Thinking Ahead to 2007 High Def TV Tech Questions

Okay so I'm thinking really ahead.

I have questions about the switch form broadcast to High Def TV in 2007 and it will probably take me a year to figure it out so I thought I'd ask now instead.

I understand that if you have digital cable with a box it will automatically convert to high def and no further additions or equipment changes are needed right?

The cable company ran the connection to my TV upstairs off my mother's set which has the digital converter box. Except upstairs I don't have a box and I don't get as many channels as she does, because of it. Will mine still work once the switch is made to HDV or will I have to rent another box for my set too?

I know some of the Democrats in Congress are talking about giving away converters so people won't loose access but the Pukes are fighting it acting like it is no big deal if people loose the right to use the public airwaves unless they are rich. But will you also be able to purchase additional converters or will they be way out of normal price range like the HDTV ready sets? How new does your TV have to be for a converter to work? Mine's only a year old but my Mom's bedroom set and our living room set(although that does have the cable digital box) are both like twenty years old.

What about VCRs and VCR DVD players and Sony Play Station 2s. Will they still work or do they have to be high def too?

I'm sorry if these questions sound stupid but I really have no clue about all this stuff. I was interested in history and literature in school and pretty much stayed out of the tech world, except for the basics of how to run a computer.

Any information or explanations would be gratefully welcomed here.

Shameless bump.