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http://www.hulu.com/watch/1880/family-guy-sherry-and-the-anus#s-p1-st-i1

Do you have a link for me that works outside the US?

BSG is on Hulu.com. No need for cable or broadcast TV. Just get an HDMI or S-Video cable and connect your PC up to your television.

Time to trade in a karma point for this one, but the cue-in was too good to miss.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/1880/family-guy-sherry-and-the-anus#s-p1-st-i1

Hulu will also be airing the actual inauguration and they use flash: http://www.hulu.com/spotlight/obamapresidency

http://www.hulu.com/spotlight/obamapresidency

Well, they sort of are doing something like that.

Ars ran a story last week, FCC okays DTV "analog nightlight" rules. Unfortunately, it's only for 30 days - seems like it should be 90 or 180 days. Also, apparently, this doesn't apply to all markets, so I think the FCC is kind of messing up there.

Partly, though, I'm confused about how anyone could possibly not know about the digital TV transition and not be prepared for it at this point? Every time I try to watch OTA broadcasts using my digital converter box, I'm constantly being annoyed by text overlays obscuring the programming I'm watching, with messages about the digital transition. I've seen one possible explanation.

Still, I do agree with the parent - why not *permanently* leave one analog channel for information about the fact that TV has switched to digital transmissions, and also use it for emergency programming (like evacuation and health-related notices, severe weather coverage, disaster-related instructions and info, etc)?

This is comparable to a mini pc tucked under the TV with a wireless keyboard and/or a harmony control.

I agree. And speaking as someone using a Mac mini connected to my HDTV and to my DirecTV DVR via EyeConnect and their hardware (USB->TV->PC) for my DVD storage of favorite shows, and interacting with all of that with fancy remotes and a bluetooth keyboard and mouse, I feel well-qualified to say exactly what's wrong with that whole model.

What I'd really like is a bluetooth laptop keyboard - with trackpad. The EEE keyboard is like the one I use - too big for entertainment-just-put-it-on-your-lap and mousing is still a separate issue. I've even tried pressing an old iBook into laptop service for that - too little battery life (BT keyboard and mouse batteries last *months*!).

I get close with the mini and its little tiny remote and Front Row for a lot of music playing, etc. And I know (and have recommended Sofa Control and Remote Buddy) that it can do more - but there's no substitute for grabbing that keyboard/mouse, surfing over to youtube and playing the Clash's Rocking The Casbah (they have an "HD" version on youtube that looks and sounds great!) or over to http://www.hulu.com/ and watching Muppets in Space (select 480p option, full-screen) - again, looks and sounds great. And I'm sorry, but I can't accept that hacking an AppleTV - and still doing it all via a tiny remote - is as good as a dedicated home theater PC (HTPC). My pref is the Mac mini, but an equivalent Windows model exists in features, price and form factor (if anyone asks, I'll look it up again, link not handy right now) and I'm not an OS snob so I see no reason why the same model won't hold true for Linux with MythTV or whatever.

BUT!!! - From across the room, it's all about the user interface - and in this case, just like the TV remote, it's the little piece of hardware - that I can't find anywhere - that is the missing interface.

I'd love nothing more than somebuddy here at /. to call me a bonehead and send me the links to where I can already buy one - because I haven't found it yet. Standard small laptop keyboard with trackpad, works mac or pc, bluetooth - nothing more or less.

And don't forget about Virgania Horsen's Pony Express. She got sued into oblivion for that one.

I don't even have cable...

--another Canadian

Hulu + Bittorrent + TVersity + XBox 360 MCE = Call me when a la carte cable service hits the streets.

Wait... when did Tversity start supporting Hulu?

I don't even have cable...

--another Canadian

Hulu + Bittorrent + TVersity + XBox 360 MCE = Call me when a la carte cable service hits the streets.

Snoo snoo! :D :( :D :( :D :( http://www.hulu.com/watch/4476/futurama-death-by-snoo-snoo

You are sentenced to death by snoo snoo for that comment.

Watch...this movie.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/46029/gattaca

hulu has it:

http://www.hulu.com/galactica-1980

may you forget quickly and are able to heal.

and you just might be right about the "older eyes" thing.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/36608/talkshow-with-spike-feresten-cable-psa

I really don't think that the average consumer is going to care about something like this.

