My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
Dec 30th 2008, 7:55 am
#91
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2007
Location: Bay Area, CA
Posts: 13,114
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
I appreciate the gesture you are making, but you could just use the 'off' button instead ...
Seriously, I do admire the gesture, and I'd be tempted to do it myself if I had kids, but the main weakness I see in the general 'alternative' plan you have - internet, netflix, etc - is that of 'discovery'. Yes, you can find almost everything on netflix, iTunes, YouTube, TV channel websites, etc, but ... how do you 'discover' new stuff? I've found most of my favorite comedy shows by accident; waking up and watching a show after falling asleep while something else was on, or just being too lazy to change channels at the end of a show I was watching. This is how I discovered 'South Park', 'Malcolm in the Middle', etc - shows I now love to watch.
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" ..
Also - now that we have a large screen TV, HD programming, and a DVR device, we are hooked on all the various nature/science shows. I'm sure I could 'netflix' a documentary on the whales, or the great barrier reef, or whatever; but these are not the kinds of shows I would seek out and order. There is something relaxing about having a beautiful nature show in High Def on as 'background' while you eat dinner ... . You can't get HD quality easily by streaming stuff over the internet.
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
Seriously, I do admire the gesture, and I'd be tempted to do it myself if I had kids, but the main weakness I see in the general 'alternative' plan you have - internet, netflix, etc - is that of 'discovery'. Yes, you can find almost everything on netflix, iTunes, YouTube, TV channel websites, etc, but ... how do you 'discover' new stuff? I've found most of my favorite comedy shows by accident; waking up and watching a show after falling asleep while something else was on, or just being too lazy to change channels at the end of a show I was watching. This is how I discovered 'South Park', 'Malcolm in the Middle', etc - shows I now love to watch.
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" ..
Also - now that we have a large screen TV, HD programming, and a DVR device, we are hooked on all the various nature/science shows. I'm sure I could 'netflix' a documentary on the whales, or the great barrier reef, or whatever; but these are not the kinds of shows I would seek out and order. There is something relaxing about having a beautiful nature show in High Def on as 'background' while you eat dinner ... . You can't get HD quality easily by streaming stuff over the internet.
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
Dec 30th 2008, 11:33 am
#92
Yeah that guy.
Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Arizona
Posts: 6,922
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
To be more specific and in no particular order...
I don't like the ads. (Shamwow? That guy with the mullet selling gym equipment? That screaming guy that sells cleaners?
) If you really listen to the verbage on some of these ads it makes no sense at all. Try really listening to it as though you were reading it on a printed page. They operate on the assumption that you are an easily manipulated idiot and that insults me.
The "News". Local news is a joke. The first 15 minutes is a recitation of the day's tragic deaths/murders/horrible/sensational crimes (and that's just the political events) followed by the weather that may or may not be accurate. National news is the same on a larger scale with a little more political bias added for flavor.
Entertainment. There are a few decent shows, they're not all horrible. Kid's programming is probably the worst, followed by the "reality" crap. What's that most recent one where the guy's mothers are trying to hook them up with various sluts? It seems like the rest are all cop shows or hospital shows dealing with yet more murder, rape etc... in graphic detail.
PBS. I used to like it. We don't get it where we live.
Alternatives. For weather and news I have the internet. Yep, there's still bias but I have a much wider range of choices and I am in control of what I want to see. I can dig around and look at all three sides of a story and then get different perspectives on it. I don't have to sit through 20 minutes of crap and commercials to get to the one story I was interested in. For emergency weather I have a weather radio. I also have a satellite radio that has a weather and traffic channel for my area 24/7. For entertainment we have books (My 10yo son reads at a 10th grade level and my 8yo daughter reads at a 7th grade level, both I believe are due to the very limited amount of TV they watch leaving plenty of time for reading) board games (my daughter likes Monopoly and my son just got Axis and Allies for Christmas) or just playing outside. We play all kinds of music on the sat. radio. I also use it to listen to BBC world service on the way to work in the morning and music on the way home. I bought a Wii for Christmas which surprised the hell out of my wife because I was anti video game as much as I was anti TV. I figured that at least with the Wii they have to move and use some hand/eye coordination. For movies we have Netflix where we can get all kinds of cool documentaries as well as more mainstream type movies and TV shows. That's in addition to the pretty good collection of DVDs/VHS here at the house.
