Tivo HD

Supercharging My TivoHD

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When I moved into my new apartment last August I got digital cable but I opted to not get a cable box. Instead I got a TivoHD and two CableCARD’s. The TivoHD and CableCARD combo has been fantastic. I got two CableCARD’s to use in the Tivo. I figured it could handle two, and two cards was still cheaper than renting one cable box. The issue was when the cable guy came to setup the cards I didn’t have the Tivo so he configured on in my TV and it worked great, but after the initial test the second one didn’t seem to work. I tried several tests with one and two configurations of the cards in my Tivo and always got no luck with one of the cards (always the same card). I wasn’t in a rush to call in the issue since I would have to either pay to have a service visit or go into their office to swap the card.

I finally broke down and wanted to fix the issue with the second card so I can record two shows at once with the Tivo. After over a year of procrastinating I finally called to figure out what was wrong with the second CableCARD. The rep I spoke to didn’t really have much of a clue so I wasn’t confident she would figure out the issue, but I got lucky. She sent some sort of signal boost to my TV and then after two hours both cards were working normally. I was very happy. Now I can record two shows in HD at once! Mmmm HD. I don’t even know how often I will need this function but it was a problem that I finally wanted to have resolved!

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8mm Film Conversion

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Being in technology I have tried to digitize as much stuff as possible. I have been scanning documents since 2000. I have been using a Tivo vs VCR’s since 2001. Over the years (since 1995 actually) I have made it a project to scan as many photos that I could. In the past 8 years all new photos have been in digitial format making archiving them easy. I still have a long way to go scanning all my families old photos, but I have allot of the really good ones scanned already.

The one area of digital archiving that I have had an issue with was old videos. I have done crude conversions of VCR tapes to AVI a few years ago of my Bar Mitzvah video and my sisters sweet sixteen video. The source material wasn’t so great so the quality of the video wasn’t so hot. I never was able to clean it up using final cut since I would have had to do a bunch of converting to different file formats. The biggest amount of video that my parents have of me and my sister growing up is on 8mm however. Converting that to some sort of digital media is not something you can do a good job of doing yourself. I have looked for places locally that would do the job, but wasn’t too happy with the selection (aka I thought most of them seemed kind of shady). Last year I found two different places online that looked like they were very reputable and did this sort of digital archiving all the time. I proceeded to loose the links to the sites and tossed out hours of research. I promised my mom that I would convert all the 8mm video to DVD. I thought she would be really happy but didn’t seem to into it. I think she just didn’t want that as her birthday gift:( Well last week I decided to find the sites I researched last year. I found them and selected one of them to send in my videos to.

I ended up choosing The Home Movie Depot. At first I was going to send in one reel of 25′ to see how the quality was. I was also concerned about the fact that I was shipping irreplaceable family history, and I didn’t have any backups. After reading the reviews of the site, and weighing all my options I just decided to send in everything. I figured there aren’t many places that look like they can do this type of work very well, and if I didn’t convert them they wouldn’t be looked at anyway. I also want to get them onto another format before the film goes bad. I don’t even know if the film is still good now, but the two canisters I opened looked ok.

I am waiting for the Home Movie Depot to send me the packing materials to ship in my 20 25′ reels and two 350′ reels. For something like this I paid extra for the packing materials as well as overnight shipping. I heard from a logistics guy I know that overnight is always better for sensitive stuff since it has less of a chance to get lost. Once I send in the film it will be about 2 weeks until I get them back on DVD. I also paid to have the original AVI’s they create put onto a hard drive. That way I should be able to create my own DVD’s and add sound tracks and stuff to the video’s.

I am excited to see these films once I get them back. I remember being little and watching them with the family. It was always a production to get out the projector and look at them. I don’t think I have seen then in at least 25 years. If this comes out well, I will send in any remaining slides my dad hasn’t scanned to just get those done also. The process for the film conversion isn’t cheap but if it does what I want it to, the cost is worth it. I will probably write more about this once I get the film back.

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The Do Nothing Weekend

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My plans for this weekend are very simple, I am to do nothing. I am happy to report that as of noon Sunday I am successful in that mission. My goal is to stay in and kick the remnants of my cold so I am fresh and normal for next week. I may have stayed in, but the cold is not 100% gone yet. I am coughing a little, that is actually a new development. My noise is still slightly stuffed up, but better than before. My throat is still slightly soar. An improvement over last week yes, but I am still not my normal self yet.

I missed my nephews birthday party yesterday due to this cold. As much as I am upset that I missed it, I am glad I didn’t have to do all that traveling to get there. That and there would be tons of kids over, and I don’t want to get anyone else sick. Instead I sat around and watched allot of TV. I have all but cleaned out my backlog of things to watch on my Tivo and Apple TV.