For most, a 5Mbps cable connection is much much much more than they ever will (or can) use. The only thing that will drive high-bandwidth stuff like this is media. Websites like this are certainly a step in the correct direction, but until we start seeing dedicated media appliances in peoples homes, it isn't going to happen.

On top of that, think of something (other than streaming media) that your average home-owning consumer is going to use that would require large bandwidth. There aren't many. Sure, some of us geeks use services like Usenet or (and I've never seen this in practice, only rumors of it) bittorrent that are capable of filling up our connection but, relative to the amount of joe-sixpack/plumbers there are out there, we are a small small minority.

Any devs wnat to make a "hulu" box with me?

Thieves typically dont have the IQ to do any of that.

Remember, there are two kinds of thieves. There are amateurs and there are pros.

Amateurs are desperate people, usually because of an addiction of some sort, who steal whenever an opportunity presents itself. They see a car with an unlocked door, or an open window and they act. These people are the most common type of thieves, and will be caught with this technology.

Professionals steal things for a living. They are very calculated and know all of the security measures people use, and how to avoid them. This technology will not stop a professional. In fact, nothing will stop a professional. Professionals are why you buy insurance.

Fortunately, there aren't many professional thieves. When you think about it, it's very difficult to become a professional thief. This is because a pro cannot be desperate. They need to have time to study their target and come up with a plan of attack. This requires a person with a certain personality, that doesn't steal out of last resort, but steals for some other reason. There aren't many people like this in the world, and most of them are caught before they become very good at stealing.

My favorite piece of information about stopping thieves can be found here. (Warning, link contains flash video)

Exactly.

At least it's a step in the right direction!

If we want to talk about steps in the right direction, how about Hulu.com? You sit through something like 60 seconds of commercials per episode of whatever you want to watch, but otherwise everything is perfectly free. The service is designed very well and is well implemented. As far as "new business models" go, I think the people in charge of this site really know what they're doing.

I'm happy enough with the service that I gladly advertise it for them. I regularly watch Colbert Report episodes one or two days after they air there.

I'm OK with the way Hulu handles their ads in TV shows. They have about the same number of commercials-per-episode that a Network station would air. HOWEVER each commercial break consists of only 1 ad which is between 15-30 seconds.

I'm willing to put up with their ad system without a problem. Sure it breaks the flow but most TV shows end their scenes assuming that a network will air a commercial in between.

As for films, I use my NetFlix account for them. As weak as Netflix's OnDemand movie listing is, Hulu's is worse.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/25857/the-simpsons-home-security-system

Dr. Frink would be proud.

It's not the final blow of a stonecutters hammer that breaks the stone, it's the dozens of blows before.

Who holds back the electric car? Who made Steve Gutenberg a star?

Hulu.com seems to work well enough for the rare case when we need a fix, barring season-renting from Netflix.

Who exactly is the target market for this?

I'm in Pittsburgh (Oakland neighborhood, near Pitt/CMU), and I can now pick up all major local stations via digital OTA (CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox), as well as PBS. I'm in the southeastern corner of my building, so ABC (broadcasting from the east) comes in the strongest (almost don't even need an antennae). PBS is broadcasted right from my own neighborhood (Mr. Roger's neighborhood? Yeah, seriously ;-), so I really don't need an antennae there, either. Took me awhile to figure out how to get Fox, CBS, and NBC. Fox and NBC took a little fiddling with the antennae direction and gain, and CBS takes a little bit more. But now, I get more or less all the important channels (plus a few shopping and religious bullshit channels, too). I only get one digital channel from CBS & Fox, but I get all three of the broadcasts from ABC & NBC (their main digital HD, local weather, and the 'extra' channel, which appears to be mostly reruns at this point). And for the little bit of actual worthwhile stuff that comes in off of cable (e.g. Daily Show, Colbert Report, Stargate Atlantis, Eureka), I just go to either hulu or bittorrent,... ;-)

Unfortunatly, IT often isn't logical, and often doesn't have all that much knowledge. While I have know many superstars, and think very highly of myself, I have also seen very large numbers of IT folks that are clueless. There is a reason that Saturday Night Live had a skit called 'Nick Burns: The company computer guy'.

