# YouTube clip: "Charlie Bit My Finger?" What is this, 2007?



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

For the last week or so, TiVo's chosen clip at the bottom of my TiVo Central has been "YouTube: Charlie Bit My Finger"

You know the one:





I guess I'm just surprised that this cutting edge device, this one box to rule them all, with all the latest and greatest internet content, has chosen a clip from 2007 for its main screen. What's next, "The Evolution of Dance?" 

Seriously. Can't they have some intern choose a more interesting, more current clip to showcase on our main screen? Or is that asking too much?


----------



## Chris Gerhard (Apr 27, 2002)

It is a funny bit. I don't know how TiVo determines which clips are going to get highlighted on TiVo Central but an oldie but goodie that we haven't watched in years isn't a bad idea in my opinion.


----------



## Philmatic (Sep 17, 2003)

LOL, I was thinking this myself. It does show that if it's used more often for more relevant items, it can really be a positive thing. So many TiVo users forget that YouTube is supported on the platform.


----------



## CatScratchFever (Apr 14, 2011)

that hysterical, thanks for sharing!!


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

Since YouTube on TiVo is SD only it makes sense to showcase old SD videos.


----------



## Stuxnet (Feb 9, 2011)

morac said:


> Since YouTube on TiVo is SD only it makes sense to showcase old SD videos.


Tell me you're kidding... no wonder their videos look like VHS recordings on my system.


----------



## mwecksell (Jan 20, 2005)

I thought TiVo YouTube was 480p, not sd.


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

mwecksell said:


> I thought TiVo YouTube was 480p, not sd.


480p is SD. That's DVD resolution.


----------



## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

OK, I think your point is funny, and I thought sort of the same thing.. though I am pretty sure I only saw this clip (and the kid goes to the dentist one) within the past year or so. (Mostly I avoid youtube).


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

mwecksell said:


> I thought TiVo YouTube was 480p, not sd.


Yes, but many of the uploads are taken on crappy camcorders and smartphones, at much less than 480p.


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

Fofer said:


> Yes, but many of the uploads are taken on crappy camcorders and smartphones, at much less than 480p.


Actually most smartphones these days take video at at least 720p and a lot of YouTube videos are HD. Hence my quip about TiVo living back in 2007, when everything was SD.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

YouTube support on TiVo is a joke. I try to save videos to a playlist so I can watch them easily... they show up blank on the TiVo. 

This bug has been here for over a year. TiVo doesn't care.


----------



## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

Fofer said:


> YouTube support on TiVo is a joke. I try to save videos to a playlist so I can watch them easily... they show up blank on the TiVo.
> 
> This bug has been here for over a year. TiVo doesn't care.


Are all videos found in the playlist, and not been removed? Does the playlist have a description? It seems that once those two requirements are satisfied, there's no problem with playlists on TiVo.


----------



## rainwater (Sep 21, 2004)

morac said:


> Actually most smartphones these days take video at at least 720p and a lot of YouTube videos are HD. Hence my quip about TiVo living back in 2007, when everything was SD.


I don't know about most smartphones shooting 720p videos. Only in the last few months have we seen a larger percentage of 720p supported phones. I doubt overall that 720p smartphone cameras are a very large percentage yet. But to the original point, it is pretty lame that TiVo doesn't show higher quality streams on the Youtube app. But like the Netflix app, TiVo has a uncanny ability to create an app and then never improve it again.


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

orangeboy said:


> Are all videos found in the playlist, and not been removed? Does the playlist have a description? It seems that once those two requirements are satisfied, there's no problem with playlists on TiVo.


Those two "requirements" wouldn't be needed if TiVo would simply fix the several years old bug.


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

rainwater said:


> I don't know about most smartphones shooting 720p videos. Only in the last few months have we seen a larger percentage of 720p supported phones. I doubt overall that 720p smartphone cameras are a very large percentage yet. But to the original point, it is pretty lame that TiVo doesn't show higher quality streams on the Youtube app. But like the Netflix app, TiVo has a uncanny ability to create an app and then never improve it again.


Maybe I should have said most of the popular smart phones can do this. The iPhone 4 takes HD video and that came out a year ago. Many Android phones do as well. I'm also finding that a growing number of videos are being professionally done. Those are almost always in HD.


----------



## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

morac said:


> orangeboy said:
> 
> 
> > Are all videos found in the playlist, and not been removed? Does the playlist have a description? It seems that once those two requirements are satisfied, there's no problem with playlists on TiVo.
> ...


