TV program listings: how are they gathered, like in TV guide, or Yahoo TV, or TiVo? Is there one company who compiles the database (who?) and provides any taker with them for a fee, or is the data so ubiquitous that anyone can compile it now? If there is more than one source, is there any consensus on the better?
posted by kk
on Jan 27, 2005 -
6 answers
What does this mean? I'm having a hard time deciphering a line from last week's episode of West Wing [MI]
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posted by m@
on Jan 25, 2005 -
8 answers
Someone jumps or falls from a great height, presumably to their death, and shouts, "I regret nothing!" I've seen this used as a joke in a number of places, but where does it originate? It appeared on
The Simpsons in 1992 - a guy yells it when he falls through an opening drawbridge while waiting in line for the Itchy and Scratchy movie - but it seems like it has to be a reference to something else.
posted by Fourmyle
on Jan 24, 2005 -
28 answers
I live in the UK and I want a TiVo-like device, but I can't get Sky+. What are my best options?
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posted by yankeefog
on Jan 24, 2005 -
12 answers
My husband and I have both been googling for hours, with no luck. I finally gave in and came here to query all of you. Was Chuck Mangione's song "Feel So Good" ever used as the theme song or lead-in to a television show? (MI)
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posted by routergirl
on Jan 20, 2005 -
18 answers
In movies and on TV, why does a phone go to dial tone after someone hangs up? Is there a phone system somewhere that really does that?
posted by stopgap
on Jan 16, 2005 -
22 answers
Extreme Makeover Home Edition: How do they do that/... No, really, how? Do they really build a house in a week? Do they really just show up and surprise the family? This seems improbable. [+]
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posted by duck
on Jan 12, 2005 -
16 answers
The Geico Caveman TV commercial.
Is it racist or just brilliant?
posted by Fupped Duck
on Jan 8, 2005 -
24 answers
TiVo to DVD: I've got a TiVo Series 2 which I've had for about 8 months.
According to them, I could burn shows onto a DVD using the "Save to VCR" feature. Has anybody tried this? Were you satisfied with how it worked?
posted by contessa
on Jan 5, 2005 -
14 answers
I want to watch a few tv shows - I have been downloading torrents up to now - but I don't own a tv and don't want to get cable. Is there a pay service to be able to watch select shows (E.R., maybe some HBO) over the internet legally?
posted by bikergirl
on Jan 4, 2005 -
22 answers
I am curious as to how an hour-long nationally televised program in the U.S., like say E.R., is actually broadcast. Does one person in New York or L.A. push a play button to start the show and all the commercials, or is there coordination between NBC and local affiliate technicians? For that matter, how is the entire programming day coordinated? What goes wrong to create “technical difficulties”? (Ignore the feed into satellite and/or cable TV for my purposes).
posted by punkfloyd
on Dec 28, 2004 -
10 answers
I'm running my DVD player thru an RF modulator (my TV's fairly old, without RCA inputs). The problem: visual noise in the form of faint diagonal lines. Sometimes, repositioning the modulator will improve things somewhat but I'm never happy with the picture quality. How an I fix this? It's driving me nuts.
posted by davebush
on Dec 20, 2004 -
6 answers
I'm in Britain and don't have satellite or cable... is there a legal way I can watch or listen to the world championship boxing on the net tonight? Or, is there a non-legal way that maybe you want to email me about?
posted by Pretty_Generic
on Dec 11, 2004 -
3 answers
Last night the Spousal Unit and I went to a large electronics store in an abortive attempt to buy a television. In looking at the walls of monitors, it seemed like the sets were not adjusted to display optimally--or even adequately. In fact, it seemed there was a subtle (or not so) rigging of set adjustment to favor more expensive sets. This question is to someone who has worked at one of these shops or their ilk: is it carelessness, or is it marketeering?
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posted by frykitty
on Dec 7, 2004 -
23 answers
Does anyone remember the PBS series "On Tour?" It was on late Saturday nights when I was in high school, and I remember it being sponsored by IBM. Each 60-minute program was composed entirely of different rock bands doing live performances (usually at very large venues). It was usually one or two songs per band. There was an occasional interview with a roadie, but otherwise it was all music. The show's page has been "retired" from PBS.org. Did these shows ever get put on VHS or DVD?
posted by rxrfrx
on Dec 6, 2004 -
1 answer
I am a Canadian resident who would like to subscribe to DIRECTV. This seems to be legal at the monent, and I have purchased a dish and receiver on eBay. Can anyone suggest a Canadian-based company that will broker my DIRECTV account? I understand that I will need to get a US address.
