35 replies to this topic

[Rockrz]

I'm thinking of something that is probably available and I just don't know exactly where to go to find it...

Say I have a high speed internet connection, a computer (if needed)... and a TV... and I wanna watch some TV without paying for cable or satellite?

Is there a device, or a program that could be used on a PC, that would enable you to go to different websites that stream their broadcasts (that would normally be view on regular TV, but they also stream it on their website) and when you click from program to program it automatically appears on your screen in full screen mode?

What I'm thinking of is to be able to pre-program what streaming shows into a play list and have a remore so you could chill on the couch and flip through the channels just like you have regular regular TV... without having to pay the boogie man for the service.

Anybody know how to rig this up?

[John S.]

If you have an HDMI output on your computer and tv, you could just hook the computer to your tv and use it as your monitor. I used to do that before I discovered Plex Media Server and got a larger HD Smart TV.

[Rockrz]

What does the "Plex Media Server" do, exactly?

I don't want to just hook my TV up to my computer... I wanna sit on the couch and surf channels.

There any quite a few TV stations that stream their content on their website, so I wanna be able to program different streaming content (the same stuff playin on cable and dish) but access it through the internet without having to manually logon to each website each time I wanna view their content.

The idea I had was to setup some software so you can preset your content... and then have a rmote and sit on the couch and channel surf just like you had regular TV.

Surely in this day and age of high technology there is a way to do this....

[farmeunit]

They have it, but the quality sucks from the ones I've seen. We use Hulu and Netflix, mainly Hulu. We have a Roku, also, with Revision3, Crackle, and several other "channels". Most of those are free. Hulu and Netflix are the only ones we pay for.

I had a buddy that used his computer and a card to get satellite channels, but I don't know the specifics. It wasn't legal, anyway.

[thomastmc]

It kind of sounds like you want the Time Warner streaming app http://www.twctv.com, but free. You're never going to find it though. Most free streaming of live TV is in horrible quality and constantly jumps urls.

Your best bet for a match to your description is something like http://XBMC.org with some add-ons. Many love it, although I don't care for it.

I have standard cable without the box on Time Warner, and usually watch a lot of news and History Channel on their live streaming site, network shows via QAM, and for everything else https://binsearch.info is like my cloud dvr.

You can get a lot from http://hulu.com and the ABC/CBS/NBC sites for free, but you'll always be left missing out on something.

[Rockrz]

I'm not that big of a TV watcher, which is why I'd like to git rid of my $63 monthly Dish bill.

Thanks for the links... I'll check them out and see what can be done.
I figured on having to do some experimentation, or maybe inventing something

[John S.]

Rockrz, on 22 December 2012 - 06:10, said:

What does the "Plex Media Server" do, exactly?

It allows streaming of any media through your wireless network to a smartTV. I rip my movies to an external drive and can point and click and choose to watch whatever I like. There are also lots of plugins you can add on for other media sources.

[+sc302]

I just signed up for a year with crapcast for 69.99 a month. 50mb Internet and basic tv plus hbo for a year.

[Rohdekill]

John S., on 22 December 2012 - 07:44, said:

It allows streaming of any media through your wireless network to a smartTV. I rip my movies to an external drive and can point and click and choose to watch whatever I like. There are also lots of plugins you can add on for other media sources.

You can do the same with most bluray players now. Just point it at a network source.

[Rockrz]

It seems like there would be a device or software that could capture streaming video from TV stations, news stations, etc, that stream their content from their website... and make it in an easy to use format where you can channel surf with yer remote from the couch.,,,, all for free, with the exception of buying the device and.or software that allows one to do this.

I guess I'll have to invent that since it doesn't seem to exist....

[Rohdekill]

Rockrz, on 22 December 2012 - 15:03, said:

It seems like there would be a device or software that could capture streaming video from TV stations, news stations, etc, that stream their content from their website... and make it in an easy to use format where you can channel surf with yer remote from the couch.,,,, all for free, with the exception of buying the device and.or software that allows one to do this.

I guess I'll have to invent that since it doesn't seem to exist....

First you'd have to get TV networks to stream for free. 99.9% do not except for major news events.

[Rockrz]

OK, well I'm not much in to mainstream TV anyway... but there are other sites that stream their content.

[firey]

Here there are quite a few websites that stream full episodes for free.

www.ctv.ca
www.spike.com
www.globaltv.ca
www.aetv.com
www.history.ca

And many more. I think that an app that could connect to the video parts of those sites and play back the content would be awesome. I may have to look into how the sites are setup and see if I can figure out some common ground for the media playback.

[Rockrz]

Yeah, I guess this would be something that would have to worrk off of software running on a computer since some of these sites have numerous streaming options within their website.

Thanks for the link tho... good stuff!

[Detection]

Roku boxes are online channel streaming devices that you can just plug into your TV, register them on their site, then use it like a normal set top box with a remote

You can browse the net on your PC for more channels and add them via you account online, or by using the channel store on the box itself

Great little device that is purely online streaming channels, some channels also include digital channels you can watch live

http://www.roku.com

I have one, you can add Plex channel to it too and stream direct from your PC running the Plex media server