The following is an edited transcript of the Live Chat held at Milwaukeehdtv.org on March 13th at 7:00PM. Our guest was Jim Hall general Manager of CBS58, the CBS Affiliate in Milwaukee.

Tom Snyder: Tonight we are honored to have with us Jim Hall, General Manager of CBS58. They just launched their High Definition channel this week and he is as eager to answer questions as we are to ask them! We'll go for an hour or two

JIM HALL: HI GUYS I AM ON LINE READY TO BEGIN. LET'S START WITH THE FULL POWER QUESTION..... NO WE ARE NOT AT 100% FULL POWER PER FCC. WE DECIDED THAT WE NEEDED TO START OUT AT A LOWER ERP COVERING THE IMMEDIATE AREA BASED ON THE NUMBER OF HDTV SET OUT THERE. TO BROADCAST AT 100% FULL POWER IT WOULD COST OVER 100,000 PER YEAR IN ELECTRICITY. 

Steve Miller: ouch

Steve Mann: Holy cow..

JIM HALL: THAT'S RIGHT.....THAT'S WHY I BELIEVE WTMJ ONLY BROADCASTS PART TIME

kjnorman: So will you only go to full power once you reach a certain level of viewers?

JIM HALL: YES .....WE WILL GO TO FULL POWER WHEN IT MAKES MARKET SENSE. ADVERTISERS WILL NOT BUY OUR COMMERCIAL TIME UNTIL HDTV IS THE NORM....

Tom Snyder: VOTE: Part Time or low power? Prime time and sports Channel 46 on... rest of the time, turn it off?

JIM HALL: TOM - IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE....

Tom Snyder: Never is :)

JIM HALL: TURNING HDTV ON AND OFF HAS TWO PROBLEMS. FIRST...TURNING OFF A UHF IOT TRANSMITTING TUBE IS HARD ON THE TUBE AND IT CAUSE IT TO FAIL EARLY IN ITS LIFE. THESE TUBES COST NEAR 70,000 EACH

kjnorman: And we thought our TV was expensive

JIM HALL: SECOND THERE ARE DEMAND CHARGES THAT THE POWER COMPANY PUTS ON US WHEN WE GO FROM LOW POWER CONSUMPTION TO HIGH USAGE

Steve Mann: You're right, Jim... It's never easy as it sounds.

JIM HALL: DID YOU GUYS SEE WHEN WTMJ WENT OFF THE AIR IN PRIME LAST WEEK

ToddW: I did not. When ?

kjarnold: WTMJ DT?

JIM HALL: YES WTMJ DT

Pat: With little content, I hardly watch them.

JIM HALL: TURNING THAT RIG ON AND OFF LIKE THEY DO I KNOW HAS TO BE CAUSING THEM PROBLEMS

ToddW: Ditto, Pat.

Tom Snyder: I don't watch TMJ before 10:30. ;)

ToddW: ... all respect to Sean :)

JIM HALL: SEE WE DEAL WITH UHF WITH CBS58 AND KNOW HOW THESE RIGS WORK AND WHAT POWER HOGS THEY ARE

kjarnold: Never understood why they don't simulcast 24/7 to at least have a presence

JIM HALL: THIS IS THE 1ST TIME THEY ARE DEALING WITH UHF TRANSMITTER. 

Steve Mann: Maybe WTMJ is still learning that?

Tom Snyder: and learning it the hard way! ;)

JIM HALL: NOW I WANT TO ASK A QUESTION TO ALL OF YOU. HOW ARE WE COMING UP AS A CHANNEL # ON ALL OF YOUR SETS

JIM HALL: OKAY THE ANSWER TO CHANNEL MAPPING IS AS FOLLOWS. YOU SHOULD SEE US ON 1.0 -1.5

ToddW: :) whew

Steve Mann: Good. When I enter '1' on my Panasonic, it takes me to 1-1. I'm assuming this is as it should be?

JIM HALL: DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT 1.0 IS

Steve Miller: I get 1.0 as Analog CBS58

kjarnold: That is the analog feed

JIM HALL: KEVIN WINS THE PRIZE!!!!!!

kjarnold: 58 remapped to channel 1

ToddW: Good, marketing, Jim. I like it.

JIM HALL: LET ME TAKE A MOMENT TO EXPLAIN

Tombo: I heard that 55 and up are going to be reclaimed

JIM HALL: ACTUALLY ...IN CRUISING YOUR FORUMS ONE OF YOU HAD A PRETTY GOOD IDEA WHY WE ARE DOING IT. THE CORE CHANNELS FOR TV IN THE FUTURE ARE 2-55. ALL OTHER CHANNELS WILL GO TO AUCTION TO RETIRE THE NATIONAL DEBT

Steve Miller: So if the future is 2-55, why Channel 1?

JIM HALL: ITS ALL ABOUT BRANDING

Steve Mann: Ahhh... You WANTED to be different. :)

JIM HALL: SEE, MY COMPETITION IN THE VHF'S HATES THE FACT THAT THE COULD BE A UHF STATION

Steve Miller: CBS is Milwaukee's Number One Channel?

Pat: You're number 1 with us. Right now at least. :)

kjarnold: No other channel can claim one so no copyright issues and guess which is first.

ToddW: Like I said, excellent marketing, Jim.

Tombo: CBS and58 are by far #1 with HD right now. If you do the news in HD you will own this town in 5 years.

JIM HALL: SO SOME PRETTY SMART ENGINEERS WITH MARKETING BEHIND THEM GOT TOGETHER AND STOLE AN IDEA THAT CABLE USES CALLED CHANNEL MAPPING

Tom Snyder: Brilliant!

