Bruce Springsteen wrote a song a couple years ago entitled 57 Channels and Nothin' On on his Human Touch album. (Yikes, just realized that ‘a couple of years ago’ was actually almost twenty years ago. Also, damn shame about The Big Man passing away recently.) 57 Channels was constructed around a couple of timeless themes:
- Wealth and material possessions can’t buy or guarantee happiness.
- More is not always better than less.
Today, it is kind of funny and quaint to think back how Bruce was lamenting the explosion of cable television (I think they know refer to it as) content at a point in time when the number of available channels hadn’t even reached triple digits. My cable provider is Time Warner Cable of Chapel Hill. Here is their Channel Guide. Good old progress at work there.
As far as material possessions go, 
I got really tired of juggling four remote controls for the television, cable box, Blue Ray DVD/Internet Streaming Box, and AV Receiver. Each of the individual remotes associated with these devices had some capabilities for programming the other devices, but I didn’t really like the layout of any of them as far as a One Size Fits All remote.
None of the individual remotes had the ability to learn new IR codes or to program sequences or activities such that I could press a single button and have the entire suite of equipment setup to, say, watch a DVD. They support a built-in, finite set of equipment types and makes/models. If you buy new equipment and your new gear isn’t in that list, you are SOL. I am not complaining – the remotes shipped with your AV equipment are not the primary feature you are buying – just an add-on.
Several months ago, TWC-CH reconfigured what felt like to me almost their entire channel lineup. Most of the HD channels now require four digits pressed on the cable remote. So I found myself referring often to this new channel lineup cheat sheet that the company sent out to subscribers. This document must have been been printed in a six point font. Where are my damn
So this sent me over the edge to buy a new universal remote control to tie it all together. I wanted a touch screen with hard buttons, learning capability, macros for sequences of commands and activities, and a rich, online, database of equipment types that could be updated as new equipment comes out. I settled on the Harmony One from Logitech after some Internet research and test drives. Oh and the price had dropped about $140 USD to $160 USD at Circuit City. I realize that still is a lot of cabbage for a remote control.
The Harmony One comes with some software to program the remote. Not to sound like some pretentious douche bag, but I program for a living, and this software actually allows one to configure (not program) the device. This configuration is the process of telling the software what equipment you want to control and what activities (sequences of remote commands) you want to define. When you have all of that the way you want it, you can download that configuration from your PC to the remote. I found the software easy enough to use and I had my basic setup working within about 30 minutes of opening the package. Three activities and four devices. Not bad.
I suppose if one is going to splurge on a toy, it makes sense that the target toy is one that you will at least use everyday. I have been using this thing for about three months. So far so good. I really like the feel of this remote. The only minor complaint is that the numeric buttons are a little low on the remote, but the tactile feel is nice.
The Harmony One would have probably been overkill growing up in Altoona.
From the earliest time that I can remember anything until September, 1978 (when I was 16 years old) we had access to a whopping five channels on Warner Cable in Altoona:
- Channel 2 was KDKA from Pittsburgh, a CBS affiliate.
- Channel 3 was a PBS station from Clearfield associated with Penn State (maybe WPSX?). This station would indoctrinate me in the liberal philosophies of Zoom, Sesame Street, and TV Quarterbacks with Joe Pa and Fran Fisher.
- Channel 4 was WTAE from Pittsburgh, an ABC affiliate.
- Channel 5 was WTAJ, the local Altoona station, also a CBS affiliate.
- Channel 6 was WJAC, from Johnstown, was the NBC affiliate (“From High Atop the Alleghenies”).
That was it sports fans. One TV in the house and five channels. Given that, in prime time at least, WTAJ and KDKA (both CBS stations) canceled each other out and PBS was probably showing, well, what PBS usually shows, you basically had three options. It was pretty easy to cycle through the channels then, even if you had to get off the couch in our TV room and mechanically turn the channel to do it.
In the fall of 1978, two events transpired that altered the landscape of television viewing at 1521 Ninth Street in Altoona, PA for Your Faithful Servant:
- On Thursday, September 7, Warner Cable in Altoona expanded to add two New York Channels (WOR and WPIX) as well as the Pittsburgh NBC affiliate (whose call letters I can’t remember at this time). I think they also added some channels that showed nothing but the Time and Temperature and some community announcements. I remember Cody N™ would watch that channel in the morning before leaving for work – there was probably nothing else on at that hour.
- My sister Joni bought this beautiful 13-inch color TV (equipped with cable no less) for her bedroom, which she shared with my younger sister Laurey.
I really don’t have words to adequately express the joy that these two events brought to me.
The reason I remember the exact date at which these new channels were introduced was that it coincided with the first day of the Boston Massacre where the Yankees, over a four games series in Fenway, just beat the shit out of the Red Sox and came from way behind to tie the Yankees and force a playoff. That was the year that Bucky F’n Dent went yard in the one game playoff. I remember coming home from BG that Thursday afternoon and tuning in to the Yanks-Bosox with Bill White, Frank Messrs, and the Scooter calling the action. Talk about a kid in the proverbial candy store!
While the addition of the new channels brought all this new content to enjoy, I was living with four others who didn’t quite share my passion for sports. You mean you don’t want to watch the Nets-Hawks game? This is why Joni’s acquisition of a second set was so huge. I could now schlep off to her and Laurey’s room if the downstairs set was “occupied”. Of course, this privilege did come with some additional responsibilities and limitations.
Joni and Laurey kept their room immaculate. So, under no conditions, was I to perturb the decor when I squatted in their room to watch their television. I also don’t think I was permitted to sit on their bed – I recall consistently sitting down on the blue carpet in their room in front of the new set – but this might have been self-imposed for easier access to change the channels. Of course, I was careful not to wear out my welcome as well and abuse the privilege – I would always ask for permission and pick my spots (and sports) judiciously. But, geez, that was a sweet little television set. The resolution was appreciably better than the console down in the TV room and it was really nice to get away for a little quiet time in front of the tube.
With all due apologies to The Boss, sometimes more is, well, more.