To sum it up I'd say that everything good about TV is available elsewhere without having to take the bad along with it, and all in all, there are better things to do than park your arse in front of the box. When my kids are visiting my parents who have digital cable they are like zombies in front of the box, you have to snap your fingers in front of them to get their attention away from it.
I don't like the ads. (Shamwow? That guy with the mullet selling gym equipment? That screaming guy that sells cleaners?
) If you really listen to the verbage on some of these ads it makes no sense at all. Try really listening to it as though you were reading it on a printed page. They operate on the assumption that you are an easily manipulated idiot and that insults me.The "News". Local news is a joke. The first 15 minutes is a recitation of the day's tragic deaths/murders/horrible/sensational crimes (and that's just the political events) followed by the weather that may or may not be accurate. National news is the same on a larger scale with a little more political bias added for flavor.
Entertainment. There are a few decent shows, they're not all horrible. Kid's programming is probably the worst, followed by the "reality" crap. What's that most recent one where the guy's mothers are trying to hook them up with various sluts? It seems like the rest are all cop shows or hospital shows dealing with yet more murder, rape etc... in graphic detail.
PBS. I used to like it. We don't get it where we live.
Alternatives. For weather and news I have the internet. Yep, there's still bias but I have a much wider range of choices and I am in control of what I want to see. I can dig around and look at all three sides of a story and then get different perspectives on it. I don't have to sit through 20 minutes of crap and commercials to get to the one story I was interested in. For emergency weather I have a weather radio. I also have a satellite radio that has a weather and traffic channel for my area 24/7. For entertainment we have books (My 10yo son reads at a 10th grade level and my 8yo daughter reads at a 7th grade level, both I believe are due to the very limited amount of TV they watch leaving plenty of time for reading) board games (my daughter likes Monopoly and my son just got Axis and Allies for Christmas) or just playing outside. We play all kinds of music on the sat. radio. I also use it to listen to BBC world service on the way to work in the morning and music on the way home. I bought a Wii for Christmas which surprised the hell out of my wife because I was anti video game as much as I was anti TV. I figured that at least with the Wii they have to move and use some hand/eye coordination. For movies we have Netflix where we can get all kinds of cool documentaries as well as more mainstream type movies and TV shows. That's in addition to the pretty good collection of DVDs/VHS here at the house.
To sum it up I'd say that everything good about TV is available elsewhere without having to take the bad along with it, and all in all, there are better things to do than park your arse in front of the box. When my kids are visiting my parents who have digital cable they are like zombies in front of the box, you have to snap your fingers in front of them to get their attention away from it.
Add virtually everything that can be seen on TV can be found online. I'm watching Bill Maher right now on Youtube. I spent the last hour switching between Talksport and Mock The Week.
Last edited by Captain Cheesestick; Dec 30th 2008 at 11:36 am.
Dec 30th 2008, 12:19 pm
#93
Unmitigated Gall
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
We have this game we play... she'll be in the kitchen doing something with the kitchen TV on. I'll walk into our bedroom to find that tv on as well. I'll turn off the bedroom tv because there isn't anyone in there watching it. Ten minutes later my wife will be doing something in the bedroom so that tv is back on and the one in the kitchen is still blasting away. Or she's in the basement doing laundry and both TVs are on...:curse: Or horror of horrors, walking in from work to find the kids eating their after school snack parked in front of The Oprah.
