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randau
Guest
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 Posted:
Tue Sep 28, 2004 1:19 am Post subject:
Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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I currently have Comcast analog cable and am thinking of converting
to digital cable for the following reasons: Commercial Free Movies,
Digital Music Channels, and maybe their Interactive Program Guide.
Could someone please describe what features the Interactive Program
Guide has?
-randau
Oregon, USA
I read and post from the Google Groups web site using a Spam
collecting email address that I don't use for anything else.
So if someone wants to contact me, please cleanup and use the
Spam resistant Email address below.
randau2...(at)...proaxis.com
by replacing ...(at)... with @
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Guest
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| Posted:
Tue Sep 28, 2004 5:50 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:
| Quote: | I currently have Comcast analog cable and am thinking of converting
to digital cable for the following reasons: Commercial Free Movies,
Digital Music Channels, and maybe their Interactive Program Guide.
Could someone please describe what features the Interactive Program
Guide has?
|
For less money, you could get a lot more channels, including music
channels, PPV movies and a *much* better IPG, from DirecTV. DirecTV's
newer boxes also give you on-screen caller ID for free.
Comcast's IPG is full of banner ads which take up much of the screen.
That space wasted in the comcast guide is used to list more channels on
the DirecTV IPG, instead of ads.
Many DirecTV boxes also have a 1 touch record feature that will turn on
your VCR, record a show and turn it off at the end of the show. This
is done by clicking the "record" icon for the future show in the IPG.
Comcast doesn't have this, and has no choice of set top boxes. |
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randau
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Sep 29, 2004 1:30 am Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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not@127.0.0.1 wrote:
| Quote: | For less money, you could get a lot more channels, including music
channels, PPV movies and a *much* better IPG, from DirecTV. DirecTV's
newer boxes also give you on-screen caller ID for free.
|
What are PPV movies?
| Quote: |
Comcast's IPG is full of banner ads which take up much of the screen.
That space wasted in the comcast guide is used to list more channels on
the DirecTV IPG, instead of ads.
Many DirecTV boxes also have a 1 touch record feature that will turn on
your VCR, record a show and turn it off at the end of the show. This
is done by clicking the "record" icon for the future show in the IPG.
Comcast doesn't have this, and has no choice of set top boxes.
|
From what you say, it sounds like DirectTV's IPG is superior to
Comcast's. But, I wish someone would describe what you CAN do with
Comcast's Interactive Program Guide to see if it may be sufficient for
me. I have several TV's hooked up to analog cable, but I'm just
interested in converting one of them to digital.
-randau |
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manitou910
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Sep 29, 2004 2:53 am Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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randau wrote:
| Quote: |
What are PPV movies?
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pay per view.
C. |
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Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Sep 29, 2004 9:05 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:
| Quote: | ... I wish someone would describe what you CAN do
with Comcast's Interactive Program Guide
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See what's on.
It's interactive, meaning you can jump around to different
channels, view different programs and a brief description of the
episode. As opposed to analog's scrolling "TV guide" channel, which
usually lists only the program name; and where individual channel info
cannot be accessed immediately. |
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randau
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Sep 30, 2004 3:12 am Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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not@127.0.0.1 wrote:
| Quote: | It's interactive, meaning you can jump around to different
channels, view different programs and a brief description of the
episode. As opposed to analog's scrolling "TV guide" channel, which
usually lists only the program name; and where individual channel info
cannot be accessed immediately.
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I too find the scrolling analog TV guide totally useless. My main
interest in an online digital program guide is its information
currentness and credibility. The cable TV Guide magazine I now receive
through the mail is woefully unreliable. Almost as often as not, the
movies listed turn out to be some other movie or not even a movie.
It's quite frustrating when you're trying to record them. Do you know
if Comcast's online digital program guide would be more current and
credible with respect to the accuracy of their listings?
I thought I heard somewhere that Comcast's digital program guide could
also be searched. Do you know anything about that?
However, I do find interesting some other features you mentioned like
selecting a program and then clicking on a Record icon to have it
recorded. But, that sounds more like DVR capability. Would that kind
of feature come with a Comcast DVR when and if they ever become
available in my area?
-randau |
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Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Sep 30, 2004 7:52 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:
| Quote: | ... The cable TV Guide magazine I now
receive through the mail is woefully unreliable.
