Comcast Interactive Program Guide

Archived from groups: alt.cable-tv,alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:

> I currently have Comcast analog cable and am thinking of converting
> to digital cable for the following reasons: Commercial Free Movies,
> Digital Music Channels, and maybe their Interactive Program Guide.
>
> Could someone please describe what features the Interactive Program
> Guide has?

For less money, you could get a lot more channels, including music
channels, PPV movies and a *much* better IPG, from DirecTV. DirecTV's
newer boxes also give you on-screen caller ID for free.

Comcast's IPG is full of banner ads which take up much of the screen.
That space wasted in the comcast guide is used to list more channels on
the DirecTV IPG, instead of ads.

Many DirecTV boxes also have a 1 touch record feature that will turn on
your VCR, record a show and turn it off at the end of the show. This
is done by clicking the "record" icon for the future show in the IPG.
Comcast doesn't have this, and has no choice of set top boxes.

Archived from groups: alt.cable-tv,alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

randau wrote:
>
> What are PPV movies?

pay per view.










C.

Archived from groups: alt.cable-tv,alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

not@127.0.0.1 wrote:
> It's interactive, meaning you can jump around to different
> channels, view different programs and a brief description of the
> episode. As opposed to analog's scrolling "TV guide" channel, which
> usually lists only the program name; and where individual channel info
> cannot be accessed immediately.

I too find the scrolling analog TV guide totally useless. My main
interest in an online digital program guide is its information
currentness and credibility. The cable TV Guide magazine I now receive
through the mail is woefully unreliable. Almost as often as not, the
movies listed turn out to be some other movie or not even a movie.
It's quite frustrating when you're trying to record them. Do you know
if Comcast's online digital program guide would be more current and
credible with respect to the accuracy of their listings?

I thought I heard somewhere that Comcast's digital program guide could
also be searched. Do you know anything about that?

However, I do find interesting some other features you mentioned like
selecting a program and then clicking on a Record icon to have it
recorded. But, that sounds more like DVR capability. Would that kind
of feature come with a Comcast DVR when and if they ever become
available in my area?

-randau

Archived from groups: alt.cable-tv,alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

In article <8066f59b.0409281330.1bd401d5@posting.google.com>,
spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:

> not@127.0.0.1 wrote:
> > For less money, you could get a lot more channels, including music
> > channels, PPV movies and a *much* better IPG, from DirecTV. DirecTV's
> > newer boxes also give you on-screen caller ID for free.
>
> What are PPV movies?
>
> >
> > Comcast's IPG is full of banner ads which take up much of the screen.
> > That space wasted in the comcast guide is used to list more channels on
> > the DirecTV IPG, instead of ads.
> >
> > Many DirecTV boxes also have a 1 touch record feature that will turn on
> > your VCR, record a show and turn it off at the end of the show. This
> > is done by clicking the "record" icon for the future show in the IPG.
> > Comcast doesn't have this, and has no choice of set top boxes.
>
> From what you say, it sounds like DirectTV's IPG is superior to
> Comcast's. But, I wish someone would describe what you CAN do with
> Comcast's Interactive Program Guide to see if it may be sufficient for
> me. I have several TV's hooked up to analog cable, but I'm just
> interested in converting one of them to digital.
>

If all you want is a program guide, you'd be better off just firing up
the Yahoo tv listings. I was a Time-Warner subscriber on the east coast
and now I'm a Comcast victim -- I mean, subscriber -- on the west coast.
The Time-Warner IPG has many features that are absent from the Comcast
guide. Comcast's box has very low capacity, so it only goes two or three
days ahead. As someone noted, the screen is about 2/3 ads and very
little space used for actual information. The Reminder function doesn't
let you see what reminders you have set, so, for example, if you have
two overlapping reminders and one gets triggered and you click on it,
you then have no way to remember what the other one was. There's no way
to fast-forward through time ... for example if it's 1pm and you want to
see what's on at 7pm, that's 12 keyclicks, one per half hour.

The Comcast guide is totally worthless. Get your program guide from the
Web, or (better idea) get a TiVo, which has a 2-week program guide and
has a lot of other nice features. Or get DirecTV.

Archived from groups: alt.cable-tv,alt.video.digital-tv (More info?)

spamjunkmail2002@yahoo.com (randau) wrote:

> I was
> thinking that the daily digital program guide would be more
> current

It would be.

Jeez, if you already have cable, why don't you just call or go pick up
a digital box. If you don't like it, take it back and drop back to
analog.

If the cableco wants to charge you for an upgrade/downgrade, threaten
to switch to satellite and they'll usually drop any fees.