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- Hacking the Tivo
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A popular project for somewhat technically savy Tivo owners is to
modify or "hack" their Tivo. Tivo hacking is not about getting
something for free, rather it is about modifying their Tivo and
customizing it to their needs. A Tivo hard drive upgrade is just
one example of tivo hacking.
There are a great abundance of hacking tools and
utilities that you can use to add new functionality to your Tivo,
including allowing it to download programming information via
your high speed Internet connection instead of tying up your
phone line and much more.
Setting aside all of its bells and whistles, a Tivo is
essentially a computer running a modified Linux operating system.
All programs and user options are stored on a standard computer
hard drive. Some Tivo hacks can be done with just a
little knowledge of the Linux operating system. some other
modifications however require a better understanding.
Some of the more popular utilities are outlined as
follows;
2.5Xtreme Hack
2.5Xtreme is one of the more popular hacks for the Directv with Tivo.
It is a modified version of the original Directv with Tivo 2.5 software
revision. 2.5Xtreme was developed by an individual known as
Surgeon in 2001. It adds a number of features including enabling
Directv with Tivo dual tuner support, upgrading the size of your
Directv with Tivo hard drives, installation of bash utilities and more.
Installation of 2.5Xtreme is fairly straight forward, it comes in
an ISO image format which you burn to a CD as an image and then
boot your computer from the CD and follow the prompts. You can
use 2.5Xtreme on your existing hard drives or write it to a new
larger hard drive with additional storage capacity. 2.5Xtreme
will also allow you to add a second hard drive to your Directv with Tivo
without the need to use seperate utilities.
Superzaps 2.5.2/3.1 Tivo Hack
One of the drawbacks of the original 2.5Xtreme software
revision is that it no longer allows local channels to be viewed
on the Directv with Tivo. However once you have 2.5Xtreme installed on
your Directv with Tivo and have it working, you can then proceed to
upgrade it to 2.5.2 or 3.1 which will enable your local channels
in addition to installing an additional number of utilities to
help you get the most out of your Directv with Tivo. Superzaps 2.5.2/3.1
upgrade is also an ISO image that is burned to a CD and then
booted to. Unlike 2.5Xtreme, Superzaps upgrade is not a complete
operating system, so you need to have Tivo version 2.0, 2.5 or
2.5Xtreme already installed before you can proceed to upgrade to
either 2.5.2 or 3.1. The Superzap utility package built into the
2.5.2/3.1 upgrade is called XPlusz. It installs many of the more
popular add-ons and utilities and allows your to turn the
individual utilities on/off using your Directv with Tivo remote
control.
Kraven 2.5 Upgrade/3.1 Tivolater Hack
The Kraven upgrade is another modified Directv with Tivo software
revision with added utilities. It is similar to the Superzap
upgrade, but it incorporates different utilities and uses a
different method to activate them. There are two seperate
releases, one will upgrade your 2.5Xtreme with the added Kraven
utilities and the other will upgrade you to software revision
3.1.
Turbonet Hack
Turbonet is a special add-on Tivo Ethernet card that allows
your Tivo to utilize a high speed Internet connection instead of
a tying up your phone line for the calls to Tivo. Driver for the
Turbonet card are included in Superzaps 2.5.2/3.1 upgrade or 3.1
Tivolater
Tivoweb Hack
Tivoweb is an add-on module for your Tivo that allows you to
communicate with the via a Internet browser. With Tivoweb you can
program and operate your Tivo remotely over the Internet and
more.
Tytool & Tystudio Hack
Tytool and Tystudio are utilities designed to extract programs
from your Tivo and save them to your computer.
Bash Prompt Hack
Bash Utilities are installed with 2.5Xtreme. A bash prompt
allows you to communicate with your Tivo, it is a Linux prompt
similar to a Windows DOS prompt. A bash prompt will allow you to
transfer files and make internal changes to your Tivo.
TivoFTP Hack
The Tivo FTP utilities will allow you to easily transfer files
to and from your Tivo. This is very handy when installing add-ons
and various modules.

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08/04/2008 11:20 AM
In order to give the website a better focus, we are phasing out the less popular areas of the site, including the high definition and digital video recorder areas and forums. This will leave the site focused on digital satellite television and satellite radio.
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Aliens
SYFY
6:00 pm ET
Years before anointing himself king of the world for "Titanic," James Cameron threw this sci-fi movie franchise into hyperdrive via a dose of here-come-the-Marines adrenaline. Sigourney Weaver reprises formidable Ripley, who accompanies a highly trained military squad to eradicate the chest-bursting creatures who destroyed the spacecraft Nostromo. Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser and Bill Paxton head the strong supporting cast.
