Windows Vista and Not So Annoyed

OK, so I told you about some of the things that annoyed me about Windows Vista. Now, it's time to tell you about some of the things I really like. Or at least the biggest thing I like. When my home-built PC was running, I was running Windows Media Center 2005. This was a special version of Windows XP that also contained several programs that allowed Windows XP to operate like a Digital Video Recorder (DVR) or TIVO when a TV card was part of the system.

I really like the DVR capability of my system, so when my home-built PC died, my replacement HP m7750n came with Windows Vista Home Premium and a built-in TV card. Windows Vista Home Premium contains the newer version of Windows Media Center. The guide for the TV schedule is downloaded over the Internet automatically when I boot the system. It stores 14 days of TV schedules matched to my cable channel listing. I just browse the schedule or perform a search, select the program I want recorded, then select record. I don't have to worry about what channel, what time, or anything like that. You can even search based on what actors, what director, keywords, or category.

Last TV season, I recorded Chuck, Heros, Journeyman, and many others. My shows were there ready to watch when I wanted to instead of when the TV programming schedule dictated. Windows Media Center in Vista also lets you view live TV just like TIVO. So, when you watching the game or the latest must see episode and the phone rings, don't worry. Just press pause, take the call, then when you are done, press play and it will pick up right where you left off. You never miss anything. Neat huh! Hey, I even added an additional TV card so I could record one channel and be watching another. With the 2nd TV card, I can also record two shows simultaneously, while playing back a recorded show.

OK, I've told you about TV, but that is not all that Windows Media Center is capable of. You can also download music files or rip CDs into it. Then setup playlists and listen to you music, all neatly stored on your hard drive. You can also burn a playlist to a CD.

And that's not all! Windows Media Center also catalogs all your photos so you can display a slideshow. And there is much, much more to Windows Media Center. You can find out much more at the Windows Media Center Overview. There is even a link to take a test drive over the Internet. Also, I forgot to mention that all the functions of Windows Media Center are controlled by a neat remote control or by the keyboard.

In the next post, I will tell you more about what I do with Windows Media Center. Let me know if you have any questions!