JIM HALL: CABLE HAS BEEN MAPPING AND USING VIRTUAL CHANNELS FOR YEARS

Steve Miller: Please explain... ?? Why is that so smart? I don't understand

JIM HALL: EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE UHF CH'S ASSIGNED, CHANNEL 4, 6, 12, MAP BACK TO THE CORE CHANNEL USING THE DASH. THEY GET TO KEEP THEIR BRAND FOREVER

Steve Miller: So you will be the First Channel people see when they turn on the TV.. okay

JIM HALL: WHO'S PULLING US IN TONIGHT ON 46-2

Tom Snyder: I am.. I fiddled with my rabbit ears, and now you're coming in fine in Northwestern G'Town

JIM HALL: ONLY 1-1 TONIGHT, IR SET ONLY 1-1 TONIGHT

fritz: nothing on 46-2.. maps to 1-2

Tom Snyder: I just turned on my off-air guides, you're 1-1, now

JIM HALL: IF ANY OF YOU ARE GETTING A PICTURE TONIGHT ON 46-2....YOUR BOX HAS BAD FIRMWARE

ToddW: Just checked, 1-2 is blank for me too.

Tom Snyder: I was 46-2, but off-air guides reduce the signal

kjarnold: If you turn the guides off then it will not map ANY channels

JIM HALL: WE HAD A BOX AN RCA DTC 100 THAT SHOWED THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM WITH 46-1 OR 1.1 SHOWING UP AS 46.2...ITS BAD FIRMWARE. BUT OTHER RCA DTC 100 WORKED FINE

Tom Snyder: Hmm.. I must have a bad one. 

JIM HALL: HERE'S THE RUNDOWN ON OUR CHANNEL MAPPING AND HD VS SD PLANS; 1.0 - 58 ANALOG. 1.1 - WILL ALWAYS BE HD

ToddW: Upconverted CBS 1080i, right ?

JIM HALL: YES 1.1 IS 1080I AT ALL TIMES

JIM HALL: 1.2 - 1.5 SDTV OR 480I

Steve Miller: I thought you could not do multicasting with HD !?!?!?!

JIM HALL: STEVE, WE CAN........

tc: will 1.1 always have programming on?

JIM HALL: BUT WHEN IN TRUE HD WE CAN DO HDTV PLUS ONE SDTV

Pat: Doesn't the broadcasting on 1-2 to 1-5 imply extra compression?

Steve Miller: When I watched the King of Queens this last Monday, don't get me wrong it looked great, but I saw a lot of noise in the background... not as clear as the Salt Lake on WTMJ

sarusk: I agree

JIM HALL: STEVE....YOU ARE RIGHT THE SALT LAKE GAMES DID LOOK BETTER......ANY ONE HAVE AN ANSWER AS TO WHY?

fritz: they did not use film

Steve Miller: No sub channels?

ToddW: HDNet ?

johnd: 16:9 screen

Pat: Edited?

Matt Heebner: video versus film?

JIM HALL: SORRY STEVE THAT 'S NOT IT MATT WINS !!!!!!

Steve Miller: dang it! Thought I had it figured out!

JIM HALL: THAT'S RIGHT...FILM VS VIDEO

Tom Snyder: So your local news will look really good in HiDef, eh?

GBPack4: Live Sports in HD

Matt Heebner: 24 fps versus up to 60 fps...right?

ToddW: Aren't the CBS Monday sitcoms shot in video ? They look great !

Tombo: That's probably why Leno looks better than CBS hd primetime

JIM HALL: OKAY ANOTHER QUESTION FOR ALL OF YOU. SOMEONE IN THE FORUM THOUGHT THAT WTMJ 'S HDTV LOOK BETTER THAN OURS LAST NIGHT DURING PRIME TIME........ANY IDEAS

Pat: Power output?

JIM HALL: NOPE

kjarnold: CBS college games in HD from Madison looks good. That must be it. Live pics

JIM HALL: NOPE

fritz: the cameras?

JIM HALL: NOPE

GBPack4: Live in 1080i

JIM HALL: NOPE

kjnorman: Lack of decompression and recompression through the station?

Steve Miller: uncle!

kjarnold: OK we give up. UNCLE he cried

johnd: Better computers?

Tombo: I hope it is fixable !!

JIM HALL: OKAY...HINT WHAT'S THE MAJOR DIFFERENCE IN OUR PICTURE IN PRIME VS NBC

Pat: Theirs is upconverted."

fritz: 720p or 1080i ?

JIM HALL: HINT.......HAVE YOU EVER COMPARED THE RESOLUTION OF A SMALL 13 TV TO YOUR BIG 60

GBPack4: Jim Hall = The Riddler !

Steve Miller: 13 is always better

JIM HALL: THAT'S RIGHT STEVE. WHY?

Steve Miller: the pic isn't being stretched out as much

fritz: artifacts are not magnified

ToddW: ... smaller pixels ?

Pat: Closer pixel spacing.

Steve Miller: tighter resolution

Tombo: Progressive scan versus interlaced

kjarnold: All those pixels magnified result in the lines showing on the screen.

JIM HALL: NOW APPLY THAT TO NBC'S PIC IN UPCONVERTED HDTV..????

Steve Miller: So WTMJ is showing a smaller picture?

Pat: Sounds worse to me.

JIM HALL: WE ARE 16X9 & NBC IS 4X3. STEVE WINS THAT ROUND

Steve Miller: ha, 

JIM HALL: OKAY LETS FINISH ON THE BAND ALLOCATION. DOES ANYONE KNOW THE DATA BAND WIDTH

fritz: feel like I am in school again

Steve Miller: I understand the concept

Pat: Presume variable.

ToddW: This is a great education. Please continue.

Tombo: 19mhz

JIM HALL: TOMBO IS RIGHT 19.2

Tombo: well 6mhz with 19 mbits inside

kjarnold: 19 mghz compressed to 6 mghz."

JIM HALL: KJAR...NOT THE SAME THING

kjarnold: ok

Pat: Uncompressed HD is 30mhz.

