Techno newb is cutting the cable

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Comments

  • I think your quality estimate re: crap is LOW.
  • Milo wrote: »
    I think your quality estimate re: crap is LOW.

    You're absolutely correct.

    To be honest, I have a huge problem with watching shows with ads. I can't do it. I just can't.

    Last night I was trying really hard to watch some stupid show I wasn't enjoying with my wife. When I saw the same ad for some cheapo optician 3 times during the same ad break, I broke. They put it on twice in a row, showed a different ad then showed the one driving me crazy again.

    My wife thought my ranting about it was pretty funny though because it had some hot blonde in crazy tight jeans standing in this really weird pose while talking about the glasses. I just couldn't be won over.
  • DrTyore wrote: »
    Anyone still paying for cable TV is a chump

    That's all there is to be said. If you're one, you're either willfully throwing money away, or too "old-timey" to understand this new confangled technology.

    Mark

    Nope, wayyyyy to much of a generalization imo... I consider myself somewhat "tech" savy, however my wife is not nor does she want to be. She does however luvvvv her whole home pvr, records everything, (except live hockey which is crap streamed compared to cable HD). For the same reason Bill does, she hates all the repetitive ads.

    Mark, you are getting "old-timey" yourself and if you had a wife who wanted something YOU would understand. Quit trying to assume others have the same needs or wants as you. Man, for a social worker, you don't have a lot of empathy for those with a different point of view.
  • The thing is..

    Cable really is an outdated technology, and Rogers is incredibly brutal for its unethical treatment of its customers. The cable TV model is outdated, overpriced, and inconvenient. However, my mother (69 years old), when she calls gets upsold on stuff she never uses. They totally gouge people who subscribe, and then when people want certain other aspects (sports, specialty channels, etc.), they bundle and package them to force more content on you that you pay for, but don't want.

    I don't have a problem with people choosing their way of getting their media, but recognize that Rogers is a literal monster of a company that coaxes and scares their clientele into line. I tried to cancel their Internet? They tried fear-mongering me into staying because "other providers can't guarantee the same level of consistency". This kinda stuff is straight out lies, and should frankly be illegal. The fact that the government is pushing legislation to prevent these kind of practices backs that up. Remember negative billing (I know, that was Bell), but they're going to keep doing this until we as consumers stop paying them.

    Essentially, with the tech where it's at now, we should all be able to have one cell phone, with a plan that allows all our media needs (i.e. no need for modems and routers - an iPhone can handle that). Sure, it gets messy with more uses / location, but it's ridiculous that we pay 3x for the same essential thing.

    Mark
  • ^ agree with that post 100% Mark.

    Cable is so far behind it is ridiculous, and they have no reason to improve it because there is no competition.

    Look at this shit, how is this acceptable in 2014:

    senbbq.jpg

    And as long as there are no other options, they can say fuck you when you call for customer support, fuck you when you call to change something, basically fuck you in general. (insert south park nipple twist.gif here)

    The game will 100% for sure change into an on-demand internet driven product eventually, but in the meantime they are literally going to squeeze every last dollar out of this ancient business model - and there is really nothing stopping them from doing it.
  • DrTyore wrote: »
    The thing is..

    Cable really is an outdated technology, and Rogers is incredibly brutal for its unethical treatment of its customers. The cable TV model is outdated, overpriced, and inconvenient. However, my mother (69 years old), when she calls gets upsold on stuff she never uses. They totally gouge people who subscribe, and then when people want certain other aspects (sports, specialty channels, etc.), they bundle and package them to force more content on you that you pay for, but don't want.

    Mark

    Not gonna try to defend any providers predatory practices, that goes without saying, however cable is actually the only way in Canada, except for southern Ontario and other pockets around Canada where we can hope to provide enough bandwidth to support current needs. Just not enough population density in 90% of Canada for it using any other technology.
    If it's so simple why aren't you teaching and supporting your mother in streaming everything she needs/wants?
  • compuease wrote: »
    Not gonna try to defend any providers predatory practices, that goes without saying, however cable is actually the only way in Canada, except for southern Ontario and other pockets around Canada where we can hope to provide enough bandwidth to support current needs. Just not enough population density in 90% of Canada for it using any other technology.
    If it's so simple why aren't you teaching and supporting your mother in streaming everything she needs/wants?

    Haha.. you need to meet my mother!

    Honestly, I'm not trying to be all ornery or nothing to any of the members - I kinda hate that because of the various goings on around here I now have that kinda rep - I'm just saying, since we are in the blessed area of Canada that can support this, we should not be giving money to a fuck of a corporation like Rogers. I cancelled every service I have with them, and advocate others to do the same because of their underhanded practices.

    Mark
  • DrTyore wrote: »
    The thing is..

