Tivo vs MythTV (was: *pout* HDTV No Recordee....)

[Ted Roche]

On Nov 7, 2006, at 8:43 PM, Ben Scott wrote:

>  Absolutely.  The thought of TV without a good DVR is totally
> unacceptable to me now.

It's obvious we don't have to sell you on the joys of PVR.

The question you asked was whether MythTV is as "Hands-Off" as Tivo,  
and I think the answer is "No." While the tweaking involved is pretty  
minor, there probably are a few more rough edges to work out.  
Balancing that is the greater freedom you have to hack the code, the  
hardware, change the storage, script in new functionality, etc., etc.  
Tivo is only a proprietary video recorder and player, albeit a good  
one. MythTV is a media center.

We are, after all, comparing a multi-million-dollar consumer  
appliance with an unfunded open-source project. The fact that they  
are of a comparable value is a remarkable tribute to the Open Source  
process, imo.

>  That card is capture only, right?  So the TV/monitor will need VGA
> in, or the computer will need TV-video out, I take it?

Yes. I believe the higher-model cards have various Video-Out, S- 
Video, HDMI, DVI and other acronyms, as do higher-end video cards.

>  Hrmmm.  It's the "mostly" that concerns me.  :)

Well, I haven't even read the manual yet. Some adjustments are  
needed, and some education, but I've found it easy to install and  
easy to operate.

Ted Roche
Ted Roche & Associates, LLC
http://www.tedroche.com