PVR

Media Center Development 101

Frank — Sat, 04 Mar 2006 18:29:00 GMT

Since getting a TV tuner card that's compatible with Media Center, I've been interested in developing my own apps and web sites for Media Center.

It turns out that Michael Earls wrote a great introductory article for Media Center developers just starting out.

Tags: Media Center PVR Television .NET Microsoft

The Siren Call of Media Center

Frank — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 00:41:00 GMT

Now that I've got Windows Media Center up and running, I find myself watching more TV than I ever have and recording shows that I didn't even know were on the air.

So far, I've racked up 24 hours of recorded TV. I have capacity for about 70 hours.

I find myself on the verge of becoming a couch potato just to keep ahead of what I'm recording.

Which is just plain ridiculous.

I'll just have to enjoy my Media Center in moderation and scale back on the shows I subscribed to.

It's tough being a geek.

Tags: Media Center PVR Television

Windows Media Center: Now I Get It

Frank — Tue, 07 Feb 2006 12:27:00 GMT

About a year ago, I bought a PVR-capable video card and was ecstatic to be in the ranks of the time shifting elite.

However, the honeymoon was over when I discovered that my video card, the nVidia FX 5700 Media Control Center, wasn't compatible with Windows Media Center, even though the web site seems indicate otherwise.

For a little while, I played around with Media Center, but I was still ticked off about the PVR card not working with it. I didn't spend too much time on the additional features.

So, for the past year or so, I've been stuck with nVidia's lousy program guide software attached to the mediocre player, which tends to crash quite a bit.

I had left Media Center on the PC as a dual boot option and never bothered with it much.

It sat unused on my hard drive until I got a Media Center Remote Control last week at the Microsoft Company Store at an outrageous discount.

That's when I discovered the magic of the Green Button.

Unlike nVidia's cruddy software, the MCE shell is fully designed for the 10 foot experience -- the catchy name for using a PC from across the room.

I was able to browse through all my photos, my music, and even watch internet video streams from clear across the room.

The internet streams were a nice touch, I can skim through all the Reuters news feeds in about 15 minutes and watch the news I want, when I want.

If that weren't enough, you can also use instant messenger and surf web sites specifically designed for MCE.

Since I still need a MCE-compatible TV tuner card, I haven't had a chance to test out the program guide yet, but anything has to be better than what nVidia bundled with their card.

Being the geek that I am, I want to develop for this platform and I just downloaded the SDK.

I'm also going to very careful about selecting a TV tuner card this time.

Tags: Media Center MCE 10' Experience Windows

Broadcast Flag Update

Frank — Thu, 23 Jun 2005 06:31:00 GMT

Slashdot reports that the Broadcast Flag was not sneaked into an unrelated appropriations bill.

The EFF had reported on a last ditch effort by Hollywood studios to sneak in the Broadcast flag.

For more background on the Broadcast Flag issue, read EFF's website on the matter.

FCC Broadcast Flag is Struck Down by Court

Frank — Fri, 06 May 2005 13:41:00 GMT

CNET is covering the joyful news that the pending FCC plan for a broadcast flag has been struck down by the US Court of Appeals. that would make many video cards and PVRs illegal on July 1.

"The broadcast flag regulations exceed the agency's delegated authority under the statute," a three-judge panel unanimously concluded. "The FCC has no authority to regulate consumer electronic devices that can be used for receipt of wire or radio communication when those devices are not engaged in the process of radio or wire transmission." (Click here for a PDF of the decision.)

Thankfully, sometimes our system of justice works.

BoingBoing.net is calling today V-TV Day.

Be Your Own Broadcaster (for free)

Frank — Wed, 30 Mar 2005 06:58:00 GMT

Scoble reports that the consumer orientated Orb streaming media service is now offerring their services for free.

Orb lets you access your media collection (Music, Movies, Photos) remotely via another PC, PocketPC or other handheld device.

Very cool. I wonder how it will integrate with my PVR.

I'm going to test it out, while it's still legal.

Have Some Fun With DVR-MS (Media Center)

Frank — Fri, 18 Mar 2005 12:36:00 GMT

Windows XP Media Center Edition uses a proprietary video file format called DVR-MS that's really just MPG plus some DRM bytes.

But that doesn't mean you can't have some fun with DVR-MS and the follow up blog post.

Put the Media Center Theme on Your Computer

Frank — Tue, 15 Mar 2005 09:02:00 GMT

One of the first things you notice when you install XP Media Center Edition is how cool the default theme looks.

Follow these instructions to put that really cool Windows MCE theme your regular Windows XP computer.

Using Windows MCE for Home Automation

Frank — Mon, 14 Mar 2005 14:05:00 GMT

Windows MCE isn't just for video recording anymore.

Some people at TheGreenButton.com want to add home automation so that your MCE box could control your home's lights, security, heating and cooling systems.

Does this mean that burglars of the future will send out viruses and trojan horses so they could walk right in and steal your stuff?

[found via Joli Ballew]

PVR Sabotage?

Frank — Fri, 11 Mar 2005 08:50:00 GMT

I've been noticing whenever I record something from the major networks, my recording gets chopped off at the end.

Usually, it's the end credits, but last night I recorded the OC to get the Revenge of the Sith trailer. Imagine my horror when this morning, I discovred that half the trailer was chopped off.

I saw the trailer live on TV, so I'm not that upset, but I also remember the trailer before the closing credits of the show.

Of course, I checked out the system time on my PVR, which is accurate. So what's going on here?

Is this the big networks way to keep people watching their programming live?

Anyone else have this problem?