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Who hasn't turned into a news junkie in the past month? Now in addition to turning to the Web for up-to-date news, you can also tune into your home television over a broadband Internet account.

SnapStream Media offers Web surfers the ability to remotely schedule and record TV shows on their PCs, and play them back online. The software application, called SnapStream Personal Video Station version 1.55, also lets you watch live TV over the Internet through more than one PC.

To use the software you must have a PC with a TV tuner card. Programs are stored and transmitted from your PC, which then acts as a mini-server for that content. SnapStream does not stream video content from its own servers. Rather, it lets you create your own personal video streaming service that can be accessed remotely by you and four other authorized PCs.

SnapStream PVS, priced at $50, also lets you copy stored programming directly to a blank CD-RW disk using a variety of formats, including DivX. The DivX codec does not ship with the product.

A 30-day free trial of the beta release of SnapStream PVS 1.55 is available at the company's Web site.

A Windows XP version of SnapStream PVS is set to ship October 25 to coincide with the official launch of Microsoft's new operating system. At that time, a final-release version of the software will also be available for Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000.

Hands On

My review of the beta program revealed it's still too rough around the edges for typical consumers, requiring too many complicated steps to accomplish basic functions. However, the software and service show potential and undoubtedly have strong appeal for TV junkies who want remote access to a TV fix.

Make no mistake, this is a broadband or home network application. In tests, SnapStream PVS worked best over a 10/100 mbps home network. To use SnapStream service over the public Internet you'll need a persistent, and reliable, broadband Net connection.

The software is optimized for use with Hauppauge TV tuner cards, but SnapStream supports most other brands. You should check the company's list before you buy a TV tuner card, however.

Remote Control

The first step is to record content. You can schedule a recording through the SnapStream application, or by visiting a Web-based third-party electronic program guide supplied by TitanTV.com. TitanTV.com's free program guide lets you browse episodes and show synopses and choose the ones you want to record with the click of a button.

The program's coolest feature is SnapStream Anywhere. It lets you watch live or pre-recorded TV programs remotely using Microsoft Windows Media Player. To use this feature you must leave the SnapStream PVS software running on the PC with a TV tuner card. That PC also needs a persistent broadband connection.

Once set up, you can remotely access your SnapStream software and schedule a recording for later viewing or watch TV live. However, the only way to watch live TV is to view a recording in progress, and you can only view the TV program being recorded. Moreover, to use the SnapStream Anywhere feature in the beta software, you need to know the IP address of the PC you want to connect to.

Actually using SnapStream Anywhere is fairly simple, as long as you use Internet Explorer (the software crashed NetScape more than once). Once I logged in from the browser, I easily navigated the program to schedule and watch TV shows, and set the quality level of the recording, which ranges from 28.8 kbps to "near DVD" quality (2200 kbps). To keep out unwanted visitors, SnapStream highly recommends you password protect your SnapStream access to your PC. Otherwise, anyone who knows your PC's IP address and the port number can log in to your system.

SnapStream software does not give you remote control over your PC. It only gives you a browser-based interface to the program's scheduling, recording, playback features.

In the final release, SnapStream says you won't have to know your IP address. In the future, all you'll do is sign into your SnapStream Anywhere account, be it over the public Internet or your home network, through a password protected Web site.

Network TV By PC

I experienced the best results when I viewed content saved on one PC, on a second PC over a home network. The video stream was crisp, clear, and steady. Stored shows saved at the "VHS" level streamed at 1200 kbps.

Playback was good to a PC with a fractional T1 connection (144 Kbps) to the Net, with the content streamed from my home PC (my home account supports 122 kbps upstream speeds). But I had to change a SnapStream setting to save programs at lower quality. That let me stream the video at a lower rate of 207 kbps. Despite the bandwidth limitations of the Net, the video stream was quite good. Naturally, the higher your bandwidth speed, the better your video streaming quality. That's why the service works best over home networks.

I could also view content streamed from my home PC on a remote system using a dial-up modem. However, I had to configure SnapStream to save content at the lowest "28.8 kbps" setting, which streams video at 22 kbps. Video quality was poor and audio sounded like a cheap AM radio.

Viewing live TV shows remotely is cumbersome but cool. As a TV program is being recorded, you can access the live stream over the Internet. To view you have to wait until the recording has started, then open Windows Media Player. From Media Player, select "File" and then "Open URL". Once there, insert the proper IP address and the stream will begin to play.

SnapStream lets you share stored video with as many as four PCs (not counting the one acting as a server) on a typical home network at VHS quality. Over the public Internet SnapStream supports four users as well. But you will be limited by the upstream bandwidth your ISP allows you. On my AT&T Broadband account at home, two computers were able to access a stored video streamed at 207 kbps without a problem.

Even over a home network when video is streamed at its highest quality and viewed in full screen mode, SnapStream can't match your TV. Video quality can appear blocky when viewed at close proximity. If your network lacks the bandwidth to support the video, programming can start and stop or you'll hear sound but won't see any video.

Overall I'm very impressed with SnapStream PVS and its service. But I did have problems gaining remote access to my home computer because of a Linksys router with a built in firewall.

SnapStream acknowledges some firewall and router combinations can be problematic. But the company says it's working to fix those problems. In the interim I had to uninstall my router to test the program's remote access features.

Troubled Web Past

In the past, watching network television online has sparked ire from TV broadcasters who filed massive lawsuits against Canadian startups ICraveTV and RecordTV.com. Those two firms buckled and went out of business because of the legal challenges. The firms were accused both of copyright violations for recording movies and streaming them online without permission.

"We are not headed for hot water," says Rakesh Agrawal, co-founder and chief executive officer of SnapStream. SnapSteam is geared toward personal use. "We don't facilitate sharing your TV shows with a 1000 of your closest friends."

And the company is not in the business of choosing shows to stream and then broadcasting them over the Internet. Also, where ICraveTV and RecordTV.com stored video content on central servers, SnapStream only lets you access your own hard drive. "Content you record, save, and playback is for your own personal use," Agrawal says.

Two organizations, The National Association of Broadcasters and the Motion Picture Association of America, both involved in previous litigation against ICraveTV declined comment for this report.

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