Streaming

The entertainment world has changed so much in just a few years. Gone are the days of recording TV shows using a DVR/Tivo/MCE. Now, its possible to watch everything online. Netflix and Amazon stream movies and shows, Hulu, Joost, ABC and Comedy Central host shows that you can view instantly at the click of a button. At the same time, Comcast continues to raise the rates for watching cable, requiring you to get PPV or a premium set of channels, which are simply exorbitant. Comcast didn't broadcast the NBA playoffs on regular cable, luckily, there was Justin.tv and Ustream!

So, I still have my Shuttle XPC as my media center. I need to move beyond the MCE interface to watch the shows online.

Hulu recently launched their desktop, which is accessible via the Microsoft remote. Boxee too is lining up its beta for Windows in summer. I am preparing to test them out.

In the meantime, check out this nifty tutorial on building a streaming, entertainment PC http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/maximum_tv