5 Places to Watch Movie Trailers Online
By The Guru | May 8, 2008
With so many movies to choose from, making a decision can be difficult. Instead of just closing your eyes and picking, take some time online and watch some movie previews. There are plenty of places online that have movie previews for both current movies and upcoming movies.
1. Moviefone
Moviefone is a great place to access movie previews online. Moviefone is a comprehensive site, with movie previews of films already in theaters, upcoming movies, and movies that are on DVD. The moviegoer can simplify the movie watching process by weeding out the films that don’t suit their tastes. Also, while many sites offer only one preview per movie, Moviefone offers multiple trailers for many of the movies in its database. It also allows you to see what movies are playing near you, and view those movie previews exclusively. It narrows down the decision making process for you.
2. Apple Movie Trailers
If Moviefone doesn’t suit your needs, check out Apple Movie Trailers. All that you need is a QuickTime Player to get in on the movie preview watching experience. If you don’t have QuickTime, the download is free, so there is no reason you should miss out. Apple Movie Trailers has every movie trailer you could possibly want to see. The format is incredibly well laid out and easy to use.
3. Yahoo Movies
If you are boycotting Apple because you have an allegiance to Bill Gates, do not despair. There are still more choices out there. Many people don’t realize what a great site Yahoo! Movies is. Not only can you look up show times at your favorite theater, you can also watch the preview of the movie you want to see. Click on the theater near you, see what movies are playing there, and then start watching the previews. If there aren’t any movie trailers that grab your eye, go to another nearby theater and try it again.
4. The Movie Box
If you are only interested in movies that are coming soon to theaters, then take a look at The Movie Box. The Movie Box offers a wide selection of films that are about to hit the box office. The site is easy to navigate, with the movie previews listed on one page.
5. ComingSoon.net
If none of these appeals to you, then there is one more you can try. Coming Soonis another site that offers a wide variety of movie previews to suit every filmgoers needs. Coming Soon has an amazing amount of movie trailers to watch. It would be impossible to sit down and watch all of the previews you would want to see. Bookmark it and come back. The point is to go out and see the movies, after all.
Movies come and go faster than the public can keep up. Instead of wasting money by donating to awful movies, study the trailers. The best part of it is that it’s free and you don’t have to leave the house to do it. You can save money and be lazy, which are great American qualities to possess.
Topics: Guides | 3 Comments »
5 Great Video Players For Your PC
By The Guru | May 8, 2008
Watching videos on your computer is nothing new. People have been doing it for years. But, until a few years ago, your options for viewing those videos were limited to only a few video players. Since then, the selection of reliable video players has expanded. There are now dozens of players that each offer unique sets of features. Many of them can be downloaded for free online and allow you to play videos in a variety of formats. Below, we’ll provide a quick overview of 5 of the most popular video players for your PC.
#1 - WinDVD
WinDVD is a robust video playback application that is capable of playing Blue-ray discs and traditional DVDs (including HD DVDs). You can also watch home movies that have been recorded on the latest multimedia devices. It supports videos and movies in formats such as RealPlayer, AVI, QuickTime and Windows Media. It’s not free, but at under $100, WinDVD is one of the best-regarded and flexible video players on the market.
#2 - VLC Media Player
By contrast to WinDVD, the VLC Media Player is an open source video streaming application. It’s free and can be downloaded from http://www.videolan.org/. The player supports many formats including MPEG-4, DivX, AVI and Flash and can be used on a variety of platforms such as Linux, Windows and Mac OS X.
#3 - PowerDVD
Offered by Cyberlink, PowerDVD is a powerful video player that includes playback of high-definition Blue-ray Disc movies. It supports many popular formats such as AVCHD, H.264 and AVI while providing a host of tools and utilities that offers an interactive experience. You can remix movies, give ratings to videos you’ve watched and check how your movie selections rate with other PowerDVD users. There are several versions of this player available ranging in price from $29.95 to $99.95.
#4 - Windows Media Player
The Windows Media Player by Microsoft is one of the oldest and most widely-distributed video players available. In many ways, the latest version is similar to Apple’s iTunes interface. That is, it offers a streamlined library from which you can access your videos as well as audio files, recorded TV shows, etc. It’s available free from Microsoft’s website.
#5 - iTunes
Any discussion of video players for your computer would be incomplete without a mention of Apple’s iTunes. Arguably one of the most popular video players today, iTunes provides a generous level of functionality with a smooth and graceful interface. It can be used not only to watch videos, TV shows and movies but to organize your audio, video and image files. The most recent version of iTunes supports a variety of formats including the common MPEG-4 format and can be downloaded from Apple.com for free.
Watching Videos On Your Computer
Computers have become an integral piece of our daily lives. While watching a video used to mean loading a DVD (or VHS tape) into a player and watching it on TV, people are more likely to use their computers to watch movies, video clips and even their favorite television shows. During the last 10 years, dozens of video players have been created to offer people an easy way to do that. Though there are many capable players available, the 5 mentioned above are among the most reliable and well-regarded. If you’re not currently using a video player on your PC, take a few minutes to explore those mentioned above. Any of them is likely to suit your needs perfectly.
