A stupid question

[frayedend]

Hi,

I know my Tivo can't record one channel while I watch another (unless I do the splitter thing) but can it play a recorded program while recording another?

My kids were watching the new Power Rangers show that we had recorded and I noticed the red light was on Tivo. When I switched to Live TV I noted that Tivo had changed the cable box channel and it looked to be recording Ghost Hunters (probably because I had it searching for horror movies). Anyhow, I changed the channel, noticed that the red light wasn't lit anymore and Ghost Hunters was not in the "Now Playing".

I assume that if I change the channel on something Tivo decided to record that it discards that recording. But can it record while I am watching a saved program??

Thanks!

[tekgeek]

yes you can record a program while watching a recorded program.

[crowfan]

You were seeing TiVo recording a Suggestion. If you change the channel while it's recording a Suggestion, it will act as you saw -- it will just change the channel and discard the recording. If it is recording a "real" recording (i.e., a Season Pass, WishList, etc), and you try to change the channel, it will warn you, and you will be forced to confirm it before you can change the channel. The partial recording will remain in Now Playing.

In either case, yes, you can watch something that's been previously recorded while the TiVo is recording something else (as tekgeek said). That's one of the great features of TiVo.

[frayedend]

Thanks a lot. That is a great feature. Prior to buying Tivo I wouldn't have thought I would need it to do that, since I would just watch what was on live tv and watch the recording later. But now, I can be recording an adult program while my kids watch their recorded stuff before they go to bed. Awesome.

[pdhenry]

And for completeness, you can record one program, while watching another recorded program, while at the same time transferring a program to the TiVo over the network connection (e.g., from another TiVo, from your PC, or over the Internet (Rocketboom)).

[frayedend]

Thanks PDHenry. That's good to know. Since my computer HD died I have been planning on getting a new one with a tv tuner and dvd burner. I would have been getting it next month, but now my wife wants me to spend the money on a building a bigger deck. So I'm stuck with the laptop and no dvd burner for now. But if the wife wants a bigger deck I really can't say no. :)

[melfank]

The other thing you can do is watch a program while it is being recorded. that might be obvious, but you can watch the show anywhere that has already been recorded, you don't have to watch it where it is recording at. Unlike if you record on a VCR either have to watch right where it is or you have to wait until the end and record it. I love that feature.