# Build A TiVo



## OsamasGoat5467 (Oct 29, 2006)

I would love to build a PVR system, but I really like the TiVo OS. Is there a way to build a system with Windows working with the TiVo OS instead of something like Beyond TV?. And would it be legal and allowed to use the TiVo service?


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## JWThiers (Apr 13, 2005)

Nope


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## SteelersFan (Sep 7, 2004)

JWThiers said:


> Nope


Come on JW, Give the guy a straight answer.


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## JWThiers (Apr 13, 2005)

SteelersFan said:


> Come on JW, Give the guy a straight answer.


OK


OsamasGoat5467 said:


> I would love to build a PVR system, but I really like the TiVo OS. Is there a way to build a system with Windows working with the TiVo OS instead of something like Beyond TV?. And would it be legal and allowed to use the TiVo service?


I'll start by ignoring the licensing issues to start which in and of itself would most likely be prohibitive.

Tivo OS is not just a program it is an Operating System. Its not impossible to to run another OS inside an OS (apple is doing it now with parallels) but it does at the cost of a performance hit at this point Tivo would more or less have to be considered an application for windows in order for it to use the resources (Video, audio, CPU, Harddrive). This operating system is designed on very specific hardware. The most important of which is an MPEG Encoder/Decoder. The tivo is looking for a specific encoder which you can't get as a PCI card. That means it would have to be emulated in software, which means slowdown. For an application that depends on encoding/decoding in real time these delays and performance hits are disaster. Assuming you could get past the technical difficulties of just getting the system to run properly in this emulation mode you now have to deal with the second part of the equation, The service that tivo provides for a monthly fee. To get this service each tivo calls the mothership to get things like guide data and software updates (Those updates I'm sure will throw in a bunch of headaches that I won't even consider). They just don't provide that information to any computer that calls in it is looking for a tivo with an active account associated with it, not freds PC emulating a tivo. So in order to get the service that allows you to record you have to bypass all the things that prevent unauthorized recording and also get guide data from another source. At this point you start to wander into things called theft of service and if done on a large scale would result in law suits and such. For DirecTV tivo's I have good news, you don't need an encoder, only a decoder, because the signal is already encoded. This will make the hardware simpler and give you a leg up on anSA tivo, except for on thing. There are no signal input devices that I am aware of that would legally allow you to receive a DTV signal on a PC, let along record it.

Technically I suppose it is possible to do all of this BUT it would be expensive and require a lot of modification to the TIVO OS to do at all. An actual Tivo would be cheaper, easier and do a better job anyway. Then you have to worry about the legal aspects.

So like I said...

NOPE !

Happy now, its all I could come up with without straining too hard.


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## SteelersFan (Sep 7, 2004)

JWThiers said:


> OK
> 
> I'll start by ignoring the licensing issues to start which in and of itself would most likely be prohibitive.
> 
> ...


Wow!!! I was joking!!!


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## JWThiers (Apr 13, 2005)

I know, I was just bored. But not too bored otherwise I would have gone on forever.


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## SteelersFan (Sep 7, 2004)

JWThiers said:


> I know, I was just bored. But not too bored otherwise I would have gone on forever.


You must be a fast typist!!!  That would have taken me 15 minutes to type.


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## JWThiers (Apr 13, 2005)

SteelersFan said:


> You must be a fast typist!!!  That would have taken me 15 minutes to type.


I wish. My 2 fingers are beat.


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