JIM HALL: PAT YOU ARE RIGHT...BUT THAT'S FOR SATELLITE DELIVERY. FOR CHANNEL 1.1 OR 46.1 THE BANDWIDTH WE ARE ALLOCATING IS 14.2. 1.1 IS ALWAYS AN HDTV 

Steve Miller: so that leaves you with 5 mghtz for what ever else...?

Tombo: Well if you allocate only 14.2 we will see pixelation during the UW game Friday night. 

JIM HALL: WE DID SOME TESTING AND WE DO NOT BELIEVE YOU WILL SEE MOTION ARTIFACTS

Tom Snyder: If we do, you'll read about it in our forums!

ToddW: ... the scrolling flowers during a multicast with 41.

JIM HALL: SO WHEN WE ARE BROADCASTING A TRUE HDTV SPORTS PROGRAM WE WILL BE HDTV PLUS ONE SDTV

Pat: I presume you are correct, but others report otherwise at other stations.

Tombo: I saw some with the NCAA demo game on CBS from Madison which also limits the bandwidth

JIM HALL: TOMBO...HOW DID IT LOOK

Steve Miller: Not to disagree, be we saw the motion artifacts on 4.1 during the salt lake games, and I would guess that they were using the whole bandwidth?

JIM HALL: HDTV IS NOT PERFECT GUYS - YOU HAVE MOTION BLUR NOW IN NTSC

Tombo: NBC had a NBA game with HDNET with no pixelation and they allocate all the bandwidth. This is why ABC likes 720P which is less demanding for sports.

Steve Miller: Just a comparison, but I watched the same clips on HDNET and WTMJ for the Ski Jumping, and saw the blur on WTMJ but not HDNET

JIM HALL: HD NET IS USING DIFFERENT STANDARDS...THEY HAVE MORE ROOM.....THE FCC ONLY GAVE US 6MHZ

Pat: Of course, motion blur corresponds with the way the eyes work. As opposed to blockiness."

Tombo: You will find out Friday. You could move that bandwidth over for special broadcasts. PBS does it all the time.

Steve Miller: oh, well that explains that...

JIM HALL: NOT TRUE PAT......DID YOU EVER FREEZE FRAME A PANNING CAMERA?

Tombo: I said WTMJ did the NBA game on super bowl Sunday

Pat: Yes, I would call it a blur, depending on shutter speed.

JIM HALL: YES ....IF WE SEE THAT THE PICTURE IS HAVING PROBLEMS WE WILL ALLOCATE UP

Pat: All right!!!

kjarnold: Great, appreciate that!!!

Tombo: Great because nobody will be watching the secondary channels on events like the NCAA game with UW.

JIM HALL: TOMBO......YOU SHOULD NOT BE SO QUICK TO JUDGE LIKES AND DISLIKES

JIM HALL: FOR THIS WEEK WE WILL HAVE ON 1.2 THE WIAA BASKETBALL GAMES. FOR THURSDAY WE WILL BE MULTICASTING THE NCAA. DURING THE NCAA GAMES ON THURSDAY THE BANDWIDTH WILL BE 4.2 PRE CHANNEL

kjarnold: Is Fridays WIS game in HD?

JIM HALL: YES FRIDAY WE WILL BE IN HDTV ALL DAY WITH THE GAMES AND SUNDAY WILL BE HDTV

GBPack4: PBS-HD is 710; multicast 711-715. similar CBS model?

JIM HALL: PACK 4 ...TTWC IS ANOTHER STORY...DO YOU GUYS ALL WANT TO DISCUSS THAT TOPIC

ToddW: Nope. No interest in cable here.

sarusk: yes

Steve Miller: No... 

Pat: No. 

Richard H: Certainly would be interested in learning what plans TW Digital has for picking up your signal

JoeK: Yes, I have little chance of pulling in OTA.

ToddW: Ditto, Steve.

fritz: TWC is important due to no OTA in the box

JIM HALL: PACK4.....IN SHORT TWC HAS FIBER DIRECTLY INTO THEIR STATION AND THEY ARE NOT PICKING WMVS UP OVER THE AIR

JIM HALL: BUT PBS IS ONLY SDTV

GBPack4: Will CBS-HD be hardlined to TWC, as in other cities?

GBPack4: Jim Hall, is that true... TWC is the only holdup?

Tombo: GBPack4 go talk to TimeWarner. They are the holdup.

Steve Miller: By they way, what are you guys calling yourselves now??? I mean is it going to be CBS1??

JIM HALL: WE ARE REVIEWING OUR BRANDING PLANS....BUT RIGHT NOW ITS CBS-58...ITS WHERE THE MASS IS

kjarnold: Any plans for HD origination?

JIM HALL: AT THIS TIME OUR PLANS ARE TO BROADCAST HDTV FROM THE NETWORK

Steve Miller: What are the plans to advertise to Joe Six Pack that you are now broadcasting and that he should go out and buy an HDTV set to pull you in?

JIM HALL: FOR JOE SIX PACK THE REALITY IS THIS STUFF COSTS MONEY... FOR YOU AND FOR US

Steve Miller: But I NEED to sells some TVs!!!!

JIM HALL: STEVE....ARE YOU A SALES REP? 

Steve Miller: I sell at American in Oak Creek, I am the enemy

GBPack4: Show CBS-HD on cable & you'll sell a lot more TV's

JIM HALL: WATCH TOMORROW AND YOU WILL SEE WHAT OPPORTUNITY AMERICAN HAD A CHANCE AT BUT MISSED

Steve Miller: What's that? Sponsorship?

JIM HALL: STEVE...YOU HAVE TO WATCH.....

