415 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
415 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
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****************************************
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cable tv pirating
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part 1
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composed by:
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logic god
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****************************************
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today I will cover the most commonly used method of cable scrambling, that of
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inband gated sync. for the more comatose of you, I will now present a brief
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dis- cription of how it works and why it is so commonly used.
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the simplest first: it is often used because the boxes are so damn cheap. the
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gated sync unscramblers do not even require a tuner, the whole process is done
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semi-passively and requires no internal connections to the tv. hence, an easy
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way out for the cable companies who insult you by thinking all its sub-
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scribers are average dolts, not requ- iring thier attention. (hmm...ma bell
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must have thought that way once <koff koff> chuckle...)
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the basic workings of the gated sync are as follows: first, I must define a
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sync pulse. it is a part of the tv's video signal which lines the signal up,
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causing it to come out all nice and neat so you see a good picture. what gated
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sync does is to remove that portion of the signal, and transmit it on a
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subcarrier with the rest of the signal. this results in the scrambled mess you
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see when you desper- ate ones try to watch the playboy chan- nel and your
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parents haven't subscribed to it. now, keep in mind, the sync portion of the
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signal is not distorted at all, but merely transmitted on a slightly diverted
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frequency. thus, it remains in time with the rest of the signal, and needs only
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to be recombined with the rest of the signal. this is much simpler than it may
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seem. all the circuit must be able to do is to recieve the sync pulses, and
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retransmit them on the original frequ- ency, where they will be lined up pro-
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perly. "but" you may say, "isnt that rather diffiult?" not at all, my friends.
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think of your video modulator: it must transmit the entire signal, and it is
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only about 2"*1"*1". the recieving is simple: the reciever doesn't need to be
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able to change channels-the cable companies need only have thier unscram- blers
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set for the channel the box recieves on, because that is the only one it will
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be necessary to unscramble. will be using.
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how to figure out if you have gated sync
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----------------------------------------
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scrambling:
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-----------
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this method of scrambling is character- ized by correct sound, and a picture
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that is allllmoooost normal, if you could just get the vertical hold to work a
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little more. if you want to be 100% sure, call up your cable co's customer help
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line and ask. I know this sounds ridiculous, but I called century cable in
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calif. for the pope, and it worked for me. just play it cool and say "what kind
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of scrambling method are you using?" and I they should give it to you.
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incidentally, century cable does use gated sync, for anyone in california who
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happens to read this.
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places to get gated sync units:
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-------------------------------
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well, the best place to look is in the back of electronics magazines- not the
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idiot ones like popular elec- tronics (does it even still exist?) but the
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dedicated electronics ones- like radio-electronics (best) or 73, the amateur
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radio technical journal.
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here is an address which I got out of radio electronics, august 1985, p.110:
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gated sync: kit form, all parts, instructions, very good, $39. write to: j&w
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electronics, inc. p.o. box 800 mansfield, ma. 02048 fone: 1 800 227 8529
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(orders) 617 339 5372 (tech. info)
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***************************************
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look for part ii soon,
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covering over-the-air pay
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tv.
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later on,
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logic god.
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call k.a.o.s.: 215 465 3593
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---==>>have fun!<<==--
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***************************************
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pirating cable tv
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part 2
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composed by:
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logic god
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***************************************
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today we will discuss over the air pay tv scrambling. this is used widely in
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many areas without cable, and all of the systems in use use essentialy the same
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system, that of ssavi scrambling.
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discussion of ssavi scrambling: ssavi stands for suppressed sync, audio video
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inversion. this method of encoding video transmissions was devel- oped by the
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zenith radio corporation, who manufactures the vast majority of legal
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unscramblers used today with this method. suffice to say, ssavi is the anti
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christ of cable pirates. the system in- volves several less sophisticated meth-
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ods combined to produce a severely scr- ambled signal which is very difficult
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to decode without the proper hardware. (ie, a real box.) it is illustraed by
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the name: suppressed sync: this is the method dis- cussed in part 1 of this
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series, only worse. the sync portion of the signal is not transmitted on an
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audio subcar- rier, but in lines 1-14 of the picture information which are not
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seen on the screen. hence, the box must be able to isolate the first 14 lines
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of video and extract the information from them. audio: the audio is transmitted
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on a subcarrier in a similar fashion as the sync pulses in part 1. if you will
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remember, the audio was normal in the suppressed sync method. video inversion:
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the video signal is randomly inverted at the scrambling stage, resulting in a
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negative picture when the signal is inverted. (yes, like a camera negative.)
