Personal+Video+Recorder+(PVR)



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=__Introduction__=

The PVR – Personal Video Recorder is definitely something to talk about. The idea of combining a computer to a television is not a foreign concept but it is a highly praised invention since making it onto the market in 1999. “Since the dawn of the VCR, people have been hooked on the ability to record their favorite television programs and watch them at their leisure.”(Digital Insurrection, 1997-2005)The PVR is considered an upgrade to a VCR but without the hassles of figuring out how to program it and the running around to look for a video five minutes before your desired program begins. The PVR plays off the idea of time shifting. It allows a person to be able to program a numerous amount of content from the television and can also allow you to record and watch another show at the same time. Missed what that guy just said – no worries! With the PVR, the user has the ability to rewind live television to catch up on any missed content. The world has become more demanding and continues to day by day. Time is not something many of us have and leisurely activities such as sitting and watching a television show has become a bit of a luxury for many. With so many things changing and becoming more intense, people have no choice but to sacrifice and become adaptable to the restrictions in our life, but with the PVR it allows us to have some control and enjoy the simpler tings of life!

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=**__VCR to PVR__**= Video Cassette Recorder vs. Personal Video Recorder! Saying that the PVR is an upgrade to the VCR is an understatement in many ways. The VCR, when it did function as you wanted, would usually have considerably poor quality both in sound and visual compared to the actual broadcast. The VCR did introduce the ability to watch a program at a later time, creating the idea of time- shifting. Also, VCRs use video cassettes which do have a great deal of storage allowing for the most; 2 hours worth of footage and the programming set up usually varied from difficult to frustratingly difficult. The PVR on the other hand is not that difficult to program and literally just takes the push of a few buttons with the addition of guidelines at the lower screen, just in case. The Personal Video Recorder or also known as the Digital Video Recorder is in essence a small computer, with a computer hard drive and a nice consumer friendly interface. To record programming from a wide selection of sources, a high video quality card is used and stored into the hard drive. PVRs store the recordings digitally, therefore there is very little if any picture degradation.The user can record two programs simultaneously with the same digital quality while watching a third one already recorded. (Videotron). PVRs are capable of recording more than 20 hours of quality programming and groups them as individual files, making it easy to locate a particular show. There are no tapes and no rewinding. Has an easy to understand interface with an informative program guide that would allow you to scroll ahead and program in all your favorite shows for the coming week. In addition, you could search through a database of coming shows to locate ones of interest to you. It also offered a live programming feature than allowed you to pause a live program and resume it later.

=**__TiVO and ReplayTV__**= In 1999, a small upstart company, known as Tivo exposed a new and revolutionary product called the Tivo Recorder. The Tivo digital video recorder, The Tivo interface had the ability to learn your tastes and a s a result, make recommendations of possible shows that may be of interest to you. The introduction of the standalone Tivo system was followed shortly after by an integrated Directv with Tivo system for Directv subscribers. This would better allow Directv customers to benefit from Tivo and eliminated the need for a separate Tivo recorder. The partnership was an instant hit and soon became the core source of revenue for Tivo, backed by DirecTV’s 7 million customers. Tivo's novel idea and popularity soon led to ReplayTV, introduced by a company known as Sonic Blue, which soon ended up in bankruptcy protection. While Tivo concentrated on the bread and butter of personalizing your television,. Like the Tivo, ReplayTV could record from a number of sources, including off-air programs, cable vision and also satellite providers. ReplayTV also was the first personal video recorder company to offer the dreaded feature "commercial skipping", although this was later phased out in future software releases, in part for being too revolutionary. (Digital Insurrection, 1997-2005)

=**__Negative Aspect of the PVR__**= As with everything there are consequences to every new invention, idea or thought. The PVR creates the feeling for more time in a sense. It does that by allowing people to go about their everyday life without having to sacrifice anything to see a particular program or sacrifice a particular program in order to carry on with everyday life. Hard at work preparing for a meeting, want to go to the gym, or finish making dinner. The PVR makes that possible and allows a person to sit and enjoy the shows they want to watch. However, for many people, families particularly, sitting and watching a particular television show was a form of bonding and bringing the family closer together. The idea of family is becoming a thing of the past because there is less time in a day for a family to come together and catch up with happenings of one another. When I was younger, every Friday, my entire family would sit and watch MacGyver and The Simpson’s (against my mother’s wishes), this was the time that we had to really be together. As I got older we didn’t spend as much time together and now I see my parents and sisters twice a year. But because of those simple times when I was a child I still remain incredibly close with my family. The PVR almost makes staying at work late all the time ok. It is makes it possible and it creates a division among people. The PVR has also had negative effects in the world of media. With the PVR, users can bypass all commercials, which are for many, the best part of the PVR. But this has negative results for sponsors of particular programs and the business world in general. Television is one of the most effective ways to get a particular company’s brand out to the public. With people forwarding through the advertisements it has the obvious effect on the buyer and seller world. In addition, infringement of copyright laws is on a thin string when it comes to personal video recorders. ReplayTV went bankrupt in trying to fight that battle. They made it possible to record the program and share it with others and they were quickly stopped. Creators of the PVR continually have to make sure that they do not go to far with new features, with fear that they may be breaking the laws of copyrighting.

Digital Insurrection. “Personal Video Recorders” Online. 1997-2005 (http://pvr.digitalinsurrection.com/personalvideorecorders.php) Acquired on Nov 15th’2006 Radio and Telly. “Digital Video Recorders” Online. 2003-2006. (http://www.radioandtelly.co.uk/pvr.html) Acquired on Nov 15th, 2006. Videotron. “Equipment: HD Personal Video Recorder. (HDPVR)” Online. (http://www.videotron.com/services/en/television/caracteristiques-enp-hd.jsp) Acquired on Nov 16th, 2006. TiVO Inc. Online. 1998-2006. (http://www.tivo.com/0.0.asp) Acquired on Nov 16th 2006. Comcast Cable Services. “What is PVR?” Comcast Cable Services. Online. 2006. (http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PVR.html) Acquired on Nov 16th 2006. http://www.eff.org/broadcastflag/hdtv-introHY.php
 * __References__**

Digital Insurrection. “Personal Video Recorders” Online. 1997-2005 (http://pvr.digitalinsurrection.com/personalvideorecorders.php) Acquired on Nov 15th’2006
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