wrote:
> Are you saying that the Hauppauge 250 is a good
> video capture card for
> eCS, or for eCS and Windows?
Martin,
If I recall correctly, Jerry liked it. (I'm not sure
if he had the 150, the 250, or the 350 . . . ) I
think it has a pretty good reputation vs. its
competition, in the general vicinity of that price
point. The Emperoar software for OS/2 (which would
likely set you back an additional $100.) is what Jerry
was using with the Hauppauge card, back during his
demo. Support in Windows will be a given, though you
might want to opt for some other software than
whatever they bundle with the card, so that could be
an extra cost also.
> I know
> nothing about current television, video recording,
> ATSC, etc.
> I get all my television by cable, which will shortly
> be just ATSC.
I know people who still have analog cable service, but
this has mostly gone away, and is being phased out.
Some cable services have not totally pulled the plug
on it yet, but have been gradually whittling away at
it. Example: they used to get an analog HBO, but Time
Warner canceled this, replacing it at that channel #
with the Jewelry Channel, or somesuch. The palette of
available choices keeps shrinking, in that way, until
they may eventually discontinue the whole analog
service. [IF you have a cable box -- that is
essential for mediating your channel selection --
then you almost certainly have digital cable service
already, and the above would not apply to you.]
Your digital cable (or Satellite) box already does
what a tuner would do -- plus unscramble any premium
channels you may subscribe to -- so, nothing else is
really needed to receive the signal. The signal goes
to your tv, which is either an analog or digital
device (the latter, most likely, if it is a plasma or
lcd type from the last few years vintage). OR, it can
be fed into other devices: a DVR or capture card in a
computer, for example.
I want to be very careful here, because there have
been analog capture card models, digital capture card
models, and I'm sure a number that handle either type
of feed. You should be thorough enough in your
research to make sure you are buying one that would be
suitable for your situation.
> What
> will I need (1) to record off the air to a hard
> drive to play back at
> will?
Depends where the hard drive is. If it is in a
standalone unit like a DVR (supplied by the cable or
sat Co. for a monthly rental fee, and generally built
into the same box as the cable or sat box), a DVD
Recorder, or a combo VCR / DVD Recorder), there won't
be any outside software involved. You set a
Timer/Channel "Event" in the sat or cable box, and a
choice of recording speed, according to the desired
quality and how much free HDD capacity you have left,
and you're done. If it is a standalone device -- not
part of the sat or cable box -- you'd have to set that
Event information there as well. In that way, the box
is receiving the right program at the right time, just
as the HDD comes on to record it.
The situation is different in the scenario of a
computer + capture card. With that, you are
essentially talking about a HTPC (Home Theater PC),
which may be mostly dedicated to that task. It's not
that you *couldn't* also use that computer for other
things, but then you run into the timer problem as a
practical matter. You'd likely have to keep the
computer running all the time, and close to the cable
box. The HTPC is not going to boot itself and run, at
the desired time ! If you were willing to go "Full
Manual", and always control the recording yourself in
real time, that might be the one exception.
Otherwise, some software is going to be required to do
the Timer thing, and initiate recording. There are
various programs that can handle this on the Dark
Side, but it may be that this is well beyond the scope
of what Emperoar does on our side. (I don't know --
Jerry would.) Are you with me so far ?
> (2) to record off the air to a DVD?
Standalone DVD recorders would do this a whole lot
more easily. I'm unsure about how this would be
handled, using an HTPC. It is going to be a less
desirable option: having the program recorded to HDD
*first* allows one to edit out commercials, or fix
certain glitches, prior to committing the content to
DVD.
> (3) to
> record off of the set
> top hard drive to a DVD?
From all that I've heard or read, this is not
possible,
if you are using a set top HDD (inside a DVR,
supplied by your sat or cable Co.). They emphatically
do not want you to have this capability. The one
exception I've heard of involves certain Tivo models,
which is separate DVR hardware you purchase and then
own. And those models may or may not still be
available.
> I don't yet subscribe to HDTV. If I do, what can the
> cable company
> provide to go on the set top? Can I get similar
> stuff as components on
> my own to do the three things listed above?
There are HD DVRs -- again, rented from your Sat or
Cable Co. They have larger hard drives, because HD
uses up a lot more hard drive space a lot faster.
They won't let you send that signal out to **anywhere
BUT your HD television** from that built-in hard
drive. (They're no dummies, and the network or movie
companies would not let them do it, even if they were
willing to !) {Were / Are there any HD Tivo models ?
Good Question. Don't know.} You could not archive HD
material *in HD*, on DVD, in any case, even if you had
workable outbound signal connections. For that, you'd
need a $1,000.+ Blue Ray recorder, but I suspect that
something else like HDMI cabling would still thwart
your attempts. It is designed to keep copyrighted
material in a private connection that only goes from
the sat/cable box to the tv. (The provider makes an
exception for the HDD in the gear that they lease
you.)
I'm uncertain as to whether the HTPC / capture card
option can get around this, with HD content, but from
my reading in some of those forums I gather that there
are ways to do it. For sure it would require more
expensive hardware and fancier methods.
Jordan
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