Job Discussion Forums

[JimDunlop2]

Ok. First I need to vent!

AAAARRRRGGHGHGHGHGHGH!!!!!!!!!!

I feel much better now. Here's the thing. I REALLY miss my Simpsons and my football games. And I don't mean the season-behind, Japan-ized, subtitled, time delayed crap you can get with a locally bought Japanese satellite.

I've been asking this question for a long time but I can't seem to get a DEFINITIVE answer out of anyone whether or not it's possible to get a N. American dish and receiver sent to Japan, set it up, FIND A SIGNAL, then call the provider back home to set up a billing account & activate the dish, as if you were still living there. Just make sure the bills get sent to mom & dad each month, and pay the bills by Internet banking....

BUT, I can't seem to get anyone to tell me whether or not I would actually find the satellite signal way over here in Japan. I've been told "probably not" by some, but then again, others seem to think like I do -- maybe you could. Look, if you can get an American dish to work not only in the lower continental United States, but also in Alaska and Hawaii, wouldn't it stand to reason that if you extrapolate for latitude and longitude you could find that bird here too? I dunno. I failed university physics. I just teach the English goodly.

Can anyone help me out here? Or is it all bad news? I'm really strugglin' here! <sigh>

[Celeste]

I have skyperfect tv. http://www.skyperfectv.co.jp/en/guide/index.html

Contact them and ask.

[Glenski]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but just having the hardware from the USA isn't enough. Don't you need the connection to the American satellite company in order to use it?

Sigh. Can't live without up to date episodes of The Simpsons? Have someone tape them and send them over. They'll only be a few weeks late instead of years late. Don't know about how current things are with SkyPerfect. I don't have it or need it.

[homersimpson]

I will answer your question once and for all (I hope!). You cannot use a typical 18" dish system from the U.S. (ala Directv) in Japan. The satellites used by Directv are not in alignment with Japan. You will not find a signal here. Besides, Q: Is DIRECTV service available in Canada or Mexico?
A: We are legally prohibited from transmitting our signal outside the United States. (taken from the horse's mouth, www.directv.com).
Regarding Hawaii/Alaska, Q: Is DIRECTV service available in Alaska?
A: DIRECTV does offer programming in Alaska. However, because of Alaska's location in relation to our satellites, you may need a larger satellite dish. For example, viewers in Anchorage or Fairbanks may need an eight-foot dish to get good reception. In the Juneau area, a four-foot dish may do the trick. Areas north and west of these locations will experience an even greater reduction in signal acuity. Residents of Alaska should check with their local DIRECTV retailer for more information and programming availability.
To receive DIRECTV programming in Hawaii, a 39" x 29" DIRECTV� dish is required. For DIRECTV PARA TODOS, Jadeworld or HD programming, up to three (3) 90-centimeter dishes may be needed.
In order to get the kind of programming you're looking for, you'd need a C-band dish (also known as BUD or "Big Ugly Dish"). Unless you're living in a house with at least some kind of backyard space, you're not going to be able to install such a dish.

[Nismo]

No. You can't use an American dish to receive American programming in Japan - American satellites don't cover Japan, they only cover US territory.

If you haven't already, invest in DSL service. I use Yahoo BB! 42MBit connection - it's only $50 a month and the phone service that comes with it only costs 1 yen per minute to call anywhere in Japan or the U.S.

What you can do with DSL is the following:
1. Download a bit torrent client. (bittorrent.com)
2. Go to suprnova.org (look carefully at the URL - that is not a typo. suprnova.org - there is no 'e' in the supr.)
3. Go to the 'Search' section.
4. Type in 'Simpsons'.
5. Click desired link, let download begin. Let it 'warm up' for a few minutes - you need to wait in a small queue to connect to seeds and peers. Your download will fly in no time.
6. Check back in a few minutes, maybe an hour.
7. Watch newly acquired episode.

I work on Wednesday nights and I miss two of my favorite shows, so I use suprnova.org on a weekly basis.

Good luck.

[JimDunlop2]

Ok.... Here goes...

homersimpson: Thank you! That's exactly the answer I was looking for -- the satellites aren't aimed anywhere near Japan, so I'm S.O.L. And I don't think I'm willing to put up a BUD.

