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Who Needs a Satellite Dish When You Have a Wok?

Posted by samzenpus on from the sweet-and-sour-channel dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Why pay $20,000 for a commercial link to run your television station when a $10 kitchen wok from the Warehouse is just as effective? This is exactly how North Otago's newest television station 45 South is transmitting its signal from its studio to the top of Cape Wanbrow, in a bid to keep costs down."

32 of 250 comments (clear)

  1. Alternatively by tttonyyy · · Score: 5, Funny

    More to the point, why pay to watch "45 South" when I can, more cheaply, scoop my eyeballs out with a rusty spoon from Honest Al's Hardware store.

    --
    biopowered.co.uk - catalytically cracking triglycerides for home automotive use since 2008. Just say no to big oil!
    1. Re:Alternatively by asliarun · · Score: 2, Funny

      Look at the bright side... this will help you wok from home much more effectively.

  2. MacGyver would be proud. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Can you somehow add a ball point pen and chewing gum into making the dish?

    MacGyver would just love that!

    1. Re:MacGyver would be proud. by Eudial · · Score: 4, Funny

      Can you somehow add a ball point pen and chewing gum into making the dish?


      No, that's how you make a death ray.

      Wok, ball point pen, chewing gum... yeah, that's a death ray.
      Wok, a froze chicken and duct tape, that's a satellite dish.
      --
      GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
    2. Re:MacGyver would be proud. by rudeboy1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      You, my friend, are ideally suited to be a wireless network engineer in Nigeria. From personal experience, I can tell you that they could care less about the science behind it. If they're not getting a signal, they just keep daisy-chaining amplifiers until they do. I'd hate to be a bird flying through Abuja(capital city). I always get the image of a duck flying through and coming out the other side as thanksgiving dinner.

      --
      Raging in an online forum won't do anything for the world around you. To see change, you must take action.
    3. Re:MacGyver would be proud. by smithmc · · Score: 3, Funny

        Wok, ball point pen, chewing gum... yeah, that's a death ray.
      Wok, a froze chicken and duct tape, that's a satellite dish.

      Wimps. McGyver would never start with an item as large and expensive as a wok. He'd make one out of dirty socks, tin foil, and ear wax.

      --
      Downmodding is the refuge of the weak. Don't downmod, make a better argument!
  3. One of these will happen.. by freedom_india · · Score: 5, Funny

    If the wok thing becomes more popular here, one or many of the following is bound to happen:
    1. Prices of Wok will increase NOT due to increase in demand, but because sellers now think it serves a dual purpose.
    2. FCC will jump in the bandwagon and demand wok makers put a minute dent to make sure it does not serve as a dish.
    3. Homeland Security will jump on the FCC bandwagon and demand that woks be classifed as potentially "interesting" and "dangerous" weapons.
    4. Carlyle Group will do a LBO against the largest Wok maker...Cheney will be richer.
    5. Canada will impose a "musician's duty" on Woks since woks can be used to transmit pirated music...

    that's all i can think of now.

    --
    "Doing what i can, with what i have." ~ Burt Gummer
  4. Oblig. by cosmocain · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...and now the image quality is more like...err...sweet and sour? or: what about the signal being chopped? (that one takes a second more) duh.

    1. Re:Oblig. by Iamthefallen · · Score: 1, Funny

      Argh, this wonton use of bad puns has to end, they're generally tso lame.

      --
      Wax-Museum Fire Results In Hundreds Of New Danny DeVito Statues
  5. And what's more... by thetroll123 · · Score: 5, Funny

    You can't use a $20,000 commercial link to whip up a tasty and healthy stir-fry. There's a lot of value in that $10 wok.

    1. Re:And what's more... by Actinide · · Score: 5, Funny

      You can't use a $20,000 commercial link to whip up a tasty and healthy stir-fry

      To be fair, have you actually tried this?
    2. Re:And what's more... by Robot+Randy · · Score: 2, Funny

      But you could use it to reheat the leftovers!

    3. Re:And what's more... by jayayeem · · Score: 5, Funny

      My wife can't do that with the wok either.

