Right on both counts Bob. You can still watch free TV if you have a digital TV or converter, but it requires a stronger more steady signal. Weak and fading analog signals may be annoying- but as long as there is any signal- you can still see/hear something- and can then monkey with the antenna and maybe get it to come in better- but with digital if a signal is not of a certain level you get nothing- you don't even know a signal is there.
Another annoyance is that you can't simply "tune around" and look for stations as with the old sets- you have to use the sets "search routine" where the TV or converter does a band sweep and then records "whats available" in a memory- then you can only choose from this list. But this list may exclude stations that are receivable at certain times (like late at night) or with the antenna turned a certain way.
As with many things about modern technology, it seems people have less control- you can only do things the way the set or gadget wants them done. In the "old days" if I wanted to modify the way something worked I could open it up- and change a resister or capacitor to a different value to effect the change- now a days all the circuitry is sealed up in chips- and there is nothing you can change about the operation of a gadget except what the manufacturer lets you change.
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