i remember someone mentioning to get a dvi monitor( not sure why but i'll just do it
) but all the computers i find in my price range say no dvi interface...so can i not use a dvi monitor( i found one i want in my price range) with that computer without doing some kind of replacing something? and will that be obsolete when they go to the digital only tv junk next yr?
Hmmm...so many misconceptions and so little time.
There are two common ways to connect a computer to a monitor - VGA (HD-15) and DVI. A VGA connector is a simple analog connector with three rows of five pins. It sends a seperate analog signal for each of the three color channels. Because CRT (the old thick style of monitors) are analog inside, using an analog signal wans't considered a problem.
With LCD monitors, people decided it was time to send a digital signal to the monitor. The DVI connector was designed for that purpose. It's actually a pretty complicated connector. It can send an analog signal (DVI-A, very rare), a digital signal (DVI-D), or a combination of both (DVI-I).
Most LCD monitors will accept either a DVI connector or a VGA connector. There are also adaptors that convert a VGA output from your computer into a DVI-A output for your monitor. You can use this if the monitor doesn't have a VGA port and the DVI port supports DVI-A (not just DVI-D). The easy way to tell is by looking at the DVI port on the monitor. On one side, you'll see a thin horizontal line. If their are four holes (two above and two below), it should be able to handle DVI-A. If there is only a line with no holes above or below it, your computer needs a real DVI port, not just a VGA port with an adaptor.
You can get the monitor you want now, even with a non-DVI computer, if it has a VGA port or it can speak DVI-A. In the latter case, you'll need an adaptor. You won't get as good a picture as you would with a real DVI port on your computer.
TV is a different beast. TV's usually take different types of connectors. Some take VGA and/or DVI, but most don't. The modern standard for connecting digitally to TV's is HDMI. It's a different connector altogether. You can get a DVI-D to HDMI adaptor. It won't transmit audio (which HDMI does) and it isn't compatible with HDCP (a form of copy protection), but it will work for most stuff.
The whole 2009 thing is way overblown for most people. It doesn't affect cable or satellite TV at all. Well, sort of. It is a requirement that TV stations no longer broadcast in analog. So if you are getting TV over the air and you have an old (non-digital) TV, you wont' be able to get those channels without a special box. The boxes will be act like an antenna receiving the digital signals and then they'll convert them back into the old analog signal that your old TV understands. The new signals TV broadcasters send out don't have to be high definition, just digital.
The "well, sort of" in the prior paragraph is for people with analog cable for some or all of their cable channels. I'm not aware of any requirement that the cable providers drop or continue sending analog cable stations. There might be rules regarding this, but I'm not aware of any. They might continue to send analog channels or they might switch those to digital channels. In the latter case, you'll either need a newer, digital capable TV or a cable box. This is only an issue if you connect your cable straight to your TV and you have a non-digital ready TV.
So nobody's TV will be junk. Well, no more "junk" than it might be already. Even if you still have a working 1950's B&W TV, you can still use it. You'll need a new digital-to-analog converter box (which will be cheap), a cable box, or a satelite box. It still won't get color or high definition channels, but it will still work.
