The customer has a problem with his kids watching television late at night. He wants to be able to turn off cable to all televisions in his home after he goes to bed.

What would be the best way to do this? Is there some sort of RF/UHF remote controlled switch for coax available?

That is what I use to cut my hair. The flow-bee is also a great DIY kit! LOL!

I remember Niles made a product that would switch between A input and B input with a 12V trigger. Long time ago..........


Dave

Actually, you could use the device pictured below to do what you asking.



Just connect the output to tv distribution side, and the incoming cable to either A or B. Connecting to A and selecting A from IR would be on, and selecting B from IR would be off(no input).

More info can be obtained HERE

I'd like to add an idea to John's suggestion. Connect input B to a closed-loop device (DVD-R, JPEG on a computer, etc.) that says:

"GET YOUR ASSES IN BED NOW!!!"


...or maybe something more to the point.

The best way is to not have a TV in the kids room... Most kids are more tech savvy than their parents, so if the parents install something to stop them, it won't take the kids long to figure out how to bypass it, especially just an a/b box.

Mark

I seem to remember that if I didn't do what my parents told me to when I was a child, I used to get a swift kick in the ass. What happened to parenting (i.e. consequences)?

Haven't you heard? Discipline has been found harmful to children. Hurts their little egos. Far better to let them run wild so they will grow up to be gang members.

how about connecting to a signal amp and switch the power by x10? have the amp remotely located and do all the kids bedrooms. be sure NOT to do any digital runs

You mean reduce the signal level by X10, or 20 dB? What kid will stop watching TV just because there is snow? That means that it is now FORBIDDEN, so they will put up with a worse signal. We used to watch the light porn channels when they were encoded, because we could figure out just barely enough of what was happening to make the hormones flow....

I vote for no TVs in the kid's rooms. As for kids being tech savvy, I just found out from my 27 year old that he and his little brother watched cable through a VCR for almost a year after we cancelled it and I put in an antenna. The cable company did not rush right out to us and yank out the wire, and my son found the wire and tried it out.

Kids will be kids. Will parents be parents?

Ernie, I think he means kill the power to the cable box and TV by X-10, or entirely cut the cable feed with a remote relay with X-10.

Mark

Put the cable box on a timer and plug it in the wall.

Depending how old the kids are it could work.

Do like I did with my kids with my A/V equipment.
"Don't touch this because you'll get electrocuted."

You should see their faces when we go to Circuit City. They're terrified!!!!!!!!!!!!!:0

At Risk of dateing myself again.....

Kids will find a way to watch TV. Its the Parents responsibility to keep an eye on what the kid is watching.

We didnt have cable TV when I was a kid.... So I Hacked together a box to Descramble ONTV/Sportsvision here in Chicago (That shouldnt be againts any forum rules... There gone/boughtout now and the Statute of limtations is Way up on aggressively borrowing those services)

If its gotta be done, put the switcher in a locked ChannelVision panel or the like.... At least this will make it that much more difficult to bypass.

I know this is all in good fun but I do take some issue with this. Due to the fact the my own statute of limitations is running out and I will (god willing) be a parent in the next year or two I've been paying quite a bit of attention to children and parents. From what I've seen the parents who yell, threaten and smack their kids are the ones who have the little monsters we all know and love. The ones that are quiet yet don't give a single inch are the ones with polite, well mannered kids.

In can be amazing just going from one house to another can't it? You get one client with great kids and the next would just as soon spit on your shoes as let you in THEIR room to hook up THEIR $5,000 bedroom system

I wish it were that simple. The part about not giving an inch even can be wrong, especially if the parent cannot admit ever being wrong or unsure...and then it depends on the child's maturity and attitude.

We have one child who rebelled at everything from sixth grade on, but now in his mid-twenties is coming around.
Another one, I had to spank a certain number of times (it hurt my hand) before he would start his math homework, because he just couldn't get it. NOTHING short of spanking would get him to start. Even in junior high. This is the kid with the degree in physics, who is in charge of computer hardware for a college.
Another one, would obey in the open, disobey when we were not looking, had several other problems, and is now studying for the ministry.

To quote the great philosopher, Thomas A. (Fats) Waller:
"One never know, do one?"