Connecting Everything Together

Part one of this two-part series is here: Get Netflix on HDTV – Part 1  Once you’ve got all the bits and pieces, here’s how to get everything working as a unit.

1. Most devices connect to your router then to the Internet automatically. Find the settings menu on your HDTV or smart device then look for the word ‘Network’. If you are using a wired connection, Ethernet to be exact, every device will be able to connect automatically. We have yet to see anything that won’t connect on its own. Your router is already set to allow new connections, don’t worry about that.

2. If you’re using a WiFi connection (wireless), you will have to identify the network and enter the key. The key is what protects your WiFi network from intruders, sometimes called neighbors, who might want to steal your signal and use your Internet connection for themselves. Some devices have a remote which you can use as a keypad while others have you use the up/down/left/right keys to ‘type’ in the letters and numbers. If your device uses Bluetooth, we’d advise you to get a basic keyboard for this. Still other devices link up with your mobile device, Samsung for instance, which makes entering data much easier.

3. If you have connected an Ethernet cable directly to your HDTV, you’re all set. If you have a separate device, you must connect that device to the HDTV via a single HDMI cable. These usually come with the TV or with the device but sometimes you have to buy one separately. They go for less than ten dollars around Toronto so don’t go forking out fifty bucks for one. No matter what Monster Cable tells you, their equipment is no better than anyone else’s.

4. Your HDTV might have different HDMI inputs. Some of ours have four separate ones so grab your owner’s manual and figure out how to choose which input is which and how to switch from one to another. One the TV in our ‘man cave’, we have a BluRay DVD player, our PS3 and our Xbox-360 all connected through separate HDMI inputs. No need to unplug one then plug in another, we just switch between them with our remote. This is what your HDTV might look like from the back:

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. If you’re worried about the mess from all of the cables, head to your local big box hardware store and look for cable ‘hiders’. These are usually flat, two-piece plastic strips that stick to your wall with two sided tape or screws. The base goes on the wall then the cables are arranged on it and the top section snaps on, effectively hiding everything behind it. The surface can be painted the same color as the wall. Here’s an example for you:

 

 

 

 

 

6. Once you can connect to the Internet, you often have to update the software on your device(s) to bring them up to the current version. This might take some time but it’s normal. On other devices, the PS3 for instance, you will have to sign in to the Playstation store and download the ‘app’ that will run Netflix. It’s all free, don’t worry. Your owner’s manual will explain it all. 

7. Finally, remember that Netflix account that you signed up for on your computer? Go back to it, sign in and see what you have to do to register your device. Everything that you use to stream Netflix, except a computer, will require registration. Bring up the Netflix menu on your HDTV or smart device then write down the code, go back to your computer and enter it. Here’s what you’ll see on your screen:

 

 

 

 

 

That’s about it really. You may run into some little problems here and there but you’ve got ample resources to help you. Your owner’s manual is great for troubleshooting. The manufacturer’s of your device probably had a PDF manual that you can download plus Netflix has excellent support pages. If your device can stream Netflix, they have information on it, that’s for sure. Finally, ask us! Ask us in a comment or on our Facebook page if you have a problem.  Here is the link:Computers Made Simple on Facebook.  Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to record your favorite TV shows so you can watch them when you want to? Sure, you can use the DVR that your cable or satellite company provides but that costs money every month. Here’s how you can do it for free, the only cost is the TV tuner card for your computer. Here’s how we do it:

1. Head over to Hauppauge Computer Works Click on the Products at the top and check out their selection of tuners. Some fit inside your desktop, some connect via USB and others sit beside your dekstop or laptop, something like a game console. This is the card that we have in one of our desktop computers:

 

 

 

 

 

2. If you have a laptop or if you don’t want to open your dekstop, Hauppauge also makes USB tuners. Here is what one of these looks like:

Watch out for these USB tuners. What you gain in ease of use, you lose in reliability. We strongly recommend a tuner card that fits inside a desktop.

 

 

 

 

3. Every tuner comes with a complete set of software. TV tuner software consists of two things. First, you have a driver, the thing that Windows uses to interact with your card. The second bit of software is the interface, the thing that you use to watch and record television. Hauppauge uses a product called ‘WinTV’ but some tuners will work with other TV software. We’ve found WinTV to work perfectly well and the only reason you might want to use something else is because you aren’t using Windows. MythTV is popular with Linux and, from what we hear, it’s a magnificent, free program.

4. Depending on whether you bought a card that fits in your desktop or a USB that plugs into a free slot, make sure you read the installation manual before you go ahead and install the software. Some USB products ask you to install the software first, then plug in the product. Read the ‘Getting Started’ booklet before you begin.

5. While these tuners work with regular subscription cable TV, we use ours with a very basic OTA (over the air) antenna. The antenna is connected to the tuner with RG9 coaxial wire, the same wire that your cable or satellite company uses. We’re in Toronto so our antenna faces south and brings in about twenty-five crystal clear HDTV channels. We also get a few SD (standard definition) channels, ones that are not available by subscription. One of these, named AntennaTV, broadcasts retro shows from the early days of television. Take a look at their site to see what you’re missing: AntennaTV site

6. When you’re ready to get going, your tuner software will automatically search for all of the channels available from your antenna. It lists them one by one as they are tuned, finally giving you a total number. If you know there are more available, you could try to adjust the direction your antenna is facing. Even a few inches one way or the other can make a difference. Be patient, it’s all worth it.

