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Post date: Sep 02, 2011 1:4:49 PM
We do not generally provide Cable TV over coaxial cable as we have found it in the past unreliable, of poor quality and with execrable customer service. We do provide local TV channels via an aggregator of OTA (over the air) HDTV or FTA Satellite feeds accessible on your computer or wireless / Ethernet-enabled equipment, but this would be a separate agreement and not part of the lease. Your computer needs to be able to handle HDTV and, if you wish, you can connect a larger display to your computer as well as a remote control (ask us for a demonstration).
We can set up live HD TV on your computer (about 20 local Canadian and US stations) via two major ways: WMC (aka Windows Media Center) or MD (Media Director).
To use WMC you need a fairly recent and capable computer running at least Windows 7. The setup is a bit involved - we will do it for you - but once completed you will have access to TV Guide for all available channels and will be able to set up TV shows recording with the click of a button. You can find more than one demo on Youtube.
An MD setup is available for older computers as well, although an older computer might not be able to display High Definition video. Once set up, your computer will be able to boot-up from the network (keeping your local disks and existing setup completely unchanged and untouched) and you will be able to set-up recordings with commercial skipping and watch live TV as well.
We charge $5-8 / month for this setup. We also offer access to our collection of VHS tapes which we used to timeshift various TV shows and movies off our cable subscription back in the 90s. We have a rather large collection of Daily Show with Jon Stewart episodes, many of them not even catalogued. If that sounds unfamiliar / difficult, you may very well subscribe on your own to one of the numerous yet expensive services providing video feeds and TV shows over the Internet. It is not difficult to connect a second, large LCD screen / TV to a newer computer and control it via a remote control. Such a setup is called HTPC. You may also install a program such a Boxee that makes everything easier.
Amazon Instant Video is similar to iTunes.
iTunes aggregates a number of TV shows, some free some at a small charge, which you can download on your iPhone, iPod or iPad
Netflix offers unlimited movie and TV show streaming starting at $7.99 / month with a one month free trial and a toll-free number: 1 (877) 320-4701
There are several other ways to transform your computer into an HTPC. Here's a visual summary:
Youtube provides movie streaming and many TV stations publish their news on their respective channels as well. You can subscribe to the following channels and choose whether to be alerted by email when new videos for the channels are posted.
NEWS and commentary: CBCtv, QTV, TVO, WNED17, AlJazeera, BBC, DailyMirror, Economist, EUXTV, The Agenda, TheYoungTurks, CNN, AFP, AssociatedPress, CBS, ReutersVideo, RussiaToday, Bloomberg, Current, Fox, ReasonTV, NYT, TimesUK,
Educational: TED, Allan Gregg, TVOparents, dansavage, ForaTV, JourneyMan Documentaries, NatGeo, NewSci, RSA, GoogleTalks, ArtistSpace, BigThink, CED, NASAx, Sci@N, Kipkay, Photoshop,
History & Archives: NFB, TVOarchive, Retrontario, BritishTV, NASAtv,
Univs & Courses: YaleCourses, Stanford, UCBerkeley, MIT, India,
Animation: ANIboom, Disney, Dreamworks, Pixar, Annecy, jim, egor, SaladF, GreyBloke, HP, BN,
General Fun: CollegeHumour, JimmyKimmelLive, MercerReport, TheHour, Royksopp, TheOnion, Cyriak, BBCcomedy, OKgo, TopGear, Machinima, Failblog, NASAedge, NASAeclips, UMG, UFC,
Niche individuals: MGM, RandomGuy, ReEnactments, mues, spillcom, JNN, TokyoCooney, AdamBuxton, CassetteBoy, LiberalViewer
Aggregators: WWITV, FreeTV, Beeline, TVTube, Clicker
More: openculture, 100
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