At least that's the somewhat sarcastic conclusion I'm jumping to. As I started watching the east coast feed, an email bounced into the TV Squad inbox from reader 'Jay.' He noted that when he tried to record The Middleman on his PC, he was greeted with an error message. I had to wait three hours for the regular airing on the left coast, but I dusted off an old Media Center PC and got that very same error, as you see in the picture. I like to think that Wendy is showing her shock and outrage at the snafu in that shot. But wait, there's more ... after the jump.
media center-related stories
ABC Family doesn't want you to watch The Middleman
Continue reading ABC Family doesn't want you to watch The Middleman
Microsoft hires developer of WebGuide, sets program free
For years, developer Doug Berrett has been toiling away at an application that really should have been developed by Microsoft. WebGuide provides a slew of ways to interact with your Windows Media Center PC on the go, whether you want to remotely schedule recordings or stream recorded TV shows.Well, it looks like Microsoft noticed Berrett's work, and the company went and hired him. While this is great news for Berrett, it's also good news for you. Because it means that WebGuide is now available as a free download. No more $18 fee to register your software.
Berrett will be working with the Media Center team to push Media Center "into the high-end custom installation market," which means he won't be offering updates to WebGuide anymore. But he did push out one final release yesterday. Updates for Windows Vista and Windows XP MCE 2005 editions include:
- Updated "now playing" screen to not update the progress bar as often in full screen mode
- Fixed login text entry on Xbox 360
- Added auto-redirect to mobile pages for mobile devices
[via Missing Remote]
Fuze launches whole-home media system
Maybe your TV is connected to your home network through a home theater PC or an Xbox 360 or other media center extender. But essentially most of us force our different systems to work together. FUZE Media Systems wants to sell you a better mousetrap. The company is promoting a new "whole-home" media center.
Continue reading Fuze launches whole-home media system
Keyspan releases $50 RF remote for Vista Media Center
Keyspan's new RF remote for Windows Vista Media Center has all your usual play, pause, and fast-forward style features. It's even got the signature green button in the middle.But there's one thing that's missing. A huge price tag. It seems like every day a new company is releasing a remote control that's more powerful than your computer, and costs more to boot.
The Keyspan remote might not be as cheap as the universal remote you can pick up for your TV/VCR/DVD player at the local Radio Shack. But at $50, it's a pretty solid looking device. Since it's an RF remote, you can control your media center from up to 90 feet away without a direct line of sight.
Unlike Snapstream Media's similarly priced Firefly RF remote control, which is designed to work with BeyondTV, Keyspan's remote is made for Windows Media Center. That means you won't have to install any software to use it.
[via Business Portal 24]
Gyration launches new motion-sensing remote control
Motion-sensing remote control makers Gyration are at it again, this time with the Gyration ULTRA R4000. Like Gyration's existing line of products, you can use the remote as a standard controller for your media center, or you can use it like a mouse to control an on-screen cursor by waving your hand.The ULTRA R4000 also includes a view screen that presents information about your music playlists without even turning your television on. Of course, this is only useful if you've got a set of speakers hooked up to your media center independent from your television set.
It supports RF and IR, meaning you can control your PC without a direct line of sight. You can also use the ULTRA R4000 as a universal remote, replacing TV, cable, and other A/V remotes.
The remote should be available in the fall of 2007. No word on pricing yet.
Microsoft releases Vista Media Center update
Microsoft has released the June 2007 Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista. If they'd waited any longer they would have had to change the title, and really, who wants to download the July 2007 cumulative update?You can get this operating system update through Windows Update, or you can download the 32 bit or 64 bit installers from the web.
What goodies are wrapped up in this update?
- Fixed: Windows Media Center does not correctly configure a combo TV tuner that supports both ATSC and NTSC signals
- Fixed: When you resize the Windows Media Center window, video playback may stop
- Fixed: No audio during DVD or Live TV playback after waking your computer from sleep
- Several fixes for the Media Center Extensibility Platform
- Update to the Digital Card component to provide better support for interaction between the digital cable tuner, the CableCard, and Windwos Media Center
- Includes April 2007 Cumulative Update
Big Screen Movies for Windows Media Center
The Media Center add-in is similar to the Big Screen TV Shows application Ginsbourg first previewed in December. But while the TV Shows program has been held up by copyright concerns (Ginsbourg's trying to determine how to let users access series and episode data without breaking any laws), Big Screen Movies will be ready when it's ready, which is why it's code-named "fatlady."
Big Screen Movies gives you more control over the metadata available (cover art, descriptions, actor info etc) for your video collection. It also lets you browse your offline DVD collection. Windows Media Center only shows you info about your DVDs when you insert them.
The software is not yet available to the public, but it looks like you can expect a beta release of Big Screen Movies long before you'll ever get your hands on Big Screen TV Shows.
[via Aaron Stebner]
Mythbuntu Alpha released
The current version is a public alpha, so don't expect everything to work perfectly. But if you download the disc image, burn it to a CD, pop it in your computer and reboot, you should load up a MythTV frontend. That's the part that lets you interact with media. If you want a fully functioning media center that can record record television shows, you'll want to install the backend as well. If you've already got a backend machine running, you can access it from the frontend included on the liveCD.
