TVSquad

Like watching video streams from Hulu, but don't like that you have to open a web browser to do it? Paul Yanez, the developer behind Not Apple TV, Hulu Media Player, and a Flash-based Joost clone is back, and this time he's developed a desktop player for Hulu called MyMediaPlayer.

The program is built on Adobe AIR, which is a platform for bringing web-based applications to the desktop. It provides a user experience that's a lot like browsing the Hulu web site. But it has a few advantages. First, you don't need to open a web browser. But second, you can browse for more shows while continuing playback. Just start a video and then hit the TV or Movies tab to minimize your video to the lower left hand side of the screen while you look for other videos. In order to maximize your vieo window again you need to click on a TV show name.

The one problem with MyMediaPlayer is that it uses embedded videos from Hulu. That means there's no simple way to watch videos in full screen mode. It also means that you don't have the complete Hulu library at your fingertips. You just have the selection that Yanez has manually added.

Flash developer Paul Yanez either has way too much time on his hands, or he really doesn't like the way web video is presented. Yanez has already made browser-based versions of online video services like Joost and Babelgum. And he developed an Apple Front Row-like Flash application for watching streaming video from sites including YouTube, MySpace, and Heavy.

Now he's back with Hulu Media Player, a new approach toward watching videos from online video site Hulu. Like OpenHulu and TV Paradise, Hulu Media Player lets users without Hulu beta accounts watch TV shows and Movies hosted by the service. But unlike other sites, Hulu Media Player doesn't require you to use a mouse and keyboard to search for content from NBC and Fox. All you need is a mouse (although we'd really prefer keyboard shortcuts).

The media player looks a lot like Apple's Front Row interface. When you hit the "show guide" button you get a list of available TV shows. Click on one to bring up a list of episodes available for viewing. Right now only a small portion of the Hulu library is available, but there's still probably more worth watching on Hulu Media Player than there is on TV tonight. Hulu Media Player is still a work in progress. Several times when we clicked on an episode, a different episode began playing. But at least it was from the correct TV series.