ToddW: I'm guessing local ads on HD, Steve.

fritz: let me guess Flanners

JIM HALL: CAN'T JUST GIVE IT AWAY

Steve Miller: I will

JIM HALL: GOOD GUESS FRITZ, BUT THAT'S ANOTHER ONE THEY MISSED

Tombo: Maybe American will be advertising Sears with all there HDTVs having the CBS broadcast

Steve Miller: Don't say Best Buy???

kjarnold: Oh my god, Colders

Matt Heebner: naw, I don't think Colders even sells STB's

ToddW: Circuit City, Steve ;)))

Steve Miller: American and Sears are not in the Same advertising league...

Richard H: Jim....I'll try and ask this question again. I live in Shorewood...have a Terk 55-TV external antenna. Can get WTMJ-DT & PBS...but not you. Any reason for this? 

rnelson: I'm in Waterford and I get an 88 on TMJ but I can't get anything on 46. What can I do?

JIM HALL: OK... LET'S HELP RICHARD AND RNELSON. DID YOU TRY RESCANNING THE BAND IN SET-UP

Richard H: Tried and it didn't make a difference. Other channels came back up but not yours

rnelson: I can't get anything. Great picture on TMJ. 

JIM HALL: OKAY, WHAT KIND OF RECEIVERS TUNERS DO YOU GUYS HAVE

Richard H: I have an RCA HDTV Using TW-D and an external antenna for local

rnelson: I have an RCA Scenium 65 projection. Built in Direct TV and Digital Tuner.

fritz: Are you in a valley

rnelson: Not in the valley.

JIM HALL: DOES ANYONE HAVE RNELSON'S TUNER

rnelson: It's very a very new set. I had it trucked in from CA.

Steve Miller: WE have one on the floor at American...

MesaV: I have the same problem with the Sony SAT-HD100.

JIM HALL: STEVE DOES IT WORK AT THE STORE

Steve Miller: Yes. Very Nice TV. basically is the DTC-100 in the set.

JIM HALL: STEVE...HOW DOES IT MAP??? 1.1 ETC

Steve Miller: If I remember it is 1.1

rnelson: Yes. I've had it since Late November. Been getting TMJ and PBS from the start. Very stable.

JIM HALL: RNELSON.....DID YOU GO THROUGH AUTO SCAN

Steve Miller: Did you do Full Search or Quick Search?

rnelson: I get 4-1,10-1. If I tune to 1-1 I get low signal. That comes right away. Any other empty channel will take 6 seconds before I get the low signal message.

JIM HALL: RNELSON...WE ARE MAKING SOME PROGRESS

rnelson: When I do a scan I get 16 channels found. I only get the analog 58 to show up.

JIM HALL: RNELSON...GO TO THE PROGRAM GUIDE MENU AND TELL US WHAT YOU GET

Richard H: My situation is the same as rnelson

Richard H: I, too, have run a full scan and it only picks up 58 analog

ToddW: Richard, what tuner are you using ?

fritz: what time of day did you do the scan?

Richard H: I have an RCA HDTV - everything built in

JIM HALL: RICHARD...WHERE DO YOU LIVE

Richard H: using a Terk TV-55 antenna

Steve Miller: I would get rid of the TERK... 

Richard H: Live in Shorewood about a mile from WTMJ, WITI, PBS' towers. Next to Estabrook Park

ToddW: Hmmm ... all RCA's ?? Matt ?

Richard H: Replace the Terk with what? Get good reception from WTMJ & PBS

rnelson: I get 4-1,6,9,10,10-1,10-2,10-3,10-4,12,18,24,30,36,41,49,55,58 and 63.

tenth_t2: Terk55-- there's your problem. They are not too impressive in overall gain. Gain is what you need to receive stations.

MesaV: to tenth_t2 I have the same problem with a CM 4 Bay bow-tie in Waukesha

tenth_t2: Well, something like a 8 bow UHF or a reasonably sized combo from RS, Winegard, or Channelmaster would probably make a huge difference.

Steve Miller: I personally like Channelmaster

wozz: why do we problems with 58, and not 4 or 10

MesaV: My signal meter is 100 for NBC and 92 for PBS and 32 for CBS

tenth_t2: It's probably got to do with the overall length of the reception element

tenth_t2: Terks generally are optimized first to packaging, then to performance. Performance across many channels

kjarnold: The Rat Shack Yagi UHF antenna is supposed to be one of the best

tenth_t2: I can chat longer in the Equipment forum for what I've learned.

rnelson: I just checked, I'm getting an 88 on TMJ and 76 on PBS. Just finished scanning, Nothing New.

JIM HALL: RENELSON...ANTENNA INDOOR OR OUT

rnelson: I have a Radio Shack Indoor mounted in the ceiling of the Garage. 10db Gain digital antenna. .

JIM HALL: HAVE YOU TRIED MOVING IT AROUND?

Richard H: My Terk is indoor - in a big picture window on the 2nd floor

tenth_t2: ChannelMaster 4228 on the roof, 7778 PreAmp, lots of cable and distribution stuff

rnelson: I moved it around. Nothing seemed to help. I had the wife and kids watch the signal meter while I tuned it in.

JIM HALL: LET ME TELL YOU MY EXPERIENCE WITH HDTV ANTENNAS. I HAVE JUST PLAN RABBIT EARS, NOT UHF LOOP. THE ANTENNA NEEDS TO BE PARALLEL TO THE GROUND. MOVING IT AS LITTLE AS THREE INCHES CAN MAKE A HUGH DIFFERENCE

Richard H: Mine is parallel to the ground. Will trying moving it a little and see what happens

JIM HALL: ...AND IN THE DIGITAL MODE.....IT TAKES TIME FOR THE SIGNALS TO LOCK IN...ITS NOT LIKE THE OLD DAYS

tenth_t2: To Jim's comments, little changes make big differences. I've experimented a lot with antenna stuff, cable, and distribution. Trying to acquire something to assess signal strength that doesn't cost what a spectrum analyzer does. Post some questions in the equipment forum, I can address them one by one. You may get a signal at the antenna, then lose it in 60' of RG6 due to line losses.