7. Here is a shot of the tuner interface:

The GUI has buttons across the bottom that you’ll gradually get used to using. From left to right: settings, OSD (on screen display), file open (to play a pre-recorded video file), snapshot, closed caption. Yes, you can turn down the sound and read the words on the screen. To the right are the normal DVR or VCR controls that you should be very familiar with. The red button on the left is for instant recordings but you can also schedule WinTV to record by itself automatically. Set up the timer, tell it how long you want to record any channel and you’re set. Just remember to leave your computer running. WinTV does not have to be on to record but your computer does.

Finally, remember that the recordings that you make take up a lot of room. A few hours of HDTV can easily gobble up thirty gigabytes of disk space. Because of this, we use a three gigabyte drive on the computer that uses the TV tuner card. On top of that we watch the shows then delete them as soon as we can. If we want to archive the recordings, we will convert them to a format that retains the quality but takes up far less room on our hard drive. MKV is the format we use.

Thanks for reading! We have lots of fun with our OTA/tuner card setup and hope that you will soon do the same. Questions or comments are welcome. You can also ask questions on our Facebook page. Here is the link: Computers Made Simple on Facebook 

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We encountered a scenario yesterday that we didn’t think was unique, a situation that many empty-nesters find themselves in all over Canada and the U.S. We spoke to someone who is slowly retiring, he’s down to a day a week now and works solely to keep his additional health benefits. In Canada, just so you know, basic healthcare is free but does not include private or semi-private rooms, dental care or prescriptions. In this case prescriptions aren’t a concern since they’re free for seniors anyway. Faced with a fixed income, many people are looking for ways to lower their monthly bills. Cutting the cable is where we can offer some help.

Current Costs: 

We’ll work on a figure of $150.00 a month for a cable TV package that includes Internet, TV and cell phone. On top of that, there is a charge for a landline and long distance calls from another company. That amounts to about $60.00 a month with the ability to call anywhere in the U.S. or Canada at no extra charge. Total then is approximately $210 a month.

Needs: 

Bob, not his real name, doesn’t use his home phone (landline) very much at all. The possibility exists to dispose of that charge completely, leaving the long distance charges to be transferred to his cell phone plan.

As far as entertainment goes, Bob really only watches sports on his TV, despite having the normal 500 channels available to him. His sport is basketball and he probably watches thirty games a month during the NBA season.

The Internet is almost not part of the equation, at this point anyway, since Bob’s needs for bandwidth are very small. Email, sharing photos and Skype are about all he does on his iPad. Our plans will certainly change this usage but it will be worth it.

Options: 

As we see it, there are a few ways we could go here but we’ll stick to one for now. The toughest item might just be the TV package but we’re fairly sure that Bob could get by using the Internet for news and entertainment in lieu of the hefty monthly charge from the cable company.
Solutions: 

An Internet/home phone package that includes unlimited Internet usage plus unlimited long distance in North America, complete with premium features can be had for about $85.00 a month from a small but very reputable Canadian company. There would be some extra costs in setting things up, items such as a modem, shipping and an activation fee. Let’s put a figure of $200.00 on this. That figure is on the very high side, by the way, but we don’t want to low-ball anyone on this. (We should point out that a 300 gigabyte a month plan would be about $12.00 less every month but, for now, we’ll use the figure for unlimited Internet usage.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As far as entertainment goes, there are Netflix and the various sports packages available, all able to be streamed to HDTVs or mobile devices. Netflix is $7.99 a month while NBA League Pass is only $80.00 for the full season. All the major sports have packages such as this. Not only can you see your home team in action but you can follow any team around the league. Divided by twelve, even the most expensive package is only $10.00 a month. On top of that, we’d suggest a VPN account in order to access the American version of Netflix as well as to defeat the blackouts that prevail in professional sports. An account with the VPN that we use is only $4.99 a month.

Lastly, Bob uses his cell phone a fair bit. He travels frequently to the States however so we’re looking at a plan that would allow him unlimited roaming in the U.S. We’ve found one that includes everything for $55.00 a month. Everything in this case is unlimited data (to a 5 gigabyte limit before speed limitations set in), unlimited text and talk across Canada and the U.S. Add a new phone to that and you’re looking at $80.00 a month for the first year, $55.00 a month thereafter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Totalling It Up: 

Let’s add it all up: (Costs are for the first year, everything would be lower after that since we’ve built the extras into the monthly fee)

Internet and home phone: $85.00/month

Entertainment: $33.00/month including two sports full season packages.

Apple TV: Required to stream the Internet entertainment to Bob’s HDTV, $10.00/month for the first year, free after that.

Cell phone: $80/month for the first year, $55/month after that.

Total: $208.00 for the first year, $163 afterwards. Take out one of the sports packages and the price drops a bit to around $150.00 per month for a saving of $60.00 a month from what Bob is currently spending. The plus side is that he would be getting substantially more for less, except for the cable TV channel assortment.

Once Bob pays for the hardware and miscellaneous expenses, the monthly price would be substantially less than what he’s paying now. On top of that, dropping the home phone would lower the monthly tag even more. Whether or not you see yourself in this picture, we hope we’ve shown you that there are options open to you. You don’t have to be tied to your cable or phone company. Cutting the cable can put some money back in your wallet . Depending on where you live, there are probably many more options out there than you realize.

Thanks for reading! As always, if you need help, ask us. Use the comment section below or head over and check out our Facebook page. Here is the link: Computers Made Simple on Facebook  Keep up to date on our posts and occasional tips and tricks.

 

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Here’s a link that might help us if you are interested in hosting your own blog with Fatcow Hosting. We’ve signed up to become an affiliate and we make a bit of money if you sign up for hosting via this link: FatCow Hosting Thanks!