[olug] Myth TV / Cox Digital Box questions etc

[Shawn Mattingly]

In a word, yes.  It's a lock-in to assure that you are a cable TV 
subscriber.  It's the same idea as "basic" vs. "digital" standard-def 
channels.  The situation will change soon.  I just got a letter a week 
or two ago from Cox saying that they were upgrading their network and 
that I should expect 100 HD channels from them at some point in the near 
future (probably a substantial chunk of them premium).  I don't know 
what ratio of clear vs. encrypted channels they will offer but it will 
be interesting to find out.

Shawn

Benjamin Watson wrote:
> I am curious as to why the encryption.  I mean, is encryption the only
> way they have to keep non-paying customers for viewing pay
> channels/tiers?  It's just one of those things that really "grinds my
> gears".  I mean, I pay for it, why can't I record it?
>
> Ben
>
> On Sun, Jun 29, 2008 at 10:56 PM, Shawn Mattingly <smattin at mimezine.org> wrote:
>   
>> I think Cox only has about 5-10 clear QAM channels.  Most anything that
>> you would actually want to watch that isn't already available OTA is
>> encrypted.
>>
>> Shawn
>>
>> Benjamin Watson wrote:
>>     
>>> The beauty of Linux-based HTPCs (e.g. Myth, Linux MCE, etc.) is their
>>> scalability.
>>>
>>> So long as your tuner is hardware-based (which all of the newer
>>> Hauppage cards are nowadays), your CPU sees very little action.  You
>>> can keep expanding the tuners as you need them (and so long as you
>>> have enough PCI / PCIe slots).  The other cool aspect is the backend /
>>> frontend duality.  My backend manages all of the recordings and other
>>> ripped media.  I can now stream that over the network I have in my
>>> house to any other PC/TV over Ethernet.
>>>
>>> In terms of the user interface (post installation/configuration), it's
>>> really easy.  If you can TiVo, you can Myth.
>>>
>>> As far as video cards are concerned, I'd go NVidia all the way.  Their
>>> unified driver set works well with Linux.  However, your 3D needs are
>>> relatively low.  Your primary need is to get the video signal out to
>>> your TV.  Since I'm no where near the HD TV scene yet, all my NVidia
>>> cards merely use S-Video output to a standard-def TV.
>>>
>>> One other important thing you'll want to consider though once you
>>> start Myth'ing.  Storage.  You can count on a half-hour program
>>> (Standard Def) eating up ~1GB.  Regular DVD movies (depending on what
>>> tracks/feature you pull out) run 4GB to 8GB.  I've purchased a rather
>>> large computer case and other accessories from Jay at RTU to build my
>>> own NAS using FreeNAS.
>>>
>>> In terms of getting HD content over cable from COX, I know Hauppage
>>> has a new HD (HVR) series of cards coming out (or already out).  They
>>> can tune clear QAM.  However, I have no doubt COX probably encrypts
>>> their stuff.  I'm sure Google could locate a forum somewhere with
>>> instructions on how to get around that.
>>>
>>> Have fun,
>>>
>>> Ben
>>>
>>> On Sat, Jun 28, 2008 at 4:18 PM, Will Langford <unfies at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>       
>>>> Reguarding nvidia / hdmi question, it appears:
>>>>
>>>> Leadtek PX8500 GT TDH HDMI GeForce 8500 GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI
>>>> Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Low Profile Video Card - Retail
>>>>
>>>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814122037
>>>>
>>>> Would be a good option.  8500 will handle more than anything I would
>>>> throw at it, 3D wise.  I dunno if it'd help alot for video playback,
>>>> but meh... should have more than enough CPU for that.  And spdif pass
>>>> through is good too :).  One cable going to the TV, yay!
>>>>
>>>> And...
>>>>
>>>> ITS PASSIVELY COOLED!  YAY!
>>>>
>>>> The Radeon HD2xxx/3xxx/4xxx cards are looking cheap, but sticking with
>>>> the suggestion to avoid them... sigh :(
>>>>
>>>> -Will
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