      --
      I metamoderate, therefore I am
    4. Re:And what's more... by operagost · · Score: 3, Funny

      there has to be something that would heat up some oil
      Use it with a microwave antenna.
      --

      Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
  6. Numbers by problemchild · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yep the 10$ wok replaced 80$ of antenna which I presume is NZ dollars which is £0.35 or $0.70 a pop so you have spent all day frigging with a second rate solution to save £20 ish which I don't think realy floats evn in in NZ. The other think is that this is going via computer to computer so it's most likely a 2.4GHz WIFI + Canntenna mission which I hoped had been done to death. Even I've done 3Km between my car with a router and a Coffee can and a USB stick strapped to a mates Van Window. Old hat!!At least I got to drink the coffee :)

  7. Re:So basically they made a loss? by mr_matticus · · Score: 4, Funny

    Ah, but the Linux enthusiasts will bring in a third variable--satisfaction of doing it yourself in spite of obvious, more attractive solutions within arm's reach.

    Note that Debian users cannot endorse this wok technique because the wok isn't fully open source.

  8. Hire the guy who thought of it by AceJohnny · · Score: 4, Funny

    I want to hire the guy who thought about this and implemented it. Well, I wish...

    I work at a Big Company, where over-engineering, paying 10k where 1k would do, and endless discussion on the color of the bikeshed happen thrice before lunch every day.

    I became an engineer because of McGuyver... how disappointed I am with reality :)

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    1. Re:Hire the guy who thought of it by 16384 · · Score: 5, Funny

      I work at a Big Company, where over-engineering, paying 10k where 1k would do, and endless discussion on the color of the bikeshed happen thrice before lunch every day. Could the bikeshed be in cornflower blue?
  9. Pringles antenna by Cow+Jones · · Score: 2, Funny

    TV by wok, eh?
    Reminds me of the tasty and very useful Pringles antenna.

    Geeks and their obsession with food...
    What's next? A pizza box server? (no wait... scratch that)

    --

    Ah, arrogance and stupidity, all in the same package. How efficient of you. -- Londo Mollari
  10. But what if... by Milton+Waddams · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...I want to cook up some chicken stir fry and watch telly at the same time?

    1. Re:But what if... by youthoftoday · · Score: 2, Funny

      Just turn the transmitter onto full whack. But keep your hands clear.

      --
      -1 not first post
  11. Re:So basically they made a loss? by tttonyyy · · Score: 4, Funny

    Note that Debian users cannot endorse this wok technique because the wok isn't fully open source. If only you'd written "open sauce" I'd have modded you +1 Funny. ;)
    --
    biopowered.co.uk - catalytically cracking triglycerides for home automotive use since 2008. Just say no to big oil!
  12. Re:Silly article: by markov_chain · · Score: 5, Funny

    You're right, this thing will never wok.

    --
    Tsunami -- You can't bring a good wave down!
  13. Reruns Ought to do Well by camperdave · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...and now the image quality is more like...err...sweet and sour? or: what about the signal being chopped?

    How about: "I know I just watched the show an hour ago, but I'm hungering to see it again."?

    --
    When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    1. Re:Reruns Ought to do Well by Gryle · · Score: 5, Funny

      I've heard the biggest problem is weight actually. Supposedly a rig like this weighs wonton.

      --
      Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not entirely sure about the universe - Einstein
  14. Re:Silly article: by Barny · · Score: 3, Funny

    Yeah, we will have to cook up something better :P

    --
    ...
    /me sighs
  15. Ratings Boon by rodney+dill · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...and after watching once, people feel the need to tune back in an hour later.

    --

    Use your head, can't you, use your head,
    You're on earth, there's no cure for that     - S. Beckett
  16. This is incredible! by bopo_the_mofo · · Score: 2, Funny

    So... a curved bit of metal can function well as a curved bit of metal? I've got a flat bit of metal here. Wonder if I can use it as some kind of plate?

  17. And for personal communication... by kanweg · · Score: 5, Funny

    you can use a wokkie-tokkie

    Bert

  18. Re:Silly article: by Ryatt · · Score: 5, Funny

    if the Wok setup goes down for any reason So which part of the wok do you believe will fail first?
  19. Re:I sure hope they bought rust protection... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    May I suggest a new sig ?

    In Europe, Only the disabled drive automatics

  20. Re:Tinfoil antenna would actually work by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    > As long as you make it the right shape, there's no reason why a tinfoil dish wouldn't do the job too.

    I have a parabolic head. Sweet!