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the indicator for
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wether the upcoming frame of video will be inverted is also sent in the first
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14 lines of video, allowing the box to begin inverting the signal bef- ore you
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see it.
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all of these little bits of evilness exist independently of each other. the
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signal may have all, none, or any comb- ination of these things. because of
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this, the box must be very intelligent. also, because the box is used so
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widely, it must have a tuner, allowing your local transmitter to select what
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channel they are using by tuning the box before they give it to you. all this
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makes for a real fun time when you go to unscr- amble your signal.
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box thoery: the suppressed sync signal is trans- ved from the first few lines
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of video mitted normally in the first few lines of video, which, incidentally,
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are transmitted normally. the box 'sees' these 14 normal sync pulses, and cali-
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brates itself to reproduce these sync pulses for the rest of the frame of
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video. it then inserts these pulses where they are needed in the signal to
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produce a normal picture. this recali- bration every frame is necessary,
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though. sync pulses occur over 500 times every second, and if the clock were
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not constantly revamped, it could get out of sync (oh god) with itself. audio:
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the audio is transmitted on a subcarrier deviated about 15khz. all the box does
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to the audio is retrans- mit the audio on the proper frequency. video
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inversion: the video signal is randomly inverted, but the mode (inver- ted vs.
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normal) can only be switched between frames, not between fields, making the job
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of detection and rein- version slightly easier. the box looks at a portion of
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line (2, I think) and based on the logic level at a certian point in this line
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of video, the box reroutes the signal through an opera- tional amplifier's
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inverting input. as a result, a signal recieved inverted is now correct, and a
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frame of video 'seen' as normal is not routed through the inverter, and sent
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straight to the rf modulator, which retransmits the corrected signal to the tv
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set, usually on channel 3.
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physical description of the zenith ssavi decoder: the box is approx. 11" by 7",
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and about 2.5" tall, including rubber feet. it has a round vertical travel
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pushbut- ton switch in the rear left top corner, and in a small metal label on
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the top center of the box is engraved
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zenith ssavi-1
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about 1.5" by .75". there are 3 female f connectors on the left rear, and a 3
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pin power connector on the bottom right rear. the case is brown, with a wood
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grained strip running around the horiz- ontal center. a rather formidable dev-
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ice.
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some intresting features of the ssavi system: (when used by the pay-tv comp-
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anies, koff koff) because of the extreme to which the scrambling of the signal
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is taken, the system provides more security against the casual basement cable
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wizard than any of the other systems in use today, save those now being
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implemented by various satellite transmitters. these are really mean: digital
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video trans- cription, fluctuating transmission fre- quency, and other fun
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stuff. but that is another file, coming later. in addition to the complexity of
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the scrambling, each box is given its own internal id number, allowing each box
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to be addressed by the transmitter and shut off in the event a customer does
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not pay his bill. in addition, each box contains a firmware code which is con-
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stantly being compared to that trans- mitted by the station. hence, a stolen
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box woll not work in another city, where it cannot be turned off by the normal
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method due to the fact that some one may already be using a box contain- ing
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the same security code. there are several more codes stored in the box: those
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which determine the services to which a subscriber is entitled. (such as
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optional sporting events, nite life, etc.) these codes are stored in a vol-
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itile memory powered by a rechargeable battery, to allow reprogramming from the
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station. this also means that if the box is stolen and/or left unpowered for
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several days, the battery will run down and the authorization codes will be
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lost.
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well, as usual, where there is sec- urity, there will be security breakers, and
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this is no exception. talk to these people about getting your own ssavi box:
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video electronics
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3083 forest glade dr.
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windsor, ontario n8r 1w6
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fone: 519 944 6443
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accorsing to them, the box also works with ssavi cable systems. this is the
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real thing, made by zenith. why do you think you have to get it through cana-
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da?
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channels these people guarantee the ssavi box to work on: ann arbor 31,
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baltimore 54, wash. d.c. 50, chicago 66, dallas 27, minneapolis st paul 23, san
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jose 48, st. louis 30, tulsa 41, boston 27.
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well, there you have it. they want $130 for the box, and with a $21/month fee
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it will pay for itself in 6 months. have a good time.
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logic god
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***************************************
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coming soon:
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#3
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cable converters
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call: k.a.o.s.:215 465 3593
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for questions, I can be reached at these (among others) boards.