posted by anonymous
on Dec 5, 2004 -
3 answers
When I look at my digital photos on my laptop, they look great. When I connect the camera to the tv, they look dark and the color looks "off". The picture also looks off when we watch DVD's. Does anyone have a free color test pattern that can help me adjust my TV ? Any other links that can help me adjust this Panasonic 27" ( less than 1 year old ). Google just overwhelms me with info. It mostly comes back with software or videos that I have to purchase....
posted by kingb
on Nov 28, 2004 -
10 answers
Anyone else a fan of the TV adverts for Cartoon Network (by, I guess,
Williams Street of Sealab 2021 and ATHF fame)? The new CG commercials are fun, and the old classics featured things like Shaggy doing a variation on the Whopper/Royale conversation from Pulp Fiction, and Johnny Bravo sitting around in Hopper's Nighthawks coffeeshop (having had his heart broken by Scooby Doo's Velma.) Hip stuff with obvious references aimed at adults. Can the adverts be found anywhere? Anyone want to sharez a link with me via e-mail? Thanks.
posted by Shane
on Nov 27, 2004 -
13 answers
I just got a Neilsen ratings box two weeks ago. Just how much power am I weilding here? Can i prevent the cancellation of shows?
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posted by joelf
on Nov 19, 2004 -
8 answers
Why don't television programs air at a consistent local time across the United States?
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posted by brad!
on Nov 18, 2004 -
16 answers
Six Feet Under's third-season episode
"The Trap." What is the song Nate's singing out the car window along with the car radio as he and William Aaron Jaffe blast down the road? Ralph Covert and the Bad Examples' "Not Dead Yet"?
If not, does anyone know what it is?
posted by mojohand
on Nov 15, 2004 -
2 answers
Hardware/Media Dreams: I'm an A/V and computer enthusiast, and one of my dreams (sad, I know) is to have a computer-based server connected to my television that contains all of my (legally store bought) DVDs, so I can basically have a local version of video-on-demand. [mi]
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posted by robbie01
on Nov 10, 2004 -
20 answers
If I get a 27 inch TV, the measurement is corner to corner, right? How are widescreen tvs measured? What's the difference between a 30 inch regular tv and a 30 inch widescreen?
posted by mkn
on Nov 9, 2004 -
8 answers
What are those red and green things pinned to the lapels of nearly everybody on the BBC these days?
posted by ar0n
on Nov 6, 2004 -
16 answers
So I have read that new federal laws allow you to "opt-out" of channels you don't want that may be part of a cable television package. How does this work? Could I opt-out of all those annoying digital music channels, shopping channels, the news & foreign language & religious & sports channels I don't watch, etc? How much might they prorate my service if I were to do that? I'm thinking about signing up with Comcast in Northern CA for both internet & cable TV. I love my satellite, but my reception is suffering since the trees started getting bigger and bigger (not on my property and the city won't trim them and they are IMMENSE). And Surewest won't give us fiber optic until 2006.
posted by luriete
on Oct 28, 2004 -
3 answers
I've recently become addicted to Buffy. But now I am up to season four and have a dilemma. I am planning on going back and forth between Buffy and Angel, but I don't know which to watch first, since they appear to have aired on the same night. I know there are some crossover episodes, so I don't want to mess that up. Could somebody tell me which order to watch in?
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posted by shotsy
on Oct 23, 2004 -
8 answers
In episode 3 of Lost (which, by the way, rocks my cock) there's a nice, kinda mellow song that plays at the end of the episode. Does anybody know who it was? My Googling has brought me nowhere.
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posted by hughbot
on Oct 21, 2004 -
13 answers
Reading, watching TV, and surfing the web. All three of these involve equal levels of inactivity -- so why is it that I only think of TV watchers and computer users as "at risk" for sedentary-lifestyle health issues, but not avid readers? Why is it that I feel like I'm burning more calories when I'm curled up with a book than when I'm clicking with my mouse?
posted by arielmeadow
on Oct 13, 2004 -
10 answers
Once upon a time, there was a young(ish) girl who had a cable box, a tivo box, a VCR, and a televison that played together quite nicely. She could record one channel on the Tivo, and watch a different channel, AT THE SAME TIME. Then one day the evil cable company convinced this girl to upgrade to digital service, and now, alas, she cannot figure out how to recreate this lost paradise. Why (oh why!) is this scenario no longer so? Can anyone answer her call of distress? [For we have to get ourselves back to the garrr-r-den!]
