MAY 2020 SMOKE SIGNALS | NEWS 1 A Honored as a newspaper of General Excellence 2019 MAY 2020 | | VOL XXXII NO. 5 | www.smokesignalsnews.com SmokeNews and views from Big Canoe Signalsand around North Georgia Friends of Smoke Signals Georgia National Guard Supporting and Sustaining Your Local Independent Newspaper ‘encourages everybody’ ON BEHALF OF THE STAFF AND MANAGEMENT OF SMOKE SIGNALS to get free COVID-19 test moke Signals™, the award-winning, independent free monthly newspaper that has brought you high quality community, local and regional coverage of news, S features, and culture for more than four decades, extends an invitation. We are an exclusively advertiser-supported publication and receive no outside support. We depend on ad revenues to pay all the costs of creating, editing, assembling, printing, posting online and distributing our paper. Publishing a free print and online newspaper is a regular financial challenge. The shutdown caused by the COVID-19 virus has compounded that challenge by forcing many of our loyal advertisers to temporarily cut back or suspend advertising. Very simply, like a growing number of large reader- supported commercial print newspapers, we invite you, our loyal reader, to become an inaugural member of Friends of Smoke Signals with a voluntary donation in support of free, independent, quality journalism. We are not asking for a subscription. Smoke Signals will Members of the Georgia National Guardsmen 3-121 Infantry Battalion were supplied always be free, but if we bring you value each month, your with 100 test kits which would be sent to Augusta University for lab work and with generous donation will provide resources for Smoke Signals results relayed via text message within 24-48 hours. The 3-121 Infantry battalion is part to continue to bring you even more quality, original independent of the 48th Brigade and is headquartered in Cumming, Georgia. PHOTO BY DENISE RAY writing and reporting, not just in current uncertain times but BY DENISE RAY The second part was the actual test, a 15-20 in the future as well. [email protected] second nasal swab. Please consider donating. “We encourage everybody to come Go to smokesignalsnews.com/donate or clip and fill out the embers of the Georgia National out and get tested,” Lt. Col. Jim McKnight, Guard 48th Brigade adminis- battalion commander of the 3-121 Infantry coupon on page 3 of this issue. tered 100 tests at no charge to of the 48th Brigade said. “It kind of feels like The dedicated Smoke Signals staff thanks you for your M members of the community getting water up your nose. It stings a little support! April 26 at Dawson County’s Rock Creek bit and then it’s over.” Park. National Guardsmen were on hand to Wayne Tidwell, Executive Editor, Smoke Signals As individuals drove up to the testing administer the test as part a of the Georgia sight, they were asked preliminary ques- National Guard response to COVID-19. David Howe, Chairman, Smoke Signals Board of Directors tions regarding name, date of birth and tele- Sean Ragland and his dog Money came phone number by guardsmen from the 3-121 for testing. Ragland said he was symptom- Infantry Battalion, in Cumming, Georgia. atic early on but n FREE TEST | Page 2 Windstream to drop cable TV, offer streaming service Multiple TV services available to Windstream internet customers BY BRIAN PLIKAYTIS representative. It is important that those in some televisions is not optimized for services offer local channels, so it is import- who have Windstream cable TV find an streaming and viewers will often encounter ant to check for that if you want to watch indstream has been pro- alternative service by then. buffering issues. This will cause a show to the local channels in our area. There are viding television program- Now that Windstream has upgraded freeze while more of the program is down- several websites that offer advice and com- ming to our community their internet infrastructure in Big Canoe, loaded for playback. parisons of the main streaming services. If W for decades. As technology most residents have access to download There are several inexpensive devices you are a fan of former Big Canoe resident evolved, cable subscribers across the speeds in excess of 100 Mbps. This intro- people can choose that do specialize in and consumer reporter, Clark Howard, country searched for more flexible and less duces a whole new world of opportunities streaming entertainment and, if download his website has several articles discussing expensive sources for their entertainment. for people to stream TV and movies over speeds are fast enough, buffering is rarely these issues (https://www.clark.com). This motivated many people to “cut the the internet. The focus of this article is to an issue. The most popular devices include Television streaming services that cord” to traditional programming conduits offer some guidance to Windstream cable the Fire TV stick from Amazon, Roku, offer local channels include Windstream’s (cable, satellite, etc.) which caused sub- subscribers looking for new ways to watch Google Chromecast, and Apple TV. Each Kinetic TV, YouTube TV, DirecTV, Hulu scriptions to these services to drop. This TV and movies after they lose access to of these come in different versions that will TV, and Sling TV. Services that do not has resulted in several providers transition- their cable system. This article will concen- allow different levels of resolution (HD or offer local channels include Amazon Prime ing their offerings to streaming platforms. trate on the different streaming services high definition, 4K or ultra-high definition Video, Netflix, Tubi, and Vudu. For more Windstream announced last year they and will not discuss aerial antennas, or sat- are the most common) and other options. detailed information about each service, would no longer accept new subscribers ellite such as DirecTV and Dish TV, which Adequate download speeds are re- go to smokesignalsnews.com/site/stream- to their cable system. On July 6, they will are also viable alternatives. quired to enjoy this type of programming. ing.html. discontinue cable service altogether ac- Streaming content simply means TV The following may serve as a guide: While shopping for a streaming ser- cording to a Windstream customer service programming enters the home over the • Constant speed of around 3.0 Mbps vice, it is important to compare the options internet as opposed to a satellite dish, tra- or more: Streaming video content on porta- and add-ons. Most offer some way to ditional cabling system or antenna. One of ble devices such as tablets and phones. This record a program for later viewing, known the many benefits of streaming is consum- would support standard definition (SD) on as cloud DVR. Each service that offers this ers are not dependent on a single provider a TV. has slightly different constraints, so it is im- for entertainment as people can subscribe • Constant speed of around 6.0 Mbps portant to read the fine print to know what to more than one service. In most cases, or more: Single stream of video content on to expect. Common limitations include: a streaming services operate on a month-to- a TV, PC, or Mac. For TVs, this would be limited number of recording hours which month basis, so customers are not locked 1080p high definition (HD). can be increased at an additional cost; into lengthy contracts. Subscribers can try • Constant speed of around 25 Mbps: recordings that are erased after a certain a service for a month or two and cancel, Recommended for households that main- length of time; and recordings that may without penalties, if they wish to try some- tain Internet use on multiple devices. For have imbedded commercials that you may thing else. Many streaming services offer a TVs, this would support 4K ultra-high or may not be able to fast-forward through. free period of one or two weeks to sample definition (UHD). In conclusion, with the internet speeds their programming. It is impossible to do a comprehensive that we now enjoy in Big Canoe, we are Before cataloguing the main services, survey of every service out there, but listed free to explore less expensive and more it is important to decide what hardware here are some of the most popular ones. flexible sources for entertainment. All the you want to use to do the streaming. Many Some services emphasize certain types of services listed in this article operate on a current televisions are so-called ‘smart programming (sports, movies, etc.) so it is month-to-month basis and may be canceled Smoke Signals Arts & Entertainment TVs’ and actually give owners the ability to important to research each candidate and without penalty. If you haven’t done so al- begins on page 19 of this section. stream the more popular services directly see if it covers the channels and types of ready, just jump in and see what’s out there. from their TV menu system. The circuitry programming you enjoy watching. Not all It is all pretty much risk-free. 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