Digital vs. Analog TVs--and broadcasts

[KYYX4ever]

OK, so yesterday, my husband & I were in A Big Electronics Store, and there was a sign informing us that as of 2009, all analog TV broadcasts will cease and all TV broadcasting will then be in digital. So--those of us of with old TV sets, such as our '82 Zenith monster, will need to get a newer/ new TV capable of receiving digital broadcasts. And here's the kicker: this has been mandated by our Congress ! Sigh....but we love our old dinosaur! It's getting harder to stay technologically behind; everything is changing whether you care to keep up or not.
I have questions:
1. What does this mean, in layman's terms?
2. Why in the heck would Congress be mandating this? What does it mean to them?
3. Just out of my curiosity, in what year did they start making TVs capable of receiving digital broadcasts ?
4. What are your opinions of this ?

Thanks guys, I'm sure you all are much more informed on this than I am.[:)]

[Panorama]

I think they are even broadcasting in color now. [:D][;)]

Seriously, the new HDTV looks amazing. I'm looking at a Sony Bravia KDL-32S20L1 (32" LCD) at Costco for $1,449.99 that looks great. I'm gonna wait till my lawsuit is done, but HDTV is pretty awesome.

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"Photography with a Vision"
http://www.cooganphoto.com

[SomebodySomewhere]

1. It means you will have to get a newer/new TV capable of receiving digital broadcasts.

2. They were pressured to do so by the broadcast industry. It means a lot of freed-up bandwidth, as well as broadcasts that are harder to bootleg.

3. They went on the market in 1998. I've been told the technology was designed in the early '80s in Japan. Hard to believe considering some of the TVs we all owned in the early '80s. I saw my first HDTV broadcast in 1999, and was blown away.

4. Once you go HD, you never go back...y. OK, so that doesn't really rhyme, but you get the gist.

[2Nu]

Despite all the techno death knell proclamations, analog TV's will still around thanks to an emerging analog to digital broadcast converter industry (legit & black market).

For those of us who are not already hooked up to Cable or SAT TV, all you will need to do is get a digital ready receiving antenna which you would then connect to the ubiquitous 'little black box' then the TV and voila! instant Digital broadcast reception.

Though I'm sure by then, 'planned obsolescence' will be well on it's way to relegating most analog TV's to the electronic landfill.[|)]

<IMG SRC="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v395/richp62/Icons%20Avatars/inot.gif">
"A lie can make it half way around the world before the truth has time to put its boots on" - Mark Twain

[obs]

1. You can still use older TVs. What you do need is a digital tuner, and your TV to have the right inputs (not sure which ... maybe S-Video at the very least).

A lot of HD-TVs sold now don't even have digital tuners built-in.

4. It's a good thing. Sometimes you need to leave the past behind to move on. Anyhow, as mentioned, you don't necessarily need to buy a new TV.

[KYYX4ever]

Well thanks, guys.
I know, I know, I'm being stubborn for no reason. EVERYONE says that HDTV is so awesome that you can never go back, yadda yadda. Well, whenever I feel the need for some HDTV, I just put a feather duster to the TV screen--voila! instant HD!
I was just curious about this forced "conversion"...SomebodySomewhere answered it nicely when he said it frees up bandwidth; I had no idea.

Anyone else want to chime in and enlighten me?[:)]