Tivo Desktop Plus Video Downloads

TheIgster · 05-23-2008, 05:42 PM

Hi All,

Pretty new to Tivo. I just purchased a Series 2. Yes, no HD. I'm in Canada. Hoping for HD support sometime down the road, but not yet...

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Anyhoo...I am thinking about purchasing a Desktop Plus key due to the Video Downloads portion of Tivo. I use it quite a bit and enjoy the tech shows, but it states that I can get 100's more video downloads with Desktop Plus. Is this true or just hype? Does anyone have a list of the content that would be available with Desktop Plus over just just the normal Tivo Desktop?

Thanks for any help anyone can provide!

TheIgster · 05-24-2008, 10:47 AM

No one?

rambler · 05-24-2008, 10:58 AM

Obviously they want you to buy the PLUS........but I would try to avoid that!

I can pull all kinds of videos from PC to Tivo, using "Videora for Tivo" (free software) that converts files to the format tivo likes. I use the free Tivo Desktop too.

classicsat · 05-24-2008, 11:02 AM

Yes, you can have access to almost all video podcasts on video podcasts with that.

TheIgster · 05-25-2008, 12:30 PM

Thanks for the replies guys and yes, I'm aware of the conversion utility out there and am using it already, but my question was, does anyone know how much content is available with the Plus purchase? I'm looking to find out if the purchase is worth it so I would like to find a list of what is available with the Plus purchase, over and above what we get without the Plus purchase. I like the podcasts and video features already available, but it would be nice to see a list of what you get with the Plus purchase.

danottey · 05-26-2008, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheIgster

Thanks for the replies guys and yes, I'm aware of the conversion utility out there and am using it already, but my question was, does anyone know how much content is available with the Plus purchase? I'm looking to find out if the purchase is worth it so I would like to find a list of what is available with the Plus purchase, over and above what we get without the Plus purchase. I like the podcasts and video features already available, but it would be nice to see a list of what you get with the Plus purchase.

As far as I know - and I could be wrong - it doesn't really allow your TiVo to download extra video on top of what you can without Plus. What it does is setup your PC so that when a new podcast is downloaded by your podcatching software (such as iTunes), TiVo Desktop Plus will then convert & transfer it to your TiVo. That is what I do with my Plus software, and it is pretty awesome.

RickNY · 05-26-2008, 08:31 AM

Igster,

Check your PMs

TheIgster · 05-26-2008, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danottey

As far as I know - and I could be wrong - it doesn't really allow your TiVo to download extra video on top of what you can without Plus.

Yes, actually it does. It opens up much more content in the video downloads portion of the web stuff. There is MUCH more content available with the Plus version. They should really promote that more and have a list somewhere for all to see.

Thanks to RickNY for the details as well that he sent to me. I purchased the key and am quite happy with all the additional podcasts available. Now there's too much...

rburriel · 06-16-2008, 12:37 PM

Is there a way to subscribe to podcasts that aren't on the default list? I'd really like to sign up to CBC's nightly "The National" broadcast:

http://www.cbc.ca/national/blog/national.xml

Thanks in advance.

CuriousMark · 06-16-2008, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rburriel

Is there a way to subscribe to podcasts that aren't on the default list?

Use any RSS agregator your are comfortable with and then have whichever software you are using publish the folder to which it downloads your show.

rburriel · 06-17-2008, 06:09 PM

Damn. I knew I was making this too hard. Thanks for the tip!

desertkoala · 07-05-2008, 11:21 PM

What a rip off. So basically you need to then install yet more software to get your PC rig working. My original SnapStream server did this all in one. Now it's relegated to share its content using Desktop Plus as a conduit.

What really makes me upset is that the TiVo UI says 'get 100s more videos' - as if it was just going to magically appear after you fork over $24. Nope, you now need to download some more software like iTunes. What? This is ridiculous.

Seems they have no problem pushing advertisements down. Come on TiVo you guys are not making it easy on this one. Desktop Plus could be awesome. Instead it's a niche solution for geeks already comfortable with RSS and aggregation. ...not people who have other things to do outside.

classicsat · 07-06-2008, 07:51 AM

You need iTunes for Quicktime, which is needed for some MPEG4 conversions.

desertkoala · 07-07-2008, 02:37 PM

I think I need to clarify. I don't mind installing QuickTime. I did that already and understand why that part is needed. What burns me is needing to install iTunes. It does not mention this anywhere on the onscreen UI or in the presales marketing material. It all left undiscussed. I'm not going to install iTunes. I'm not a Apple slave. There are other vodvidcast clients out there but they suck. So I guess that mean all this extra wonderful content if not for real. Trolling for those spectacular vidcasts generally shows junk that is completely useless anyways. So, I'll stick with the default Onion and CrankyGeek feeds, as they are the only decent ones anyways. The rest of the Apple minions can have fun.

A real Desktop Plus client would have made RSS subscribing part of the client. The apps on my dedicated machine are not light weight so adding an iTune reader/subscriber seems crazy.

CuriousMark · 07-08-2008, 11:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by desertkoala

I think I need to clarify. I don't mind installing QuickTime. I did that already and understand why that part is needed. What burns me is needing to install iTunes. It does not mention this anywhere on the onscreen UI or in the presales marketing material. It all left undiscussed. I'm not going to install iTunes. I'm not a Apple slave. There are other vodvidcast clients out there but they suck. So I guess that mean all this extra wonderful content if not for real. Trolling for those spectacular vidcasts generally shows junk that is completely useless anyways. So, I'll stick with the default Onion and CrankyGeek feeds, as they are the only decent ones anyways. The rest of the Apple minions can have fun.

A real Desktop Plus client would have made RSS subscribing part of the client. The apps on my dedicated machine are not light weight so adding an iTune reader/subscriber seems crazy.

iTunes is not required. Any videos listed on the TiVo HME downloads screens with a computer screen next to them will be RSS'd and aggregated by TiVo Desktop just the way you want it to. In that mode you manage everything from the TiVo, the computer simply needs to be up and running with the TiVo Server active. If you want something beyond what is indexed on the TiVo service itself, then you need to start looking into using your browser or some other program to aggregate for you.

The onion and Cranky Geeks are TiVoCasts, they are actually sourced directly from the TiVo service. They do not have a computer screen icon next to them on the selection screen. Try selecting other, browsing some of the web videos with screen icons and subscribing to one you like. It will work the way you expect, without the need to add iTunes I might add.