The readers have spoken—and I shall heed your call! Based on the flurry of responses from a Grouse column last month (in which I bemoaned the snake oil sales tactics of the overpriced cable market), theres clearly a hunger out there for clarity when it comes to parsing the jargon-filled nonsense thats used to market consumer electronics. Hype is always to be expected when it comes to sales, but unfortunately sometimes conventional wisdom gets swept up in the hubbub and eventually we find ourselves believing in techie urban legends. Great for sellers, not so much for consumers. So taking my own advice, Im following the Gadgetry Golden Rule and passing on a five choice bits of somewhat counter-intuitive wisdom Ive had need for and which may inform your next purchase. Pay it forward—hit the comments section with your own, and spread the word.

An article in last weeks New York Times must have struck terror into the hearts of readers whose old tube televisions sport rabbit-ear antennas. The punchline: Many of them will be staring at a black screen after next years transition from analog to digital television broadcasts—even if they purchased a government-subsidized converter box. And broadcasters are to blame.

The real story, though, is more complicated and harder to predict. So what will happen to your television on February 18, 2009?