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Nokia's Elop responds to Google's 'Two turkeys' tweet
Like it or not, you have to hand it to Stephen Elop, Nokia's new CEO. The man isn't afraid to shake things up and clean house to meet his vision of the future. And now that he's made Windows Phone 7 Nokia's "primary smartphone platform" in what he sees as a three-way race between Microkia, Googloid, and Apple (sorry HP and RIM), the man's free to unleash his mild-mannered Canadian fury upon Google's Vic Gundotra (via proxy). As you'll recall, Vic insulted the rumored partnership earlier in the week by tweeting, "two turkeys do not make an Eagle." If you don't understand Elop's twitter-burn then we urge you to visit one of Dayton Ohio's fine historical museums while eating a slice of Cassano's pizza -- we hear it's delicious. [Thanks, Jack]
TWC definitely bringing new HD channels to Dayton / Cincinnati, Ohio
We knew that Time Warner Cable was pretty close to locking down some serious HD additions in Dayton and Cincinnati, Ohio, and now we've been informed that both system lineups are go for viewing. In Dayton, users will see SciFi HD (778), USA HD (779), Animal Planet HD (780), Science HD (781), ESPNews HD (782) and Golf Channel HD (783). Over in Cincy, locals will find the same networks but on different slots (detailed after the break). Happy New Year, indeed. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Thanks, Dayton Guy]
TWC lines up a new batch of HD additions for Southwest Ohio
Time Warner Cable came through on its promise to bring 14 new high-definition channels to Cincinnati, Ohio this month, so we don't see any reason why it'll let locals down in December. According to a blurb on the carrier's website, it is "currently involved in discussions" to bring a whole heap of new HD channels to Southwest Ohio. If agreements can be nailed down within the next few weeks, residents could see USA HD, Sci-Fi HD, MSNBC HD, Bravo HD, Science Channel HD, Animal Planet HD, ESPNews HD, FX HD, Weather Channel HD, Golf Channel HD, Versus HD, Big Ten Network HD, Cinemax HD and Starz HD. Cross your fingers for a Christmas miracle.[Thanks, Dayton Guy]
Dayton, Ohio broadcasters begin analog shutoff drills
You can now add Dayton, Ohio to the list of towns across America running analog shutoff drills to ensure that procrastinating locals, um, get the message. At approximately 6:58PM local time this evening, the city's five stations -- WBDT-TV, WDTN-TV, WHIO-TV, WKEF-TV, and WRGT-TV -- will broadcast a 60-second announcement in which viewers will be tasked to "look for a message which will only be visible on the digital signal." If they can spot the message, they're suitably prepped for February 17, 2009; if not, they'll be given a phone number to frantically call for help. We're told that tonight's test will be the first of a long line of drills taking place over the next 13 weeks, and given that a swath of folks will likely be out getting their Friday night party on, that's probably a good thing.[Thanks, Dayton Guy]
AT&T Total Home DVR rollout reaches final ten markets, it's really over
Got U-Verse? Then you should have the Total Home DVR record on one box / stream to all functionality now that AT&T's rollout has finished ahead of schedule. Up in all 69 markets where the IPTV service has a foothold, the final ten markets launched today were: Bakersfield, Dayton, Green Bay, Jacksonville, Little Rock, Miami, South Bend, Tulsa, West Palm Beach and Wichita. Honestly, we're not sure what AT&T (or us for that matter) will do now that it's over, the leading candidates are a "Remember the Rollout" reunion tour in early '09, or the somewhat less likely possibility that confused AT&T techs start adding the functionality to random areas without U-Verse service.