Agreed. But, with some preventative actions taken by the end user, that workaround allows playlists to function correctly. Could the TiVo code be fixed to ignore empty playlist descriptions and removed videos? Absolutely. Will it be fixed for the older platforms? It seems doubtful, given TiVo's adversity to changing the older code.


----------



## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

Fofer said:


> YouTube support on TiVo is a joke. I try to save videos to a playlist so I can watch them easily... they show up blank on the TiVo.
> 
> This bug has been here for over a year. TiVo doesn't care.


Did you TELL Tivo about this bug, with detailed descriptions of how to reproduce it?


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

mattack said:


> Did you TELL Tivo about this bug, with detailed descriptions of how to reproduce it?


Yes. As did many others in the long thread(s) about it here. TiVo doesn't read these reports, or doesn't care, or doesn't know how to fix it.

Should I report it again?


----------



## Turtleboy (Mar 24, 2001)

Fofer said:


> What's next, "The Evolution of Dance?"


----------



## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

Fofer said:


> Yes. As did many others in the long thread(s) about it here. TiVo doesn't read these reports, or doesn't care, or doesn't know how to fix it.
> 
> Should I report it again?


So, NO, you didn't tell them.

Mentioning it in threads here is *NOT* telling them.


----------



## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

I think many people overlook "This site is not part of TiVo Inc" in the TCF logo. Doing so causes unrealistic expectations.


----------



## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

They don't really read their own support forum either. To report a bug, you have to call customer service.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

mattack said:


> So, NO, you didn't tell them.
> 
> Mentioning it in threads here is *NOT* telling them.


Ummm... you asked me a question and I answered "YES."

Along with mentioning it in threads here, I also reported it directly to TiVo, _as did many others in the long thread(s) about it here._

So, thanks for the advice and all, but you're wrong in your assumption.



orangeboy said:


> I think many people overlook "This site is not part of TiVo Inc" in the TCF logo. Doing so causes unrealistic expectations.


Many might, but I don't.

Regardless, this is a big bug that's been plaguing the YouTube app for over a year. I think TiVo lost all their programmers and they've given up even trying to fix basic things.


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

Bring on "Chocolate Rain"

Or maybe some parkour.


----------



## Resist (Dec 21, 2003)

Fofer said:


> I guess I'm just surprised that this cutting edge device, this one box to rule them all, with all the latest and greatest internet content, has chosen a clip from 2007 for its main screen.


Have we really come to a point where content can only be funny if it's a recent event.....Seriously? Funny is funny, no matter how old it is.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

Resist said:


> Have we really come to a point where content can only be funny if it's a recent event.....Seriously? Funny is funny, no matter how old it is.


Umm... I'm sorry, I have to disagree.

This isn't about "funny," it's about being "fresh."

There is no excuse for TiVo to be showcasing these ancient videos on TiVo Central's main page. It's embarrassing. These YouTube videos are five years old and everyone and their mother has already seen them, dozens of times already.

TiVo has an opportunity to showcase and revolve new videos. This is supposed to be a cutting edge settop box. I'll thinking the number of TiVo users who hadn't yet seen these videos is less than 20.

Seriously, how difficult is it for them to task some intern with putting some compelling content in that prime spot? Pick a popular video from the last month or something. Or heck, a new movie trailer. Even a good advertisement would be better than this, and they'd make some money from the sponsor. Or put nothing.

Instead, they stick the #1 most watched YouTube video _from 2006?_ Sorry, but this is a *FAIL.*


----------



## Resist (Dec 21, 2003)

Fofer said:


> Umm... I'm sorry, I have to disagree.
> 
> This isn't about "funny," it's about being "fresh."


Well not everyone has seen that video. Some people still don't do computers, yet they use Tivo all the time.

However I do get your point, but with all the other issues to complain about regarding Tivo, this a minor thing.


----------



## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

Fofer said:


> This isn't about "funny," it's about being "fresh."


For YOU perhaps. For TiVo, it's not. Perhaps you're looking for "fresh" content like this?





I'll gladly pass on that.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

Huh? No, I'm not looking for that, either. There are hundreds of millions of YouTube videos, it doesn't have to be a crappy or stupid one. It can just be whatever's funny or popular this week.

YouTube even has a "trends" page that aggregates the most popular ones:

http://youtube-trends.blogspot.com/


----------



## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Fofer said:


> Umm... I'm sorry, I have to disagree.
> 
> This isn't about "funny," it's about being "fresh."
> 
> ...


Unless TiVo is being paid to pimp a video the only reason they have anything there is to promote the general availability of You Tube.

