet. If a broadcaster says "you will turn on your TV (or even your cell phone) at an appointed time and sit there for a full hour (or half hour) or you won't see the show", I would say you can F right off and take your effing TV show with you, and I was raised watching that kind of TV (originally in black and white)! There is absolutely NO TV show I'd want to see badly enough that I would go back to doing that.

I do realize that some people use TV's for background noise and could not care less if they actually get to watch a show or not, so maybe they will be the people who wind up buying new ATSC3 TV's, but people like me sure as hell won't.

That said, however...

It occurs to me that if SiliconDust will not make the product people really want, either because they can't figure out how or because they don't want to pay licensing fees or because of some stupid regulations or laws keep them from doing it, I would not be terribly surprised if the people who make "pirate" boxes get into that business. When ATSC1 stations start going dark, there are going to be a LOT of very pissed off people who don't give a flying f about laws, regulations, patents, or royalties; they just want to be able to DVR their TV shows and maybe hear good audio. It would not shock me one bit if the skull-and-crossbones crowd starts making converter boxes with built in PVR capability, using the ffmpeg hack to convert the AC4 audio to something older receivers can handle, and selling them on the dark web and at county fairs and flea markets, the same way they have been selling streaming boxes using pirate addons for Kodi. But the difference is that while the streaming pirate boxes usually stop working as soon as the illegal streams are shut down, a box that converts ATSC3 in ways that customers actually want will not be using "illegal" streams, they will be using the very legal ASTC3 streams that all ATSC3 TV's will know how to encrypt, So all they have to do is figure out how to make their boxes pretend to be a real ATSC3 TV. I sure couldn't do it but we all know there are many very clever people out there who will do damn near anything to get around artificial limitations.

I suppose the broadcasters could come up with some kind of card access scheme where in order to watch encrypted local TV you have to insert a conditional access card of some kind that's changed out every so often, but that's what was done for small dish satellite TV and from what I read, even that did not stop some of the pirate boxes from working (at least not until considerable time had passed) and I don't think even the brain dead bureaucrats at the FCC would try to foist that kind of scheme on over-the-air TV viewers (plus you could never make that work with any current cell phones). Anyway, the point I was attempting to make is that if SiliconDust can decrypt encrypted stations, they had best do so, and if they can convert AC4 audio to AC3 5.1 or 7.1 without using a cloud server they had best do that too. Otherwise there's going to be a huge incentive for the skull-and-crossbones guys to come up with the type of device that can't be purchased from a legitimate company like SiliconDust, but that many viewers will want. And I don't know about anyone else, but believe me, I'd much rather buy a product like that from a legitimate company like SiliconDust than from some shady guy on the dark web or at a flea market!

And also, this doesn't even consider the possibility of some kind of software defined TV receiver, where all the hardware is "legitimate" but oh look, there are ways to hack the device using software to make it do whatever you want. All I am saying is if ATSC1 goes dark and there are no good converter/PVR boxes out there, that's a big "need" that somebody's going to fill!

SiliconDust IS working on Encryption, and should have it fairly soon now. However, IF the providers themselves set "do not record" or "unskippable commercials" flags in the broadcast, then we won't be able to record, or skip.

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ancient

Jun 28, 2023

primestar31 said:
SiliconDust IS working on Encryption, and should have it fairly soon now. However, IF the providers themselves set "do not record" or "unskippable commercials" flags in the broadcast, then we won't be able to record, or skip.

Not using SiliconDust devices, perhaps, but there will just be too big a market of people who want to be able to record shows and skip commercials (as they have been doing for the past two or three decades) for the pirate box makers to ignore.