BTW, for what it's worth, YES we can get Directv AND Dish network in Canada. Either you go through a grey-market re-seller, but it's expensive, or if you're an American living in Canada, just set everything up they way you normally would back home, just extrapolate for, and adjust the dish's angle of declination and use the longitude position for an American city/town identical to your own and give the dish company U.S. billing info & stuff. Personally, I figured that either way was too much trouble and just had a Canadian network dish (Starchoice). Sure I had to put up with computer-add-on "Canadian Tire" billboards during my Superbowl games, but you can't fight the CRTC.

Glenski: Getting the connection is just as easy as setting up the hardware itself. When I lived in Canada and called to activate my dish receiver, it took 5 minutes and I didn't even need a phone line to do it. I've got mom & dad taping the odd show for me, but it's a hassle for them (and for me).... And unless I get them a DVD recorder for Xmas, I don't actually own a VCR. The current Skyperfect situation is fairly grim. I don't want or care for 99% of the J-content and programming they offer. Heck, I just want a nice live (as in -- not time delayed or subtitled or 2 weeks late) feed to some major U.S. networks. If I could flip on FOX, ABC, NBC, CBS -- I'd wet my pants with joy.

Celeste: If I have to get Skyperfect I will. But as I mentioned to Glenski above, they don't have what I'm after unfortunately... Though they come somewhat close.

Nismo: Re: BT. I did, I have, and I do It's just that for some reason The Simpsons is one of those shows that are strangely absent from Suprnova quite often. I just finished ep. 16x01 but I don't seem to find the current season's episodes on the incoming list that often. Maybe I just don't look carefully enough. In the end, I know I can always get my fix if I really want it. TV shows, movies, etc... But it's just that sometimes I miss English-immersion... You know, flip on the TV, surf through some channels, watch a couple commercials, get the odd CNN news update.... It's in part having the "feel" of a back-home TV that I sort-of miss.

On another note, I've had requests from some co-workers to show American commercials in class as a teaching tool on culture and listening. That would've been super-easy if I had been able to get a U.S. dish set up here. Any suggestions where I could lay my hands on something like that? (I don't want to request the folks back home, because then I have to do some heaving video editing and re-record only the commercials Iwant and in the order I want them... If I had access to about a dozen GOOD, various TV commercials, it would make a really decent lesson plan...

[Glenski]

Jim,

This may sound harsh, but...

Did you come thousands of miles to Japan just to watch American TV? Granted SkyPerfect doesn't have lots of good stuff in your opinion (and mine), but just how much TV do you watch? There's lots more out there in life.

As for the hassle for your parents, get friends to do it, too. I know that can also be a hassle, but if you are really that desperate, you just have to ask around.

You can't have your cake and eat it, too. This is Japan, not the USA.

[kittykelly]

Another way to get the new shows or shows that you missed would be to download them. That is if you are set up with internet at your apartment of course . If you'd like a good site for that kind of stuff PM me and I'll help you get set up.

Naomi

[chixdiggit]

Jim, Episode 16/01 of the Simpsons is the current season as it only began Sunday. Personally I find Bit Torrent even better than 'normal' American TV. Although I do recommend getting Bit Tornado as opposed to the normal client. Also Suprnova.org is overrated for tv shows. Try http://www.tvtorrents.net/

Cheers,
Chix

[JimDunlop2]

Glenski: You know well enough I've been around in Japan for a little while now that I'm not going to pack up and go home in tears just because I can't watch a couple TV shows. But at the risk of responding harshly to your last comments, I would be very surprised if you hadn't at some juncture residence here missed something you had back home, and been at least somewhat upset temporarily by the fact that you couldn't have it here in Japan. It's only human.

You shouldn't mistake my longing for watching American TV for anything else than what it is. I know there's more to life... When I'm not in Japanese class, doing tea ceremony, playing the piano, practicing kung-fu, helping out at church or in the community, or all the million other things I enjoy doing on a weekly basis, I like to flake out on the couch late at night, switch off my brain for a while, and surround myself with properly spoken English... Nothing more...

You're right though -- if I want it that much, I can always get someone from back in Canada to slap something onto a videotape and mail it to me. I was only hoping for some alternatives to doing that. I've been checking out TVoIP options, but I think we all have to wait a few years before the technology matures and companies start coming out with TV-cable-style packages you can subscribe to with all the major networks, movie channels, PPV, etc...

chixdiggit: Thanks for the torrent link! I will check it out later tonight.

kittykelly: If you're talking about something other than bittorrent, let me know -- I'd hate to be missing out on something good.

[kittykelly]

lol I was actually going to tell you exactly what chixdiggit said. I was just in too much of a rush to get to class that I didn't type it all out Have fun with the downloading I know I do lol

Naomi