Seriously, I do admire the gesture, and I'd be tempted to do it myself if I had kids, but the main weakness I see in the general 'alternative' plan you have - internet, netflix, etc - is that of 'discovery'. Yes, you can find almost everything on netflix, iTunes, YouTube, TV channel websites, etc, but ... how do you 'discover' new stuff? I've found most of my favorite comedy shows by accident; waking up and watching a show after falling asleep while something else was on, or just being too lazy to change channels at the end of a show I was watching. This is how I discovered 'South Park', 'Malcolm in the Middle', etc - shows I now love to watch.
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" .. ...
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" .. ...
The only thing I have discovered by watching TV is that it is shit. In many cases, the humor is the type that appeals to the lowest common denominator, the broadcast equivalent of using your armpit to make a fart noise. There are some good shows but they are rare, and even they take up time that could be better spent by doing other things and pummels you with insulting advertisements for the priviledge of watching them. Yeah, I know, DVR. Spending money on another gizmo might get rid of the commercials but it won't make the bad shows any better. As for cable it's not available where I am, and sattelite, why pay a good chunk of change every month for five decent stations and 200 that are crap? Seriously, if I could order just the channels I wanted and pay by the channel it might actually be worthwhile. But even saying that, I've never seen a History channel show that was as informative as a decent book on the same subject and I've very seldom seen a TV show that was as funny as Mark Twain or Bill Bryson.
Also - now that we have a large screen TV, HD programming, and a DVR device, we are hooked on all the various nature/science shows. I'm sure I could 'netflix' a documentary on the whales, or the great barrier reef, or whatever; but these are not the kinds of shows I would seek out and order.
Why not?
There is something relaxing about having a beautiful nature show in High Def on as 'background' while you eat dinner ... . You can't get HD quality easily by streaming stuff over the internet.
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
I'm not saying that I must be doing something completely intellectual or constructive all the time, there are other ways of wasting time, and of them I'm guilty. But even surfing the internet provides some stimulation (mental or otherwise) and my previous bane, video games, the Wii we just got (with the right games) excersises hand/eye coordination and quick thinking, and even some physical movement. With most TV there is no benefit to mind or body. There is no interaction, you just sit there and recieve whatever message the creators of the show want you to recieve, (99% of the time it's "Buy this product") thus the birth of the phrase "Veg out in front of the TV". I think about how much better our society could be if people participated less in the cult of the TV and just did something. When I say the "cult" of the TV I mean think about how much of US culture is devoted to TV and the people that appear on it. Hell, there are even TV shows about TV shows!
Well, I reckon that's enough.
Last edited by another bloody yank; Dec 30th 2008 at 12:56 pm.
Dec 30th 2008, 12:20 pm
#94
Unmitigated Gall
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
My God man it's like you are in my head. We didn't have a TV for 18 months in the UK - and the one we have here gets two channels kinda fuzzy. It is incredibly liberating to not be tied to the TV constantly telling me all sorts of things that just make me angry or annoyed.
Add virtually everything that can be seen on TV can be found online. I'm watching Bill Maher right now on Youtube. I spent the last hour switching between Talksport and Mock The Week.
Add virtually everything that can be seen on TV can be found online. I'm watching Bill Maher right now on Youtube. I spent the last hour switching between Talksport and Mock The Week.
Dec 30th 2008, 12:30 pm
#96
Unmitigated Gall
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
There's always something better to do. And I'm in nowhere, Missouri.
Dec 30th 2008, 12:59 pm
#97
Sursum corda
Joined: Sep 2002
Location: Richmond Hill, GA USA
Posts: 38,860
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
If it were just me that would work. My wife has taken week long trips to visit her family in KC and during the time she and the kids were gone I haven't touched the TV. But like I said earlier, the thing seems to provide some sort of odd comfort for my wife for whom silence is apparently a strange and frightening thing. She says it's from being raised with six siblings, I dunno. We have this game we play... she'll be in the kitchen doing something with the kitchen TV on. I'll walk into our bedroom to find that tv on as well. I'll turn off the bedroom tv because there isn't anyone in there watching it. Ten minutes later my wife will be doing something in the bedroom so that tv is back on and the one in the kitchen is still blasting away. Or she's in the basement doing laundry and both TVs are on...:curse:
Or horror of horrors, walking in from work to find the kids eating their after school snack parked in front of The Oprah.
