My favorite "extra" digital TV channels

One of the great things about over-the-air digital TV is the extra channels that almost all broadcasters offer to viewers.

I'd like to say that my favorites are all the extras on PBS affiliates KCET, KDOC and KLCS, but that was blunted considerably by the fact that at least one of these stations devotes a digital channel to those insipid, soul-sucking "music of our lives" kind of contribution come-on programs that have made me vow to never, ever contribute a dime to public television.

Thus far, both KNBC (Channel 4) and KABC (Channel 7) have done fine jobs with their extra channels. Both have a dedicated weather channel. That's not earth-shattering, but it's pretty damn convenient and probably means I'll be waiting a lot less for Dallas Raines to tell me what's what.

But the best things about both of these stations is their extra feeds of actual programming. KNBC has its "NewsRaw" feed, which has been mostly showing pre-Olympic qualifying events. Why they couldn't show actual Olympic events is beyond me, but at least they're showing real programming.

The KABC extra station tends to run shows that have previously aired on the main ABC station. I saw "This Week" at the more civilized hour of 10 a.m., I recall, instead of the too-early 7 a.m. (is that when they show it?), and I was also graced with an episode of "The Mole," a show I had no idea was still on the air.

OK, so it's mostly potential and not exciting programming just yet. But it's better than infomercials, to which a lot of other stations are devoting a portion of their digital spectrum.

And I guess I was too hard on the three — yes THREE — PBS stations I'm able to get with my decade-old $5 VHF rabbit ears. When they're not on one of those puppy-killing Pledge Breaks, there's more great programming on PBS than anywhere else on broadcast television, and I welcome the opportunity to see more of it.

Shameless plug: Two days from now, my next digital TV article for the Daily News arrives in the printed version of the newspaper (remember those, with the ink and everything?) as well as at the Daily News Technology page