I want to use an OTA HD antenna...

Would Mr. Ford care for a Gruden & Allen duet?

They can be had... they've been had for most of the past six seasons.

I used to have a Channel Master with AMP back in the day before Cable & Satelite broadcasted the local channels in HD; best HD picture I have seen was with my OTA antenna. Blew away both cable and Direct TV. It's in storage now as the locals are now included and live in an HOA - too many antennas up there already. With the new MPEG 4 with direct TV, picture appears almost as good as the OTA (assuming I remember correctly).

I have a standard definition DISH network DVR on my Panasonic Plasma. The channels I watch most are not HD, so can't justify paying to change the DISH and receiver and paying more per month! I would like to also have over the air HD local channels by using an antenna. Can I just plug the coax from a roof antenna into the back of the TV and use a difference source (TV 2) or do I need to do something else? I see talk of amplifiers and splitters and other stuff. What do I need to do exactly? I am about 20 miles from town.

Your TV needs an HD decoder for the cable coax/splitter technique to work.

If your Panasonic Plasma has a built in HD decoder, then try connecting your DISH coax feed directly into a different source input on your TV and see what happens.

If it works, then you can use the coax/splitter technique for your TV.

Lefty, yes you have the right idea. Your plasma most likely has a second coax input and HD ready. Unless it is a monitor and not a television per say.

You can buy a self powered antenna if you so choose. Or you can add a inline amplifier if necessary. 20 miles out isn't that far. Use the link I gave above to see how many channels are available in your area. You could in the future add additional antennas to the first one and have them to piggy back one another facing different directions in order to maximize your reception.

OTA digital is very directional..so your antenna must be pointed in the direction of where the signal originates to get the best signal strength.

You should be able to find a pole at Lowes or Home Depot. You could easily mount the pole in the attic using claps to your beams. Or in some cases you can get away with using an existing dish pole if the circumference of the pole is small enough.

Get an antenna that is made to be piggy backed. Radio shack carries one that does this for around $30. You'll need a pole of some sort. The antenna has claps for mounting to a small pole.

If you plan to use it with more than one or two TVs..I would get an inline amplifier/splitter or a self powered antenna/splitter.