I discover things by searching the internet and the Netflix database for subjects that interest me or that I think the family might like. If you had never seen an episode of Malcom in the Middle and didn't even know it existed, would your life have been negatively affected? Compare that to what you could have been doing during the times that you have been watching Malcom in the Middle. The books you could have read, the conversations you could have had... Is it worth it?
The only thing I have discovered by watching TV is that it is shit. In many cases, the humor is the type that appeals to the lowest common denominator, the broadcast equivalent of using your armpit to make a fart noise. There are some good shows but they are rare, and even they take up time that could be better spent by doing other things and pummels you with insulting advertisements for the priviledge of watching them. Yeah, I know, DVR. Spending money on another gizmo might get rid of the commercials but it won't make the bad shows any better. As for cable it's not available where I am, and sattelite, why pay a good chunk of change every month for five decent stations and 200 that are crap? Seriously, if I could order just the channels I wanted and pay by the channel it might actually be worthwhile. But even saying that, I've never seen a History channel show that was as informative as a decent book on the same subject and I've very seldom seen a TV show that was as funny as Mark Twain or Bill Bryson.
Why not?
TV on at dinner...don't get me started....
I'm not saying that I must be doing something completely intellectual or constructive all the time, there are other ways of wasting time, and of them I'm guilty. But even surfing the internet provides some stimulation (mental or otherwise) and my previous bane, video games, the Wii we just got (with the right games) excersises hand/eye coordination and quick thinking, and even some physical movement. With most TV there is no benefit to mind or body. There is no interaction, you just sit there and recieve whatever message the creators of the show want you to recieve, (99% of the time it's "Buy this product") thus the birth of the phrase "Veg out in front of the TV". I think about how much better our society could be if people participated less in the cult of the TV and just did something. When I say the "cult" of the TV I mean think about how much of US culture is devoted to TV and the people that appear on it. Hell, there are even TV shows about TV shows!
Well, I reckon that's enough.
We have this game we play... she'll be in the kitchen doing something with the kitchen TV on. I'll walk into our bedroom to find that tv on as well. I'll turn off the bedroom tv because there isn't anyone in there watching it. Ten minutes later my wife will be doing something in the bedroom so that tv is back on and the one in the kitchen is still blasting away. Or she's in the basement doing laundry and both TVs are on...:curse: Or horror of horrors, walking in from work to find the kids eating their after school snack parked in front of The Oprah.
I discover things by searching the internet and the Netflix database for subjects that interest me or that I think the family might like. If you had never seen an episode of Malcom in the Middle and didn't even know it existed, would your life have been negatively affected? Compare that to what you could have been doing during the times that you have been watching Malcom in the Middle. The books you could have read, the conversations you could have had... Is it worth it?
The only thing I have discovered by watching TV is that it is shit. In many cases, the humor is the type that appeals to the lowest common denominator, the broadcast equivalent of using your armpit to make a fart noise. There are some good shows but they are rare, and even they take up time that could be better spent by doing other things and pummels you with insulting advertisements for the priviledge of watching them. Yeah, I know, DVR. Spending money on another gizmo might get rid of the commercials but it won't make the bad shows any better. As for cable it's not available where I am, and sattelite, why pay a good chunk of change every month for five decent stations and 200 that are crap? Seriously, if I could order just the channels I wanted and pay by the channel it might actually be worthwhile. But even saying that, I've never seen a History channel show that was as informative as a decent book on the same subject and I've very seldom seen a TV show that was as funny as Mark Twain or Bill Bryson.
Why not?
TV on at dinner...don't get me started....