Still, the LiveCD is a great option for anyone who wants to see how MythTV works without having to repartition or reformat their hard drive.
Windows Vista boosts PC TV tuners
Now that most computers on sale at your local Best Buy or Circuit City are running Windows Vista Home Premium, there are a lot of folks out there with Windows Media Center, although they might not realize it. You can use your PC just fine without ever looking at its 10-foot interface.Still, market research firm In-Stat projects that nearly 51 million TV tuners will be sold by around the wold 2011. That could turn what's now a niche market into a multi-billion dollar industry.
Most consumers will probably find a TV tuner bundled with their PC running Windows Vista. But those numbers also include USB tuners and CableCard tuners that probably won't be bundled with many PCs.
Hopefully as the market for PC-based personal video recorders grows we'll see more innovations in the software market with more companies developing commercial plugins for Windows Media Center. Of course, there are plenty of free plugins available today to do everything from singing karaoke to checking the weather forecasts. But there's plenty of incentive for developers to think outside the box with a potential customer base of 51-million people.
[via The Green Button]
Coolest bedroom TV ever?
I've slept on a couch for the past 8 or 9 years, so I'd simply take the bedroom and the bed in this video. But the TV is cool, too.
It's the Underbed Lift, a rather complex looking gizmo that holds a 50" television, DVD player, VCR, amplifiers, a subwoofer, and seven channels of surround sound. Press a button and the TV screen comes up from under the bed, presumably to the theme of 2001: A Space Odyssey. It's for people who don't want all that entertainment equipment taking up room in their bedroom, and for people who just want something that's pretty damn cool.
It looks like you need a queen-sized bed and a pretty big bedroom. I wonder if they make a couch version for the living room? After you view the video, here are some pics that show it from different angles.
[via Digg]
S1Digital will ship CableCard capable Media Centers in May
Like sands through the hourglass, media center PC makers are starting to release home theater PCs that are capable of handling CableCards. In layman's terms, that means you'll be able to get high definition television from your cable company without ordering a separate cable box.S1Digital is the latest company to enter the game. It ProLine and Home Series media center PCs will be able to support up to two digital cable tuners. Other options include HD-DVD and/or Blu-Ray playback, 1080p HDMI output, and 7.1 channel sound.
Keep in mind, these are high end units that will make an $800 HD-capable Series3 TiVo look cheap.
April 2007 update for Vista Media Center
Microsoft has released an update for Windows Vista Media Center. The April 2007 Cumulative Update is available for x86 and x64 systems and includes the following features and bug fixes:- Online media support for the 64-bit version of Windows Media Center on Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate
- Video playlist support for Media Center extenders
- Improved caching
- Support for some combo TV tuners
- Fixed bug that caused video playback to stop when resizing the Media Center window
- Fixed bug that caused video to freeze when playing some DVDs
- Fixed some cover art and photo problems.
Take a Vista Media Center PC - in your car
High end PC maker HiPe PC has announced a new in-car PC running Windows Vista Home Premium with Windows Media Center.The Drive-N car PC comes in a variety of models, with base prices starting at $800 and going up to $1600. All models include voice control courtesey of OneVoice Media Center Communicator.
Options include BlueTooth, GPS, and rear-view cameras. You can also get WiFi and GSM receivers to connect to the internet and check traffic for traffic while you're stuck in it.
Oh yeah, and you can listen to the radio, mp3s, CDs, or watch DVDs on the included touchscreens, ranging in size from 6.5 inches to 15 inches. You can even get an external TV tuner, antenna, and remote for watching live TV on the go.
[via Electronista]
Apple could be working on a Media Center
Essentially the patent describes a system that inludes a module controller and a series of modules that could include devices like the AppleTV, iPhone, and Macintosh computers. You'd be able to control each device through the central media hub. So you could stream content stored on your PC to any device on the system.
But you'd also be able to control the system using one of the modules. So imagine pulling out your iPhone, pushing a button, and having access to your entire media library.
Keep in mind, these patents only tell you so much. Some patents are for concepts that never get turned into products. And in other cases, they're just not very explicit. The patents that cover the product now called the iPhone were widely interpreted in the blogosphere to be a touchscreen iPod or a PDA.
[via Gizmodo]
HP to drop media center PC line
CE Pro reports that HP is exiting the digital entertainment center business. What does that mean? Basically that one of the first companies to offer a Windows Media Center PC that looked good in your living room is going to stop packing computers into A/V style cases.Sure, you'll still be able to buy an HP machine that will work as a media center. After all, any computer running Vista is a media center, and if you throw a TV tuner into it, it's a PVR.
But the company's going to focus its living room strategy on its MediaSmart LCD televisions with digital media adapters. These are sort of like a proprietary version of Microsoft's Windows Media extenders, allowing users to access videos, music, photos, and web-based content on their TV set.
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