I see this going one of four ways. One is that there will be an explosion of pirate boxes that pretend to be TV's but actually allow recording and skipping commercials. The second is that if the broadcasters start doing this, people will stop watching OTA TV and turn to broadband-delivered services only (plenty of content there now, on both the free and pay services). The third is that people will just turn to methods that, without regard to legality, let them download the shows they want to see (such as torrents and maybe Usenet binaries groups, if they are still a thing). The fourth, and I could particularly see this happening with the younger demographic, is that they will just stop watching TV altogether and spend their time in other online pursuits, such as video games or maybe some time of new interactive thing that hasn't appeared yet. None of these bode well for the broadcasters, and I suspect that someday they will rue the day when they tried to force ATSC3 onto an unwilling public. There will always be some people who use TV's solely for background noise, but even they can find streaming channels to watch (PlutoTV, TubiTV, XUMO, etc.).

And that's assuming there's no wild card that turns people against ATSC3; for example something that would cause all the conspiracy theorists to be as against ATSC3 as they are vaccinations (you can let your imaginations run wild with that one, but since they already think crazy things about 4G/5G signals I don't think it would actually take much to convince them there is something sinister about ATSC3. Just mention that embedded AC4 signal and you're off to the races).

What I do NOT EVER see happening again is people who are serious about following a TV show being forced to watch it at a scheduled time. This is not the 1950's anymore.

Former member 202249

Jun 28, 2023

Live TV is going the way of the rental store. It'll probably exist in some form (Redbox), but it's relevancy will dwindle down. People want to watch what they want without a lot of hassle. ATSC 3 and its control structure is going to kill off what little demand there is for live TV via OTA. That'll allow broadcasters to figure out ways of making revenue off their bandwidth. They already band together for this transition period. What would prevent broadcasters from utilizing their towers in some sort of shared revenue plan to distribute Wi-Fi? The cellphone companies already operate multiple bands together for high speed communications. Just make a modem that will tune the channel frequencies in a given area. At 6 MHz per channel and 5 channels to a given area, you've got 30MHz of bandwidth to divide among a group of users. ATSC 3 basically turns those bands into a data pipe that's capable of carrying whatever you can squeeze into it, rather than the digital audio/video data that's in use on it in 1.0.

zippyfrog

Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter

Last reply 1 minute ago · posted in DISH Network Support Forum

Price Increase on Owned Equipment?

Did anyone have a price increase today on their equipment? I own my VIP211k's, and they have been $5.00. My bill that I received last week shows the "add-ons" as being $5.00. However, I just logged into my Dish account, and my "add-ons" are now $10.00. Did the additional receivers go up by $5.00 recently?

As I mentioned, my last bill shows $5.00 and under the notes, nothing is mentioned about a price increase.

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zippyfrog

Today at 11:22 AM

Never mind - according to chat, it seems like there is a glitch in their website. The prices for owned receivers are still $5.00.

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zippyfrog

Today at 11:29 AM

However, when I make a change (tried to add the Columbian pack for $2 so I could generate my bill) and there is a new line - it says "Access for TV" - whereas previously that line item was not there. I hope they aren't charging $5.00 for the initial TV now...

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telstar_1

50 minutes ago

Apparently it's not an "owned receiver" fee but rather an extension fee that's applied to 2nd and subsequent viewing. Maybe that played into their decision to force a box at every TV- garnering those fees

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zippyfrog

1 minute ago

telstar_1 said:
Apparently it's not an "owned receiver" fee but rather an extension fee that's applied to 2nd and subsequent viewing. Maybe that played into their decision to force a box at every TV- garnering those fees

Possibly. In theory, $9 of the base pack has a rental fee built in. But now is this $5 a chance to get a little more? I don't know for sure. According to chat, it is a glitch and will be resolved in a timely manner, but we shall see. Part of my thinks there is a going to be a new charge, whether it is now or this fall. Here in Illinois, the law requires we are given 30 days notice of any fee changes, but I have not been given anything.

Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 11:08 AM · posted in The Chit Chat Club

Song Name Game Part 3!

Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne

Get it?

An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....