Topics: Guides | No Comments »
How To Watch Network TV Shows Online
By The Guru | May 7, 2008
Our lives are getting busier each year. We have less time to do the things we want. Unfortunately, that often means not being able to watch our favorite network television shows as they’re broadcast. In the past, that meant taking the time to record the shows (if you remembered to program the recorder) and catching up when you could find the time. Today, things have changed dramatically. You can watch most of your favorite TV shows online.
Major TV networks such as NBC, ABC and FOX provide platforms from which you can view your shows online on your schedule. They’ve realized that a growing portion of their audience feels just as (if not more) comfortable sitting in front of a computer screen as sitting on a couch watching a TV. As a result, they’ve begun to distribute their content on their websites. In this article, we’ll explain how you can enjoy your favorite TV shows from the major networks on your computer.
NBC
NBC provides most of its content from their website at NBC.com. Popular shows such as “The Office,” “30 Rock” and “Scrubs” can be streamed directly to your computer. Most of their Primetime shows become available for streaming on their website the same day they’re broadcast on TV. Late night programs are typically available the following day. While full episodes are currently only available in the U.S., it’s likely NBC will expand its international viewership soon.
CBS
CBS also provides most its popular series on their website. Unlike NBC, they only provide streaming of full episodes for a few of their shows. For example, while you can watch the latest few episodes of “Survivor,” “CSI” and “How I Met Your Mother,” other shows such as “Ghost Whisperer” and “Criminal Minds” are only available as short clips.
ABC
ABC has also been making the transition to streaming its content on its website. Currently, they don’t provide all of their shows online. But, they do allow streaming of recent full episodes of their most-watched series such as “Dancing With The Stars,” “Desperate Housewives” and “Lost.”
Fox
Fox offers one of the most expansive online inventories of online television shows of all the network stations. From the Fox Website, you can watch popular shows like “Bones,” “House” and “Hell’s Kitchen.” To do so, Fox requires that you download their video player. The player allows you to watch some of your favorite episodes without any stalling or buffering wait times.
CW
The CW network offers a limited number of full episodes. Television shows like “Supernatural,” “Farmer Wants A Wife” and “Beauty And The Geek” are available for streaming. However, you’ll need to download the CW’s video player to view them. Full episodes are rotated out of circulation quickly. So, if you want to watch them on the CW website, make sure you don’t fall too far behind.
Enjoying The Archives
While the major TV networks haven’t archived all of their series in their online inventory, they do offer much of their content online. Some networks (like Fox) currently offer a larger inventory of full episodes than others (like the CW). That said, it’s likely that the networks will continue to deliver larger portions of their content on their websites. Within a couple of years, we may be watching all of our favorite TV shows online and wonder why we still own that clunky television.
Topics: Guides | 1 Comment »
How To Convert Videos For Your iPhone
By The Guru | May 6, 2008
When you purchased your iPhone, the thought of watching videos was exciting. You’d be able to watch DVD’s, YouTube videos and more whenever and wherever you wished. But, there was a small hurdle you may not have anticipated. In order to enjoy watching movies and videos on your iPhone, they need to be converted to the proper format. Unfortunately, this small hurdle left a lot of iPhone owners stumped. Instructions on how to convert videos for the iPhone were often hard to find. We’re going to change that right now. Below, you’ll discover the 3 easy steps to converting videos for your iPhone.
Step #1: Download Software
The iPhone supports video playback with the H.264 format. Converting videos to a format that’s compatible with your iPhone requires software. You can Google and download some of it for free. If you’d like to convert video from a DVD, download the “Aimer iPhone Suite.” This suite includes everything you’ll need to convert your DVD to an iPhone-compatible format. If you’re planning to convert videos from other formats (such as YouTube clips or video feeds in MPEG, AVI, or WMV format), download the “iPhone Video Converter.” Both can be found on aimersoft.com.
One quick note about paying for software. While you can find conversion software for free (if you look hard enough), it’s usually better to rely upon reputable and dependable applications. They’re relatively inexpensive, very robust and offer a lot of flexibility. Don’t be discouraged by having to spend a few dollars for a good conversion software.
Step #2: Convert Video Format
Let’s talk about converting DVDs first. Once you install the “Aimer iPhone Suite,” run the “DVD To iPhone Converter.” Click the “Load DVD” icon and choose the subtitle you’d like. To convert the video to the right format, select the option, “iPhone Video MPEG-4 (*.mp4).” When you click “Start,” the software will begin converting the video to the .mp4 format.
Converting other videos is a little different. After you’ve installed the “iPhone Video Converter,” open the program and click the button labeled, “Add.” You can convert videos one at a time or in batches. Before converting, you may want to click the “Settings” button to make sure the resolution is set at 480 x 320. Once you’ve done that, click the “Start” button. The software will do the rest.
Step #3: Loading Videos To Your iPhone
Once the videos have been converted to a format that is compatible with the iPhone, the only step left is to move the videos from your hard drive onto the iPhone. If you don’t have the iTunes application on your computer, download it and import your newly-converted videos. Once imported, sync your iPhone to iTunes and transfer the files.
