Remember the days of popping a blank cassette into the VHS and then calling home to remind a family member to press record a few minutes before your favorite show started? Remember not being able to change the channel to watch a different show because you dad was recording NYPD Blue or your sister was recording Dawson's Creek? And remember the fights that would ensue when someone in the family got upset because someone else recorded over a show they hadn't had the opportunity to watch yet? A euphemistic sigh comes to mind and a feeling of sweeping gratitude comes along at the thought that those days are history. The fact of the matter is that the way Americans watch tv has changed drastically over the last 10 years.
The main reason for this shift has been the advent of two multitasking technologies: TiVo and satellite internet. TiVo is the kind of service that allows you to watch and record several shows during the same time block. You can save the shows for as long as you need to and the amount of space available on the recorder is more than you would ever need. So this solves the problem of recording over someone else's tape and it also solves the problem of wanting to record or watch several different shows during the same time block. It's a really great service if you have a big family with varied entertainment interests. It will minimize bickering over the remote and it will also allow you more freedom with how you spend your day. No longer will you have to plan around your favorite series, when you can just preprogram it to record and watch it a few days later when you have some free time.
Another way that Americans have let go of the VCR recorder is by making the switch to satellite internet. With satellite internet the opportunities for watching television and movies are boundless. Most of the big television networks have moved their shows to be accessible via the world wide web. Channels like ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox have begun to post their shows online. This means that if you missed the series finale of Lost you can go to the ABC website, select Lost from the show tab menu and then watch whatever episode you want. This is especially great if you are starting a few seasons late. With satellite internet as your main source of watching your favorite shows you can watch episode after episode without pause of all the previous seasons. Another way to get your television fix through the computer screen is through signing up for movie services like Netflix or Amazon. Both of these sites offer online movies and original tv series with subscription, and the prices for signing up are even lower than your local movie rental store.
Now Americans are watching tv on their own terms. The technologies that are used to view our favorite shows have evolved to fit into our time schedules and hectic lives just where we want them. It's nice to have control over at least that part of your life when the day to day is often so unpredictable.
The main reason for this shift has been the advent of two multitasking technologies: TiVo and satellite internet. TiVo is the kind of service that allows you to watch and record several shows during the same time block. You can save the shows for as long as you need to and the amount of space available on the recorder is more than you would ever need. So this solves the problem of recording over someone else's tape and it also solves the problem of wanting to record or watch several different shows during the same time block. It's a really great service if you have a big family with varied entertainment interests. It will minimize bickering over the remote and it will also allow you more freedom with how you spend your day. No longer will you have to plan around your favorite series, when you can just preprogram it to record and watch it a few days later when you have some free time.
Another way that Americans have let go of the VCR recorder is by making the switch to satellite internet. With satellite internet the opportunities for watching television and movies are boundless. Most of the big television networks have moved their shows to be accessible via the world wide web. Channels like ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox have begun to post their shows online. This means that if you missed the series finale of Lost you can go to the ABC website, select Lost from the show tab menu and then watch whatever episode you want. This is especially great if you are starting a few seasons late. With satellite internet as your main source of watching your favorite shows you can watch episode after episode without pause of all the previous seasons. Another way to get your television fix through the computer screen is through signing up for movie services like Netflix or Amazon. Both of these sites offer online movies and original tv series with subscription, and the prices for signing up are even lower than your local movie rental store.
Now Americans are watching tv on their own terms. The technologies that are used to view our favorite shows have evolved to fit into our time schedules and hectic lives just where we want them. It's nice to have control over at least that part of your life when the day to day is often so unpredictable.
