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The real reason why the Media Center TV pack update was OEM only?
One thing we know for sure is that the entire way Microsoft handled the TV Pack (code named Fiji) update was not well received by the enthusiast community. The primary reason for the disgust was the fact that the TV Pack update was OEM only (ie the likes of Dell and HP only), meaning those on the outside looking in felt slighted. The overall feeling seemed to be that Microsoft was once again pandering to the big OEMs -- like in the case of the original MCE or Digital Cable Tuners -- while leaving the build-your-own HTPC crowd on the sidelines. But here we are six months later and to our knowledge no OEMs are actually shipping Windows Media Center PCs with the TV Pack installed and we think we know why. At first we have to admit we had no clue what was going on, but then recently Microsoft proudly announced that unlike Windows Beta's before it, Windows 7 was only going to have one beta before going straight to release candidate 1 (RC1). %Gallery-29109%
Automatic commercial skipping is a go for Media Center in Windows 7
There were plenty of people upset -- including us -- when they discovered that they could no longer automatically skip commercials after upgrading their Vista Media Center with the TV Pack. Well we're very pleased to let you know that our assertion that Microsoft broke our favorite third party application on purposed, was unfounded. You see we recently got the word from the developer behind DVRMSToolBox that the Windows 7 Media Center SDK was in hand and that it won't be long before we'll be able to can skip commercials without ever picking up the remote -- nice.
What's new in Windows 7 for Media Center
Our good friend Charlie Owen highlighted the most interesting parts of Windows 7 on his blog -- you know, the Media Center parts. Overall we're a bit disappointed to see that most of the changes to the TV functionality were just brought over from the OEM only TV Pack, in fact almost all the other changes are cosmetic. We're not sure we like the new look yet (like the new info menu pictured) but we'd like to get accustomed to it before we pass judgment. That's not to say that there aren't any new features though, as there are plenty of changes for the pictures and music's features -- which are much appreciated. It should go without saying that we're mostly interested in features that enhance our HD viewing. The biggest addition to us is one that was expected in the TV Pack, but left out: H.264 support. Although this can be a nice feature all on its own, the real excitement is because we hope that this means DirecTV fans will finally get to watch HD on their Media Centers. We're hoping that this isn't the only feature that Redmond isn't letting on to just yet, but we'll all just have to wait and see what's to come in the final release.
The unofficial user guide to the Media Center TV Pack
It's been almost two months since we got our hands on the Media Center TV Pack (aka Fiji) and although CEDIA has come and gone, we haven't really seen much fanfare from Microsoft touting the new update for Media Center -- we haven't even seen as much as a change log or feature list. The good news is that when big companies fail to spell out what's new in an update, usually someone in the community steps up and fills in the gaps. This time around it's PC Mag, which has really done a great job of not only spelling out most of the new features, but the bugs as well. So instead of holding your breath waiting on big blue to clue you in if this update is worth all the fuss, head on over and give it a read.
DirecTV's Media Center Tuner still not on track for this year
It was a pretty big disappointment when we learned that the Windows Media Center TV Pack (code named Fiji) didn't include support for the long awaited DirecTV tuner, and unfortunately this means the smart money is on Windows 7 -- which will probably be out in early 2011 -- but of course this doesn't stop a few assumably uninformed DirecTV CSRs from telling customers it'll be out in November. Although we really have no idea when Microsoft will add native support for DirecTV, we do know it would be highly unusual for Microsoft to release anything without at least a few months of external testing. So with September half way over, it makes it next to impossible to believe we'll see it before the end of 2008. The thing that isn't as clear though, is that for whatever reason, the testers we've spoken to still aren't 100% convinced that the new tuner will require Windows 7, and although it seems like a slim chance, the tuner might just get here before Windows 7 after all, but your guess is as good as ours.
It's time to speak up for automatic commercial skipping in Media Center
Although the skeptic in us still kind of believes Microsoft may have intentionally broke automatic commercial skipping in Vista Media Center -- the developer (Andy) of DVRMSToolBox (the most popular commercial skipping software for Media Center) is no longer under NDA and has spoke out about how the TV Pack breaks his software. The long and the short of it is that the Media Center API that notifies the application that video is playing, no longer works. He sees this as a bug, and although Microsoft is aware of the issue, they have no intention of fixing it -- or even publicly admitting it. So according to Andy, our only hope is that enough people report the issue, it may just be enough to make Microsoft stand up and listen.
Microsoft gets official with the Vista Media Center TV Pack
Although we've known all about the TV Pack (code named Fiji) for some time, Microsoft's Ben Reed posted the official details about it today over at The Green Button. As expected, most of the new stuff is for other international markets, but the few new features for the US have been long awaited. Unfortunately the one detail about the TV Pack that we most wanted to be wrong about is true, the it'll only be available on new PCs from OEMs -- lucky for us you can find it elsewhere. Ben says the OEM requirement was necessary because of the complexity of supporting the new features, but as an enthusiast, we still can't help but feel a little slighted by our friends at Redmond. The most interesting quote in the announcement is the words that were chosen to explain that the TV Pack is indeed missing native DirecTV tuner support which describes it as "subscription-based satellite tuners." This of course make us all the more confident that both DirecTV and Dish support are on their radar -- but who knows, maybe that's just wishful thinking. %Gallery-29109%
Did Microsoft intentionally break commercial skipping in Media Center?
When we finally got the Vista Media Center TV Pack in our hands we were so excited about the new found features, that we didn't even get around to trying our favorite plug-ins until later. But after trying our favorite commercial skipping utility, DVRMSToolBox, some of our enthusiasm died. At first we figured, oh we probably need an update, but instead of finding the latest update on the developer's site, we found this interesting post with a inconvenient work around. The wording of the post only prompted us to ask even more questions, and our friends in the beta group had a few things to say. Evidently the developer of DVRMSToolBox was in the beta as well and has been voicing his concerns to Microsoft ever since RC0 was released, and based on the comments in the beta tester's forum, we have reason to believe that Microsoft may have "broken" it on purpose. Regardless of the actual intent though, it seems that Microsoft has no intention of fixing it the SDK in a way that would once again make commercial skipping possible. And in case you're wondering, this affects all the various commercial skipping plug-ins for Media Center, not just DVRMSToolBox.
Engadget HD gets a first hand look at the Vista TV Pack (aka Fiji)
Still a month away from its official announcement at CEDIA -- Engadget HD got their hands on the final release of the Vista Media Center TV Pack (codename Fiji) and although the most anticipated features are missing, (H.264 and DirecTV) what is there, is well received. So if clear QAM, improved tuner support, and favorites is just what you ordered, then head over and have a look at the update that unfortunately you'll probably never get without buying a new PC.
