Bilbo

If your TV and video are from the UK you can tune boht to use one of the channels for Sky taking the output from theRF out connections on the Sky box. You will need to tune the TV channel you want to use to receive the Sky output. Also tune the video so that you know which video channel you need to set to record from Sky. Otherwise make life really easy by buying a Sky+ box and fitting a dual LNB on your dish!

Has anyone tried out one of the new freesat boxes in France yet?

Try looking at the English help sites for a Livebox, in case the details have been confused in translation. The boxes are the same in the UK. This enabled me to connect my Mac as well as an XP laptop to my box.

I believe that the Freesat cards, unlike subscription ones, are not tied to the box. Thus it could be registered in the UK , even on someone else's box, and then brought over. I have a couple of spare ones for this purpose and was able to use one successfully in my spare box.

The frequencies have changed e.g. BBCNews24  has moved from 10773 H 22 5/6 to 11954 H 27.5 2/3. No problem if you are using a Sky box, otherwise you need to retune. If your are using a Sky box and have lost the channels you have a different problem such as your dish moving in recent storms or your LNB on the blink. Reset your box by unplugging and restarting before looking for anything more drastic, though.

Does anyone know if the 'suspend it when you are not there' service applies to internet charges as well i.e. can these be suspended while the line is not in use?

I have just changed from Orange pay-as-you-go to the new LeClerc deal and have transferred the old number as well. The staff at LeClerc in Vannes were most helpful. For information you need to dial 527 from an Orange phone to get your R.I.O. which is the code needed to transfer your existing number to a new system, rather than change to a different number. If anyone wants to make some free calls, I have about 50€ worth of credit to use up by the end of tomorrow because of the silly Orange system. I have been ringing as many folk I know in the UK as possible to use it up but won't use it all tomorrow. With Skype on the computer I don't need to make many UK phone calls anyway. The mobile is just useful for emergencies etc. No doubt other providers will follow the LeClerc example soon, as they are bound to lose trade. Maybe they will even get to the UK pay-as-you-go and keep the credit until it runs out system.

As an aside to this query, I know it is possible to suspend ones telephone abonnement if you are away for some time. You then pay something like 5€ to get going again with the same number. This is ideal for second home owners. Does anyone know if there is a similar arrangement for Internet subscriptions via wanadoo/orange ?

If you are using an email program, such as Outlook or Outlook Express, you can have both email addresses set up. You can only use the one to which you are connected to send emails though. If this is too complicated just got to www.mail2web.com  Make sure you have your email address and the relevant password with you.

If you are using an email program, such as Outlook or Outlook Express, you can have bother email addresses set up. You can only use the one to which you are connected to send emails though. If this is too complicated just got to www.mail2web.com  Make sure you have your email address and the relevant password with you.

Look up the previous owner's name in the phone book or via the internet or ask the neighbours if you can contact them.

The choice for TV or radio may not be on the handset but could well be part of the menu setup before the box searches.

I had the same problem and solved it after googling the problem on english webpages - liveboxes are the same in the UK. I am sorry but I can't remember what the solution was but the english Livebox and/or Mac ihelp solved it quite easily.

You can get an LNB with four connections so you can use all four if you wish. I have 2 for Sky+ and then two spares in other rooms with  old digiboxes.

You are only allowed to donwload programs when in the UK. Once downloaded you can then play them in France, of course, within the allowed time limit of 30 days, I think.

Take it with you anyway. 'People' say all sorts of things. If you have a digibox, such as a Sky box or a free-ro-air box, which works in the UK it will work here. A freeview box will also work but it won't get you the english TV channels, just the French digital ones, assuming the ordinary TV aerial is suitable to receive them.

There is no need to go to the UK. You can buy either through www.brittany-satellites.com for delivery/installation anywhere in France. You will need a Sky subscription including at least one of Sky Sports or Sky Movies or pay an extra £10 a month, to be able to use the full facilities of Sky+. If you don't have such a subscription, they can arrange that for you as well. I find mine great as I enjoy many of the programs transmitted later ( because of the time difference) and can skip through the adverts at great speed! I know there are many who constantly moan about Sky but, 'you pays your money and makes your choice,' as they say. I wouldn't be without mine - especially with more Heineken Cup rugby coming up soon!!

Sounds as if the LNB might be on the blink. Mine used to play up when it got hot in the sun - usually at the critical point in the cricket match I was watching! Check the signal strength -- services button then 4 then 6. If it has dropped from the usual level, that seems to be the problem. They are not too expensive to replace.

I have a spare Sky Gnome for sale for £40 (or euro equivalent) It belonged to friends who have returned to the UK. For those who do not know these things, it is basically a small transmitter which connects to your Sky digibox and a separate portable radio, with a recharegeble battery, which allows you to listen to any channel within a range of about 30m. Excellent for listening to the radio in bed!!

Have a look at the Skype website www.skype.com as I believe they sell them. I have a USB Skype phone, which I have never bothered to use as a cheap microphone and my laptop's speakers work prefectly well with Skype for me.

It has seemed obvious to me for a while, that there should be some sort of portable radio which is linked wirelessly to the internet, to enable anyone to listen to any radio staion around the world without needing to have a computer on. I see that Orange are now selling a LiveRadio and that Darty have a similar wifi device from Sagem (I think)  I wondered if anyone had tried these out yet? Some of us have Sky Gnomes, which are fine while they work but many folk have had problems with them. As it is easy to buy FM transmitting devices to enable you to hear your iPod or other MP3 device via a normal FM radio, I wondered if it possible to use one of these taking its input from the audio connections on a digibox, as used by the Gnome. I expect that some further amplification might be needed but for any entrepreneurs out there, such a device would be very popular amongst the expats who like listening to UK radio channels. I link my digibox to my hifi system, but it would be very handy to be able to use a more portable device, preferably one which is more reliable than the Gnome.

Why do you want Astra2A ? I thought the english programmes were on Astra 2D at S28E ?

I have an existing Sky subscription, registered in the UK and updated to Sky+ via the excellent service of www.brittany-satellites.com They supplied the box and I arranged for my card to be updated whilst I was in the UK. However I am sure they would be able to arrange this for you. You do need a twin feed from your dish, but being able to watch one channel and record another so easily is well worth it, especially as you can play back the programs fast to miss out the adverts!! You must have a subscription, which I believe must cover at least Movies or Sports. Whilst you can receive free to air programmes without a card, I don't think you can record. You could have two separate Sky boxes with one linked to your video to record, but the advantages of the Sky+ hard drive recording are well worth it, IF you have a Sky subscription.

It is unlikely the box is faulty, judging from the message it displays. I assume you ahve tried disconnecting the box from the mains, waiting a few minutes and then pluging it in again. If that does not solve the problem, you are right to suggest that the dish has probably moved. Depending on its position, you can alter it yourself using a little gadget that whistles when it is corectly lined up. Has anything changed between you and the direction the dish is pointing? If someone has built a house obstructing its clear view that would be a bigger problem as you would need to relocate the dish. It needs to have a clear view in a direction S28degE with an elevation of around 25 - 30 degrees. It is more usual to have problems in summer when the trees have their leaves. Otherwise it is possible that the lead has become corroded or the LNB, the thing on the end of the arm attached to the dish, has failed. I suggest you contact www.brittany-satellites.com on 02 96 45 91 55 for further advice.

The BODMAS thing is not to be taken rigorously as multiplicationand division have equal priority as do addition and subtraction. You also have to remember that the sign goes with the number after it. My confusion with the original post was becaue there were no brackets shown in the question. Once they were put in everything changed. So were they there or not?