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ClarkGable

Today at 6:48 AM

No Time - The Guess Who

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harshness

Today at 9:01 AM

Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper

sdfntx

Today at 9:50 AM

Right on Time - Brandi Carlile

gms49ers

Today at 11:00 AM

Time Stand Still - Rush

Bobby

Today at 11:08 AM

I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You) - B.J. Thomas

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 10:24 AM · posted in SatelliteGuys Support Center

DNS Work being done

Our DNS provider is encouraging us to enable DNSSEC on our domains for added security.

I have gone ahead and enabled it, and am told it may take anywhere from 90 minutes to 24 hours for it to take effect.

Hopefully doing this does not harm the site in any way. (It shouldn't) but if it does, you will then know why and I will revert the settings.

But from what I am reading it should be ok. so just giving a warning as I have screwed up DNS stuff in the past.

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Scott Greczkowski

Today at 10:24 AM

Doing my checks it appears the changes have gone through... and we are still here. (Phew!)

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Ham Radio 2.0

Today at 10:22 AM · posted in Ham Radio 2.0

I Went Wardriving for Meshtastic and Meshcoree Nodes!

Time for another AWESOME video from Ham Radio 2.0!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erpXkKWLg54

Direct YouTube Link - I Went Wardriving for Meshtastic and Meshcoree Nodes!
Ham Radio 2.0 Website
Ham Radio 2.0 on Facebook

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 10:09 AM · posted in SatelliteGuys Support Center

Tapatalk Removed

Due to security concerns and the fact that the Tapatalk Plugin for Xenforo is no longer being updated we have removed Tapatalk support from SatelliteGuys.

For those who were using it we recommend using our PWA App instead which is faster and does not have all the spam Tapatalk had. Below is a graphic showing how to add SatelliteGuys to your devices home screen. (While iOS is shown the process is mostly the same for Android.)

Thanks for your understanding.

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Foxbat

Yesterday at 9:28 AM

Thank you, Scott, for adding years to my Life and dropping my BP a few millimeters! Money well spent…

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dweber

Yesterday at 10:19 PM

Foxbat said:
Thank you, Scott, for adding years to my Life and dropping my BP a few millimeters! Money well spent…

What is PWA app? PWA utilities seem to be a Spanish app. I hope you are seeing this since nothing seems to be working. I will miss SatelliteGuys. Tapatalk worked well. The Siri browser doesn't seem to work well.

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Peter Parker

Today at 12:27 AM

Foxbat said:
Thank you, Scott, for adding years to my Life and dropping my BP a few millimeters! Money well spent…

Hooray!

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Peter Parker

Today at 12:29 AM

dweber said:
What is PWA app? PWA utilities seem to be a Spanish app. I hope you are seeing this since nothing seems to be working. I will miss SatelliteGuys. Tapatalk worked well. The Siri browser doesn't seem to work well.

Do you mean the safari browser?

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Foxbat

Today at 3:22 AM

dweber said:
What is PWA app? PWA utilities seem to be a Spanish app. I hope you are seeing this since nothing seems to be working. I will miss SatelliteGuys. Tapatalk worked well. The Siri browser doesn't seem to work well.

Actually, PWA stands for "Progressive Web Application" and is basically just saving a site's homepage to your desktop where it appears as an "App" with the rest of your smartphone's Apps.

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Scott Greczkowski

Today at 9:18 AM

A PWA is a custom version of SatelliteGuys which is optimized for mobile devices. While it may look like the website, its actually different so that only the files needed for mobile are sent, meaning its a much faster experience all around.

TapaTalk is essentially dead. It was written for PHP 5.4 and we are now running PHP 8.4. There have been a LOT of PHP security updates since then and since Tapatalk for Xenforo has not been updated in a long long time it is not the safest idea to keep running it.

In addition those trying to view the site on their mobile devices using a browser were getting spammed on the top of the screen for people to install TapaTalk, this ad in some cases would take up 20% of the users screen. We could get rid of that ad but we would have to pay $20 a month to get rid of it.

