Quote:
What are Wildfeeds?
-Wild feeds are unannounced, free (not scrambled, no subscription required) satellite transmissions of sporting events, news and syndicated shows. They are found on C-band satellite systems. Satellite TV and radio channels are transmitted back to earth via a transponder on a satellite.
Huh? Explain in English, please...
-A Wildfeed is a special transmission of a show that the networks use to get that show to other, more local television stations. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" is shown on UPN networks, but not all of your local stations will carry it at the same time, pre-empting it for local news, sporting events, etc. They tape the wildfeed the network sends out over the C-band satellite system and then they are able to insert their own commercials and show it when they want.
OK, what is C-band?
-C-band is a range of satellite transmission frequencies that TV and radio channels use to transmit to satellite dishes. Most television broadcast stations have these types of systems that's how they get most of their programming.
Cool! I have a dish! How can I get this C-band stuff on my dish at home?
-Sorry, you can't. C-band frequencies require that you have a "full-size" dish, which is different from a subscription, home service dish.
Wait... a "full size" dish?
-The size of the satellite dish you need depends on where you live in the United States or Canada. In the Central United States, you can use a dish that has a diameter of between six and eight feet. On either coast, an eight to ten-foot dish is recommended. UNFORTUNATELY, a lot of housing subdivisions and such have property guidelines and bylaws that make full-size satellite dishes illegal (or at least really hard to obtain and install without tons of paperwork and extra expenses).
EEEwww... sounds big AND expensive
-Oh, yeah Dishes range in price, but the average cost is $2,000. That's for the physical dish itself, not including installation, transponders (tuners) and other equipment needed. You can by a dish from a local satellite TV retailer, usually listed in the phone book under "Satellite" or "Television."
So how YOU getting it, bud? How can I get access?
-Most universities, colleges, and some of your bigger schools will have a C-band satellite system. They use it mainly for teleconferences and PBS programming, BUT the geeks in the Audio-Visual department do occasionally get a sneak peek at a program they wanna watch ahead of time, or if they just want to watch something commercial free. Yep, I'm one of those AV geeks. I do the BtVS wildfeed, another guy does Boston Public, and a third watches F-1 races live.
Say I've found someone with the C-band system that is willing to help me get the wildfeeds for Buffy. What do I need to know to get it?
-If they have a system, they know what you'll need: the time and day of the broadcast, the satellite name that they're hooking up to (T5, F4, S6, etc.), and the transponder number, kinda like a channel on a TV. It's a number from 1-24 and either a vertical or horizontal polarity (V or H)
This is all so cool! Where can I find out more info?
Go to
www.orbitmagazine.com for wildfeed schedules and more technical info!
So, I figured she'd wander in here and tell ya. Thanks, Bunnie!
I say it with love; some of my best friends are AV and computer geeks. We plot world takeovers and trips to the coffeeshop. lol
Which is why I said originally most people do not own these because 1) the price & repairs & service 2) most houses and places of residence do not allow them (remember they are the ones that usually sit on the ground they are so big- not those little ones people stick on their roofs.