LPT730 Lab #0 - Part 2 - Two Pieces of Software I Regularly Use

Myth TV is a homebrew personal video recorder (PVR) that let's your Linux computer greatly enhance your TV viewing experience. While writing this, I'm watching a movie called Adam's Rib staring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. I recorded this movie on August 31 knowing I wouldn't have the time to watch it until much later. This kind of time-shifting hasn't been new since the VCR was invented, but for my Myth box this is just the tip of the iceberg. While watching this movie I'm also recording the Belgian Grand Prix and flagging the commercials on another recording made last night. I can also:

• pause, rewind, play in slow-motion (both recordings and live-TV)
• skip forward to pass commercials or boring bits
• skip back to review something I didn't get the first time
  
• put multiple TV tuner cards in my computer (currently I have 3) and record many channels at once
• burn what I record onto a DVD
• play and archive my DVDs

just to name a few. For a more complete list click here. It's hard to convey how much better TV is when not encumbered by commercials and the strict constraints of a broadcast schedule. I really notice the difference when I visit a friend with regular TV and sit there biding my time, silently reciting some mantra during the commercials or stifling my annoyance at the fact that I just missed some important detail and can't rewind. Such rank inflexibility could only be designed by the advertising community and I see the PVR as a natural and sane response by the viewing public. At this point I would most likely stop watching TV if no PVR were available. Here's a screen capture showing some of my media library.


iTunes on Windows is one of the last proprietary applications I still use. While I've tried gtkpod and YamiPod, I've found them both more hassle then they're worth. You can say what you like about Apple's proprietary business model and expensive hardware, but they design software that satisfies my needs and requires virtually no training or learning curve. Here's a snapshot of my music library in iTunes.


I surmise that one day a team will put together a Linux distribution with this much ease of use as a primary goal. That would be a good thing.