The Techzine
TV anytime, anywhere!
TV now plays a very big part in our homes. We have digital TVs in excess of 32” in our lounges, various digital TV devices for Freeview, Virgin Media and SKY, and quite often TVs in other rooms of the house that are capable of viewing digital TV as well. No matter where you turn there is a TV looking back and we can’t get enough of them. So, if you’re a TV junkie and cannot bare to be without a remote control in your hand, then you’ll be happy to know that you can watch your TV from anywhere in the world!
How do I watch my TV when I’m out?
To watch TV whilst you’re on holiday for example, you will need to buy
a digital streaming device. The best device for doing this is Sling Media’s Slingbox and it will allow you to stream live TV over the Internet without any monthly fees. You’re probably already paying for your digital TV so you might as well get the most from it, wherever you are!
To connect your Slingbox up to your digital TV service is extremely easy. You simply connect your digital receiver, like a Sky box to the back of it and plug the Slingbox into your router that holds your broadband connection. After that install the software that comes with it onto your PC and make a note of your Finder ID. This is the ID that will allow you to access it when connecting remotely.
ORB
If you have a Digital TV tuner card (DVB-T) in your PC and ORB software installed, then you can view your TV or any channels that you have created with the software, over the Internet. As well as viewing channels, you can also record programs up to 2 weeks in advance as well as viewing and recording from a multitude of Internet channels.
Internet TV
If the thought of buying extra hardware and connecting to your home PC over the Internet sounds slightly daunting then there are hundreds of TV stations that you can choose from online. You probably won’t get the channels that you’re used to but there is a lot of useful stuff on there, ranging from holidays to the latest tech news. However, you will need to download a viewer that will be recommended by the site you are viewing in order to watch the TV but this is usually free and installed within a few minutes. If you have a lot of time and money, you could even make your own Internet TV station!
Devices for watching TV anywhere
As well as using a PC or laptop with a broadband connection to view streaming content, you can also use other devices to watch streaming TV from your home PC. If you have a modern mobile phone or PDA then you may have noticed some applications on there like SlingPlayer and Orb. These applications allow you to make a connection to your home PC and stream content to your location. You could be stuck in the back of a car on a family holiday, “listening” to your parents or spouses favourite music but your journeys could be some much more, providing you’re not driving that is.
Linksys DMA 2200
The Linksys DMA 2200 is the next generation of media extenders. As its name suggests, you can use it to watch all of your Media Center content on your TV. There is one tiny restriction; you need to be using Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Ultimate editions. The DMA 220 does not work with Windows Media Center 2004 or 2005 but this is clearly indicated on the packaging.
The video playback formats that it supports should suite most people. You can watch MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DVD, .ISO and VOB as well as WMV files. Additionally, you can play XviD and DivX files although they are not mentioned in the manual. On top of this, you can also view pictures and stream music to the device.
With the Linksys DMA 200 you don’t need to worry about having a network socket nearby because it also has Wireless N capabilities. This allows it to wirelessly stream any media content up to 1080p full HD. And of course, you can always watch DVDs on the built-in DVD player. Linksys also have another model of media extender, the DMA 2100. The only difference here is that it doesn’t have the DVD drive but otherwise is the exactly the same.
If you like the idea of having some gadgets on your desktop but you don’t like the sidebar, you can have the best of both worlds. Add all your favourite gadgets to the sidebar and the 
simply drag them off the sidebar to where you want them. When you are done, right-click on a clear part of the sidebar and select Close Sidebar. The gadgets will continue work and you can move them to where ever you like.
Slingbox Pro
If you like the idea of having a Slingbox in your house but you haven’t got around to getting one yet, well now there is no excuse!
The new Slingbox Pro has all the best bits from the original Slingbox plus the ability to send and receive a HD signal. So you can still watch programs when you are far away as Australia or as close as the next room but now you can connect it via component cable, which will give you the best picture quality possible.
The Slingbox Pro is compatible with Sky TV, Virgin media and Freeview and has the ability to receive four inputs at the same time. This means you can connect your entire home theatre to it and access it from anywhere. As with the original, it’s simple to install and the friendly helpline supplied by Slingmedia is there if you need them. Even if you only use it at home, you can set it up so you can watch one channel on your home PC while someone else is watching a different channel on the TV (Freeview only). How many arguments that would solve we’re not sure, but we reckon it’s a worthwhile investment.
If you find that putting files in the Recycle Bin then emptying it is double-handling and you much rather just delete files once, then try this simple keyboard shortcut to avoid it. To bypass the Recycle Bin when deleting a file or folder, press and hold the SHIFT key as you press Delete or select the Delete command from the menu. You will see a request for confirmation, and once you say 'Yes' the files will be permanently deleted. Doing this will ensure that no other users can retrieve your files from the Recycle Bin and as you only have to delete the file once, it’s faster too.
Netgear Digital Entertainer HD
If your armchair is your throne then you’ll want to watch videos stored on your computer or listen to music on the network, without leaving the lounge. A great way to do this is by using the Netgear Digital Entertainer HD. It can connect wired or wirelessly to your home network and then access all kinds of media so you can watch it on your TV.
If you have an external hard drive or iPod or anything else that can connect via a USB cable, simply attach it to the USB port and view the content on your television. Not only that, you can even use the remote to browse the Internet and check your emails!
If your PC has a TV Tuner card installed, you can use the device as a Personal Video Recorder. That means you can schedule recordings or pause live TV, all from your armchair. You may have already guessed it, but the HD at the end of the title means it can stream HD content too. So if you’ve bought and downloaded a HD film, you can stream it to the lounge via the Netgear Entertainer. This product is certainly the next best thing to having a computer in your lounge.
In Windows XP you can press the keys CTRL + ALT + DEL to bring up the Task manager window. In Windows Vista, that same key combination produces a menu where you can select a number of options including logging off, changing your password and opening Task Manager. Alternatively, by pressing CTRL + Shift + Esc will open the Task manager window immediately.
On February the 12th, Microsoft made Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) available as an automatic update. Although you won’t be forced to install it, The TechGuys strongly recommend that you do upgrade if you are currently using IE6. Users of Windows Vista® will not need the upgrade, as IE7 is already preinstalled. Likewise, anyone who has already downloaded and installed IE7 will not need the update.
The rollout is happening because Microsoft made a decision last year to treat IE7 like a critical security update instead of an application update. IE7 is more secure and has more features than previous versions of Internet Explorer. For more information on this subject, click here.
If you want to download and install IE7 independently then click here.
February 2008
- Manipulate the Windows Vista® Sidebar
- Permanently delete files
- The Windows Vista® Task Manager
- Internet Explorer 7 Auto-Rollout
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