WVPT-HD
Channels
WVPT Offers Three Digital Channels!
WVPT(Y) (SD) is a completely digital version (standard definition)
of the station's current analog broadcast schedule.
WVPT(Y) - HD showcases spectacular high definition programming
from PBS, including programs with vivid colors, breathtaking vistas
and exciting performances. No other available channel can better
display the spectacular pictures and audio of digital television.
WVPT(Y) - Create Taste adventure, explore life, imagine
tomorrow, and watch Create. Create
is a joint venture between American Public Television (APT), Thirteen/WNET
New York and WGBH Boston. WVPT Create will feature public television's
most popular lifestyle and how-to programming celebrating the life-enriching
endeavors of cooking, painting, crafting, home improvement, collecting
and travel.
Receiving WVPT's Digital Channels
In the Northern Shenandoah Valley area--Virginia counties
of Frederick, Clarke, Warren, Fauquier, Loudoun and Shenandoah;
and West Virginia counties of Jefferson, Berkeley, Morgan and Hampshire--tune
to:
21-1 WVPY (SD)
21-2 WVPY HD
21-3 WVPY Create (SD)
WVPT's digital channels on Comcast Cable in Staunton & Harrisonburg:
Staunton, VA
WVPT High Definition (HD) 711
WVPT Create (SD) 188
WVPT (SD) 185
Harrisonburg, VA
WVPT High Definition (HD) 707
WVPT Create (SD) 188
WVPT (SD) 185
In the Southern Shenandoah Valley area--Rockingham, Augusta
and Rockbridge Counties--tune to:
11-1 WVPT (SD)
11-2 WVPT- HD
11-3 WVPT- Create (SD)
Digital Television: Can You Picture It?
WVPT became the first PBS station in a Virginia Designated Market
to go digital with a "switch-throwing" celebration live,
on-air Thursday, October 18, 2001, at 7:00 p.m. The Valley's first
digital signal from a local station -- WVPT-DT 11 -- serves Rockingham, Augusta, and Rockbridge Counties. One
year later WVPY-DT 21 premiered. Both provide the area with astounding
video and audio for a theater-like viewing experience. And now,
WVPT provides three digital channels!
The time is here! You can tune to WVPT-DT on a digital television
set, your current analog television set modified by a set-top converter
box, and your home computer!
Now imagine a time in the future when all of these programming choices
will come with an interactive stream of data--classroom materials,
internet home pages, digital audio services, news tickers--and you
are beginning to grasp the full impact of digital television. Your
TV set becomes a tool for active learning and entertainment!
DTV's Benefits
The main benefits of this broadcast revolution are:
HDTV
The HDTV picture is a truer representation of reality with more
than twice the resolution and clarity of the analog picture. HDTV
provides stunning detail in close-up and panoramic scenes. Fine
detail is possible because an HDTV signal takes up the majority
of the six MHz bandwidth allotted. Because the audio is also broadcast
over nearly the entire six MHz bandwidth, viewers enjoy CD-quality
"surround sound." In addition, the DTV signal doesn't
degrade over distance. Reception is as clear for viewers on the
fringe of the WVPT viewing area as for those living near a transmitter.
In short, the total viewing experience is richer and more like a
true home theater experience with HDTV.
Multicasting
In addition to improved picture and sound quality, multicasting
opens an entirely new form of programming-enhanced digital television--the
fusion of video, audio, images and text. Since DTV is compressed,
WVPT is able to broadcast multiple signals simultaneously in the same
bandwidth required for one analog signal.
Datacasting
In HDTV and Standard Definition Television (SDTV), data can also
be broadcast using leftover bandwidth, making Internet-type information
available through the digital television set or the home computer.
Viewers will be able to simultaneously watch an enhanced TV production
and, in the background, receive hundreds of megabytes of additional
video, audio, text and images stored directly on the computer or
in the memory of the digital set-top box. While watching the THREE
TENORS IN CONCERT, the viewer could download the musical scores
of the pieces performed or receive biographical information on each
of the singers. During telecourses, the viewer could download the
course syllabus and homework assignments. The possibilities go on
and on.