It is weird to think that it was 95 degrees out yesterday and currently 93 degrees outside when I am cool and comfortable with the AC on low in my apartment. I will say this, my current apartment stays cool. In my last two apartments before this without AC on high the place would be sweltering with the temperature in the 90’s outside. When I woke up this morning my living room was a bit warm but not completely unlivable when the AC was off for more than 12 hours. There is allot to be said for that!

I am not sure what the agenda holds for today, but probably more of the same lying around letting the meds kill my cold. Maybe I will get some more writing in this afternoon if I am in the mood.

The Harmony

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I am like most people (or at least people that I know). I have allot of remote controls needed to watch TV. At last count I had 6. I have wanted a universal remote for years, but for almost as long as I can remember there have been universal remotes that just haven’t done what they were supposed to do. I remember my teenage years at home and my dad had at least 3 “universal” remotes sitting along with the remotes for the TV, VCR, & Cable. None of them did everything they were supposed to. I have also had the same problem, so for years I gave up.

I had almost lost hope in technology solving this problem that it had created, until I read the reviews of the Harmony 1. I had read and heard great things about the Harmony remotes, but they were expensive and seemed difficult to teach the remote how to do stuff. Because of that I avoided them. Then I read about the Harmony 1, and I was impressed. Now granted it did seem that other of the more recent Harmony remotes by Logitech did the same thing, but 1 was the latest model that was in my price range. After reading CNET’s review and talking to a friend or two I went and shelled out the $250 for the remote. Yes you heard me right, it was $250 plus tax for a remote control. Let me tell you it is worth every penny!

I have what you would call a slightly more complicated entertainment system setup than most. I was skeptical that it could be programed easily enough for all the stuff I have. I can safely say now more than a week later that this remote works as advertised. It took me about 30-45 minutes to program in all my devices, and activities but after that it worked on the very first attempt to use my setup. My entertainment setup is complicated because I have a TV, Tivo HD, stereo receiver, DVD player, Apple TV, Xbox 360, and a HDMI switcher (KVM) to cycle between everything. That means the Harmony needs to know to switch the KVM to one channel, the receiver to another channel, use the receiver to change volume, use the Tivo to change channels and know all the special Tivo buttons just for me to watch some TV. It also needs to know what to do when i want to switch to the Apple TV to watch TV and listen to music, but like i said on the very first attempt the remote knew what to do. I was amazed. The only remote the Harmony needed a little extra assistance understanding was my Tivo remote. Everything else it knew how it functioned right away. The online database of devices was very thorough. It even knew my HDMI switcher model. I was impressed and still am. I am waiting for the day I come home from work and the Harmony just gives me a run down of what I missed on the TV that day!

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Unobtrusive Technology

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While waiting for the train the other day I got to thinking about some of the technology I use everyday that you don’t think about. Stuff that is just there and works so it is unobtrusive. That type of technology is the best kind, but like I said I don’t really think about it.

The first thing that came to my mind is my Tivo. I have always loved my Tivo or any other DVR I have had, but now a days Tivo is just like a cable box to me since I don’t have a cable box. Tivo just works. It is part of the TV experience for me. It almost never needs to tinkered with. It just blends into the experience, until I go somewhere that doesn’t have Tivo and then I wonder what I used to do before 2001 when I didn’t have a DVR.

My sonic tooth brush is next in my mind. Yes, it is just a tooth brush, but it is a mechanical device. It works so well I don’t know what I did before I had one. I don’t like to travel since I don’t carry it with me when I do. As with the Tivo it just blends into my world that you don’t realize it is there until it isn’t.

The same affect my Tivo has on TV seems to be happening with my new Kindle. It is just like a book with unlimited pages that I leave in my bag and can take out to read whenever I want. It is no longer a piece of technology, but a tool to read that to me is becoming no different than a paper book. That is the difference between a device like the Kindle and lets say my mobile phone. I use my mobile all the time, but it hasn’t turned into a Kindle or Tivo just yet. The new Nokia I have is close, but not yet. Phones, and computers I have or had are great but they require work to keep going. For example I haven’t had to reboot my Kindle because of a problem, but I do that to my smart phones, or even my Mac. As much as both have changed how I live my life, neither a computer, phone or other device has the same effect as the three devices I just mentioned above. There are others, but I think my point is made.