In addition TapaTalk could and was inserting their own ads on SatelliteGuys in the app which only benefitted them, SatelliteGuys was not paid for those ads they were displaying on our site. Again we could pay to get rid of those ads.

And here was the cost of the Premium Tier.

Now to make matters worse Tapatalk recently announced that they are going to start charging users of the app 99 cents a month to continue using it.

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tapatalksupport/our-mobile-app-is-transitioning-to-a-paid-model-t48360.html#p261675

So soon you would be paying them each month to access SatelliteGuys via their app, again all the money going to them... and you would still see all their ads too.

Tapatalk was a great program which we run for many many years, and for a long time we DID pay for the premium tier. But now with such a small offset using it (My numbers show a total of 6 members) it wasn't work paying for any longer.

In addition Tapatalk was sold to a different owner who made lots of promises of improvements and updates but then that owner has been really radio silent since, instead they have been letting TapaTalk rot on the vine.

If you visit their support forum at https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tapatalksupport/ you will see there is not much going on, in fact most of the support questions posted there go unanswered.

Please give the PWA a try, I was a die hard Tapatalk user myself but now only use the PWA on devices. It is a much better all around experience, with no bloatware or additional ads based on your user membership level.

I don't have an android phone so I could not make a graphic showing you how to add SatelliteGuys PWA to your phones apps or home screen. But here is a site that explains how to do it on all kinds of devices. How to Install a PWA on iOS, Android, Windows & Mac [2025 Guide]

The above link also explains PWA's better as well.

If Tapatalk were to update their plugins so we know we are more secure and up to date and allow us to remove the "Smart Banner" without having to pay $20 a month, we would consider adding it back. I don't even care about their ads, as if a user wants to use their app and is willing to sit through their ads in order to use that app then I am ok with it.

But hopefully that explains better why it was removed. It was not done to cut anyone off from the site.

Please give the PWA a try.

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NYDutch

Today at 10:09 AM

Scott Greczkowski said:
A PWA is a custom version of SatelliteGuys which is optimized for mobile devices. While it may look like the website, its actually different so that only the files needed for mobile are sent, meaning its a much faster experience all around.

TapaTalk is essentially dead. It was written for PHP 5.4 and we are now running PHP 8.4. There have been a LOT of PHP security updates since then and since Tapatalk for Xenforo has not been updated in a long long time it is not the safest idea to keep running it.

In addition those trying to view the site on their mobile devices using a browser were getting spammed on the top of the screen for people to install TapaTalk, this ad in some cases would take up 20% of the users screen. We could get rid of that ad but we would have to pay $20 a month to get rid of it.

View attachment 191729

In addition TapaTalk could and was inserting their own ads on SatelliteGuys in the app which only benefitted them, SatelliteGuys was not paid for those ads they were displaying on our site. Again we could pay to get rid of those ads.

View attachment 191730

And here was the cost of the Premium Tier.

View attachment 191731

Now to make matters worse Tapatalk recently announced that they are going to start charging users of the app 99 cents a month to continue using it.

View attachment 191732

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tapatalksupport/our-mobile-app-is-transitioning-to-a-paid-model-t48360.html#p261675

So soon you would be paying them each month to access SatelliteGuys via their app, again all the money going to them... and you would still see all their ads too.

Tapatalk was a great program which we run for many many years, and for a long time we DID pay for the premium tier. But now with such a small offset using it (My numbers show a total of 6 members) it wasn't work paying for any longer.

In addition Tapatalk was sold to a different owner who made lots of promises of improvements and updates but then that owner has been really radio silent since, instead they have been letting TapaTalk rot on the vine.

If you visit their support forum at https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/tapatalksupport/ you will see there is not much going on, in fact most of the support questions posted there go unanswered.

Please give the PWA a try, I was a die hard Tapatalk user myself but now only use the PWA on devices. It is a much better all around experience, with no bloatware or additional ads based on your user membership level.