Seriously, any ideas? 'Cause this really BLOWS.
posted by lilboo
on Sep 25, 2004 -
12 answers
TiVoFilter Is there any way to create killfilters in TiVo? Essentially the equivalent of a Season Pass, but to mark a series as "ignore every instance of this series"? [mi]
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posted by nakedcodemonkey
on Sep 8, 2004 -
19 answers
Television repair question: My TV displays everything in fuzzy black and white, and the audio is just static. [MI]
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posted by stopgap
on Sep 7, 2004 -
2 answers
As a lay...
very lay...student of Roman Republic and Empire, and anticipating the upcoming HBO/BBC series
Rome with relish, I'm reading everything I can get my hands on about both Republic and Empire. Currently I'm reading an abridgement of
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire I just inherited. What next? [insert Latin for "more inside" here].
posted by WolfDaddy
on Sep 2, 2004 -
19 answers
I want to watch TV on my laptop via wifi. Does anyone know how I can do this? For example, Toshiba's new Qosmio laptops come with a 'Wifi TV Router'. Does anyone else make a WiFi TV router? Or, alternatively, I have another computer with a TV card in it. What software could I install to stream the live TV signal from my server? I know there are streaming video products, but I don't know if any of them can also handle changing channels on a live TV stream. Any helpful suggestions appreciated. Thanks!
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posted by PigAlien
on Sep 1, 2004 -
3 answers
"Da Ali G Show". Know the song titles of the tunes in between the show's segments? Yeah, me too. My searching turned up nothing.
posted by sharksandwich
on Aug 22, 2004 -
2 answers
OlyFilter - Is is just me or is it downright impossible to find out when (and on what channel) a particular Olympic event is going to be on television without finding out the results? In this age of tape-delayed television, but with non-tape-delayed internet results, what is a man to do? Specifically, I want to watch all the Mens Basketball games that are on TV. Anyone have a list? I know there is a game on today (I think at three...) but I'm afraid to look for it online fearing spoiling the results.
posted by pwb503
on Aug 17, 2004 -
8 answers
How many words are in a 30 minute teevee show? I am writing the text to a half hour "How to use our library's historical database" show. I am doing it for public access with the local historical society. I have about 24-26 minutes to work with and I'm wondering what word length I should aim for? It will be a pretty low tech affair -- screen shots and pointers -- but if anyone can give me some advice as far as length [or anything else honestly] I'd sure appreciate it.
posted by jessamyn
on Aug 4, 2004 -
9 answers
NERDS, PLEASE ADVISE! ... I have an old (but still treasured) Nintendo 64. I am currently addicted to playing games on my Gameboy SE. A friend tells me you can play Gameboy cartridges on the new Gamecube. I am excited about this, and price a Gamecube with the Gameboy add-on. I find it will be $150 for this. I am only really interested in playing Gameboy cartridges, and not so much interested in Gamecube games. So I have found
this gameboy adaptor for the n64, which I can find all over the place for about $30. This sounds awesome, especially since it's $120 cheaper and since I fear that if I upgrade to the gamecube I'll never play the n64 anymore.
My question is: is the gameboy-to-television image as good on this n64 cartridge? Has anyone actually played with this? Or if I'm just interested in playing Gameboy on the t.v. , is the Gamecube worth the money?
Thank you for your time on this most important discussion topic.
posted by Peter H
on Jul 23, 2004 -
19 answers
Video magnifier help. I have pretty bad vision and am looking into buying a CCTV video magnifier. Does anyone have any experience with these -- or just know a lot about cameras, XY tables, and computers? [more inside]
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posted by josh
on Jul 21, 2004 -
3 answers
SixFeetUnderFilter: What kind of dog was in last night's episode?
posted by agregoli
on Jul 12, 2004 -
6 answers
I'm in love with anything and everything that Aaron Sorkin has worked on, but I've run out of stuff to watch. Any suggestions for what else I might like?
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posted by o2b
on Jun 28, 2004 -
10 answers
Why are voiced-over translations on television so thickly accented? Are translators without accents rare or expensive?
posted by trharlan
on Jun 24, 2004 -
11 answers
With the proper amount of cash, what is the best alternative if I want a flat panel television?
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posted by benjh
on Jun 15, 2004 -
11 answers
Can anyone recommend a TV tuner for a Mac? I have an iBook, so it has to be either a firewire or USB model (not a PC card), and i'm hoping to spend under a hundred bucks. I have no real interest in any TVR functions, as my hard drive is maxed out already and I have a TiVo at home. I'm at Dartmouth for a month - which is in the middle of nowhere - so it must be available online to be shipped immediately, preferably with expedited shipping.
posted by rorycberger
on Jun 14, 2004 -
4 answers