Time Warner Cable adding 13 new HD channels in Dayton, Ohio
Are you stoked, Dayton? You should be. Time Warner Cable has just sent out fliers to select customers in the region noting that a baker's dozen worth of HD channels are on the way, which will bring the grand total in the area to 46. Reportedly, the outfit will be pretty much finishing off its switched digital video (SDV) transition, as all 13 of the newcomers will be delivered via the bit-saving method. Ready to check out the exhaustive list? Head on past the break, you lucky, lucky Ohioan. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Thanks, Dayton Guy]
LIN TV-owned stations go dark across many TWC systems
Reports have been flooding in from across Ohio, Indiana and Texas to confirm the cold, hard truth: LIN TV has begun removing its stations from Time Warner Cable systems. Last month, we found that the two were still in disagreement over carriage terms, with LIN TV wanting TWC to pony up to carry stations that could otherwise be fetched OTA for free. Amazingly, they let the October 2nd deadline come and go without even a stopgap deal, meaning that some locals in Dayton, Columbus, Toledo, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Austin, Green Bay, Buffalo and a handful of other cities have now vanished from TWC's EPG. In a posting made on the carrier's site, it bluntly states that LIN TV is "trying to make up for lower ratings and advertising revenue by adding fees that will fall, ultimately, on the backs of our cable customers." Granted, that's only one half of the story, but here's the bottom line: you two need to come to terms, and fast.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
TWC running out of time, could see Dayton's WDTN dropped
Same song, different chorus. LIN TV, which is notorious for asking ungodly amounts of cash from carriers in order to carry its stations, has been unable to reach an agreement with Time Warner Cable (who, to be fair, wants the channel for next-to-free) over Dayton, Ohio's WDTN. The local NBC affiliate will fall off the EPG on October 2nd unless a deal is hammered out beforehand, and according to a recent notice put up on the channel's website, the companies have been going at it for the past two months in an attempt to lock down a long-term carriage agreement that includes both analog and high-definition signals. Judging by history, we have all ideas an agreement will be stumbled upon at the eleventh hour, but don't be shocked to see your rates creep up ever-so-slightly in order to pay for it. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Thanks, Dayton Guy]
Dayton's WHIO-TV shows off digital with dueling political speeches
Though certainly not the first station to use its X.x channels for something other than pixelated weather and re-runs, Dayton, Ohio's WHIO-TV recently showcased what digital TV was all about with simultaneous widescreen broadcasts of local political speeches. Both major party presidential nominees were in the Miami Valley area and speaking at the same time, and rather than being, you know, biased, it choose to provide live uninterrupted coverage of both speeches on DTV channels 7.1 and 7.2. Of note, the speeches weren't used as a DTV test (good choice), but news director David Bennallack did assert that this was a "great opportunity to show viewers how DTV can work for them." On that note, have you applied for your voucher yet?Thanks, Dayton Guy]
AT&T announces U-verse for Miami Valley, Ohio
Nope, still no U-verse for Miami, Florida, but TV lovers in Miami Valley (Ohio) can start popping those corks. Folks in said area can start phoning up AT&T to see if U-verse TV, high-speed internet and digital phone is available for their place of residence, but here's a hint -- citizens living in Beavercreek, Butler Township, Centerville, Clayton, Dayton, Fairborn, Huber Heights, Kettering, Mad River Township, Miami Township, Miamisburg, Moraine, Northridge, Oakwood, Riverside, Springfield, Springfield Township, Vandalia, Washington Township, West Carrollton and Woodbourne-Hyde Park have the best shot at hearing "yes." Also of note, 2 HD / 2 SD is in full effect, which leads us to believe that said feature will be the norm from here on out.
FSN Ohio HD, National Geographic HD coming to TWC Cincinnati / Dayton
Make no mistake, Time Warner Cable is showing the great state of Ohio some serious love. Just days after four new HD channels were announced for the Columbus market and four others arrived in Cleveland, e-mails are now being received by TWC subscribers in the Dayton / Cincinnati region that confirm National Geographic HD and FSN Ohio HD are on the way. Yep, starting on March 25th, customers in the aforementioned locales will see Nat Geo HD on slots 757 (Dayton) / 983 (Cincy) and FSN Ohio HD on channel 768 (Dayton) / 968 (Cincy). Alright TWC, enough with pampering Ohio -- you've plenty of other markets to service, too. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Thanks, Dayton Guy]
High school urges students to play and design video games
In your internal list of things that are unlikely to happen in the current span of civilization, it's entirely possible that "educational institutions urge students to play video games" is pretty high up, nestled snugly between "cactus and balloon become best friends" and "Duke Nukem Forever comes out." Well, with colleges lobbing gaming degrees left and right already, perhaps it's time to update the list. A new high school in Dayton, Ohio has decided to embrace gaming and use it as a teaching tool -- apparently, they have this crazy idea that games can teach you more than just how to slaugher prostitutes and decapitate aliens. The basic gist should be easy to grasp if you boast any familiarity with games or school. Preferably both. Many find traditional school work to be considerably less pleasant than the average video game (with some exceptions) and so Dayton Technology Design High School deemed it a good idea to incorporate games directly into the curriculum, tasking students with designing an educational game of their own and learning at every step of the way. It's an interesting idea, to be sure, though it likely has plenty of risks associated with it. A passion for games may very well enable more focused learning, but it could just as easily lead to distraction if it's not finely controlled. Just ask anyone who failed an exam because they simply had to take down that last colossus before they could go to bed.[Note: A golden star goes to the first commenter to politely raise his hand and identify the game the screenshot is taken from.]