JIM HALL: RNELESON...DID YOU SAY YU LIVE IN WATERFORD

rnelson: The paper work I get list the specifications as UHF 470 - 806 mhz VHF 55-216 mhz

rnelson: Actually Rochester but my mailing address is Waterford. 

JIM HALL: WHERE IS THAT

rnelson: Just 8 Miles North of Burlington in Racine. I live 25 miles from the CBS Antenna according to the web.

Steve Miller: By Burlington.. I am from Waterford

JIM HALL: YOU ARE WITHIN THE SIGNAL COVERAGE OF OUR CURRENT OPERATION...STEVE YOU GET US CORRECT???

Steve Miller: I live on the East Side of Milwaukee, now. But he should be able to get the signal out there

JIM HALL: RNELSON...GO TO THE PROGRAM GUIDE AND TELL ME WHAT YOU GET....I WANT TO SEE IF YOU ARE PICKING UP THE CHANNEL MAPPING OF 1.1 -1.5

rnelson: I get nothing on 1-anything. I just completed a new scan and nothing new shows up. Very nice picture on 4-1 and the PBS Channels.

JIM HALL: RNELSON.....ARE YOU USING ANY PRE-AMPS IN THE LINE

rnelson: I could get some picture on 4-1 with the signal as low as 45. I worked through this will turning the antenna trying to pick up something.

rnelson: The only amp is what's built in to the antenna.

rnelson: UHF 0-20db@470 mhz 650 mhz, 806 mhz."

tenth_t2: Remember, preamps amplify signal and noise.

Richard H: Am I further away from your antenna source in Shorewood than Waterford/Rochester?

JIM HALL: ONE BIG PROBLEM OUT THERE IS PEOPLE USING PRE-AMPS THAT ARE FOR CABLE FREQ. AND STOP AT CHANNEL 30 OR SO....THEN ALL THE OTHER U'S ARE BLOCKED.....COULD THAT BE THE PROBLEM

Steve Miller: Richard, if you go to www.antennaweb.org it will plot out the distance as a crow flies

jvlii: Just wondering if the signal strength will be strong enough to rec. in West Bend- Thanks Jim

JIM HALL: JVLLII....DO YOU HAVE HDTV EQUIP?

jvlii: Jim- yes I do- Tosh DST 3000 and HDTV Monitor. Antenna being installed Friday!

JIM HALL: WEST BEND....YES YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET US WITH THE RIGHT ANTENNA INSTALLATION

rnelson: Antennaweb gave me 25 miles to my home.

JIM HALL: RNELSON...YOU ARE IN OUR COVERAGE MAP

tenth_t2: Again, post these in the equipment forum after tonight, I'd be happy to dig into the possibility.

JIM HALL: RICHARD....ARE YOU USING PRE-AMPS

ToddW: Greg, could Richard's proximity to Estabrook park be 'stomping' on Jim's channel ?

wozz: I think my problem is the cable amp thing, I'm on 92nd & Dakota and have no problem with 4 or 10

tenth_t2: Again remember, Pre-Amps really are to compensate for after antenna line losses, splits, etc. They do not increase antenna gain at the reception source.

Steve Miller: Yeah, can you be too close to the tower?

JIM HALL: TODD...IT COULD BE...AT OUR SITE WE CAN WTMJ BUT WE CANNOT GET CHANNEL 10

tenth_t2: Absolutely. You can overboost or overload the HDTV tuner-- I have done that in my testing.

JIM HALL: WOZZ.....WE HAVE SEEN THIS SO MANY TIMES FROM PRO INSTALLERS TO RETAILERS SELLING THE WRONG THING

Richard H: Thanks, Steve...I'll do that now.

Richard H: Jim....Not using any pre-amps other than what is built into the Terk TV-55 antenna

JIM HALL: RRS....YOUR TUNER HAS FIRMWARE PROBLEMS,.....WE HAVE SEEN THIS BEFORE......WE ARE ON EITHER 46-1 OR 1-1

JIM HALL: RICHARD...TRY JUST USING PLAN OLD RABBIT EARS ON THE SET

RRS: What do I do?

JIM HALL: TAKE IT BACK, BUT BE POLITE.....THE STORE PROBABLY WON'T UNDERSTAND...IF ANY OF YOU NEED LETTERS FROM US WE BE HAPPY TO ASSIST FOR VERIFICATION

Richard H: I'll give that a try - are you referring to HDTV rabbit ears or just the old ones?

tenth_t2: Yes, the Terk will amplify signal and noise-- that may be overloading your tuner

JIM HALL: RICHARD...JUST THE OLD RABBIT EARS.....NO CIRCLE OR LOOP

ToddW: Wow, Jim. What a nice offer. Thanks.

Richard H: Okay, Jim....Thanks!

rnelson: Richard - Are you receiving TMJ ok?

JIM HALL: RICHARD....LET US KNOW HOW IT TURNS OUT...WE HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO MAKE HOUSE CALLS

Richard H: Rnelson: TMJ and Channel 10 come in fine.

RRS: Does a RCA DTC-100 replacement exist that has correct firmware? i.e. Should I ask for a replacement unit or my money back?

Richard H: Thank you again, Jim. I'll call if I still can't get it to work.

rnelson: We both have RCA Equipment, Could that be the problem?

wozz: This is the info I was looking for tonight, thanx jim

tenth_t2: 10 is 8--VHF, 4 is 28 UHF. 46 is another animal, much higher frequency

JIM HALL: RRS...YES THE RCA 100 HAS UNITS THAT WORK.....WE HAVE A COUPLE,

ToddW: I'm interested in guide info. Is anyone getting any ? I get 'Regular Program'.

JIM HALL: I HAVE THE RCA SET BUILT IN WITH DIRECTV....IT WORKS 

rnelson: I get guide info on TMJ."