Watching Videos On Your iPhone
You invested a lot of money for your iPhone. You want to enjoy all of its functionality including playing videos. Apple doesn’t include easy instructions with the device that show how to convert and transfer videos from DVDs or other sources. But, you can use the tutorial above to start downloading, ripping, converting to the proper format and enjoying watching your videos on your iPhone. If you’ve never done it before, it’s easier that you might think.
Topics: Guides | 1 Comment »
A Complete Guide to TV Tuner Cards
By The Guru | November 2, 2007
We have been reviewing a lot of TV on Your PC software recently, but today we are going to take the whole TV on your PC thing in a new direction. Getting a TV Tuner Card is an alternative to watching television through the internet. A TV Tuner Card is a piece of hardware that allows you to watch cable television directly on your PC. I have had a few TV Tuner Cards over the years, and they are great if you want to watch your cable service on a PC. They also allow you to record television shows, turning your PC into a DVR which is a really useful feature.
Selecting the Right Card
When looking for any piece of computer hardware you want to make sure that it will work with the computer you have and make sure that it has the right features and will provide the performance you are looking for. In the case of TV Tuner Cards, there are really two different types of cards, PCI and PCI express. Before buying a card you need to find out if your motherboard supports PCI express which is about 16 times faster than PCI. If it does than a card that supports PCI Express is the obvious choice. If not, don’t worry TV tuner cards are not like graphics cards and there really isnt much of a difference when it comes to just watching television on your PC.
One thing that is worth mentioning is that some of the current generation of TV Tuner Cards can’t handle HD broadcasts so if you are looking to watch HD television on your PC, make sure you find a card that can receive HD digital cable, not just over the air HD broadcasts.
A great card that can do pretty much everything is the WinTV-HVR-1600. This powerful card and allows you to watch ATSC high definition digital TV in full 1080i HD or traditional analog cable. The card comes bundled with a remote that you can control the TV tuner software with. The WinTV-HVR-1600 will only work with Windows. This card is a bit pricey (around $130) however if you want a card that can receive HD broadcasts, and comes with a remote and powerful software, this is a good choice.
Hauppauge has also just released a next generation TV tuner the WinTV-HVR-1800 which is a PCI Express card that supports HD broadcast. This card has an NTSC tuner for analog TV broadcasts and a ATSC tuner for digital broadcasts. If you are looking for a top of the line card, you should definitely check this one out.
Personally I shop at Newegg, they usually have the best deals on most computer hardware, so your best bet is to check there first. You should be able to pick up a decent card for around $65.00 (as stated above, if you want a card that supports HD it will cost more). Some of the top of the line cards are a few hundred dollars, however I would only recommend getting one of these if you are doing professional video capturing and editing.
The great thing about Newegg is that they are not only cheap, but they ship your items ridiculously fast, I’ve gotten my items in one business day before with just the standard ground shipping.
Installation
Once you have your card, you will need to install it in your computer. If you arn’t a technical person or a computer guru, then installation may be a bit tricky, however its not really that bad. There are basically 4 steps when you are installing a TV tuner card. I’ve simplified the process a bit, however as long as you follow the instructions that comes with your card, and use this as a general guide as well, you should be fine.
Step 1 - Hardware Installation
First you must install the card in your computer. To do this you must open the case of your computer up and insert the card into a PCI or PCI Express slot. These slots are easy to find and should be near the base of your motherboard, if you have a graphics card or sound card they will be plugged into one of these slots as well (there are usually 3 PCI slots and 1 PCI Express slot.) Once you plug the card in close back up your computer case.
Step 2 - Connect a Video Cable to Your Computer
This step is the easiest. After you have installed the card in your computer you need to plug a cable that will transmit the television signal, if you have cable television you should be able to plug a coaxial cable directly into the TV tuner card you have just installed. Your card may support other types of video in so its not really limited to a coaxial cable, however that seems to be the most common.
Step 3 - Install the Software / Drivers
After you have connected the cable to your computer, you can now try booting it up. When windows starts it should recognize new hardware and you should get a popup window asking if you want to install this new hardware. Your TV Tuner card should have come with a CD that contains drivers you need to install for the card to work with windows. Insert this CD and install the drivers through the add new hardware interface. If this popup does not come up, and it does not recognize the card, try inserting the CD into your computer and then running the setup program included on the CD.
After you install the Drivers, you may be required to restart your computer, and when you start it back up you should be pretty much good to go
Step 4 - Configure / Fine tune your card
Well you’ve finally made it to the fun part. When you installed the drivers and software in the last step you should have installed a software program that you use with your TV Tuner Card. Start this program up and it should recognize your card and start receiving television signals. You can then adjust any settings / video options to meet your needs.
Your card may have also come with a remote, if so, then you should be able to use it to change channels and what not once you have the software program running and the infared remote receiver plugged into a USB port.
Enjoy watching television on your PC.
I hope this guide has helped, and If you have any additional questions that the guide hasn’t answered, feel free to leave comments below and I will try to answer them ASAP.
Topics: Guides, Satellite TV on Your PC, Information | 8 Comments »
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