Thanks,


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

atmuscarella said:


> Unless TiVo is being paid to pimp a video the only reason they have anything there is to promote the general availability of You Tube.


Okay then, they should promote the general availability of YouTube with a video that's _newer than six years old. _

Or they should be promoting the (newer) general availability of Pandora, Netflix, or Hulu Plus.

Or they should be getting paid to pimp a video.

Or they shouldn't put anything there at all.


----------



## dlfl (Jul 6, 2006)

So there actually are people who pay attention to those superfluous extras on the TiVo menus ???


----------



## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

dlfl said:


> So there actually are people who pay attention to those superfluous extras on the TiVo menus ???


Apparently and think it actually matters one way or the other what TiVo posts. I guess it's just another "different strokes for different folks" thing.

Thanks,


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

dlfl said:


> So there actually are people who pay attention to those superfluous extras on the TiVo menus ???


Obviously. And clearly TiVo is paying attention too, otherwise there wouldn't be anything there. Or it'd be some old "gold star" advertisement.

By putting a crusty YouTube video from 2006, TiVo is showing how out-of-touch and irrelevant it's grown over the years.

It's sad, really.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

atmuscarella said:


> Apparently and think it actually matters one way or the other what TiVo posts.


This is an Internet discussion forum devoted to issues about TiVo. Over the years we've seen FAR more inane discussion about even more minute details of our niche hardware.

If we're discouraged from complaining about the content TiVo has chosen to showcase on the very first, main menu of the device, then I'm not really sure what you're expecting from this forum.


----------



## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

Fofer said:


> Huh? No, I'm not looking for that, either. There are hundreds of millions of YouTube videos, it doesn't have to be a crappy or stupid one. It can just be whatever's funny or popular this week.
> 
> YouTube even has a "trends" page that aggregates the most popular ones:
> 
> http://youtube-trends.blogspot.com/


#5: http://www.youtube.com/charts/videos_views?t=a

The 4 before it are music videos.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

Well, they should filter out videos that are explicit (ie: not family friendly,) are too bizarre for a mainstream product, or are more than, say, three years old. 

Surely some YouTube clips from 2011 would fit the bill here.


----------



## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Fofer said:


> This is an Internet discussion forum devoted to issues about TiVo. Over the years we've seen FAR more inane discussion about even more minute details of our niche hardware.
> 
> If we're discouraged from complaining about the content TiVo has chosen to showcase on the very first, main menu of the device, then I'm not really sure what you're expecting from this forum.


The fact it matters what TiVo posts is relevant to you, so posting about it is fine with me.

I honestly can not get to the point where it would matter to me and find it hard to understand why it is relevant to you. Which is fine as I am guessing that you don't understand why I find it so irrelevant. Such diverse view are why forums are so interesting.

Thanks,


----------



## ZeoTiVo (Jan 2, 2004)

dlfl said:


> So there actually are people who pay attention to those superfluous extras on the TiVo menus ???


"pay attention" is an ambiguous term. If the yhad started with "evolution of dance" I would have ignored it as "oh yeah that old video. Wonder if the comedian is still doing standup?"

but "Charlie" I had not heard of, and for good reason  so my attention was piqued


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

atmuscarella said:


> The fact it matters what TiVo posts is relevant to you, so posting about it is fine with me.
> 
> I honestly can not get to the point where it would matter to me and find it hard to understand why it is relevant to you. Which is fine as I am guessing that you don't understand why I find it so irrelevant. Such diverse view are why forums are so interesting.


It's not that I don't understand why you find it irrelevant. It's that I don't understand that if you find it so irrelevant, why you felt the urge to participate in a thread about it. So even if the content TiVo chooses to showcase on their UI's main page is irrelevant to you, the discussion about it is somehow relevant? What's your point in this discussion...? To let us all know how little you care? Because your participation here tells a different story.


----------



## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Fofer said:


> It's not that I don't understand why you find it irrelevant. It's that I don't understand that if you find it so irrelevant, why you felt the urge to participate in a thread about it. So even if the content TiVo chooses to showcase on their UI's main page is irrelevant to you, the discussion about it is somehow relevant? What's your point in this discussion...? To let us all know how little you care? Because your participation here tells a different story.


Notice I didn't join the thread until post 31, 6 days after it started. What I found interesting enough to move into the thread, isn't the topic per say but that the forum was still talking about it. Or said another way, because enough people kept the topic going for what I considered to be an extended period, it made me rethink the topic and have an opinion. At this point I (we?) have moved from the original topic to why we participate at all.