    Cable really is an outdated technology, and Rogers is incredibly brutal for its unethical treatment of its customers. The cable TV model is outdated, overpriced, and inconvenient. However, my mother (69 years old), when she calls gets upsold on stuff she never uses. They totally gouge people who subscribe, and then when people want certain other aspects (sports, specialty channels, etc.), they bundle and package them to force more content on you that you pay for, but don't want.

    Amen . . . except that I believe the "bundling is enforced by the CRTC as a means of subsidizing such quality programming as Ice Road Truckers, or Cold Water Cowboys, etc.

    I don't have a problem with people choosing their way of getting their media, but recognize that Rogers is a literal monster of a company that coaxes and scares their clientele into line. I tried to cancel their Internet? They tried fear-mongering me into staying because "other providers can't guarantee the same level of consistency". This kinda stuff is straight out lies, and should frankly be illegal. The fact that the government is pushing legislation to prevent these kind of practices backs that up. Remember negative billing (I know, that was Bell), but they're going to keep doing this until we as consumers stop paying them.

    Essentially, with the tech where it's at now, we should all be able to have one cell phone, with a plan that allows all our media needs (i.e. no need for modems and routers - an iPhone can handle that). Sure, it gets messy with more uses / location, but it's ridiculous that we pay 3x for the same essential thing.

    Mark


    Pretty much agree with you, Mark, except for the bolded portion above. I would abolish the CRTC as a first step toward liberating the medium/spectrum
  • If you are suggesting that cellular can provide all our multimedia needs I'm afraid that is just not possible with current service levels. Cable is still the cheapest and most efficient means of providing it. Now I am certainly not defending cabling companies nor their business models but cellular just doesn't cut it both from a cost per mb of data nor from a coverage perspective.
    Do you have another method in mind?

    As for the totally crazy amount of advertising minutes per hour of programming you are absolutely right, it is out of control. But do realize that if we all go to streaming everything for free then who is going to pay for producing shows, movies, sports events, etc?
  • We need to get Mark married in some shape or fashion. Just to see if that changes his outlook or strengthens it.

    Comp. That's our next project. Let's get on it soon. Could be a grim winter for me work wise and I might have time on my hands. We'll have to see what happens.
  • Cogeco waived the fees, so I'll stay with them as to their credit, there has been very little downtime for the past decade and thousands of hours of online poker. My family just won't be able to stream unlimited One Direction, or porn. ;)
    compuease wrote: »
    Cogeco has unlimited packages as well. It's also simple to monitor your usage with Cogeco. I'm not on an unlimited plan, actually only 150GB...
    I have the old "Turbo 14" package for $53/month, with 125 GB and up to 14 Mbps (up to 20 Mbps for compuease's Turbo 20). Has any Cogeco customer here upgraded to the "Ultimate 55" (or higher) package for 275 GB, up to 55 Mbps? Was the speed difference noticeable and worth paying ~$74/month?
  • Milo wrote: »
    Also, it is not my job to make them "feel like a rock star". So long as I am polite, and even tempered in my dealings with them, that should be sufficient to have my questions or service requests responded to in a timely fashion.

    That's the wrong headspace/meta game
    If a penny saved is a penny earned, I make literally hundreds of dollars an hour doing this. So, yes, it IS a job, and a very well-paying one.


    To be honest, I have a huge problem with watching shows with ads. I can't do it. I just can't.

    ThisX1000000000!
    When I first moved out on my own this killed me. "I am paying them to get advertised to…"

    I started out canceling cable every summer, and worked my way up to being cable-free. Maybe you guys could convince the wives doing something similar is a health-choice, and give your ladies some time to get accustomed to looking for key shows online?

    Ps. The shocking amount of "My Girl no computer good" itt is hurting my heart.

    We need to get Mark married in some shape or fashion. Just to see if that changes his outlook or strengthens it.

    Comp. That's our next project. Let's get on it soon. Could be a grim winter for me work wise and I might have time on my hands. We'll have to see what happens.

    Thanks to the Internet that's also become an outdated/obsolete practice for Mark...POF is awash in girls who give it up quickly, and he eats nothing that requires more than 10 mins prep.
    Very tough sell.
  • PPS. No more knocking Mark's Mom, or I'm gonna have to start bashing heads.

    Mrs. B makes the world's best macNcheese, and somehow always managed to convince me that getting up at 5 am, after passing out drunk on her couch, for a tour of her garden that NEVER CHANGED followed by sudoku or an hour or two of her LEGENDARY cribbage slow rolls, would be fun...and she was right.
    Top. Shelf. Lady.
  • Kristy wrote: »
    Ps. The shocking amount of "My Girl no computer good" itt is hurting my heart.

