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  1. Bob McElfresh

    Home Theaters in a Box - Why we love them (and you should too)

    Hello. I have seen a number of posts where people say "...I was told to stay away from HTIB's!" and I think it is time to correct some misunderstanding. Here at HTF - we love these things! We recommend them to our friends. We buy them for our family. They are a great way for people to get a...
  2. Bob McElfresh

    Small Screen video players - Does anybody care?

    I'm struggling with something and thought you guys might want to offer your opinions. Here it is: I'm talking about "Concerts" or "Video" on your cell phone screen. While I like the iPod, the newly announced unit with video capability leaves me wondering 'why?'. I got my Dish statement...
  3. Bob McElfresh

    My Dish/Cable TV saga (Basic Cable includes HDTV??)

    (Just so you guys know - you are not alone in dealing with things). I have been a happy Dish Network subscriber for years. My wife really loves the Olympics. Two weeks before the Olympics, my local cable compay, Adelphia, started to offer a HDTV Personal Video Recorder. A eariler...
  4. Bob McElfresh

    The Olympics in HD - broken promises by NBC??

    Boy this is frustrating! Is NBC doing a 'bait and switch'? At local TV stores, I was bombarded with NBC 'commercials' on HD display televisions explaining that they were going to offer 24 hours of Olympic coverage in 16:9 with DD 5.1 sound. Great! But then, on the NBC olympics web site...
  5. Bob McElfresh

    Anyone found a good Universal Remote for a Dish PVR?

    I know about the Philips Pronto and Home Theater Master programmable remotes. But I just want a basic 4-5 device remote that includes our most-used PVR functions as hard-buttons: - Guide button - Page up & down (for guide) - Skip Forward & Skip Back I found a One For All remote that...
  6. Bob McElfresh

    What software to convert my CD's to MP3's?

    What's the best/easiest software to use to take my collection of CD's and convert them to MP3's? Of course I have CD Creator that can rip tracks, but then I have to manually rename "Track01.mp3" to something more sensible. I have seen people with WinAmp playlists and I know Apple's IPod...
  7. Bob McElfresh

    Is anyone worried that Tivo tracks what you rewind/review?

    I heard a spokesman for Tivo say something like this the day after the superbowl (KCBS news radio): "...the average number of replays for the Superbowl halftime show was about 2. Since there were lots of people who did not rewind during that segment it means the people who did play that clip...
  8. Bob McElfresh

    Source for 3-5 year old games: Total Annihilation, Deus Ex, ...

    I just bought DeusEx:Invisible War and found that it wont support my GeForce Mx card - ever. But this brought up the conversation with co-workers about some games that were great, but you cannot find them anymore. Anybody have a good on-line source for new in the box PC games that were out...
  9. Bob McElfresh

    Halo: PC Version - views and comments

    Ran out before lunch and picked it up. The day is going to drag until I get home tonight. I'm looking forward to multiplayer. Anyone installed it yet?
  10. Bob McElfresh

    How much of a compromsie is this PC for gaming: HP/AMD/nVidia

    I need a new CPU and was hoping to get a unit that would not be totally rotten for games. But I've not kept up on reputations/issues. I am looking at a HP Pavilion for $830 with: AMD Athalon XP 2800+ XP Home Edition nVidia GeForce4 MX graphics card with 64MB DDR video memory I usually...
  11. Bob McElfresh

    Anyone use Sony Giga Pocket PVR

    I'm in the market for a new CPU and came across this kind of neat unit computer & PVR unit: Sony VAIO Digital Studio RG34G It features something called "Giga Pocket" PVR which simply looks like a PC Tuner/Capture card. (Creative has one for $99). But it also has audio/composite/svideo...
  12. Bob McElfresh

    Does the D-VHS recorder act as a tuner/STB?

    I know that the only current way to record high-def material is through one of these high-def VCR's. They tell me you just stick up an antenna and record away. But does the D-VHS VCR eliminate the need for a STB? Or is a STB up-stream feeding the VCR the decoded signal? I was looking at...
  13. Bob McElfresh

    Where have all the DLP RPTV's gone?

    I've been excited about the new Samsung HLN series of DLP televisions. But I wanted to check out the competition using similar technology. I went to a local Andersons TV and asked about seeing a unit. They had none. The saleman said Mitsubishi and Sony considered DLP to be a failure because...
  14. Bob McElfresh

    XBox: "Run Like hel"p needed

    I'm outside the Gravity Experiment and cant seem to get past the brute. Any help? Background: Long hall with a Brute standing guard. Another passage leads to a large door into a gravity chamber, another large door into a control room, small door back to long hall. I've gone through the...
  15. Bob McElfresh

    Is 1080 video digitized before being displayed on HDTV's?

