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Time to call a professional cell booster installer?

Ah, the lure of doing it yourself. I certainly understand it. When it comes to cellular boosters, DIY is definitely the way to go… until it isn’t. When should you get a professional involved? Who needs a cellular booster? Everybody, that’s who. Up to 90% of people experience some sort of weak cell service, every single day. Homeowners are the worst hit. Simply put, homes just aren’t designed for cell signals. You may find that you have plenty of bars outside but practically nothing inside. Or you may find there’s that weird spot in your living room where you get no connection at all. A lot of people use Wi-Fi calling if it’s available from their carrier, and just use the home’s Wi-Fi for data. That’s well and good for you, but what...
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How many times can you amplify an antenna signal?

You may not worry about this at home, but let’s say that you want to deliver signal to 200 TVs. You know that you’ll lose signal strength purely through the long cable runs, and you know that you’ll also lose it every time you split or tap off the signal to go to another TV. At some point the signal will be too weak for you to use. What can you do? Add another amplifier That’s where distribution amplifiers like this Blonder Tongue BIDA series come in. They are designed to strengthen a signal that’s already come through a cable and give it enough “oomph” to go up to another 500 feet or through about 9 TVs. That’s all great, but in our example we have to do a lot more than 9 TV. In many cases you can add another amplifier when the...
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STREAMING SATURDAY: Streaming Stockholm Syndrome?

The other day I read a op-ed by Owen Glieberman that asked, “Has Streaming Become a Form of Stockholm Syndrome?” Specifically, Glieberman ends the article by saying, If you read through the entire op-ed, which I think you should because it’s well-written, you’ll see that what Glieberman is saying is that good movies are still going straight to streaming where they’re forgotten. The implication is that streaming is bad business and it’s bad for the art of movies. Right off the top let me say I respect Glieberman. For one thing they write for Variety which is a really well-respected publication. The article is full of salient points and it’s very much worth your time. Glieberman’s right. Movie theaters are barely hanging on, and even...
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weBoost products now at Solid Signal

Actually they’ve been there all along. But, this is as good a time as any to remind you that weBoost cellular boosters and accessories are a big part of the Solid Signal portfolio, and you’ll find the best possible prices! weBoost practically invented the cellular booster market and in the last decade has redefined it with boosters that are easy to use and powerful. There’s a whole line from the vehicle-only Drive Sleek to the massively powerful Office 100 which can cover pretty much any small office with excellent cell coverage. Of course, there are plenty of parts in between as well, so no matter what size home or office you have you’ll find the right size booster for you. LTE or 5G? Most people today want a cell booster that will...
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Error Correction

There’s something neat about error correction. Error correction is something everyone does, but I think the way computers do it is really neat. It’s all around us and we don’t think about it. It’s built into the way we use our phones, the way we watch TV, and even the way we shop. Error correction makes our modern life possible. It it weren’t for error correction, we wouldn’t be able to make phone calls, watch TV, or do pretty much anything online. What is error correction? Error correction is the process that computers use when there isn’t enough information. There are a lot of forms of error correction. For example: Rules-based error correction When you call someone using a landline phone, the buttons make sounds. There are two...
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FUN FRIDAY: Power Macintosh 9600

Here’s something I’ve recently had to contend with. If young people think the tech you used when you were their age is “classic” or “retro,” you my friend are officially old. In fact, you are old as …. well I don’t use profanity on this blog but you get the idea. This very idea came to me when I was exploring this video: In which a fellow who, I would guess, is about 35, just gushes over a beat up, broken Power Macintosh 9600 and then proceeds to clean it up and adapt it to use modern forms of storage. This set off a cascade of feelings for me, and this being a blog after all, I decided to share them with you. Although I can’t exactly blame the guy. Apple’s Power Macintosh 9600 was a very interesting beast. In the 1990s, Apple was...
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What is the best option for marine entertainment?

Ah, lazy days on the water. There’s nothing like it. Days spent in the fresh air, sunsets over the ocean. But this is the twenty-first century. We don’t like disconnecting for very long, even when we’re enjoying ourselves. Good news— you don’t have to be! With products from Solid Signal, you can enjoy life on the water without giving up any of the benefits of being on land. Are your electronic entertainment options limited? Truth is, there are some limitations to what you can do on the water, especially on smaller craft. If you’re taking a dinghy out 10 miles — and I don’t recommend that, obviously — you’ll run into trouble. All of the options I’m recommending require that your boat be big enough to mount equipment on, and that there...
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NICE AND EASY: What is a “riser?”