    But it's not like we're being neanderthalic (is that a word?) primitives here Kristy. My wife uses a Mac very successfully for what she wants to do with it. She just has no interest in getting 'heavily' into the finer nuances of the tech world and prefers to keep the whole TV thing the way it's been for her for decades. She didn't even like it when we got a PVR and had to figure that out.

    Who am I to say "NO, you must adopt this new technology and learn how to stream video via the interweb" when she'd rather not? I'd think that would be a bit more primitive?
  • Kristy wrote: »
    PPS. No more knocking Mark's Mom, or I'm gonna have to start bashing heads.

    Mrs. B makes the world's best macNcheese, and somehow always managed to convince me that getting up at 5 am, after passing out drunk on her couch, for a tour of her garden that NEVER CHANGED followed by sudoku or an hour or two of her LEGENDARY cribbage slow rolls, would be fun...and she was right.
    Top. Shelf. Lady.

    Bahaha

    Had her mac and cheese yesterday.. and "In my KITTY I have... oooooh" haunts my nightmares.

    Mark
  • I went without cable TV for years. I could go without it right now forever. My wife on the other hand likes to just have the TV on in the background with random shows coming on while she's working on her artwork. I tend to prefer silence until I'm actually interested in watching something on TV.

    Generally, I think 90% of what's on cable is absolute crap and I could also find everything I want to watch on the web. Each family situation is different though. If I tried telling my wife that we were going to be streaming everything via the web using software she won't want to bother understanding... Panic would quickly ensue... Followed by stressful days ahead.

    I'm no chump for not being interested an option with benefits that don't outweigh the potential problems I'd rather not deal with. I'm infinitely more net/tech savvy than my wife. I can't/won't force an interest on her that she has no desire for.

    for the record, i have not had cable for years. my gf used to just leave it on in the background as well. drove me crazy with crap television on all the time. i'm so happy we don't have it anymore. we just stream or download movies and tv now when we occasionally watch.
  • trigs wrote: »
    for the record, i have not had cable for years. my gf used to just leave it on in the background as well. drove me crazy with crap television on all the time. i'm so happy we don't have it anymore. we just stream or download movies and tv now when we occasionally watch.

    I've become quite skilled at simply blotting it out when there's something reasonably stupid on, but there are shows that I simply can't ignore due to their outright horribility. At this point, I can't resist voicing my opinion or I just simply have to leave the room.

    Match Game is simply one of the worst products wasting energy in the world of television. I absolutely hate it. There is not one funny word said, nor any entertainment value whatsoever contained within the confines of it's torturous duration.

    My wife loves it.
  • But it's not like we're being neanderthalic (is that a word?) primitives here Kristy. My wife uses a Mac very successfully for what she wants to do with it. She just has no interest in getting 'heavily' into the finer nuances of the tech world and prefers to keep the whole TV thing the way it's been for her for decades. She didn't even like it when we got a PVR and had to figure that out.

    Who am I to say "NO, you must adopt this new technology and learn how to stream video via the interweb" when she'd rather not? I'd think that would be a bit more primitive?

    Ask yourself this--
    If you had a male roommate/friend with whom you split the bills evenly...would you tolerate, "I don' wanna; it's TOO HARD!!!!" And pay the $100/month?

    You are being more tolerant because she is a woman. In b4 "I wanna get laid/not stabbed, but how many of you would agree to let your wife spend $100/month on something feminine...say Kitten figurine of the month, as easily as you'll accept that she's uncomfortable with technology?

    No excuses… "It isn't hard, it will take you a week or two to get used to it."
  • DrTyore wrote: »
    Bahaha

    Had her mac and cheese yesterday.. and "In my KITTY I have... oooooh" haunts my nightmares.

    Mark

    I say that every time I play cribbage now...complete with the ooooOOOooo
    It is a sickness.
  • I've become quite skilled at simply blotting it out when there's something reasonably stupid on, but there are shows that I simply can't ignore due to their outright horribility. At this point, I can't resist voicing my opinion or I just simply have to leave the room.

    Match Game is simply one of the worst products wasting energy in the world of television. I absolutely hate it. There is not one funny word said, nor any entertainment value whatsoever contained within the confines of it's torturous duration.

    My wife loves it.

    yeah, i can ignore some depending, but a lot of her shows she used to watch were just terrible (for example, "19 kids and counting", "hoarders", "housewives of who the fuck cares", that one about little children in beauty pageants, etc.). she allegedly watches them because she "likes how bad they are" whatever the hell that means. i'm so glad i don't have to watch that stuff anymore.
  • trigs wrote: »
    yeah, i can ignore some depending, but a lot of her shows she used to watch were just terrible (for example, "19 kids and counting", "hoarders", "housewives of who the fuck cares", that one about little children in beauty pageants, etc.). she allegedly watches them because she "likes how bad they are" whatever the hell that means. i'm so glad i don't have to watch that stuff anymore.

