[Willyg44]

Well, my fiance is going to be going to UF and we just bought a small house in NW Gainesville. Anyway, I had a few questions about some things, so if you can help me out, I'd really appreciate it! =)

1. What are the good cable (internet + TV) companies? I'm in Jersey now and it seems that the main companies we have here (Optimum/Cablevision, Verizon) do not cover the Gainesville area? We'd be looking for a cost effective plan, for cable/internet/phone most likely. What are the big companies there that offer good services?

2. My fiance wants to get an alarm system installed before she moves in, and we were looking around at some of the bigger companies that you pay 40+ a month for etc. Are there any cheaper services other than ADT and the big companies that are still good systems to have?

3. Is it absolutely necessary to have the central air on? Would it be cool enough in the Spring/Fall with fans? I'm guessing in the summer we would have no choice, but we'd like to conserve as much as possible!

That's it for now, I know I'm forgetting something! Thanks so much for your help.

[Gatornation]

1. Cox is your only option for cable. You'd have to go with Direct TV otherwise and the problem with that in Gainesville is no local channels(CBS, ABC, NBC).

2. I'd check out the crime statistics of your area. If you are in the NW there shouldn't be much crime. I also don't know about rates.

3. We moved from NC where you can have the windows open all the time. We will try and keep them open as much as possible. That being said once it gets to the mid 80's you'll probably have to use the air. You never get much of a breeze in Gainesville.

[Willyg44]

Originally Posted by Gatornation

1. Cox is your only option for cable. You'd have to go with Direct TV otherwise and the problem with that in Gainesville is no local channels(CBS, ABC, NBC).

2. I'd check out the crime statistics of your area. If you are in the NW there shouldn't be much crime. I also don't know about rates.

3. We moved from NC where you can have the windows open all the time. We will try and keep them open as much as possible. That being said once it gets to the mid 80's you'll probably have to use the air. You never get much of a breeze in Gainesville.

Thanks for your reply. I didn't quite get what you meant by that. I'm looking to get DirecTV because of the price difference. Are you saying DirecTV would not get the basic channels (cbs, nbc, abc etc.)?

[lagoon7]

Originally Posted by Willyg44

1. What are the good cable (internet + TV) companies? I'm in Jersey now and it seems that the main companies we have here (Optimum/Cablevision, Verizon) do not cover the Gainesville area? We'd be looking for a cost effective plan, for cable/internet/phone most likely. What are the big companies there that offer good services?


3. Is it absolutely necessary to have the central air on? Would it be cool enough in the Spring/Fall with fans? I'm guessing in the summer we would have no choice, but we'd like to conserve as much as possible!

Cox is basically the bigshot down here. That being said, the internet and cable packages aren't too bad.

As for the a/c, you won't use it much from December-April, but you'll need to have it on for the rest of the year if only to keep the humidity level in your house down.

[The Floridian]

As a life long resident of this city -- I'll give you my $0.002 worth.

Gainesville; after 30 you feel like you're locked in a time warp. Complete boredom and everyone is either married, obese or moved on. I know because I am born and reared in G'ville and every time I go back I get sever depression. The town is young, cheap and nothing to do for people over 30... if you're over 40 it's worse! And if you're still single over 50, you might as well throw in the towl and jump off a bridge.

I don't know one famous, highly successful man or woman, who, once they moved away from G'ville; they never came back to live again, nor buy a 2nd home, or even a vacation. The only time they come back is if their kid(s) is/are at UF.

Gainesville is, and always will be a small college town with very little development.

[Gatornation]

Originally Posted by Willyg44

Thanks for your reply. I didn't quite get what you meant by that. I'm looking to get DirecTV because of the price difference. Are you saying DirecTV would not get the basic channels (cbs, nbc, abc etc.)?

Correct. You will have to buy an additional HD antenna because you can not get network channels. I'm not sure the reasoning behind it but that is the issue some friends have.

[Gatornation]

Originally Posted by The Floridian

As a life long resident of this city -- I'll give you my $0.002 worth.

Gainesville; after 30 you feel like you're locked in a time warp. Complete boredom and everyone is either married, obese or moved on. I know because I am born and reared in G'ville and every time I go back I get sever depression. The town is young, cheap and nothing to do for people over 30... if you're over 40 it's worse! And if you're still single over 50, you might as well throw in the towl and jump off a bridge.

I don't know one famous, highly successful man or woman, who, once they moved away from G'ville; they never came back to live again, nor buy a 2nd home, or even a vacation. The only time they come back is if their kid(s) is/are at UF.

Gainesville is, and always will be a small college town with very little development.

I can somewhat agree with your statement about being older and single. Gainesville mainly is ideal for students and families.

Your last paragraph doesn't make any sense. There are tons of UF grads that move away for graduate school or any other reason and return to live in Gainesville.

[gypsystar]

Originally Posted by The Floridian

As a life long resident of this city -- I'll give you my $0.002 worth.

Gainesville; after 30 you feel like you're locked in a time warp. Complete boredom and everyone is either married, obese or moved on. I know because I am born and reared in G'ville and every time I go back I get sever depression. The town is young, cheap and nothing to do for people over 30... if you're over 40 it's worse! And if you're still single over 50, you might as well throw in the towl and jump off a bridge.

I don't know one famous, highly successful man or woman, who, once they moved away from G'ville; they never came back to live again, nor buy a 2nd home, or even a vacation. The only time they come back is if their kid(s) is/are at UF.

Gainesville is, and always will be a small college town with very little development.

There are several famous families in the area...they could have lived anywhere, but chose the Gainesville area.

[lagoon7]

Originally Posted by The Floridian

As a life long resident of this city -- I'll give you my $0.002 worth.

Gainesville; after 30 you feel like you're locked in a time warp. Complete boredom and everyone is either married, obese or moved on. I know because I am born and reared in G'ville and every time I go back I get sever depression. The town is young, cheap and nothing to do for people over 30... if you're over 40 it's worse! And if you're still single over 50, you might as well throw in the towl and jump off a bridge.

I don't know one famous, highly successful man or woman, who, once they moved away from G'ville; they never came back to live again, nor buy a 2nd home, or even a vacation. The only time they come back is if their kid(s) is/are at UF.

Gainesville is, and always will be a small college town with very little development.

I pretty much agree. Gainesville is entirely centered around and caters to college students. That's what you get in a small college town. There are many towns like Gainesville across the country. I personally am not from Gainesville, I was only there for school. I wouldn't want to grow old in a town like that, simply because of how the town is. Young, full of young people, nothing for older people to do. Hell, I'm in my late 20's and already feel too old for Gainesville.

At any rate, when you move to a large city, you can see what some people like about Gainesville. The college atmosphere appeals to a lot of people, especially alumni. Everything most people need is just a short trip away, even if it is "across town." The schools are decent, at least on the west side of town, and there are enough churches to cater to a city 50 times its size.

Like I said, I wouldn't want to live there long term, as the traffic, boredom, and especially the weather really got to me after five years, but to some it's worth the sacrifice.

[kevinkagy]

Gainesville gets really cold in the winter, dropping into the 20s/30s regularly, so you'll actually be using the heater after Thanksgiving to February. In the Summer though, it's like the rest of the East Coast, it's hot, so you'll definitely be using the A/C.