by Daniel J. Gansle

Created on: October 13, 2008   Last Updated: July 07, 2011

I recall with an almost nostalgic sentiment adjusting the rabbit ears in order to clear up the snowy, shadowy picture on my television set. But alas, those days are fading away as quickly as those bulky CRT monitors we used to see sitting atop desktop computers.

At midnight on February 17, 2009, the airwaves will transition from analog to all-digital. This means that if you have an older (analog) television set, it will not receive a signal until you either purchase a new digital television or a digital converter box.

In order to ensure that nobody is left in the dark, our government has a program in place to provide you with up to two (2) $40 coupons per household that you can take to major big-box retailers when purchasing your converter box. With the coupon, you will pay only about $10-$15 for the unit. It sure beats having to pay $1500 for a new digital television set.

Here's what you need to do:

1) Point your Web browser to www.dtv2009.gov.

2) Click (1) Apply for a Coupon to go to the application page.

3) Enter your name and address.

4) For (2) TV Service, select the situation that applies to you (whether your TVs have cable or satellite subscriptions).

5) Select whether you want one or two coupons. You can only use one coupon per digital conversion box.

6) Under (4), check the "By checking this box, you declare that the above is true and correct" checkbox.

7) Enter the CAPTCHA text.

8) Click Submit.

9) Retain the reference number in case you have to check on the status of your coupons. In that case you would simply return to http://www.dtv2009.gov and click "Where are my coupons" in the very center of your display.

10) Return to the http://www.dtv2009.gov home page.

11) Click (2) Buy a TV Converter Box to go to the Locate a Converter Box Retailer near you screen.

12) Note all the retailers that carry digital TV converter boxes. I purchased mine at Wal-Mart with coupon in hand and paid only about $9.00 for it.

Setting up the digital converter box on your old analog TV is basically plug-and-play:

1) Plug the cable from your rabbit ears antenna into the "Antenna IN" post on the back of the digital converter box unit.

2) Plug the included cable into the "To TV" post on the back of the unit, then plug the other end into the Antenna post (where the old rabbit ears plugged in) on the back of the TV.

3) Plug the power plug into the wall.

4) Turn the TV on and set it to Channel 3.

5) Turn the digital converter box on.

6) You will be prompted to wait as the unit scans for digital channels.

And that's it! Now you can enjoy that crisp, ultra-clear digital signal. No more snow, no more shadows, no more losing color or adjusting the rabbit ears. Digital changes everything. Are you ready for DTV?

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