TV is dead. Long live TV!

daveyt1

I thought you might be interested in my TV experiences, as they might be a little unconventional but I find people are quite surprised. It's also in response to a lot of the comments I've read on here in a way - especially the person wondering how to get TV as 'good as it was in the 70s'! I'd argue it was bl00dy awful in the seventies, but I know exactly what she means.

I love TV. Love it. Always have done. Specifically I mean the content - the really good content. However, its taken a while to realise, but the medium - Televisions and the broadcast methods - I hate with a passion. I love quality programming, and its so rare, I've had to go to these lengths to get it in the way I want it. Sky/Virgin is the opposite of what I want.

I'll admit that this aint exactly kosher, but neither do I believe this is entirely 'bad'. There are many discussions to be had around some of this, and the legalities can be questioned, I am not the first to do this, but I have been doing it a long time and I find myself at odds with the average TV viewer sometimes. I like to think of this an experiment.

For the record, I have Virgin Media at home, we pay for a decent package, not the top one. I never, ever, watch it live. I find it unbearable, adverts? Programmes broken up into 10 minute packages? Several hundred channels full of unwatchable garbage, the 'main' channels are about 95% full of garbage also. Ever notice how multiple channels synchronise their advert breaks? News channels seem to believe that 10 minutes of "news" can easily be dragged out for 24 hours. Why cant I delete channels? Why do i have to have all the rubbish? I understand they might subsidise the main ones, but it doesnt mean I want my EPG full of them. Its like wading through the tip.

TV is antequated, old fashioned, and unwatchable. The thought of sitting around in the evening, mindlessly flicking the channel makes me shudder. I've noticed a new channel emerge recently - The Flicking Channel. I walk back from the work in the evening and if I see a TV through someones lounge window, almost without exception I know they have Sky. How do I know? Because the EPG is on screen, and the viewer is flicking. That's all anyone seems to do - flick over in search of the next bit of eye candy. Shiver.

For the last 7 years I have downloaded everything I watch. 100% now. I watch what I want, when I want. I watch it on the television - via an "unauthorised" modified Xbox, hacked to run a progam called Xbox Media Centre (XBMC). This, without doubt, is the most perfect way of watching TV programmes. Those that have it will understand. It makes Sky+ or Virgin Media boxes look like something off the Arc. And its free - in the open source sense. I'm sure it violates a Microsoft License or something. I bought the Xbox, I'm happy that I can do with it what I like.

The downloading I wont go into too much, except that it takes me around 5 seconds a day to do what I need to do - I'd say its quicker than setting up a Sky+ series link. The downloading occurs when I'm at work. In 7 years, I havent missed an episode of anything I like. In some cases, I can download a 1 hour programme faster than I can shower. my morning downloads are the first thing I do before getting into the shower, and they complete in minutes usually. I've never had a bad file, a corruption. They are edited for adverts, and breaks etc. They are often American so I get them a day or 2 before UK broadcast. I could wait, but often I download them and watch them after they've been broadcast on UK TV as regular telly seems weird.

Sometimes I watch on the computer - in high res of course. Sometimes I convert programmes overnight to watch on my iphone on the train during my morning commute.

So what you have here, is a member of society, who shows willingness to purchase various services, (virgin, iphone etc) but deeply unsatisified with the medium of TV, and moved past it many years ago. The first counter argment I get is that "Ah! Well I have Sky+/V+" etc which is fine. They're OK and all, and even my parents time-shift now - but I used to have a Tivo. In fact, in the garage I have 3. All not quite working now. Tivo is big in the US and was around years before Sky+. It was, and still is, far superior. Unfortunately Sky controlled them in the UK and basically squashed them. I cannot believe that the basic functionality of Tivo is STILL not available in Sky+/V+. (For example, series link was far better on Tivo - and was capable of tracking down episodes on other channels, repeats, from "+1 hour" channels etc. It also had a really clever suggestion mechanism, and recorded things you might like when it wasnt doing something else, with surprisingly good results. You could also teach it what you liked and didnt like. It was ahead of its time, and it still hasnt been bettered. (Except by later revisions version 2, ver 3 etc available in the US, not here). Tivo was almost perfect.

Watching regular TV to me is like going shopping. Does anyone else find the concept of 'shops' utterly bizarre? They're like showrooms for things you can buy online and get delivered. I have actually seen people enter these establishments, pick something up off the shelf, take it to the counter and HAND OVER money? How quaint!

The idea of having a series of transient, multiplexed broadcasts, arbitrarily aimed at my TV and somehow I am expected to determine the wheat from the chaff? Ridiculous. TV is dead. Dont buy into this HD rubbish either. Its unbelieveably expensive at the moment, it doesnt matter. What matters is the story, the content, the programme. Its another mechanism to make you buy another TV, another STB. TV's used to - and still do - last for 15, 20 years. Mine is a lovely 32" Panny that cost me about £70 years ago. I cant see every blade of grass during the footy, but I can watch TV on it. I have friends endlessly amused by my "old" TV, "youve gotta get HD mate, its so clear..." whatever. They're missing the point. I'm willing to keep up with technology - although never cutting edge, its about avoiding the distractions, and the coercion to fleece viewers at every opportunity.

Its strange that I have to break some laws (well, some copyrights) to get the best experience for me. It seems the legitimate offerings we have today are not really of the time. TV is dead, long live TV!

Sorry its so long! I'm interested in what you think. Good TV programmes are a passion of mine and I wanted to share. Im sure there are others, hugely disillusioned with 'modern' programming and I wanted you to know, it can be better.

petersandyglen

daveyt1 wrote: »

I thought you might be interested in my TV experiences, as they might be a little unconventional but I find people are quite surprised. It's also in response to a lot of the comments I've read on here in a way - especially the person wondering how to get TV as 'good as it was in the 70s'! I'd argue it was bl00dy awful in the seventies, but I know exactly what she means.

