The clock is ticking if you haven’t made the switch to digital. On Friday, federal law requires television stations to stop broadcasting in analog. Recently released Nielsen data show Indianapolis is the 16th-least-prepared market. More than 40,000 households — or 3.6 percent — are not ready. If you have an older television and don’t subscribe to cable or

satellite service, hooking up a converter box is the only way to continue receiving TV signals after the switch:

1.You need to buy a converter box like the one pictured above. You can find one in any electronics store. The boxes cost $40 to $70. Uncle Sam is giving households as many as two vouchers, worth $40 each, to help. The boxes come with a digital TV (DTV) box, a coaxial cable, a remote control and two batteries. Unless you’ve already applied for a voucher, you won’t get one before Friday’s switch — it takes about nine days to process and ship vouchers to your door.

2.Don’t throw away your antenna; you still need it to get the signal. The converter doesn’t receive the digital signal; it only converts the signal from your antenna into one your TV can understand. The DTV box acts as a channel changer.

3.You will find a coaxial cable plugged into your antenna. Plug the other end of the antenna coaxial into the back of the DTV box where it says “antenna in.”

4.Your DTV box will come with another coaxial cable. Plug one end into your DTV box that says “TV out” or “antenna out.”

5.Plug the other end of that coaxial into the back of your TV where it says “antenna in.”

6.Plug in your DTV box. Set the TV to Channel 3. When you turn on your DTV box, it will scan for channels. Once this is done, you’re ready to watch. Use your DTV box remote control, not your TV remote control, to change the channel.

Are your channels not showing up?With the old broadcasts, a weak signal, though fuzzy, could still be viewed. With DTV, the channel either shows up crystal clear or not at all. Your location is important, too. The signal gets weaker the farther it gets from the TV station. If you can’t get the channel you want, you may need to purchase a more powerful antenna. Also, any reception tricks you used on your antenna before should still help now.

Sources: Federal Communications Commission; DTV.gov

For more information:Call the Federal Communications Commission’s Consumer Center at (888) 225-5322, or visit www.dtv.gov and enter your ZIP code for assistance and information, including how to get a coupon and to find the closest retail location to use them.