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Well, if all you want is a good guide, try these free ones:
<http://tvlistings2.zap2it.com/>
<http://titantv.com/>
| Quote: | However, I do find interesting some other features you mentioned
like selecting a program and then clicking on a Record icon to
have it recorded. But, that sounds more like DVR capability.
|
The one-click record feature in DirecTV's guide works by sending a
powerful infrared signal to your VCR telling it to:
• turn VCR on
• start recording the desired show when it starts
• stop recording at end of program
• turn VCR off
All you have to do is make sure a blank tape is in the VCR. You also
have to tell the box what brand of VCR you have when you initially
install it.
You can also get a DVR for DirecTV for about $50.
You can get a DVR from Dish Network for FREE if you're a new customer.
There is a per month box rental for the Dish DVR, just like a regular
cable box, but Dish programming is much cheaper per month than cable. |
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fishfry
Guest
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| Posted:
Sun Oct 03, 2004 11:43 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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In article <8066f59b.0409281330.1bd401d5@posting.google.com>,
spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:
| Quote: | not@127.0.0.1 wrote:
For less money, you could get a lot more channels, including music
channels, PPV movies and a *much* better IPG, from DirecTV. DirecTV's
newer boxes also give you on-screen caller ID for free.
What are PPV movies?
Comcast's IPG is full of banner ads which take up much of the screen.
That space wasted in the comcast guide is used to list more channels on
the DirecTV IPG, instead of ads.
Many DirecTV boxes also have a 1 touch record feature that will turn on
your VCR, record a show and turn it off at the end of the show. This
is done by clicking the "record" icon for the future show in the IPG.
Comcast doesn't have this, and has no choice of set top boxes.
From what you say, it sounds like DirectTV's IPG is superior to
Comcast's. But, I wish someone would describe what you CAN do with
Comcast's Interactive Program Guide to see if it may be sufficient for
me. I have several TV's hooked up to analog cable, but I'm just
interested in converting one of them to digital.
|
If all you want is a program guide, you'd be better off just firing up
the Yahoo tv listings. I was a Time-Warner subscriber on the east coast
and now I'm a Comcast victim -- I mean, subscriber -- on the west coast.
The Time-Warner IPG has many features that are absent from the Comcast
guide. Comcast's box has very low capacity, so it only goes two or three
days ahead. As someone noted, the screen is about 2/3 ads and very
little space used for actual information. The Reminder function doesn't
let you see what reminders you have set, so, for example, if you have
two overlapping reminders and one gets triggered and you click on it,
you then have no way to remember what the other one was. There's no way
to fast-forward through time ... for example if it's 1pm and you want to
see what's on at 7pm, that's 12 keyclicks, one per half hour.
The Comcast guide is totally worthless. Get your program guide from the
Web, or (better idea) get a TiVo, which has a 2-week program guide and
has a lot of other nice features. Or get DirecTV. |
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randau
Guest
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| Posted:
Mon Oct 04, 2004 11:11 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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fishfry wrote:
| Quote: | If all you want is a program guide, you'd be better off just firing up
the Yahoo tv listings. I was a Time-Warner subscriber on the east coast
and now I'm a Comcast victim -- I mean, subscriber -- on the west coast.
The Time-Warner IPG has many features that are absent from the Comcast
guide. Comcast's box has very low capacity, so it only goes two or three
days ahead. As someone noted, the screen is about 2/3 ads and very
little space used for actual information. The Reminder function doesn't
let you see what reminders you have set, so, for example, if you have
two overlapping reminders and one gets triggered and you click on it,
you then have no way to remember what the other one was. There's no way
to fast-forward through time ... for example if it's 1pm and you want to
see what's on at 7pm, that's 12 keyclicks, one per half hour.
|
You are talking about Comcast's digital Interactive Program Guide
aren't you? If so, does it have a search capability? Could I enter
the beginning of a movie title and have it automatically searched for?
I currently get an 8x10 grid layout Cable Program Guide mailed to me
every week. Each evening I highlight programs of interest for which I
can easily see overlapping time conflicts. It's very handy that way.
But, too often the information is obsolete and the specified duration
of a movie turns out to be wrong or it's a different movie or it's
something other than a movie. It's especially frustrating when trying
to record that movie. I was thinking that the daily digital program
guide would be more current and I could use it to confirm something
that I'd like to record that evening. I don't try to record things
days in advance. |
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Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Oct 14, 2004 9:48 pm Post subject:
Re: Comcast Interactive Program Guide |
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spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:
| Quote: | I was
thinking that the daily digital program guide would be more
current
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It would be.
Jeez, if you already have cable, why don't you just call or go pick up
a digital box. If you don't like it, take it back and drop back to
analog.
If the cableco wants to charge you for an upgrade/downgrade, threaten
to switch to satellite and they'll usually drop any fees. |
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