I love TV. Love it. Always have done. Specifically I mean the content - the really good content. However, its taken a while to realise, but the medium - Televisions and the broadcast methods - I hate with a passion. I love quality programming, and its so rare, I've had to go to these lengths to get it in the way I want it. Sky/Virgin is the opposite of what I want.

I'll admit that this aint exactly kosher, but neither do I believe this is entirely 'bad'. There are many discussions to be had around some of this, and the legalities can be questioned, I am not the first to do this, but I have been doing it a long time and I find myself at odds with the average TV viewer sometimes. I like to think of this an experiment.

For the record, I have Virgin Media at home, we pay for a decent package, not the top one. I never, ever, watch it live. I find it unbearable, adverts? Programmes broken up into 10 minute packages? Several hundred channels full of unwatchable garbage, the 'main' channels are about 95% full of garbage also. Ever notice how multiple channels synchronise their advert breaks? News channels seem to believe that 10 minutes of "news" can easily be dragged out for 24 hours. Why cant I delete channels? Why do i have to have all the rubbish? I understand they might subsidise the main ones, but it doesnt mean I want my EPG full of them. Its like wading through the tip.

TV is antequated, old fashioned, and unwatchable. The thought of sitting around in the evening, mindlessly flicking the channel makes me shudder. I've noticed a new channel emerge recently - The Flicking Channel. I walk back from the work in the evening and if I see a TV through someones lounge window, almost without exception I know they have Sky. How do I know? Because the EPG is on screen, and the viewer is flicking. That's all anyone seems to do - flick over in search of the next bit of eye candy. Shiver.

For the last 7 years I have downloaded everything I watch. 100% now. I watch what I want, when I want. I watch it on the television - via an "unauthorised" modified Xbox, hacked to run a progam called Xbox Media Centre (XBMC). This, without doubt, is the most perfect way of watching TV programmes. Those that have it will understand. It makes Sky+ or Virgin Media boxes look like something off the Arc. And its free - in the open source sense. I'm sure it violates a Microsoft License or something. I bought the Xbox, I'm happy that I can do with it what I like.

The downloading I wont go into too much, except that it takes me around 5 seconds a day to do what I need to do - I'd say its quicker than setting up a Sky+ series link. The downloading occurs when I'm at work. In 7 years, I havent missed an episode of anything I like. In some cases, I can download a 1 hour programme faster than I can shower. my morning downloads are the first thing I do before getting into the shower, and they complete in minutes usually. I've never had a bad file, a corruption. They are edited for adverts, and breaks etc. They are often American so I get them a day or 2 before UK broadcast. I could wait, but often I download them and watch them after they've been broadcast on UK TV as regular telly seems weird.

Sometimes I watch on the computer - in high res of course. Sometimes I convert programmes overnight to watch on my iphone on the train during my morning commute.

So what you have here, is a member of society, who shows willingness to purchase various services, (virgin, iphone etc) but deeply unsatisified with the medium of TV, and moved past it many years ago. The first counter argment I get is that "Ah! Well I have Sky+/V+" etc which is fine. They're OK and all, and even my parents time-shift now - but I used to have a Tivo. In fact, in the garage I have 3. All not quite working now. Tivo is big in the US and was around years before Sky+. It was, and still is, far superior. Unfortunately Sky controlled them in the UK and basically squashed them. I cannot believe that the basic functionality of Tivo is STILL not available in Sky+/V+. (For example, series link was far better on Tivo - and was capable of tracking down episodes on other channels, repeats, from "+1 hour" channels etc. It also had a really clever suggestion mechanism, and recorded things you might like when it wasnt doing something else, with surprisingly good results. You could also teach it what you liked and didnt like. It was ahead of its time, and it still hasnt been bettered. (Except by later revisions version 2, ver 3 etc available in the US, not here). Tivo was almost perfect.

Watching regular TV to me is like going shopping. Does anyone else find the concept of 'shops' utterly bizarre? They're like showrooms for things you can buy online and get delivered. I have actually seen people enter these establishments, pick something up off the shelf, take it to the counter and HAND OVER money? How quaint!

The idea of having a series of transient, multiplexed broadcasts, arbitrarily aimed at my TV and somehow I am expected to determine the wheat from the chaff? Ridiculous. TV is dead. Dont buy into this HD rubbish either. Its unbelieveably expensive at the moment, it doesnt matter. What matters is the story, the content, the programme. Its another mechanism to make you buy another TV, another STB. TV's used to - and still do - last for 15, 20 years. Mine is a lovely 32" Panny that cost me about £70 years ago. I cant see every blade of grass during the footy, but I can watch TV on it. I have friends endlessly amused by my "old" TV, "youve gotta get HD mate, its so clear..." whatever. They're missing the point. I'm willing to keep up with technology - although never cutting edge, its about avoiding the distractions, and the coercion to fleece viewers at every opportunity.

Its strange that I have to break some laws (well, some copyrights) to get the best experience for me. It seems the legitimate offerings we have today are not really of the time. TV is dead, long live TV!

Sorry its so long! I'm interested in what you think. Good TV programmes are a passion of mine and I wanted to share. Im sure there are others, hugely disillusioned with 'modern' programming and I wanted you to know, it can be better.

Wow. Long live technology. I don't understand how you do half of what you say you do, but you are right about being able to edit out the "distractions". I find it easier to record longer programmes and watch them later whilst recording something else. Best of luck to you.:T

richardc1983

What are your views on the TV License?

I agree with you, technology should be way advanced than what the existing boxes do now but some people cant even work the existing ones, its gotta move at certain pace.