I don't have an android phone so I could not make a graphic showing you how to add SatelliteGuys PWA to your phones apps or home screen. But here is a site that explains how to do it on all kinds of devices. How to Install a PWA on iOS, Android, Windows & Mac [2025 Guide]

The above link also explains PWA's better as well.

If Tapatalk were to update their plugins so we know we are more secure and up to date and allow us to remove the "Smart Banner" without having to pay $20 a month, we would consider adding it back. I don't even care about their ads, as if a user wants to use their app and is willing to sit through their ads in order to use that app then I am ok with it.

But hopefully that explains better why it was removed. It was not done to cut anyone off from the site. Please give the PWA a try.

I just installed the PWA on my Android phone. It was pretty easy to do, and now I'm posting this from my phone. Thanks, Scott!

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 9:49 AM · posted in SatelliteGuys Support Center

SatelliteGuys Fund Raiser

As you may have noticed we are doing a Fund Raiser for SatelliteGuys!

As many of you know I have been paying for a majority of the operation of the site out of my own pocket for awhile now. Now looking at things we have a number of renewals coming up that I could use some help with. These renewals include the license renewal for our Forum Software, Renewal of a number of our add on's the site uses, renewal of domain names etc.

I have set a goal of $400.00 - any extra that comes in will just go to fund the operations of the site. None of the money will go to me (I tried BuyMeACoffee a few months ago, and they denied me saying they do not do business with Satellite Piracy sites... which we are not... hell we host the beta programs for both DISH and DIRECTV here...)

Anyways... if you would like to help out please click the link below.

SatelliteGuys Maintenance Fund Raiser

www.satelliteguys.us

Thank you in advance.

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Scott Greczkowski

Tuesday at 8:19 PM

I planned on removing it today, but then my fathers car broke down and I had to drive him all around to get his stuff done. Then I had a doctors appointment after that which was annoying...

Dr asks me if I have had any changes, so I tell him something wrong with me that started a month or so ago and his reply back is, that it sucks to get old... I hate that. Why ask me. if your going to come back with a smart ass answer.

Anyays I hope to get rid of Tapatalk tomorrow.

And we had more people donate today, thank you! The extra money is going to future expenses since things like add ons don't expire at the same time.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU AGAIN!

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telstar_1

Tuesday at 11:26 PM

Yeah, dr's...joint pain? Your joints are wearing out. It hurts when I do this...don't do that

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comfortably_numb

Yesterday at 7:58 AM

Scott Greczkowski said:
Dr asks me if I have had any changes, so I tell him something wrong with me that started a month or so ago and his reply back is, that it sucks to get old

No excuse for a flippant response like that from a doctor! I'd be looking for a different one.

Reactions: FTA4PA and charlesrshell

Scott Greczkowski

Yesterday at 9:10 AM

Tapatalk has been removed.

I have added a new feature which is a work in progress called "Social Feed" which displays the forums Facebook style. Its nice for people who like that, but needs work. But i have been watching this one for awhile and the author is being really responsive to suggestions and adding them. So if you have any please let me know and I can pass them along.

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navychop

Yesterday at 10:14 AM

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Scott Greczkowski

Today at 9:49 AM

We got more kind donations yesterday! Again a very big thank you to everyone for your support!

Reactions: Bobby, navychop, comfortably_numb and 1 other person

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dfergie

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU!

Last reply Today at 8:58 AM · posted in The Sports Section

Auto Racing 2026

New thread or keep this one?

View: https://www.youtube.com/live/AgOI9DNCmPg?si=l-YcZmHl7GXXF8fX

111 Replies · 2725 views

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Foxbat

Sunday at 8:20 PM

Awesome pictures, Yespage! Thanks!

I caught the end of the four hour race on YouTube so I wasn't "spoiled", but got to see the exciting last lap action in the TCR division!

Yespage

Sunday at 8:30 PM

Foxbat said:
Awesome pictures, Yespage! Thanks!