    I was conversing with a guy who said that there is a 80 Mhz A/D chip in every HDTV that digitizes the video signals, then does processing on it before it gets converted back to analog for final display? Of course things like 480i and 720p could get digitized to up-convert them to the 520/1080...
  16. Bob McElfresh

    Need help with DSS Multi-Switch

    I'm helping someone with their HT gear and they want me to install a Multi-Switch on their DirectTV system. They have 2 receivers now and they had the install guys run a third wire to a bedroom. They have a Terk 2-in/4-out MulitSwitch. The dish is on the side of the house at head-height with...
  17. Bob McElfresh

    Lots of links to Home Theater Room Accessories

    Home Theater Accessories Kudos to Glenise for doing all this work. :emoji_thumbsup:
  18. Bob McElfresh

    HD Video Switching - Inexpensive Solution

    I'm seeing lots of people consider a new receiver because suddenly they have 3 or more component video sources. And these sources are now progressive or HD quality so they need the higher 24-30 Mhz bandwidth. This means considering a flagship receiver. But many people already have a good...
  19. Bob McElfresh

    Run to Radio Shack and pick up the Cue Cats

    This was a promotion last year. The Que Cat is a bar-code scanner that connects to your computer's keyboard cable. When you run it across a bar code, it's like you typed the numbers into the keyboard. Commercial units run $100-$400 from Welch. Radio Shack is getting rid of them. I just...
  20. Bob McElfresh

    Looking at Receivers - here is a comparison chart

    Here is a table I whipped up to compare receivers. I've sorted the table by price from lowest to highest. I apologize in advance for any typos. Last Update: 12/02/2002 Receiver Features Receiver Comparison ================================ InputsOutputsMfgModelPriceWPCDecodingsAudio...
  21. Bob McElfresh

    Help me BBQ some Beef ribs

    I know of 3 ways to barbque beef ribs: Boil the ribs for about 30 minutes in seasoned (garlic, salt, peper) water then grill for 10 minutes to dry the sauce onto them. This is quick, but any marinade or rubs get boiled away. (I did see Ron-P recommend a 2 hour boil - is this right?)Marinade...
  22. Bob McElfresh

    Help me put together a Christmass Gift Guide

    I thought it would be fun to create a list of useful Accessories as a gift guide for spouses. Of course I will include things like AVIA/VE, and a Radio Shack SPL meter. Give me some others. For each suggestion, try and tell me the: Item Name, Description, Part number, price, link to a...
  23. Bob McElfresh

    Alien Saga - special on AMC

    AMC has a special show called "Alien Saga". This is a behind-the-scenes show about the history, politics, and film challenges of all 4 movies. If you are a fan of the Alien series - this is a must-see! go to www.amctv.com for details. Hurry!
  24. Bob McElfresh

    Buying Guide - what would YOU recommend in a receiver?

    I would like your feedback to this question which will hopefully become part of a "Suggested Buyers Guide". Assume a non-technical neighbor or relative wants to buy a AV Receiver for a Christmass gift. They ask you for advice. They DONT want to learn about the electronics. They DONT want...
  25. Bob McElfresh

    Hitman 2 - need some help playing

    I just rented this for my XBox, (but thinking about buying it for the PC later). But I'm having some problems. I've only done 2 or 3 missions and I have tried to be subtile and only take out my target. But ... I keep getting "The Guards are getting Suspicious" and soon I have to pass by...
  26. Bob McElfresh

    Buffy 4 XBox preview on TechTV - Extended Play

    The cable channel Tech TV has a videogame review show called "Extended Play". (I had heard they were going to do this, or has this been around for months and I'm clueless?) I caught part of this on Friday and they showed a preview of their next show which includes a review of Buffy the Vampire...
  27. Bob McElfresh

    Anyone have thoughts/opinions on Advent Televisions? 20" in particular

    My faithfull Zenith 19" in my bedroom decided to pass on after about 20 years of service. In scoping out replacements, I spotted a $200 Advent flat-screen with 3D comb filter right next to a $300 Sony. While the image was similar (from a feed powering 80 other televisions), the menu/setup...
  28. Bob McElfresh

    William Shatners - 'Full Moon Fright Night' - SciFi Channel

    This Saturday at 11 pm on the Sci Fi channel will be the series premier. Shatner will show C grade horror movies, interview guests, and even act out scenes (according to Entertainment Weekly). I dont know about you guys, but I spent many pre-teen Saturday nights in my youth staying up late and...
  29. Bob McElfresh

    FOX: Buffy Musical on DVD - Can we buy it?

    Somone made the Buffy Musical into a DVD and sent it to select customers with their copy of Variety last tuesday. This is a "For your consideration" for the upcoming Emmy nomination. (About time this show won) This disk is selling for over $100 on ebay right now. One auction is over $400...
  30. Bob McElfresh

    XBox: Jedi Starfighter II - Buy or Rent?

    I noticed that the XBox version of this goes on sale on Friday. The only thing I can see thats different for the XBox is one more 2-person mission/level. But is this a good game to buy, or wait for the rentals to come out? Just to calibrate: I loved the XWing vs Tie Fighter games for the PC...
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