Steve Miller: I get a Title most of the Time from CBS and NBC

JIM HALL: ON THE GUIDE INFO..........

Steve Miller: never anything from PBS

Richard H: Jim...did you say you are using just rabbit ears with your RCA HDTV?

ToddW: I have gotten nothing from CBS, however I do get program data from NBC and PBS.

JIM HALL: ......WE ARE NOT USING IT TONIGHT....WE STILL HAVE SOME PROBLEMS WITH OUR GUIDE SET-UP

ToddW: Thank you. I will keep watching for it.

jvlii: I just logged off!

JIM HALL: PBS DOES NOT HAVE THE GUIDE SOFTWARE AND COMPUTERS INSTALLED

Steve Miller: Jim, what equipment do you guys use there to pick up HD, what boxes and sets???

tenth_t2: Jim, what can a enthusiast use to accurately measure OTA signal strength? Do you do field tests as part of any FCC requirements? Is a spectrum analyzer the only way to do this effectively?

ToddW: Do you generate the data yourself, or use the Tribune stuff?

JIM HALL: THE DATA CAN BE ENTERED BY OURSELVES OR TRIB. BUT ITS ALL NEW TO THEM TOO

JIM HALL: TENT......THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.......

ToddW: I understand as far as PBS goes.

ToddW: I meant that I get more than 'Regular Program'

JIM HALL: WE HOPE TO HAVE THE GUIDES WORKING TOMORROW SO YOU ALL KNOW THE PROGRAM LINE-UPS

ToddW: Terrific, thanks Jim.

JIM HALL: WE TRIED TO GET IT INTO THE PAPER BUT THEY ARE NOT GIVING SPACE AT THIS TIME....NOT ENOUGH REQUESTS.....AND NOT ENOUGH SETS

JIM HALL: BACK TO THE OTA TESTING ?????

MesaV: Put it online

tenth_t2: It is at www.cbs.com

ToddW: I curious about OTA after the NCAA's

tenth_t2: Look to the HDTV link, it tells you what is being simulcast.

JIM HALL: WE BELIEVE THE SIGNAL METERS IN THE TUNERS ARE A COMBO RF LEVEL AND BIT ERROR RATE 

ToddW: What are your plans then ?

Richard H: I just logged off!

JIM HALL: OUR BASIC PLANS AFTER THE NCAA'S IS HDTV FOR THE NET AND UPCONVERT 1080I WHEN CBS IS NOT SENDING TRUE HDTV

Steve Miller: True 1080i News Cast?

JIM HALL: WE DID BUY SOME HDTV MOVIE PACKAGES. BUT THE HDTV MOVIES ARE A WAY OFF IN THE FUTURE...

Tom Snyder: Hope you didn't buy Chasing Rainbows

ToddW: Good one, Tom.

Steve Miller: ha ha, god please no

Tombo: Local news in HD would be great!

JIM HALL: TOMBO...PLEASE TELL ME WHY NEWS IN HDTV WOULD BE GOOD......I AM INTERESTED IN YOUR COMMENT

Tom Snyder: We're waiting for Fox to go HD so we can compare Tom Pipines's 5 O'Clock Shadow with Paul Piaskowski's ;)

JIM HALL: TOM ...GOOD ANSWER......

ToddW: Jim, for me, anything in HD is wanted. Local news is really a window into *our* world. For me, it would have been a great sense of pride to see the Calatrava addition opening in HD, for example.

Steve Miller: No offense Jim,, but right now I could really care less what Local News I watch 4,12, or 58, I refuse to watch 6 though... I would go for the HD news cast... 

kjarnold: A local 'HD capable truck would be awesome. Imagine the local sports that could be shown...and the promotional value. Of course this assumes the equipment is free.......

ToddW: Can you imagine the wings opening in HD ? Awesome !

Tombo: It is nice to see Milwaukee in HD or something close to HD and would definitely keep me watching CBS58. You would lead TMJ for once. Heck, I have been watching CBS shows now that I thought I would never watch because the quality is so good.

rnelson: Jim -- Before I go,, are you running on Full power any idea's why I can get TMJ so clear but nothing on 1-1. My Antenna cost $90 . . . Not exactly Cheap

JIM HALL: RNELSON......AS WE DISCUSSED EARLY WE ARE NOT AT THE SAME POWER LEVEL AS TMJ, BUT ARE APPROX THE SAME AS PBS

JIM HALL: I THINK THAT WATCHING UPCONVERTED NEWS IS AN IMPROVEMENT .....ITS THE CONTENT THAT SHOULD COUNT IN THIS CASE OVER HDTV / SDTV

ToddW: Sure. It is. Pure HD is yet another matter.

JIM HALL: RNELSON.......IF YOU WANT WE WILL MAKE A HOUSE CALL

kjarnold: Except for ch.6, the content of 4, 12, and 58 are very close. Then personalities come into play and beyond that production value.

ToddW: Agreed, Kevin.

rnelson: I would try anything. Just tell me what to do.

Steve Miller: I can't stand Fox6... Sorry I tried.. but I can't

JIM HALL: RNELSON.....IN CASE YOU MISSED THE OFFER....WE WILL MAKE A HOUSE CALL TO HELP YOU OUT AND MAY BE LEARN SOMETHING OURSELVES....LET US KNOW. YOU CAN CALL THE STATION TOMORROW AT 414-777-5800...ASK FOR ME

rnelson: Thanks Much Jim. I'll call tomorrow. I have many at work who are asking me about how thing are working out. I don't want to mislead them. We can't thank you enough. All of use have many people asking questions. Information is the key and having people like you who are willing to take the time to share are very special. Thanks.

ToddW: Jim, have you any insight regarding the NFL in 2002 ?

JIM HALL: TODD...NO INSIGHT TO THE NFL FOR HDTV BROADCASTS THIS COMING YEAR

ToddW: Thanks.

