Secret TiVo Tips and Tweaks

Slightly More Advanced Tips

Here are some more things you can do with your TiVo.

Control the Power to Your Sound System

Your TiVo remote can be programmed to turn your TV on and off, but did you know it can also control your sound system? Hold down the TiVo button and the power button just as you do to put in the TV remote code, then enter the remote control code for your sound system. The remote will now control the power to both the TV and the audio. This can also give you volume control for some systems.

Add Unlisted Channels

TiVo provides a method to add your own channels, albeit without TiVo-provided program listings for them. For those times when you switch to local on-air programming, or need to play your VCR into your TiVo system, the ability to add a few channels is very handy. To squeeze in your own channels, follow these steps:

• Enter a channel number manually.
• Press Record.
• While recording, press Record to cancel the recording.
• Repeat for each channel you want to add.
• Go to Setup, then Channels You Watch
• Place checkmarks next to each of the channels you entered.

This process will leave behind listings in 'Now Showing' that you may want to delete.

Reboot TiVo Without Unplugging

Every computer needs a restart once in awhile, and TiVo is no different. The TiVo Setup menu provides a 'Restart Receiver' option that restarts without wiping out your personal settings. Do not select 'Full System Reset' unless you need to do a complete reboot that will wipe out all of your settings.

Tivomatic (Keep Those Commercials--or Not)

With a feature officially known as IPreview, TiVo (in partnership with both NBC and ShowTime) may prompt you to "press thumbs up to record" during an advertisement. This feature lets you record what is being advertised and then return you to your show. When you see the prompt you have the following options:

• Press Thumbs Up or Select to bring up the recording screen.
• Press Clear to make the icon go away until the next preview or you rewind past the point where the preview begins.

Get TiVo Connected

First, there were hacks to add TCP/IP networking into Series 1 TiVos, which allowed you to extract recorded program files. You could save the files or play them on your Windows or Linux PC. Then came the TiVo Home Media Option service, which allows you to remotely program your TiVo from anywhere you can surf the Web.

Now, there's TiVoToGo, which allows you to legitimately download programs from your TiVo to your PC for recording onto DVD.

Network Your Series 1 TiVo

If you own a TiVo Series 1 box, you need to install a network interface like a TurboNet card and install some custom Linux code that allows copying raw TiVo video files to a computer.

To enable network access, you'll need to hack into your TiVo with a terminal program, such as HyperTerminal or ProComm through the serial interface to install and set up network file transfer capabilities. Details on the hack and the code you need, a program known as mfs_ftp, can be found online.

Once your TiVo is accessible over your LAN, follow the steps in the mfs_ftp forum topics mentioned previously and in the documentation provided with the program to upload the program from computer to TiVo; configure the files; then launch the mfs_ftp program so the TiVo is ready for you to move files back and forth.

Once you have TiVo content files on your computer, the next obvious step is playing them, which can be accomplished using the TiVo MPlayer (available here). There are flavors of MPlayer for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X. You can also convert TiVo files to standard MPEG format using TyStudio, available here.

Make TiVo to Go

If you own a TiVo Series 2 box, saving recorded programs to DVD is much simpler--but more costly--with TiVo's new TiVoToGo feature. Series 2 TiVos feature a USB port, to which you'll need to connect a USB-to-ethernet or -wireless network adapter (which costs about $30) in order to connect your TiVo to your home network.

Once you're networked, you'll probably want to sign up for the TiVo Home Media Option, which will allow you to program your TiVo remotely. To use TiVoToGo, you need to be sure you've got version 7.1-X or later of TiVo software in your device. To check your software version:

• Go to 'TiVo Central'.
• Select 'Messages & Setup', then 'System Information' with your remote.

If you don't have the latest software, you can go to TiVo.com and request the site to push the upgrade to your unit. While on the site, download and then install the TiVo Desktop software. TiVo Desktop collects and presents a list of the programs stored on your TiVo and allows you to download them to your PC. While on the site, click the link to download the 15-day free trial of SonicMyDVD--the recommended software for saving recorded programs from your TiVo onto DVD. (It will cost you $49.99 to use after the trial period.) Again, this solution is a bit pricey, but it is the simplest nonhacker-level method to save your favorite shows.

An alternative to using TiVo's TiVo Desktop software is the open-source JavaHMO project at javahmo.sourceforge.net. It includes several more features than the TiVo software, including viewing RSS feeds, images from NNTP postings, and NOAA weather alerts, reading e-mail, and playing MP3 files--all on your TV screen.