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R.I.P. Television 1928-2009

S

SqB

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 14, 2008
543
500
Northern Colorado
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/07/business/07cable.html

These guys at the cable companies are just as clueless as they are portrayed in those satellite company commercials. They are just now figuring out that people actually want content on their devices, and just maybe that they don't know what's best for us when it comes to how that content is delivered.

This is another laughable system that needs to go away. The sad thing is that billions of dollars were just spent upgrading to digital TV that would have been much better spent improving the backbone of that new fangled system we call the Internet.

I am personally no more than a few months away from totally pulling the plug on cable services and going to web only entertainment. I recently realized that I almost never sit in front of the television anymore to watch programs, instead I watch them on the internet or from the DVR. What I want to watch, how I want it, when I want it. A concept that the fossils in cable and network broadcasting will never understand so they will disappear the way of the landline phone companies. This article has nearly pushed me over the edge of cutting the cable.

I'm glad that we have devices like the ATV and high quality portable computers. They may not seem like "TV killers" but I think that they are playing their part in breaking down a system that has never had the best interest of the consumer at heart.

Ok, end of rant.
 
Yeah, I agree but the old school tube is still good for those of us with Kids. I don't mind finding what I want to watch but finding it for a family of 4 can get to be work like.
 
That's the problem looking for the solution. I really just need "boob tube" for the kids and a way to watch live sports. It seems like every time I turn on Nick for the kids they are playing the same spongebob episode over and over again. Maybe I just download a couple and burn them on a DVD to play an endless loop :p.
 
SqB said:
I am personally no more than a few months away from totally pulling the plug on cable services and going to web only entertainment. I recently realized that I almost never sit in front of the television anymore to watch programs, instead I watch them on the internet or from the DVR
Click to expand...
And just how do you suppose that stuff on your DVR gets there??? Just because you record and watch later doesn't mean it's not supplied by the cable company.
 
SqB said:
That's the problem looking for the solution. I really just need "boob tube" for the kids and a way to watch live sports. It seems like every time I turn on Nick for the kids they are playing the same spongebob episode over and over again. Maybe I just download a couple and burn them on a DVD to play an endless loop :p.
Click to expand...

Genius Mixes might come to AppleTV any day now. That would be exactly what you are looking for! :D
 
I am thinking of getting rid of cable as well. I have an HD antenna for the football games and such, but I never watch TV. And wasting $80 a month or whatever it is. I do believe that cable will done eventually, but there is still newspapers around, and once that goes (which newspaper WILL, It is ALREADY old news by the time you read it), i think then that will wake people up, so to speak.

I think the younger generations would agree, but there are many baby boomers and people who grew up in the 60s' still around :) I am 30, so I am not young by any means, but i think most people want ease of use, ya know? Just turn on the TV, and boom. Not everyone knows about Hulu and boxee and other alternatives..And the cable companies are combatting the "other alternatives" by offering DVR solutions. Hell, my mom still records shows on VHS... she is 54...I try to tell her...
 
I would never want to get rid of the TV Box in order to sit around a laptop. A TV in front of a comfy sofa is not going anywhere. But the way content is delivered definitely must change. I am about 90% cable free. I just use it for sports and kids shows. Everything else is apple tv for us!
 
I cut my cable about 6 months ago and haven't missed it. I have my television but it's only hooked up to my DVD player. For TV shows, I use Hulu, go to the network website, or go without unless I download it. I was over at a friends a few days ago and he had his TV on. I noticed right away how much brainless crap is on there and the amount of commercials that are beyond stupid. If there is a show that I really want to watch and it's not available to stream on a website, then I just torrent it. I watched all of the episodes of Mad Men commercial free on my 24" ACD. It was better than watching on my old 21" Toshiba box. One last thing I noticed was the amount of free time I have now. Instead of plopping down in front of the television I do other things that I would normally put off. That is unless I get sucked into watching on the internet! I have lost countless hours on youtube that I'd love to get back!
 
THX1139 said:
I cut my cable about 6 months ago and haven't missed it. I have my television but it's only hooked up to my DVD player. For TV shows, I use Hulu, go to the network website, or go without unless I download it. I was over at a friends a few days ago and he had his TV on. I noticed right away how much brainless crap is on there and the amount of commercials that are beyond stupid. If there is a show that I really want to watch and it's not available to stream on a website, then I just torrent it. I watched all of the episodes of Mad Men commercial free on my 24" ACD. It was better than watching on my old 21" Toshiba box. One last thing I noticed was the amount of free time I have now. Instead of plopping down in front of the television I do other things that I would normally put off. That is unless I get sucked into watching on the internet! I have lost countless hours on youtube that I'd love to get back!
Click to expand...

OK, that's a nice rant. Problem is you're pulling from a lot of technical ends that a vast majority of TV users haven't the slightest clue about. You're also going through a lot of work to get something on a 24" screen as opposed to something visible from 10 feet away.

