Airlines have long tried to mask the undeniable fact that to travel,
you have to leave home. Back in the '30s, for example, when Pan Am's
China Clipper began overseas service, it offered dining on fine china
and had beds.

Analogues of those amenities - hot food, blankets, and pillows for
all - eventually made it into coach. Other amenities were examples of
trying to make flying even better than home: movies, magazines, and
service at your seat.

But short of promotional blather and a sitcom or two, television has
mostly been left in the living room; until last week, it wasn't
available on domestic flights to or from Boston. Last week, however,
the Delta Air Lines offshoot Song began offering 24 channels of in-
flight TV on a West Palm Beach route, and it expects its 36 planes to
have it by March.

On the Boeing 757 I checked out before the inaugural TV flight
Monday morning, liquid-crystal display screens had been installed into
every seat back. They are rectangular and about 6 inches wide, and they
provide good - if not great - color images. They're controlled either
by switches in the armrest or via the monitor itself, a touch screen
that can not only switch channels but can switch over to a music trivia
game that pits passengers against one another. You can also punch up
the food menu.

Song officials say that once the fleet is plugged in, they will
upgrade further so that eventually, the planes will offer pay-per- view
shows, streaming MP3 audio that will let passengers assemble their own
playlists, an interactive flight map, and perhaps other features.

The 24 channels offered are a broad array of basic cable fare that
would please just about any traveler: CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC (but no
Fox); the Learning, History, and Weather channels; and the Game Show,
Cartoon, and Food networks.

What's missing, of course, are the broadcast networks, which will
disappoint some, although fall ratings suggest that segment of the
market is shrinking daily. It might be of concern to sports fans ruing
the loss of NFL football, but if they time it right, they might catch
some action on one of the four flavors of ESPN. If not, there's always
snowboarding on ESPN2.

Another component of the in-flight entertainment is 24 channels of
music, but it's no different from what you'd get on many airlines.
Well, the earphones are different, at least: Instead of the big and
cheesy foam-covered earphones of questionable quality, Song gives out
ear-buds that passengers are invited to keep.

During my brief trial, that was a questionable perk: the first two
sets I was given, including one I popped brand new from the bag, worked
only on one side. At first I thought it could be a faulty jack at my
seat, but as I moved about the cabin trying different ones, I noticed
that the plugs aren't a perfect fit for the jacks; eventually, Song
might want to try a different style or manufacturer.

I experienced a couple of other glitches as well. At one of my
seats, the screen froze as I tried to change video inputs. It had to be
rebooted at the central controller, but that can be done individually,
without affecting other viewers.

At another seat, I used the armrest to shift my weight around, and
before I realized what was happening, I had changed the channel three
times. It was a reminder that even as the most ubiquitous symbol of
homelife takes to the air, it still isn't quite like home.