I'm not saying that I must be doing something completely intellectual or constructive all the time, there are other ways of wasting time, and of them I'm guilty. But even surfing the internet provides some stimulation (mental or otherwise) and my previous bane, video games, the Wii we just got (with the right games) excersises hand/eye coordination and quick thinking, and even some physical movement. With most TV there is no benefit to mind or body. There is no interaction, you just sit there and recieve whatever message the creators of the show want you to recieve, (99% of the time it's "Buy this product") thus the birth of the phrase "Veg out in front of the TV". I think about how much better our society could be if people participated less in the cult of the TV and just did something. When I say the "cult" of the TV I mean think about how much of US culture is devoted to TV and the people that appear on it. Hell, there are even TV shows about TV shows!
Well, I reckon that's enough.
Dec 30th 2008, 1:11 pm
#98
Unmitigated Gall
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Dec 30th 2008, 1:22 pm
#99
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 14,577
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
I appreciate the gesture you are making, but you could just use the 'off' button instead ...
Seriously, I do admire the gesture, and I'd be tempted to do it myself if I had kids, but the main weakness I see in the general 'alternative' plan you have - internet, netflix, etc - is that of 'discovery'. Yes, you can find almost everything on netflix, iTunes, YouTube, TV channel websites, etc, but ... how do you 'discover' new stuff? I've found most of my favorite comedy shows by accident; waking up and watching a show after falling asleep while something else was on, or just being too lazy to change channels at the end of a show I was watching. This is how I discovered 'South Park', 'Malcolm in the Middle', etc - shows I now love to watch.
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" ..
Also - now that we have a large screen TV, HD programming, and a DVR device, we are hooked on all the various nature/science shows. I'm sure I could 'netflix' a documentary on the whales, or the great barrier reef, or whatever; but these are not the kinds of shows I would seek out and order. There is something relaxing about having a beautiful nature show in High Def on as 'background' while you eat dinner ... . You can't get HD quality easily by streaming stuff over the internet.
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
Seriously, I do admire the gesture, and I'd be tempted to do it myself if I had kids, but the main weakness I see in the general 'alternative' plan you have - internet, netflix, etc - is that of 'discovery'. Yes, you can find almost everything on netflix, iTunes, YouTube, TV channel websites, etc, but ... how do you 'discover' new stuff? I've found most of my favorite comedy shows by accident; waking up and watching a show after falling asleep while something else was on, or just being too lazy to change channels at the end of a show I was watching. This is how I discovered 'South Park', 'Malcolm in the Middle', etc - shows I now love to watch.
And what about 'Real Time with Bill Maher'? That's the one 'must watch' show for me, and I don't believe it's available outside of HBO (though the audio can be downloaded freely on iTunes). And - "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern" ..
Also - now that we have a large screen TV, HD programming, and a DVR device, we are hooked on all the various nature/science shows. I'm sure I could 'netflix' a documentary on the whales, or the great barrier reef, or whatever; but these are not the kinds of shows I would seek out and order. There is something relaxing about having a beautiful nature show in High Def on as 'background' while you eat dinner ... . You can't get HD quality easily by streaming stuff over the internet.
Having said all that - it peeves me that we spend over $100/month on cable ...
Dec 30th 2008, 3:39 pm
#100
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 22,105
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
Just a side note as I know you are into old movies. I watched The Royle Family Christmas Special downloaded from UKNova. Tom Courtenay and Helen Fraser played Dave's parents. Reminded me of one of my favorites, Billy Liar.............. Barbara and her bloody oranges!!
Obviously both getting on now
Obviously both getting on now
) I'd love to download it.
Dec 30th 2008, 3:55 pm
#101
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 5,276
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
Dec 30th 2008, 4:31 pm
#102
Not here much
Joined: Jan 2005
Location: Highland Park, NJ
Posts: 2,452
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
I could never get into the show myself.
Dec 30th 2008, 4:41 pm
#105
Unmitigated Gall
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: it's still too dark to tell
Posts: 16,162
Re: My Wife is ready to try something I've wanted for a long time.