Law & Order
NBC
9:00 pm ET
After the owner of a fashion company is found dead, Detectives Lupo and Bernard (Jeremy Sisto, Anthony Anderson) assume he asphyxiated. Later, however, a fashion photographer helps the detectives uncover the victim's true identity, a revelation that leads them to a suspicious Web site with threatening posts. S. Epatha Merkerson and Sam Waterston also star in "Human Flesh Search Engine."
Survivors
BBCAM
9:00 pm ET
Abby (Julie Graham) and her friends go on the run from Samantha and Dexter (Nikki Amuka-Bird, Anthony Flanagan) after they form a dangerous alliance. Sarah (Robyn Addison) betrays her friends after she is confronted by a face from the past. The family is forced to confront the city's dangers when Naj (Chahak Patel) goes missing.
Spellbound
TCM
6:00 pm ET
Finding an HMO to foot the bill would be tough today, but cost is not an issue in this 1945 Alfred Hitchcock thriller set at a private European psychiatric institution. Gregory Peck stars as an amnesiac accused of murder, and Ingrid Bergman plays the brilliant psychoanalyst who loves him despite his little quirks. The two flee the authorities while unlocking the mysteries of his tortured memory.
Uncle Buck
VH1
7:00 pm ET
A big-hearted but bumbling man (John Candy) agrees to look after his brother's children for a few days when the parents are called away. As if looking after a house, two small tykes, their rebellious older sister and her endangered virginity weren't enough, he's also trying to make up with his girlfriend (Amy Madigan) and fend off the advances of a man-hungry neighbor (Laurie Metcalf). Jean Louisa Kelly and Macaulay Culkin also star in this 1989 comedy.
American Beaver
NGC
8:00 pm ET
One determined rodent faces the challenges of predators and the elements as a National Geographic team, using a custom-designed camera system, tracks an American beaver for a year to see how her constant need to build changes the terrain and also affects the species living in the area around her.
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past
HBOE
8:00 pm ET
Matthew McConaughey milks his well-established romantic-comedy persona yet again, within an amusing premise. He plays a commitment-phobic photographer who's reunited with a former flame (Jennifer Garner) at his brother's (Breckin Meyer) wedding -- but he also encounters ghosts representing the past, present and future of his very active love life. Michael Douglas also is enjoyable as the specter of the McConaughey character's late uncle.
Lawrence of Arabia
TCM
8:00 pm ET
After making "The Bridge on the River Kwai," director David Lean and producer Sam Spiegel reteamed on another epic, the saga of World War I officer T.E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole, in his movie debut). The Englishman befriends the Saudi Arabians during their battle with Turks, and the result made history. So did this 1962 film, which won seven Oscars including best picture. Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn and Omar Sharif also star.
Mulan
DISN
9:00 pm ET
A Chinese maiden (voice of Ming-Na) disguises herself as a man to take her father's place in battle against invading Huns in this colorful Disney animated adaptation of an Asian legend. The impressive voice cast also includes B.D. Wong, Miguel Ferrer, Harvey Fierstein, Beth Fowler and George Takei, but Eddie Murphy steals the show as the voice of Mushu, a tiny dragon who becomes Mulan's traveling companion.
Screamers: The Hunting
SYFY
9:00 pm ET
It's anybody's guess why someone would bother pouring money -- OK, not much money, but still -- into a sequel to a largely forgotten 1995 sci-fi horror flop, and this gore-soaked but otherwise unremarkable 2009 "Aliens" wannabe, about a rescue team that encounters a race of murderous half-human, half-machine hybrids on a distant planet, will not leave you any the wiser. Gina Holden, Jana Pallaske and the ubiquitous Lance Henriksen star.
The Nanny Diaries
LIFE
9:00 pm ET
This 2007 dramedy wasn't well-received by critics, maybe because of its uneven tone, but if you've ever had a demanding yet useless boss, this is a film you'll understand, at least. Scarlett Johansson stars as college grad Annie, whose new job as a nanny to an upper-class family has her grinding her teeth. She just wants to make a living and have a well-adjusted charge -- but the family members make that virtually impossible. Donna Murphy, Laura Linney, Alicia Keys and Nicholas Reese Art co-star.
Castle
ABC
10:00 pm ET
Castle and Beckett (Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic) go around and around over the case of a nanny whose body is found tumbling inside the dryer of a laundry room in the upscale apartment building where she worked. As the investigation unfolds, Castle tries to get inside Beckett's head while writing the first novel in his Nikki Heat series. Jayne Brook and George Newbern guest star in "Nanny McDead."
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
NBC
10:00 pm ET
A woman's murder that is linked to a massive Ponzi scheme leads Detectives Benson and Stabler (Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni) to reopen an investigation into a similar crime committed 20 years earlier. As odd similarities between the two cases begin to emerge, however, the detectives face fierce opposition from the pit bull attorney (guest star Lena Olin) for the chief suspect in "Confidential."
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