I caught the end of the four hour race on YouTube so I wasn't "spoiled", but got to see the exciting last lap action in the TCR division!

I heard on the radio, after the final pitstop, Turner Motorsport were resigned to second place. 'You're in second. Don't worry about it. First is McLaren, we aren't catching them.'

Reactions: Foxbat

Yespage

Tuesday at 7:48 AM

Caught up to the 500... err... k in St. Louis. What a race! Andretti Motorsport were doing very well with Ericsson and Kirkwood, meanwhile Power was moving up the grid. Veekay started cautiously. He was working the tires just right, becoming more lethal later in the stint. Rasmussen was racing likewise, not nearly as insane as he has in the past. Palou was leading the race, in a shocker to all. Caio Collet was having a wonderful ride, making Ferucci potentially sweat a bit. Rain came, rain went, rain came, rain went. Generally mild sprinkles, but enough to pause racing on an oval.

Palou would kind of send Siegel into the wall. Siegel really didn't do much wrong. As he noted, you have to turn at some point. Palou had acres of room below and Siegel might have had his ticket out of Indycar stamped. Dixon was doing the fuel thing and got busted twice by yellows, not pitting before the flag came out. Then the most critical happened... Palou ran out of gas on pit lane, effectively giving Newgarden the race lead and win. Newgarden had a very early pit, so he was able to slide in, get service and go. Meanwhile, everyone else was confused and stuck behind Palou for a bit. Once people figured what was happening, Newgarden had a major advantage of several seconds. Newgarden wouldn't look back and when it went green again, he'd hold the lead for the win.

Massive credit to Juncos Hollinger who bested Penske in getting Veekay out before Malukas in a transition that was oddly bizarre. I haven't had time to check, but I'm wondering if Veekay was about to run out of fuel or cut a tire. He was charging late in a stint, got up to fifth, and then tailed back for a few laps to 10th or 11th. It looked like it was over. Went into the pits, and after the pitting sequence was over, Veekay was well inside the top ten again. It was weird. And he charged, getting up to fourth. He made a late move on Rasmussen, but Rasmussen held his position with some great driving. In fact, there was a ton of incredible racing passing, not passing all race long. Veekay would finish 4th. A podium would have been awesome, but it is a great outcome for a guy who hopefully will get a break with a big team. We saw what Veekay could do with a Honda last season with fuel save, imagine replacing Simpson on Ganassi and having speed to go with fuel saving. His 6th at Indy and 4th at St. Louis get him up to 13th in the points standings and only 5 points outside of the top 10.

Ericsson finished second, resigned to finishing behind the current best in the world guy on a short oval. Rasmussen got the final step on the podium, a nice rebound to what has been an otherwise bad year for him, and a good reward to ECR who just extended his contract.

Reactions: Foxbat and harshness

osu1991

Tuesday at 7:52 PM

View: https://youtu.be/YAAIvsFs5AU

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Yespage

Yesterday at 9:09 AM

They raced USAC cars at Daytona once. Once! People died. Aj Foyt said 'f this', and left after the first go around. AJ freaking Foyt thought it was crazy! And cars weren't nearly as fast as they are now.

I think they tried Talladega once too.

Yespage

Today at 8:58 AM

LeMans qualifying on going. WEC has d9ne a great job expanding the automotive company entries. Even without Porsche, a large nunber of manufacturers.

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TFLEV

Today at 7:12 AM · posted in TFLEV

How the Heck Do You Tell the NEW 2027 Rivian R2 from the R1? I Compare Both Side-By-Side!

Time for another AWESOME video from TFL Electric Vehicles!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7CB6m89_RY

Direct YouTube Link - How the Heck Do You Tell the NEW 2027 Rivian R2 from the R1? I Compare Both Side-By-Side!

0 Replies · 10 views

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Peter Parker

Supporting Founder Lifetime Supporter

Last reply Today at 6:53 AM · posted in Computers and Gadgets

Brave Browser for Androud

I have had good experiences with Brave but lately I am frustrated with it.