Thanks,


----------



## dlfl (Jul 6, 2006)

This thread topic is trivial and no serious thinker should even consider posting to it..... er... ummm....


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

atmuscarella said:


> Notice I didn't join the thread until post 31, 6 days after it started. What I found interesting enough to move into the thread, isn't the topic per say but that the forum was still talking about it. Or said another way, because enough people kept the topic going for what I considered to be an extended period, it made me rethink the topic and have an opinion. At this point I (we?) have moved from the original topic to why we participate at all.
> 
> Thanks,


Why do all of your posts end with "Thanks,"?


----------



## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Fofer said:


> Why do all of your posts end with "Thanks,"?


I am the same way with email. Maybe because I am an old fa**? 

Honestly just seems reasonable to me to thank people for reading my post. Sometimes if I am providing direct info to someone's question I end with Good Luck and on rare occasions, like this, I don't put anything.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

It was the comma at the end that confused me. Almost as if it was a macro you'd forgotten about.


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

orangeboy said:


> For YOU perhaps. For TiVo, it's not. Perhaps you're looking for "fresh" content like this?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm positive they featured "Friday" 

But in general, I agree with Fofer here. If they really want to feature YouTub content, they should focus on the current stuff. But at the same time, I think they should have some sort of "classics" or "Hall of Fame" section so you can go back and watch stuff from the past. Remember, when it comes to the Internet, stuff from 2 or 3 years ago is ANCIENT.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

jsmeeker said:


> I'm positive they featured "Friday"


Yes, they did. I remember it, too. And it was featured during the week or the week after that everyone was talking about it. Not six years later.


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

Fofer said:


> Yes, they did. I remember it, too. And it was featured during the week or the week after that everyone was talking about it. Not six years later.


It should show up every Friday


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

Honestly, if the TiVo Central video was dynamic, changing every day, with something potentially interesting, I wouldn't mind if Rebecca Black's "Friday" was, in fact, the showcased video once a week. At least for a few weeks. 

Seriously. Anything's better than "Charlie Bit My Finger," which was stale to begin with, and stayed there for too long. Only to be replaced by an older video, that's already been seen by even MORE people. I was joking about "Evolution of Dance" in the OP, and sure enough, TiVo seriously included it. 

What's next, some JibJab video that parodies George Bush and John Kerry?


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

Fofer said:


> What's next, some JibJab video that parodies George Bush and John Kerry?


lol


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

The Cedar Rapids "American Pie" thing should be up there right now.

Strike when the iron is hot! Isn't thatthe point of Internet trends? It's all in the NOW.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

I'm with you, jsmeeker. 

TiVo's in a unique position to put "the clip everyone is talking about TODAY" right there on TiVo Central! Update it regularly, make me EXCITED to see what's up there now. Make me THANKFUL to have an internet connected set-top box, backed by a service (that I'm paying for) that has some form of curated content. TiVo would seriously benefit from this kind of buzz these days, as people continue to wonder... "WTH should I pay so much for this TiVo thing, when the DVR from my cable company does pretty much the same 'time-shifting' for me?"

Instead TiVo is showcasing old, stale crust, that makes me feel sorry for how out of touch they've fallen.


----------



## jsmeeker (Apr 2, 2001)

Maybe the Disovery Bar can suggest I get some episodes of the A-Team from Hulu.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

mattack said:


> So, NO, you didn't tell them.
> 
> Mentioning it in threads here is *NOT* telling them.


In addition to me contacting tech support about this issue (no reply,)
a TiVo staffer here was informed of the issue and said he'd have an engineer look into it.

This was about a year ago.

TiVo's YouTube app is still broken and still can't display simple playlists. So there's really no easy, reliable way to save a video to a playlist for easy access on the TiVo. You have to do a manual search. It's ridiculous and sad that they can't get this basic feature working correctly.


----------



## ZeoTiVo (Jan 2, 2004)

jsmeeker said:


> Maybe the Disovery Bar can suggest I get some episodes of the A-Team from Hulu.


cmon, they have not even touched the OK, Go you tube videos yet. I could use another look at a fun use for treadmills.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

The should "showcase" the monkey peeing in his own mouth, you know, the clip from the late 1990's that was on America's Funniest Home Videos even before YouTube was invented.


----------



## morac (Mar 14, 2003)

They shouldn't showcase any videos. YouTube support is the weakest of all the apps. TiVo should be hiding the fact that they "support" YouTube not showcasing it.


----------



## Fofer (Oct 29, 2000)

So totally agreed.

In the meantime, they should showcase the sneezing baby panda.


----------