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-=>later<=-
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***************************************
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pirating cable t.v.
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#3
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composed by:
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logic god
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***cable converters***
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***************************************
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first, a plea. I need a <real> recipe for nitrous oxide. (laughing gas.) if
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anyone knows where I can get one, or has a file on "how to", !please! con- tact
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me at k.a.o.s.-215- 465-3593, or leave it on a few of the more popular ae
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lines. thank you.
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**************************************
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cable converters:required knowledge.
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------------------------------------
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1. most scrambled cable channels are transmitted either between channel 13 and
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channel 14 ('midband' transmit- ting) or below channel 2 ('superband'
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transmitting. thus, if you recieve the cut rate bottom of the line cable ser-
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vice (such as the 3 networks and a few community stations) you may never even
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get a chance to see the scrambled chan- nels, let alone try to unscramble them.
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hence, we usher in the <<cable conver- ter>>. these are nothing new or il-
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legal, mind you, they can be purchased at radio shack. they were originally
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intended for the video cassette recor- der owner (that is, the ones that are
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sold on the open market.) his rented cable converter and unscrambler, usu- ally
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combined in the same tvtop box, were busy faithfully unscrambling and
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converting to channel 3 the prog- ram he was currently watching. however, if he
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wanted to tape something on an !un!scrambled channel that was transmitted in
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the midband or superband mode, he was up shit creek, because he had no way to
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get the signal down to a frequency his tv or vcr could recieve. but if he
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hooked up his little radio shack converter, presto! he was set.
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2. now is a good time to make clear an important point. cable converters do
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!not! unscramble a scrambled signal, they merely move it to a frequency the
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tv/unscrambler/vcr/whatever can get a hold of it. there is lots of space bet-
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ween channels 13 and 14-it is the div- iding line between vhf and uhf. there
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are places in there your tv just can't get to.
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3. here comes another point: those of you with 'cable ready' tvs think you're
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home free now, eh? no. while a cable ready tv will let you view any mid and
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superband channels that you may unknowingly recieve, the scrambled ones are
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still scrambled. so what do you need now? an unscrambler, of course.
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***************************************
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4. it may be necessary to explain what is actually happening in your boxes that
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you rent from the cable co. thus: ----- if you have bothered to pay extra for
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any scrambled channels, you are given an unscrambler and converter by the cable
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co. for which you gladly pay rent in addition to your cable fee. this is
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usually a brown box that comes in several styles, expounded upon below:
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digital with remote: a small box upon your tv, with a digital display of the
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channel you are watching. you have a trusty remote, and zap away at will.
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knob style: a box or non-wireless rem- ote with a large knob on it. it, of
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course, selects what channel you are watching.
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switchboard style: a 9" x 5" (or so) board with several 3 position vertic- ally
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moving switches. what the hell do these do? you'll never guess.
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the kind without any switches: (now how will I operate my digital watch?) this
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is called a block converter. more on these later.
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***************************************
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what is going on: ahhh, the good part. what happens here is this: now matter
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what system you have (except for the last- ignore that for now.) in some way
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you select a channel. the cable converter runs off, finds this chan- nel, and
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yanks it down to channel 3 (or 2, or 4, whatever your cable co. uses.) where
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your tv is waiting for it. (yes, thats why you put your tv on the same channel
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and change channels with the knob, remote, or whatever.) now, if it's a
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scrambled channel, and yo are authorized to recieve it, the signal is rerouted
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through a small un- scrambler. (a note: cable scrambling methods are piddly
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little hindrances; for a real bitch of a scrambler see the ssavi system,
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explained in part 2.) the signal is again spat out at channel 3, and your tv
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glows happily away, dis- playing your mid or superband channel.
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5. at this point, a question may by nudging around your temporal lobes now.
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something along the lines of " how do I get cable tv without paying for it,
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dammit??" well, here we go. you look up that place I mentioned in part ii.
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(address & phone# at end) just fork over your $30 (or someone else's credit
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card) and get one of these nifty little unscramblers. now, mind you, the cable
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co. wants it's (your?) money more than you think, and will be rather upset if
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they find you doing any of this shit, so take care. here's how to hook up your
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un- scrambler:
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first, adjust the unscrambler to rec- ieve the channel your tv is set on to
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recieve a signal fron the cable box. next, send the output of the real box to
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the unscrambler, and the output of the unscrambler to the tv. you're all set!
