lines of flight

Sometimes I tell people I dont have a television and then let them believe that means that I dont watch a lot of television. Cuz people who dont watch television are cool. But this isnt true at all, I do watch television. In fact I watch quite a bit of television, more than I care to admit, but I watch it on my computer, that’s all.

There are lots of ways to watch tv on your computer. It’s not that difficult to do these days, with streaming video and torrents and sites like this, this, this and so many more.

One day I may be ambitious and install a tv tuner on my comp, but even just viewing what is available online is more than enough to keep me happily procrastinating for the rest of my life. And besides, what am I really missing?

Probably the most frustrating thing about online television is that you cant always get anything you want, even tho the prospect of just such a thing hovers tantalizingly close. I look forward to the day when tv shows and movies will be available on (easy) demand, I’ll gladly pay for that, too. But the 2 pay services I’ve tried so far have been disappointing.

About a year ago I bought a Google video download of some documentary, but it never worked right and I couldnt watch it but didnt feel like sending emails about the $2.99 I was charged for it. Recently I got some email from Google that looks to say that they’re canceling the service–which apparently promised access to the bought media for an indefinite time period–and they’re offering me my $2.99 back. LoL.

More recently I tried the Amazon Unbox service to download a couple episodes from the first season of the best travel show EVER, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, which I hadnt been able to track down through other sources online.

But my experience was not great. The Unbox software–which you need to download and view the higher quality version of the show–took forever to install, slowed my comp down to ridiculous speeds while slooooowly downloading the show, then crashed when I tried to use it. Luckily I had taken the option to download the lower-quality version of the show as well (intended for portable devices), so was able to watch the shows in a smaller size on Windows Media Player, which is a terrible solution but got me my fix.

Even tho I cant recommend either of those services, I know there will be a new one around the corner that does it better. As long as the technology keeps improving, I dont see myself needing a tv any time in the near future. A Sunday night indulgence of Entourage is however, another matter.