Tall buildings have tall problems. You don’t really think about stuff like this as a homeowner, but if you’re looking at a roof that’s 500 feet above street level, some things have to change. Your regular satellite TV install isn’t going to work. A big part of that is the sheer amount of wire that it takes to get from the roof to wherever you are. High rise buildings need special installers with special qualifications. The riser Every large building has a big vertical space where all the wires are. It’s kind of like an elevator shaft for cables. This is called “the riser.” It’s specifically designed to let technicians get to the communications cables that every modern building needs. It’s also designed to connect to the equipment...
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THROWBACK THURSDAY: New York in 1911

Yeah, that’s quite a throwback for this Thursday. This recently found footage was shot in 1911 by “Svenska Biografteatern,” apparently a Swedish company specializing in documenting the world as it was at that moment in time. A few years ago, New York’s Museum of Modern Art discovered the footage, restored it and put it on display. That exhibit has since been taken down. However, YouTuber “guy jones” got hold of the footage and put it up for all to see. It’s not under copyright, being so old. You can clearly see a bunch of landmarks that are still there, and considering we are looking at 100-year-old film the quality is simply amazing. Why is it so choppy? In those days, cameramen commonly used a rate of 18 frames per second. It was...
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Affordable Internet is for EVERYONE… just ask Signal Connect

Let’s just face it. You need internet service at home. You need it for schoolwork, work projects, and just to enjoy life. It’s one of those things that you feel like you just can’t live without. And just relying on your cell phone probably isn’t cutting it. I totally understand. But on the other hand, it’s expensive. There can be hidden fees, teaser rates that expire after a year, and you might just think isn’t any other choice but the cable company. Like so many things today, it seems like you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. For once, the government has your back. And Signal Connect can help. There’s a new benefit called the Affordable Connectivity Program. If you qualify, you can get up to $30 a month off your internet...
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Introducing new video options for sports bars!

It’s not easy running a small business today. It’s even harder if your business relies on serving the public. Bar and restaurant owners have had it very rough the last few years, to be sure. I think we all remember when they weren’t even allowed to be open and how that felt. Sure, those times are over, but how can a bar or restaurant owner make up some of that lost time? Owning and operating a bar or restaurant means being an expert multitasker. It’s not just about putting some memorabilia up on the wall and having some bottles on the shelf. You need to deal with suppliers, inspectors, and of course the public. Then, to make everything harder you’re supposed to be an expert in the kind of complex technology it takes to run 25...
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Share your DIRECTV Signal Saver success stories!

Winter’s here. You probably didn’t need me to tell you that. Even if you live in a nice balmy climate, the year’s already seen its share of rough weather. And folks, it’s only February. Luckily, DIRECTV has finally given us all a way to make it through the winter a little more easily. Telling the truth about satellite TV Folks, obviously I’m a satellite TV fan. After all, this is what I write about all day, right? But even I have to admit a few things about satellite TV that can be a little bit of a challenge. While satellite TV is more reliable than cable or streaming in terms of uptime, it is affected by severe weather. Heavy rains can block the dish’s view of the sky, and snow can accumulate on the dish in the winter. A dish heater...
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Ken Reid and Jack Sholder

June 19 – 25, 1953 This week Ken welcomes professor, writer, producer and director Jack Solder (Nightmare on Elm St. 2, By Dawn’s Early Light, The Hidden, 12:01, Alone in the Dark) to the show. Ken and Jack discuss growing up in Philly, growing up playing trumpet, being a classical musician, realizing you’re good but not GREAT at something, becoming an editor, the rhythm of cuts, working at New Line Cinema, Caroline Biggerstaff, poses vs pauses, editing The Burning, learning by doing, creating suspense, revival art house cinema, the genius of Buster Keaton, exploitation films, Ed Sullivan, Uncle Milty, 1950s music shows, the cultural scene of the 1950s, Uncle Pete Boyle, Chief Halftown, kids shows, Life of Reilly, Magnavox, The...
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Where can you find a partner to help you upgrade your business’s IT infrastructure?

See if this seems like a familiar scenario. You have a business, under 100 people. You started with just a few, and you’ve grown organically. Things are good, but you’re beginning to realize that you can’t do it all in-house. You probably have one employee who is charged with making sure the internet is running. They might not know more than just how to reboot things, but it’s been enough. You have a local computer contractor who can come in and handle the rest. It’s a setup that’s worked for you for years, and you’re not alone. A lot of small businesses work this way. But what happens when you have a need that’s bigger than what those two local folks can handle? Where do you turn? That’s probably why you found this article. It’s hard...
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AI in 2024: is it time to be afraid?

Without a doubt, the biggest non-Swift story in 2023 was the way that generative AI really broke out. While the technology has been around for a few years, ’23 was the year that the average person became aware of what it could do. Apps like Copilot and ChatGPT were made available to the general public, and at the same time the quality of work done by this app increased. It may have been impossible to think that by 2024 an AI could write a script, pass a bar exam, and create realistic photos, AI did this and more. If we look at the year to come and think about the rate at which AI is growing, should we be terrified? The argument for “yes” Obviously at this point you’ve heard every Terminator/Skynet reference there is. The idea that an...
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