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just sit back and watch those porn flicks pour in.
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6. if you change channels with your tv set, and you don't have a box, get a
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cable converter and an unscram- bler. your service is too basic to rate a
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converter, so you have to get one. just make sure it has some sort of channel
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selector on it-all selected channels must be output on the same channel so the
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unscrambler can unscra- mble them. sorry.
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***************************************
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7. how to make this much easier on yourself: there is a much easier way to do
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all of this shit, but you sacrifice ease for legality. that is, even though
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what you would have done if I wasn't telling you this was illegal, this is more
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illegal. but let's be realistic- does anyone give a shit of any size
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whatsoever? no. of course not. therefore: ----------
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beating the cable co. at thier own game is easier than you would think.
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firstly, call up your cable co.'s customer (hee hee) service number, and tell
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them what optional channels you currently subscribe to, and ask them if you
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would have to get a new box if you wanted to add some channels. chan- ces are
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they will say no, because most of the boxes have a small computer in them which
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can be told over the cable what you are authorized to recieve, (neat, huh?).
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this is the same comput- er which decides wether the channel you want to watch
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gets sent to the unscr- ambler portion of the box or not. so if they say no,
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you're in good shape. if they say yes, you are in a little bit better shape
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than if they say no. if they say no, this means they change your authorizations
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inside the box by changing hardware- that is, connecting sets of wires.
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how to change your authorizations:(yay) first, the hardware boxes-they're
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easier. according to some people i've talked to, the cable companies get highly
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(very) pissed off if you play with thier boxes, so you have to get hold of one
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they don't know you have- remember, they will want your rented box back when
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you move and will get unhappy if you have been monkeying with it. getting a
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box: a. steal one. b. say somebody stole yours, your dog shat upon it, or
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whatever. c. find some unethical person (druggie) who will sell his for a few
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bucks.
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changing a hadware box: 1. open the box without destroy- ing it. this can be a
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real ch- allenge sometimes. while at the sheraton washington (wash, d.c.)
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attending the model un last year, I stole one from someone's room and tried to
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get it apart for about an hour so we could watch the flicks thst night- I gave
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up, got drunk, and threw it out of a window-no, it didn't break. (yes,
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incidentally, for any- one in the wash, d.c. area, there is one in every room
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of the sheraton washington. good point- ritzy hotels are great places to get
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those boxes.)
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2. look for a small set of sock- ets, such as an integrated circuit socket
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without a chip in it. it will have wires in it instead. if you can't find one
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of those, look for a dip switch-these are the same size as an integrated
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circuit, fit in an ic socket, and have the same number of switches on it as
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pins on one side of the ic socket.
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3. try to correspond the wires or the positions of the swit- ches with the
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channels you pay for. these wires or switches are how the box is programmed-
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try turning all of the switch- es on, and putting all of the wires in, and see
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if you get more channels. conversely, try removing wires and turning switches
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off.
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***************************************
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cable programmed boxes: -----------------------
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these are a bit more difficult. you have to try to seperate the three sections-
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computer, reciever(conveter) and unscrambler. when you isolate the computer
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section, just bypass it com- pletely. find the output of the conver- ter and
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the input of the unscrambler and just hook them together. as you can probably
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see, this just does not permit the computer to have a say in what gets
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unscrambled-incidentally, this will work for the hardware boxes, but it is
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usually pretty easy to find the little wiring panel/switchboard and you do not
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have to figure out what is what inside the unscrambler.
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*************************************** well, I hope this helps, and if you
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desperately need to ask a question, you can get me at: k.a.o.s.-xxx xxx xxxx
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the church ae-xxx xxx xxxx pw ataru and I will be glad to answer.
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*************************************** here's the address I promised:
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unscramblers
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------------
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warning: this unscrambler will not work with those channels that make that
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obnoxious beeping noise. this is a gated sync un- scrambler. to find out if
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this will work in your area, get that good 'ol cust.service number and call and
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ask if they use suppr- essed horizontal sync as thier scrambling method. yes,
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they will tell you.
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j & w electronics, inc.
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mansfield, ma.
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02048
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fone:1 800 227 8529 (orders)
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617 339 5372 (tech info)
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**************************************
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well, thank you for sitting through 350 lines of my ravings. if you download
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this, please give it to all. up with the individual!
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***************************************
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now if you'll excuse me, i'm going
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to kick back and smoke a marlboro.
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-=> good luck. <=-
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***************************************
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