I was wondering how this was about to go.

It also suggests to me that, unlike a VCR that can actually improve reception for a TV-tuned-to-channel-3, it doesn't help. Not encouraging. But maybe I have something for you, anyway.

http://hulu.com/

This place has a LOT of the series you're probably looking for; The Closer, Firefly :), Always Sunny, bunches of new stuff. It has limited commecial interruption, and you can be made available when new series/movies/episodes are available.

I'm not a drone...I just moved back into town from "TractorTown*" so I can get the net again. I'm in no hurry to get a TV setup, but I *do* want to start watching things on Hulu instead of the cable.

*I call it that because, four miles outside the city of Evansville, Indiana everyone there owns at least one tractor, but can't have anything but dialup and analog TV...

Enjoy Hulu- it's fun!

I'm not complaining too much, though. Most of the time, I get my TV from the internet, via Hulu, TVU, or one of the networks' sites directly. I just wish NFL and MLB games were streamed over the internet like they do for the NBA, college basketball, or the olympics. ESPN360 is pretty good; but they don't do NFL/MLB. But, it wouldn't matter anyway -- I still won't be able to watch Chicago Bears games in Pittsburgh -- I mean, Steelers country,...

http://www.hulu.com/watch/19210/the-simpsons-time-travel-nightmare

Can't rip it, can't archive it, can't move it to my HDD without the dongle. And if the flash drive gets damaged, who you gonna call?

The pirate bay.

You can find it by legal means: http://www.hulu.com/watch/25534/ghostbusters

Full length streaming movie. There are occasional ads, but they are neither long nor annoying.

It's about time we had a sporting event in which drug enhancements are welcome so we can see the effects of the different drugs.

I present to you the All-Drug Olympics.

Ten years ago / In 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The A-Team.

Macgruber leads to lost time at work and Natalie Portman rapping...

Are you sure it wasn't Macgruber?

SVG? Seriously?

Are you even close to aware of what Flash and Silverlight actually *do?!* Can you show me an implementation of a YouTube like player using SVG? Here's one using Flash: http://www.hulu.com/ and here's one using Silverlight: http://windowslive.com/Experience/ShareMemories

Show me that in SVG. I'll wait.

It ends badly: http://www.hulu.com/watch/4090/saturday-night-live-weekend-update-all-drug-olympics

Really? No one modded that funny?

You must consider this classic
SNL skit pedantic then...

Colonel Angus Comes Home
[ http://www.hulu.com/watch/4109/saturday-night-live-colonel-angus-comes-home ]

"... and if I overstay my welcome, just tap me on the head"

Oblig. Dick in a Box
[ http://www.hulu.com/watch/1596/saturday-night-live-dick-in-a-box-uncensored#s-p1-st-i1 ]

-AI

Really? No one modded that funny?

You must consider this classic
SNL skit pedantic then...

Colonel Angus Comes Home
[ http://www.hulu.com/watch/4109/saturday-night-live-colonel-angus-comes-home ]

"... and if I overstay my welcome, just tap me on the head"

Oblig. Dick in a Box
[ http://www.hulu.com/watch/1596/saturday-night-live-dick-in-a-box-uncensored#s-p1-st-i1 ]

-AI

Zoltan! http://www.hulu.com/watch/13302/dude-wheres-my-car-zoltan#x-4,vclip,1

Moffett's Ghost

Hey it worked on me when I was a kid!

An asshat from Philadelphia? That's unbelievable!

Are you sure you don't mean MacGruber?

"And when they grab you with those metal claws, you can't break free. Because they're made of metal. And robots are strong."

http://www.hulu.com/watch/2340/saturday-night-live-old-glory

3G is pretty hot shit-- I've been using one of Sprint's cards for the last couple of months. OK, maybe the US is ass-backward compared to the rest of the mobile world, but it's still pretty damn cool to have an SSH session open while I'm on the train. I'm presently looking into OpenAFS as that should deal with occasional dead spots better than SSH, but in general, the experience is much better than I was expecting. Not quite up to Hulu-watching speeds, but it's definitely making me depend more on my laptop-- and I pretty much hate laptops.

