It has happened to all of us. It's fourth and ten with just 1:42 to go in the second half – and of course your team is down. The weather outside is getting worse and worse. Suddenly, the image on your TV looks eerily like the snow falling outside your window. It is a race against the game clock to get picture back on your TV before you have to resign and just look for the score on the evening news.

Remember, only on a rare occasion will you lose picture with Dish Network - when you do, more often than not, there is nothing wrong with your equipment or the service. This article discusses some of the easiest and fastest ways to troubleshoot your Dish Network receiver.

From High in the Sky to Your Dish Network Receiver

Dish Network uploads programming to its satellites via gigantic transmission stations on earth. The digital image travels upward through the atmosphere where it eventually finds satellites orbiting the Earth miles above the United States. Those satellites capture and resend the digital signal in such a way that nearly everyone with a plain view of the sky can receive it. The signal is collected by the ubiquitous mini-dishes and sent through cables to your Dish Network receiver, which is set up to decode and convert the digital signal to a viewable picture. That viewable picture is transferred to your brand-new, 56 inch widescreen plasma TV, where only moments ago you were watching the second half of your favorite team's football game.

The Game Plan

If you suddenly lose picture on your TV, the problem could be in any one of six places – but before you panic, let me tell you you're only going to have to check four of them.

The Dish – If something interferes with the signal getting from the satellite down to your dish the picture is obviously going to suffer. If the signal is completely blocked, your picture will disappear. Make sure that there is nothing between your dish and where your dish is pointing in the sky. This could include: a tree branch, your motor home, your neighbor's motor home, a build-up of snow, ice, or excessive water on the dish, or anything else you could possibly imagine. Luckily, the solution is simple. Get the signal flowing freely back to your Dish Network receiver by removing the obstruction. Of course, if the obstruction is your neighbor's prize winning oak tree, be judicious as you contemplate ways of removing it (i.e. talk to her about it and figure out a solution together). If it is ice or snow just wipe the dish clean, and you'll be back to your game before they even snap the ball.

The Cables and Connections – The wiring and connecting pieces that carry the signal from the dish to your Dish Network receiver could also be part of the problem. It is unlikely that the image will suddenly cut out on you, especially in the fourth quarter, if the wiring is bad. The easiest way to test this is to ensure that the integrity of the cables is still intact and that all of the connections are tight. If you are still not getting picture to your television, try plugging the cables into another TV, or routing the picture through your VCR. If you still have no football game, try using different cables. If the picture comes back at any time while you are doing this, you've honed in on where the problem is and you can go about fixing it… after the game, of course.

Your Dish Network Receiver – On a very rare occasion, your receiver may stop receiving or decoding the signal properly. To fix this, simply unplug the receiver for 30 seconds and then plug it back in. (Don't worry – 1:42 can last anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes at the end of a football game.) You can also try taking the programming card out of the receiver and then putting it back in again. Both of these steps help reset the receiver, and it should start functioning properly again as soon as you turn it back on.

Your New Plasma TV – I'm no expert on troubleshooting TVs that cost more than my car, but checking the cables and connections is never a bad thing. A word of advice from one who has been there and done that – make sure the back of your huge, heavy television is readily accessible. The only thing that will make you more angry than missing the miracle comeback of your favorite team in that game you are missing, is dropping that massive television on your toes as your were breaking your back moving it out from the wall.

The good news is your team came back from behind and won. The better news is you read this article and were able to watch it live. The best news is you kept your cool and because your wife was so impressed with the way you handled the whole situation, she bought you a pool table.