JIM HALL: ......BUT I WOULD GUESS THAT SINCE CBS ADDED THE HDTV BROADCAST FOR THE FIRST ROUND OF THE NCAA...THERE MAY BE A GAME OF THE WEEK TYPE THING DONE

ToddW: Oh, man. That would be awesome.

ToddW: Ok, there's been a lot of speculation around the internet on the Master's ? any idea ?

JIM HALL: YES THE MASTERS SHOULD BE IN HDTV.....!!!!!!!

ToddW: Excellent.

rnelson: Wow - - - Now I have to get it working!!!!!!!!!

Steve Miller: Jim, what equipment do you guys use there to pick up HD, what boxes and sets???

JIM HALL: ALL OF OUR HD COMES VIA SATELLITE FROM CBS....

Steve Miller: I meant to test your local signal

JIM HALL: STEVE......SORRY........DID YOU MEAN WHAT WE DID TO TEST OUR PLANT

Steve Miller: Yes. Just wondering what people in the industry use..

JIM HALL: DID YOU SEE THE HIGH DEF FLOWERS?

ToddW: Oh, yeah.

Tom Snyder: Do you mean the diagonal scrolling garden?

JIM HALL: THAT WAS A SPECIAL PIC FOR HIGH DEF THAT WE COULD PUT IN MOTION TO TEST ARTIFACTS.......

ToddW: Jim, my two-year-old loved them ... until they made her dizzy !! :)

Steve Miller: The LSD Tulip Garden

JIM HALL: ....WE ALSO HAVE COMPUTERS ATTACHED TO SEE THE BANDWIDTH THAT EACH CHANNEL IS USING FOR ANY GIVEN SCENE

JIM HALL: ...WE ALSO BOUGHT A BUNCH OF SET TOP CONVERTERS TO SEE HOW THEY WORK AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE

Steve Miller: That's what I was wondering about...

ToddW: Isn't a data component possible on your stream too, Jim ?

JIM HALL: TODD...YES DATACASTING IS POSSIBLE. IN ESSENCE WE ARE DOING SOME DATA CASTING RIGHT NOW.....ANY GUESS?

ToddW: PSIP ?

Steve Miller: The Guide Info?

JIM HALL: TODD...CORRECT AND WE ARE DATA CASTING THE VCT'S OR 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5. FOR REFERENCE, THE DATA BANDWIDTH FOR THE VCT'S ARE 198KBPS.....ITS REALLY SMALL

ToddW: Basically bonded ISDN.

ToddW: How do you handle emergency broadcast when we are watching HD ?

JIM HALL: GOOD QUESTION TODD........WE SWITCH OVER TO THE UPCONVERT FROM THE MAIN CHANNEL

kjarnold: Jim, is your background in engineering?

JIM HALL: YES.......I STARTED SWEEPING FLOORS AND CHANGING LIGHTS ONCE UPON A TIME AT A LOCAL STATION HERE

kjarnold: Would that be 18???

JIM HALL: THAT'S THE SECOND STATION I WORKED AT...BUT I DID IT THERE TOO

JIM HALL: TODD...ON THE EBS......WE HAVE TO RELY ON THE OP FOR EBS OR AS THEY CALL IT NOW EAS

kjarnold: Looks like things are winding down. Do you want to close it out now?

JIM HALL: IF THERE ARE NO OTHER QUESTIONS LAST CALL

Tom Snyder: We're really happy you spent as much time here as you did...

ToddW: Thanks for the promo with Tim Cuprisin, also, Jim.

JIM HALL: YOU ARE WELCOME.......IF YOU GUYS RECIPROCATE....I WILL GIVE YOU A HOT LINK FROM OUR SITE

ToddW: Consider it done.

JIM HALL: BTW DID YOU ALL SIGN UP FOR OUR NCAA TOURNAMENT ON LINE

kjarnold: No question, we'd like to do that.

JIM HALL: ......YOU COULD WIN ANOTHER HDTV SET

ToddW: I'm doing my brackets tomorrow.

ToddW: Duke has it, though. Kansas #2.

JIM HALL: MAKE SURE YOU DO IT BEFORE TIP OFF CLOSES AT 11AM

JIM HALL: QUESTION.....DO YOU WATCH THE SPORTS ON WMLW TV-41

ToddW: Almost every time it's on. Love Marquette.

kjarnold: Yes I do. Watched the girls tourney at the office part time

Tom Snyder: Only when my son is on... state football playoffs last fall

JIM HALL: TOM...WAS THIS A GAME WE PRODUCED LOCALLY?

Tom Snyder: Yup

kjarnold: And plan to peek at the boys tourney tomorrow. Will it be simulcast on 1-2?

JIM HALL: KJA...1.2 WILL HAVE THE WIAA THIS WEEK 

kjarnold: Is there any way we can let the 41 advertisers know we watched 41?

JIM HALL: WELL IF YOU ALL LIKE WHAT WE DO WITH THE PROGRAMMING ON WMLW......AND YOU ARE CABLE SUBS OF TWC......AND YOU WOULD LIKE WMLW ON TWC...LET THEM KNOW.......

Tom Snyder: ..and WDJT HD on TWC as well

JIM HALL: YES TOM...THAT TOO

ToddW: Screen Gems Network, right Jim ?

JIM HALL: YES WE HAVE SCREEN GEMS.....THE OLD CLASSICS

kjarnold: Family Feud

ToddW: Love the game shows too. Especially 'I've got a Secret'.

ToddW: Kinda why I was hoping for carriage on 1-2 after the NCAA's. :)

JIM HALL: TODD......THE NCAA MULTIS ARE ON TOO!!!!!!!

kjarnold: 41 is what 58 started out to be. Lots of syndicated programs and lots of local sports. I remember before CBS when 58 had the boys football championship. Arrowhead was in it.