That's a long way of saying that the 3G is worth it even if you have to deal with the outrageous SMS pricing.

As soon as I read this, it reminded me of that episode of sliders where there was a sport that combined physical and mental aspects at the same time.

Mindgame was a team sport and seemed more interesting, but the concept is similar.

Not sure what religion has to do with this economics question.

Then you didn't read my post. I was pointing out the flaw in your argument, where you said that Imaginary Property was something that we made up, and so it did not need to be "believed in" in order to be considered real. In case I didn't make myself clear:

I disagree.

As for your questions...

Do you have an alternate proposal for incentivizing content creators?

If not, do you believe that software/books/movies/songs/etc. will be created by individuals for no compensation? Or by companies for no compensation?

When I was growing up, artists and musicians did what they did for the love of the music/art. Metallica went on MTV and said they would never make a music video because they "weren't in it for the money." Now they've alienated their fanbase by suing them for giving away their music, and they're pissed off about the lack of money in the equation. Nevermind that they went on TV in front of millions of people and lied. Seems to me that the artists need to figure out which way they're trying to be, and stick to it once they've chosen. This, of course, is just anecdotal evidence and meandering ranting, and is also totally off topic. Get off my lawn!

Back to the issue at hand.

Yes, I have an "alternate proposal" for "incentivizing content creators". I like to call it "cut out the middlemen who do no work, maximize your profits without raking your customers over the coals, and stop pinching everyone's wallets while whining about how you don't make any money because you only get 1% of the profit of each CD sold". It involves content creators posting their content for the world to enjoy, and asking for (non-specific amounts of) money.
(As an aside, I'm typically insulted when people tell me I have to donate a specific amount of money. If I want to give you 50 cents for a single song, I should be able to. Don't tell me I have to give you $5 and take the whole disk!)

If this "economic model" seems surprising to you, then it would seem I need to point out to you that several big names are already doing it, as you can see with a little googling on the subject. To get you started, allow me to offer the following as potential search terms:
"Nine Inch Nails", "Radiohead", "donation", "free music"
It may interest you to learn that the results from these attempts have been successful (or at least, that's what I read). You may also be interested in Jonathan Coulton, who seems to be making quite a decent living by giving his stuff away for free.

Despite answering in the affirmative (and with proof!) and thus excusing myself from the "bonus questions", I will continue in this monologue, answering your second and third questions, too. Please note that the emphasis is mine.

The answers are simple and undeniable. Yes, I believe that software, books, movies, songs, etc. are being created by individuals for no direct financial compensation. Yes, I believe that software, books, movies, songs, etc. are being created by companies for no direct financial compensation. As proof, I offer up open source software (Linux, for example; The Apache Software Foundation, for another), free books (check out the Baen Free Library, or Project Gutenberg), free movies, free music, and the beginnings of an economic model that depends on having products and services that have more than just a financial value to the consumers and producers... which raises the questio

I stand corrected. Apparently, Hulu has already beaten Youtube for the Colbert Report,... ;-)

Does anyone remember Eddie Murphy's take on what would happen with the first black president? Also his "White Like Me" skit. I don't think even a half-black president would survive for more than the first year. Some inbred redneck hillbilly would take him out with a deer rifle. Eddie Murpy was actually funny in the 80s on SNL before he started acting in movies. He'd probably make one hell of a president. We need to stop electing lawyers.

There is at least one company already doing it - they have many movies and television shows online (classic TV series as well as newer series) - some full seasons, some are just a sampling, but check it out: http://www.hulu.com/ - it doesn't let you take the media with you (and honestly I have not tried capturing it) and there are commercials inserted into the stream, but SOMEBODY has to pay for the content, so I'm very happy with their service. I wish I could get it on my PDA though.

Oh, and yes, it works with Linux.

I've submitted feature requests to them, one of which is to be able to opt out of certain advertisers. For example, I'm not going into the military so I should be able to opt out of those ads, and I don't do fast food so I should be able to opt out of those. This would make advertising less likely to be ignored, and would actually increase the value of each ad delivered to the viewer.

Just FYI, and apropos of nothing, Hulu.com has the first season of Sliders posted:

http://www.hulu.com/sliders

since when do cappers keep the commercials? or are the encoders putting in adds?