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Tivo HD

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For a few years I have been using a computer based DVR. I would like to say it was cheaper than a Tivo, but in the end the hardware costs were probably more, but I didn’t have any monthly recurring costs. The other major advantage was that I could do whatever I wanted with the recordings since there wasn’t any DRM on them. The downside within the past two years was that I have a nice 40″ LCD HD TV that I am not getting much benefit out of since I am not using it with HD. That was why back in March I got a HD DVR from my cable provider, RCN. I personally disliked the device. It only held a small amount of HD content. The screen would go blank when you fast forwarded too much with HD content and then took almost 10 seconds to come back to normal all while you hear what is going on in the background. It just seemed like a half baked device, but it did HD so I kept it.

Between March and July when I moved my computer DVR got used less and less until right before I moved I wasn’t using it at all. In July Tivo announced an affordable HD Tivo, and the FCC rules allowing anyone who wants a CableCARD to ask for it from their cable provider. It was perfect timing for me since I was moving. My new place also has RCN, so I didn’t want their HD DVR again so I asked for a CableCARD, and went out and ordered an HD Tivo. I had Tivo for over 3 years before I went to a computer based DVR and that wasn’t until my Tivo died. I did go out and buy a Tivo Series 2, but it wasn’t the same by then so the series 2 actually sits in my closet to this day unused. Having a Tivo again I remembered how much I liked that device! No tinkering involved. For a while I liked the flexibility of a computer based DVR, but now I just want a product that works. That is part of the reason why I have a Mac at home and no windows PC anymore. I tinker enough at work, that I don’t want to have to at home. That is why I am very happy with my new Tivo!

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Home Entertainment System

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I have been using Snapstream’s Beyond TV for over a year now. I am hooked. I like the free aspect of the system (aka no monthly recurring charges). But lets be honest I paid a bunch for all the gear to make the system work. That is not a complaint, just an observation. Part of the cost was getting certain pieces of hardware and then replaceing them over time after I slowly learned I didn’t like them. Now a year later, 2 revisions of beyond tv later, & two comptuer setups later I am finally able to truly use my computer as a DVR. Right now I have it working so well (not trying to jinx myself) that I am about to cancel Tivo. Not because tivo is bad or anything (except for their evil policy of requiring a 1 year contract for new service), but because I can do everything I want to and sometimes more on my computer without a monthly fee.

The latest version of Beyond Media solved my DVD playback issues on my computer. Now I have a fully functioning Media Center PC. My DVR computer is hooked up to my TV. It plugs directly into the TV via a VGA connector. I have my firefly remote, Beyond TV, Beyond Media doing everything that a Windows Media Center PC would do for me. I have Beyond TV for my Tivo like DVR, and Beyond Media is finally working properly as a Media Center replacement. That means I can watch DVD’s on my computer with ease. I can also browse videos, photos and music right from my TV. personally I use my Mac for iTunes so I wont use the music function, but the photo album function is cool. Having the DVD player work is fantastic.

My next project is to get the entire setup to work in HD with my HDTV.

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Nothing

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I have been sick all week. Not bed ridden flu sick or anything. Just head cold feeling like crap sick. I ended up taking off monday. I also took today off as my floating holiday. It is a major jewish holiday. Not that I observed it or anything. I slept, and watched everything anywhere close to good on my Tivo. And yes I did some work. I can’t help it.

I was going to goto my parents for dinner last night at the start of the holiday. I called my dad around 2pm asking if he could pick me up from the rail road. My plan was to leave early and be at here place so I could lie down before dinner. He was like “why are you coming?” He didn’t think I should be traveling in the crappy weather when I was sick. I told him my mom wanted me to be there. He got off the phone with me and called my mom. then next thing I know she is calling telling me she didn’t realize I was in that bad shape and not to travel out to them. I am upset because it is two weeks in a row that I missed seeing them. Probably for the best so I don’t get anyone else sick.

Not much else to report. I have eaten most of the food in my apartment. I need to order freshdirect soon. I am so bored being stuck home. More later.

Working on a Saturday

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I worked most of the day today. Busy, busy, busy. See the work Blog for details. After a late lunch at outback I was tired. I didn’t go to the beer garden for Dave’s birthday like I hoped. I ended up relaxing at home and walking to Best Buy.

I am now updating my version of Beyond TV to the latest revision, and at the same time looking through the TV guide for anything on TV that looks good to record over the next 2 weeks.

While running my software update I have been giving serious consideration to dropping the Tivo in favor of a second computer based DVR (PVR). My reading has proven that I can plug a second USB Video capture card into my desktop and use the existing Beyond TV software to record 2 shows at once, or watch one and record another. Some would say that is overkill, but even my mom who has a Time Warner DVR has asked to watch something and record something at the same time. Right now I have 2 cable box’s with one plugged into my Tivo and another one into my computer. The thing with Tivo is it costs $12.95 a month. With a video capture card going for a little over $100 depending on what I get the device pays for itself in 10 months. That is assuming I get no money for the Tivo I have.

I am still pondering what I want to do.