ToddW: Sorry Kev, Menomonee Falls rules ;)

kjarnold: Sigh

ToddW: Just kidding.

JIM HALL: ......HERE'S THE PLAN FOR THE NCAA...."

ToddW: I'll be watching, probably taking my STB into my office.

JIM HALL: THURSDAY 1.1HD - DARK

JIM HALL: 1.2 WIAA

JIM HALL: 1.3 NCAA

JIM HALL: 1.4 NCAA

JIM HALL: AND 1.5 NCAA

JIM HALL: FRIDAY 1.1 HD - ALL DAY

JIM HALL: FRIDAY 1.2 WIAA

JIM HALL: THEN THIS REPEATS SAT/SUN

kjarnold: Damn, have to take a day off. Cut it out Jim. Look at what people are missing.

ToddW: Nice. Really nice. Who has the NIT this year ?

JIM HALL: TODD...NIT IS ESPN

ToddW: Ok. Our teams are on 58 / 1 anyway.

ToddW: By the way Jim, liked the piece you did with/for Rock regarding HD at about 7:20

kjarnold: ESPN HD on TWC ;-)

JIM HALL: SOME OTHER QUESTIONS THAT I SAW POSTED ON OUR SITE. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE AUDIO THE OTHER NIGH DURING KING/QUEENS

kjarnold: I heard that. Switched to the analog feed. Yes King of Queens

JIM HALL: ANSWER......WE HAD A FRAME SYNC THAT LOCKED UP ON THE EMBEDDED AUDIO

kjarnold: WVCY has one. 18 & 24 are listed on titan TV as being up for 9-1-02

JIM HALL: KJA...CORRECT UNTIL WE COULD SWITCH FRAME SYNCS.

JIM HALL: ON THE OTHER EXTENSIONS....I DON'T KNOW THE PLANS FOR THE OTHER STATIONS, BUT I DO KNOW THE WEB POSTING FROM THE FCC ARE BEHIND

kjarnold: Couldn't find waiver for them on FCC

JIM HALL: TITAN...MAY BE MORE CORRECT......

kjarnold: They don't have much if anything in HD anyway.

JIM HALL: ALSO...THE WAVIER THAT YOU GUYS POSTED FROM ON YOUR SITE WAS THE WRONG CALL LETTERS FOR CHANNEL 24.....

kjarnold: Unless they buy some movies. Sinclair doesn't seem like the type.

ToddW: I'm most concerned about WISN next. I've heard Super Bowl in 720p in 2003.

JIM HALL: I THOUGHT WE HAD AN AGREEMENT THAT YOU GUYS WOULD ONLY WATCH 58 DT FROM HERE ON

kjarnold: Like channel 24 did when they broadcast Selectv. Put up antennas for people tuned for 24 and nothing else.

kjarnold: When will you sell the 46 DT only yagis

ToddW: I had SelecTV. Love that key on the front panel ... :)

kjarnold: Any info on their tower mess? They had a run in with you, didn't they. Had to build a bridge or something.

JIM HALL: YES...WE HAD TO BUILD A BRIDGE.......

JIM HALL: QUESTION FOR ALL OF YOU.......I AM REALLY SURPRISED THERE IS NOT MORE TALK ABOUT THE AUDIO. HOW COME?????

ToddW: Well, I think that it's content based.

ToddW: Correct me, but most of CBS' programming is dialog.

kjarnold: Probably since improved audio has been around awhile on DVD's and some tapes. It seems we blow our wad on the set and wait to pick up the audio equipment to go with it.

JIM HALL: ARE ANY OF YOU WATCHING OR WATCHED LETTERMAN LAST NIGHT

ToddW: Had to catch Nicole Kidman in HD, sorry.

kjarnold: I watched Letterman

Tombo: I watched Letterman. Too bad CBS does not do it in HD since Leno is.

kjarnold: Get him in HD. Have you visited AVS forum. Bob Ross of CBS posts there regularly and has info on why Letterman isn't in HD

Tom Snyder: Caught the last half of Letterman

kjarnold: They just updated the Letterman control room and weren't planning on going to HD. The Morning show has HD cameras and a HD ready control room but is has SD equipment. They ran out of money to put in the HD

Tombo: Speaking of audio, I heard of a few people buying set top box for dolby now and saving money for TV later.

JIM HALL: EVEN THOUGH IT IS UPCONVERTED AT THE XTMR SITE...WE ARE DOING SOME SPECIAL AUDIO PROCESSING AND CORRECTION TO MAKE THE DTV CAST SOUND BETTER.

JIM HALL: HERE'S THE RULE OF THUMB FOR WHAT'S HD ON CBS. ALL DRAMAS. MOVIES, SITCOMS ARE SHOT IN FILM. THE NETWORK THEM MAKES A NTSC COPY AND A HDTV COPY. CBS THEN RUNS TWO SEPARATE MC ROOMS, ONE SDTV AND ONE HDTV. NEWS, REALITY SHOWS AND MOST SPORTS ARE SHOT IN REGULAR VIDEO.

ToddW: ... what I wouldn't give for Survivor HD ...

kjarnold: They'd have to buy 24 HD portable camera. Just a few bucks

ToddW: I know. Can dream, right ?

JIM HALL: NO....THEY SHOULD HAVE SHOT SURVIVOR IN FILM........BUT THAT'S EXPENSIVE......THEY SHOOT MILES OF TAPE TO GET ONE HOUR

ToddW: I've heard that.

ToddW: ... maybe Big Brother 3 HD ??;D

Tom Snyder: Big Brother 3 HD 3D!

JIM HALL: ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?

kjarnold: It's late, we should wrap it up. Thanks a lot Jim, this was great.

ToddW: You have outdone yourself, Jim. 

Tom Snyder: I'll say! Thanks a million

Tombo: Thanks Jim. 

JIM HALL: YOU ARE WELCOME AND THANKS.