TV antenna
I read on the Ren Hen Lab site (how to set a Red Hen capture station) that one needs 'good television signal'. Well, I thought, I have a TV and it works - no problem at all. But when I unpacked the HDHomeRun (theRe iS a LoT of tHoSe miXeD uPpeR-loWer casE nAmeS, isn't theRe?)
I found that I need a traditional TV plug of this kind:
I looked behind my TV and there was only one HDMI cable connecting it to the tuner, which itself was only connected to the power supply because it's one of those fancy modern WIFI tuners. So I invested in a little indoor antenna thinking it might be OK (how naive). Of course, the signal was terrible and all recordings had to be deleted. I had to have a rooftop antenna installed and it was much better but far from perfect (we're about 60 km from the nearest transmitter). A larger, much more butch-looking antenna was installed on a mast on the roof. It worked better but it was difficult to direct (position) it in such a way that it could capture both Polish and Czech TV. The solution came in the form of a free application for a phone (or tablet) called HdHomeRun Signal Meter (for Android). To make it work, you must first connect the HDHomeRun to your computer (or to the router- it works both ways) and install it (see the 'fun with HDHomeRun section'). And you must turn the WIFI on on your phone. The app detects your device and shows you the signal strength and quality for a selected channel - brilliant. I could not wait for the antenna man this time - grabbed a wrench, went to the roof, set the antenna and now it receives decent quality signal both from Poland and Czechia (we live 8 km from the Polish-Czech border). One of the many problems solved. Phew (or 'ufff', as we say here).