Now when I launch the app it shows a box at the bottom asking if I want to go back to the last opened page. It is in conveniently located and I would prefer to eliminate it.

Does anyone know how to do this?

Please let's not sidetrack the discussion into an exploration of why I don't care for it or a lecture about all the wonderful aspects of the feature. I just do not care for it.

3 Replies · 72 views

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b4pjoe

Yesterday at 7:50 PM

I don't have an Android phone so I don't know if this will apply to the Brave settings on your android device but it works on the desktop for me.

Change this setting to either startup to a different website or a new tab page. I have mine set to open to google.com instead of where I left off and it doesn't ask me at the next startup if I want to open the last opened page unless it crashed.

Screenshot 2026-06-10 at 6.46.20 PM.webp

Peter Parker

Yesterday at 9:27 PM

b4pjoe said:
I don't have an Android phone so I don't know if this will apply to the Brave settings on your android device but it works on the desktop for me.

Change this setting to either startup to a different website or a new tab page. I have mine set to open to google.com instead of where I left off and it doesn't ask me at the next startup if I want to open the last opened page unless it crashed.

View attachment 191721

Thank you for trying to help. However thrse choices do not appear in Android. There is a setting for "New Tab Pages" that is similar but does not include your choice. I have tried all of the existing entries with no success

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Juan

Today at 6:53 AM

Something like this maybe

Option 2: Set a custom Home button URL

Click the menu icon in the top-right corner and select Settings.
Click on Appearance in the left sidebar.
Toggle on the Show home button switch.
Under the home button settings, select the option to Enter custom web address and type in your preferred website. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

BlackHitachi

Supporting Founder

Last reply Today at 6:26 AM · posted in Movie Talk

Last & Next Movie Watched

Since the Reds have there thread we should too!

Last watched Nine inch Nails
Next 3:10 to Yuma

5346 Replies · 509292 views

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osu1991

Saturday at 9:48 PM

Rooster Cogburn.

Keep forgetting the free movies on youtube are ad free with my premium subscription.

Reactions: "MysteryMan", dfergie, long_time_DNC and 1 other person

dfergie

Sunday at 8:42 AM

osu1991 said:
Rooster Cogburn.

Keep forgetting the free movies on youtube are ad free with my premium subscription.

There are some really good movies on youtube.
Saving Private Ryan 4k, Dolby Atmos...

Reactions: "MysteryMan", long_time_DNC, Foxbat and 1 other person

harshness

Tuesday at 9:58 AM

dfergie said:
Saving Private Ryan 4k, Dolby Atmos...

These are severely limited. Getting better than stereo audio is improving, but still has a long way to go.

dfergie

Tuesday at 10:07 AM

harshness said:
These are severely limited. Getting better than stereo audio is improving, but still has a long way to go.

I went with my 4k disc after checking out that version.

osu1991

Yesterday at 9:56 PM

View: https://youtu.be/I68627xyDPA?is=gUZB0Yv_08pE0DR3

Tonight revisiting one of my favorites. Ranks up there with Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Hunt For Red October.

Reactions: Foxbat, long_time_DNC and dfergie

dfergie

Yesterday at 10:45 PM

Watching Monterey Pop, been awhile, had the DVD, but probably lost in the fire 10.5 years ago. HBOmax

"MysteryMan"

Today at 6:26 AM

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Silicondust started testing for Nextgen certification on June 3, 2023

Price Increase on Owned Equipment?

Song Name Game Part 3!

DNS Work being done

I Went Wardriving for Meshtastic and Meshcoree Nodes!

Tapatalk Removed

SatelliteGuys Fund Raiser

SatelliteGuys Maintenance Fund Raiser

Auto Racing 2026

How the Heck Do You Tell the NEW 2027 Rivian R2 from the R1? I Compare Both Side-By-Side!

Brave Browser for Androud

Last & Next Movie Watched