Questions
Where Can I Find More Information?
Here are some helpful websites:
http://www.ce.org/shared_files/hdtv/DTVTipSheet.pdf
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/digitaltv.html
http://antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx
http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html
Can I Watch DTV on My TV?
Since DTV information is encoded in a different way from the analog
television signal, a new receiver capable of decoding the new signal
is required. Manufacturers have developed converter boxes that allow
viewers to receive programs broadcast on DTV channels on their analog
TV sets. However, in order to experience the full benefits of digital
television, viewers will need new digital television sets.
The DTV television set's shape will be somewhat different. Since
DTV will be broadcast in 16:9 aspect ratio, the screen will look
more like a rectangular movie screen than the basically square format
of the analog 4:3 aspect ratio television screen.
When Will I be Able to Receive DTV?
It depends on where you live. WVPT currently airs high definition
and wide screen programming on antenna channels DT 11-1, 11-2 and
11-3 in the southern Shenandoah Valley and DT 42-1, 42-2 and 42-3
in the northern Shenandoah Valley and northeastern West Virginia.
Consumers cannot receive DTV broadcasts without a set-top converter
box and will only be able to take full advantage of DTV video and
audio quality and ancillary services with a new DTV TV set.
How Much Does a DTV Set Cost?
Right now, new digital TV sets cost several hundered dollars. But, as with
all new technical equipment, the prices will come down over time.
Viewers can buy a converter box, which will deliver basic DTV services,
between $50 and $90.
How Will WVPT Pay for the Transition to DTV?
Whether public television gets there from here depends on Congress,
state government, foundations, and the private sector. The new cameras,
equipment, and towers needed for digital broadcasting will cost
WVPT more than $13 million. But, with the support from both the
public and private sectors, WVPT will continue to achieve great
things in the digital world.
What Does DTV Offer Me?
In a word? Opportunity. Opportunity to tune in to a children's program,
work force literacy telecast, a public affairs special or a telecourse
series all broadcast at the same time on WVPT. Opportunity to receive
related digital material in the form of printed materials, computer
software or internet-like web pages. Opportunity to experience television
broadcasts that are more like real life with higher-quality picture
and sound. Opportunity to transform "the tube" into an
educational, informative, entertaining and culturally enriching
tool.
I Understand I Can Use a Set-top Converter Box for
My Television. But, Will My Antenna and Satellite Dish Be Obsolete?
Antennas
Most homeowners will be able to receive digital television signals
through the same UHF, 75-ohm, outdoor antenna they are presently
using to receive analog signals. Indoor antennas will receive DTV
signals also; however, as with analog signals, outdoor antennas
will be more effective.
Satellite Dishes
Satellite companies were the first to market digital products capable
of standard-definition clarity and resolution. Some satellite systems
have already committed to providing DTV and HDTV signals. Contact
your satellite television provider to find out which networks and
stations it will include in its service. Ask them to include WVPT!
Selecting a Digital Television
Once you have decided to buy a new digital television, there are
some things to consider.
- Many of the TV sets produced during the conversion period from
analog to digital broadcasting can receive and display both signals.
They come in a variety of sizes to fit in almost any space. All
you need is a power source and an antenna (or cable) hookup!
- High-end or high definition digital televisions offer the sharpest
picture and clearest sound. These will also support datacasting
features. These sets give you motion-picture quality experiences
on a smaller screen.
- The quality of your TV set's picture depends upon the screen's
resolution. A higher resolution means a higher quality visual
experience. Your DTV set's picture is made up of pixels and lines.
- Pixels are picture elements displayed horizontally across
the screen.
- Lines are the rows of pixels displayed vertically across
the screen.
- A resolution of 1,920 pixels by 1,080 lines will give you a
better picture than 640 pixels by 480 lines. The higher the numbers,
the clearer the picture!
In the digital age, one thing remains the same: only public broadcasting
is committed to using the expanded digital spectrum to bring out
the best that Americans aspire to be, not to sell products! Our
mission of education, culture, and citizenship is essential to
the life of a great nation.
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