    For Christ sake, you're making me angry just reading that list of shows! I hate every single one of them and my wife watches every single one of them you just listed. There's something funny going on here..
  • Yep.

    Coming up next on The Learning Channel: (insert fucking retarded mind numbing show name here)
  • Bfillmaff wrote: »
    Yep.

    Coming up next on The Learning Channel: (insert fucking retarded mind numbing show name here)

    i remember when the learning channel actually had shows on it that taught you things. guess there's no money in educational television. just give the masses their crap to watch.
  • trigs wrote: »
    yeah, i can ignore some depending, but a lot of her shows she used to watch were just terrible (for example, "19 kids and counting", "hoarders", "housewives of who the fuck cares", that one about little children in beauty pageants, etc.). she allegedly watches them because she "likes how bad they are" whatever the hell that means. i'm so glad i don't have to watch that stuff anymore.
    For Christ sake, you're making me angry just reading that list of shows! I hate every single one of them and my wife watches every single one of them you just listed. There's something funny going on here..

    Don't worry--I'll translate.
    I watched 19 kids and counting because I LOVE big families, and there's something soothing about seeing a woman thrive in the role we were raised to play...(and I enjoy heckling their ideas on science/life.)

    I watch hoarders because it makes me feel better about my house/life even though I feel like, as hard as I work I will never be a perfect homemaker.

    I watch toddlers in tiaras to feel better about the type of mother I am.

    I watch real housewives of... To feel good about the type of woman I am.

    (I don't actually watch all of these shows...only 19kac. Just demonstrating the perspective. It helps women feel control of the massive list of expectations on her due to the post-feminism infant-state of changing expectations and her new, undefined role.)

    Basically, if your wife/gf watches these a lot. You should consider telling her how amazing she is more often. You're not doing anything wrong...it is just helpful to hear that you know that, sometimes, being a "competent" woman today, is a pretty impossible feat.
  • Kristy wrote: »
    Don't worry--I'll translate.
    I watched 19 kids and counting because I LOVE big families, and there's something soothing about seeing a woman thrive in the role we were raised to play...(and I enjoy heckling their ideas on science/life.)

    I watch hoarders because it makes me feel better about my house/life even though I feel like, as hard as I work I will never be a perfect homemaker.

    I watch toddlers in tiaras to feel better about the type of mother I am.

    I watch real housewives of... To feel good about the type of woman I am.

    (I don't actually watch all of these shows...only 19kac. Just demonstrating the perspective. It helps women feel control of the massive list of expectations on her due to the post-feminism infant-state of changing expectations and her new, undefined role.)

    Basically, if your wife/gf watches these a lot. You should consider telling her how amazing she is more often. You're not doing anything wrong...it is just helpful to hear that you know that, sometimes, being a "competent" woman today, is a pretty impossible feat.

    This is getting complicated. I'm not sure I agree with the what I call "step laddering" effect of watching others failures to feel better about oneself, but let me ponder this for the day and maybe it'll sink in.

    I've never translated stepladdering behaviour in this manner, I've only applied it in the past to people negatively interacting with others for the purpose of making themselves feel better based on their own insecurities (eg. bullying at school).

    Anyhoo, cable.
  • Anyhoo, cable.
    Enjoying this discussion immensely... But it's "cable tho" ;)
  • This is getting complicated. I'm not sure I agree with the what I call "step laddering" effect of watching others failures to feel better about oneself, but let me ponder this for the day and maybe it'll sink in.

    I've never translated stepladdering behaviour in this manner, I've only applied it in the past to people negatively interacting with others for the purpose of making themselves feel better based on their own insecurities (eg. bullying at school).

    Anyhoo, cable.

    You have to make a broad generalization either way. You think "women have 0 taste, and that's why these dumb shows are popular?" Is better?

    It is exactly like bullying, but without the guilt of actively creating a victim.
  • Kristy wrote: »
    You have to make a broad generalization either way. You think "women have 0 taste, and that's why these dumb shows are popular?" Is better?

    It is exactly like bullying, but without the guilt of actively creating a victim.

    Ha, not at all Kristy. I just happen to live with my wife. I've lived with male room mates who watched equally terrible TV for sure.

    I have no idea why those shows are popular. Others as well. For example "Two and a half men" or "Big Bang Theory". Really popular, I absolutely can't stand either of them.
  • I should have stayed out of this thread. Rogers is punishing me now. Cel reception has been crap all day and for the last half hour we had no interweb or cable tv.
  • Noone has had cable teevees for 10 years tho
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