Slashdot Mirror

Here's a case where it should work and will very likely NOT become blacklisted:

You subscribe to a service that lets you see Cable TV on any device on your LAN, or you put a TV card on your home computer. You then put an inbound VPN on your LAN. You go on vacation abroad. You tunnel in and watch American TV from Britain or, if your home is in the UK, you watch BBC in America. Not only is this unlikely to be spotted, but since you are already a paying customer, it's unlikely to make anyone want to shut you down as long as you keep it to yourself.

You have just described a Slingbox. While they are great they address a different need.

This is way less of a threat than the Slingbox, which has been around for years. I've been streaming my TiVo and cable content to myself over the Net for 5 years. And of course they have iPad and iPhone apps now...

I've been using a Slingbox for years. It streams your TV feed over the Net. You can even use it to control your TiVo, and change channels remotely. Great technology for those who must have access to their boob tube when away from home.

OrbLive from Orb.com does the same. For Live tv it is not bad, even over 3G.

I've been using a Slingbox for years. It streams your TV feed over the Net. You can even use it to control your TiVo, and change channels remotely.

Great technology for those who must have access to their boob tube when away from home.

How do you buy applications to bring stuff over the wire if you don't use iTunes? Surely if you can get apps onto the thing without iTunes, you don't need an app to get stuff onto the iPad without itunes?

You can buy any application directly from the App Store on the device.

So for example I can buy a SlingPlayer and get video from my home system onto an iPhone.

You can also buy a number of apps that act as WebDev servers, allowing you to transfer arbitrary files from another computer over WiFi on a local network and usually let you play/view most filetypes (the video transferred would have to be supported by the device).

It's true that the initial start of an iPad/iPhone requires iTunes - they will do that in-store if you like. But if you want to back up the device, currently that does mean using iTunes - that's the one point that makes it hard to use the devices with no computer whatsoever.

The Slingcatcher from http://www.slingbox.com/go/slingcatcher is pretty good at doing this.

"See, I don't feel I should have to pay a monthly fee to keep my friends."

Ah, if paying is the issue it can be solved.

Just have them send a live feed via a SlingBox or even a free game cam.

Many MMORG players also often hook up via Skype or other voice-chat solutions so they can talk about what is going on while they are playing. You could watch, listen in, and be part of the action.

I am getting the feeling though the real issue is you aren't interested in their 'soap opera'.

"I think my friends should have diversity in their conversations, other than a pay-to-play game."

Yes, they should be interested in talking about things you are interested in.

But it isn't working out that way. The conversation automatically falls back to WoW doesn't it? It is a soap opera with more drama and excitement than 'everyday life'. Fun to talk about. New things happening, etc. Only it is more powerful with shared experiences bonding them together while you are being left out.

Honestly, I understand the dilemma as I have experienced it first hand.

At this point in time I am not aware of any other ways to maintain those 'group' friendships. You could always spend one-on-one time with them. Once you get them together they are going to start singing Barbershop like The Buffalo Bills in The Music Man

MMORGs have a huge impact on social life (fact) and they are here to stay. They will only get more immersive as we move closer to virtual reality in virtual worlds.