I like all of the online options as well, but if you think there's some magical commercial-free future of most of this that doesn't cost you, you're kidding yourself. The content companies are just treading lightly right now on streaming sites. They're trying to draw eyes to a new area instead of make money.

The NY Times article showcases why I think Apple TV as hardware is a dumb move, but Apple TV as software -- much improved software -- would be genius. These TV makers are getting smart with the built-in Internet connection and SDKs because most people don't want unnecessary boxes cluttering up a home theater. I bought the BD player I did because it has Netflix streaming in it. Integrate some sort of mini-computer into a BD player or DVD player and you could open up a lot of possibilities. If Apple would turn the Apple TV into a BD/DVD player with an SDK, there may be a future for it since most everybody has a disc player. It also needs more of an iTunes interface and a non-sucky remote.
 
R:best service provide in your entertaniment

The InternetTV Reviews have really helped me with online purchase decisions before ,TVChannels2PC was pretty fast if you want Quality TV Channels and Free Legal Music Sources.
 
Unfortunately there are too many people with low IQ and poor technology / financial know how. Those people don't know anything besides cable tv.

Lots of people like that wastes $200+ per month on tv, and gets every single "feature" the cable company offers.

Yes there are those who knows how to use technology, but that's only a small portion of the population.
 
I have not TOUCHED Network-or even Cable TV for about 99% of the time in the past 5 years-for news or entertainment; I learned my lesson while housesitting for 2 weeks at friends who had FULL CABLE; many nights-with 75 channels to chose from, there was nothing of even the remotest value to watch-unless youre a drooling synchophant with an IQ south of 75;
I choose my CONTENT-what to DO online-and what movies I watch on the telly-very carefully-I didnt even bother with the 'HD' nonsense-again we are on the verge of financial collapse-but we have the sharpest damn tv picture in the world bar none;
I dont know about you but I feel warm with pride;
Life is too short to sit, mesmerized by LIES and outright garbage

TV:
1. is totally irrelevant -the CEOs have no clue-they dont even know how or where to rent a clue; They copy-and would kill an original idea-or not recognize an original idea-even if it smacked them in the face
2. is disinformation if not outright lies-the news is superficial and pretty much for 'infotainment' "WHO WON AMERICAN IDOL TONITE? details at 11!" and when its not-then it is carefully scripted approved and you are told the briefest of details on subjects of great importance: people starve while trillions go to the military industrial complex=we have a psychotic ex-VP who is getting away with engineering the murder of 6000 of our troops via fraud and lies, running about the country stirring up sh*t who should have been imprisoned for TREASON long ago.
Instead TV allows politicians to assert such crapolla WITHOUT CHALLENGE as, 2003: "Iraq was WMDs-we MUST invade for the safety of our civilization" to 2008: "We never said Iraq had WMDs-and your assertions that we did are unpatriotic" barf
3. The levels of most programming insults and degrades intelligence
4 It is all basically on big commercial-interupted by TV programs of treacle and pabulum;
More people know who is sleeping with who on their favorite soap opera than know the name of the Governor of their own state;
Television-with is capacity to mold public opinion and perception keeps people as infants intellectually-this will soon (or actually has these past 10 years) lead us down the road to fascism-and none of them will even know the difference
 
I cancelled my satellite TV service 18 months ago. All I need is Hulu Desktop and my MLB.TV Premium subscription.
 
If someone can tell me how to get the Golf Channel and college football any other way besides the cable providers I'd can my service in a heartbeat.

Anyone accomplished that yet?
 
seashellz said:
I have not TOUCHED Network-or even Cable TV for about 99% of the time in the past 5 years-for news or entertainment; I learned my lesson while housesitting for 2 weeks at friends who had FULL CABLE; many nights-with 75 channels to chose from, there was nothing of even the remotest value to watch-unless youre a drooling synchophant with an IQ south of 75;
I choose my CONTENT-what to DO online-and what movies I watch on the telly-very carefully-I didnt even bother with the 'HD' nonsense-again we are on the verge of financial collapse-but we have the sharpest damn tv picture in the world bar none;
I dont know about you but I feel warm with pride;
Life is too short to sit, mesmerized by LIES and outright garbage
Click to expand...

Conspiracy theorist! Honestly man, just chill out and enjoy the pr0n! ;)

Oh, and syncophant isn't a word :p I wouldn't usually mention it, but you're commenting that those of us who do enjoy cable and HD have low IQ's!
 
We ditched cable TV 12 years ago. We did it because our kids were glued to the kids programs and it affected their behavior. We encouraged reading and outside activities and saw a big difference.

Our youngest was 3 at the time and started reading before he turned 5.

Before Hulu I would download shows from iTunes, but now it's mainly Hulu.

We do have the Digital Boxes that we got with the $40 coupon from Uncle Sam (hooked to old CRT TVs.) Now the endless commercials are clearer...
 
Cellphones, landlines, cable, and the internet are really coming to a point where a merge is inevitable. They already pass the content through the waves or the same tubes, and more and more, it's becoming convergence-based.
 
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