TiVo Hacks

TiVo Hacks covers tips for changing the order of recorded programs, activating the 30-second skip to blaze through commercials, and more, by using magical remote-control codes. Once you take the lid off, you will learn how to gain even more fun and functionality. You can upgrade the hard drive for more hours of recording, log in to the serial port for command-line access to programming data, log files, closed-captioning data, display graphics on the TiVo screen, and even play MP3s. Note: Not all TiVos are the same. The original TiVo, the Series 1, is the most hackable TiVo out there; it's a box thrown together with commodity parts and the TiVo code is running on open hardware. The Series 2 TiVo, the most commonly sold TiVo today, is not open. You won't see hacks in this book that involve modifying Series 2 software. Full Description

TiVo Hacks helps you get the most out of your TiVo personal video recorder. Armed with just a screwdriver and basic understanding of PC hardware (or willingness to learn), preeminent hackability awaits. This book includes hacks for changing the order of recorded programs, activating the 30-second skip to blaze through commercials, upgrading TiVo's hard drive for more hours of recording, use of TiVo's Home Media Option to remotely schedule a recording via the Web, log in to the serial port for command-line access to programming data, log files, closed-captioning data, display graphics on the TiVo screen, and even play MP3s. Readers who use advanced hacks to put TiVo on their home network via the serial port, Ethernet, USB, or wireless (with 802.11b WiFi) will watch a whole new world open up. By installing various open source software packages, you can use TiVo for mail, instant messaging, caller-ID, and more. It's also easy to run a web server on TiVo to schedule recordings, access lists of recorded shows, and even display them on a web site. While TiVo gives viewers personalized control of their TVs, TiVo Hacks gives users personalized control of TiVo. Note: Not all TiVos are the same. The original TiVo, the Series 1, is the most hackable TiVo out there; it's a box thrown together with commodity parts and the TiVo code is running on open hardware. The Series 2 TiVo, the most commonly sold TiVo today, is not open. You won't see hacks in this book that involve modifying Series 2 software.

1. Chapter 1 TiVo Remote Control Hacks

   1. Hacks #1-19

   2. Remote Control Hacks

   3. Backdoor Hacks

   4. Swinging TiVo

   5. Must-Skim TV

   6. Navigation Shortcuts

   7. The 30-Second Skip

   8. An Onscreen Clock

   9. Making the Play Bar Disappear Faster

   10. What's Your TiVo Doing?

   11. Opening the Backdoor

   12. Italicizing Everything

   13. Sorting the Now Playing List

   14. Turning Off Overshoot Protection

   15. Controlling Overshoot Protection

   16. Pushing Fast Forward to Eleven

   17. Viewing Suggestions in the To Do List

   18. Viewing "Hidden" Recordings

   19. Activating the Node Navigator

   20. Enabling Advanced WishLists

   21. Turning Off the TiVo Software

   22. Applaud the TiVo Team

2. Chapter 2 Adding More Hours

   1. Hacks #20-28

   2. Basic Assumptions

   3. Gathering Some Information

   4. Getting Everything Together

   5. Opening the Box

   6. Removing TiVo's Hard Drive or Drives

   7. Installing TiVo's Hard Drive in Your PC

   8. Using MFS Tools for Backup and Restore

   9. Backing Up Your TiVo Software

   10. Restoring from Backup

   11. Adding a Second Drive the Quick-n-Dirty Way

   12. Putting TiVo's Drives Back

   13. Testing Your TiVo's New Capacity

3. Chapter 3 The TiVo Shell

   1. Hacks #29-46

   2. Mounting and Working with TiVo's Drive Partitions

   3. Enabling Bash over the Serial Port

   4. Copying Unix Binaries to TiVo

   5. Clean Up and Shut Down

   6. Connecting to TiVo Serially

   7. Installing Unix Binaries on TiVo

   8. Poking Around

   9. Moving Stuff to and from Your TiVo

   10. Installing the less Pager on Your TiVo

   11. Text Editing with vi on Your TiVo

   12. Text Editing with Emacs on Your TiVo

   13. Displaying Images on Your TV

   14. Putting Text on the Screen

   15. Capturing Closed Captioning

   16. Caller ID on Your TV

   17. Running the Same Thing Over and Over...

   18. Save Multiple Shows at a Time to Your VCR

   19. Playing MP3s on your TiVo

4. Chapter 4 Bring the Internet to TiVo

   1. Hacks #47-62

   2. Running PPP over TiVo's Serial Port

   3. Accept a PPP Connection from TiVo on Your PC

   4. Getting Your TiVo Series 1 Online

   5. Getting Your TiVo Series 2 Online

   6. Figuring Out Your TiVo's IP Address

   7. Getting Telnet to Your Ethernet-Enabled TiVo

   8. Fetching Files from the Web

   9. wget Things from the Web

   10. Setting Up an FTP server

   11. Using the Same Filesystem

   12. Reading Email on Your TiVo

   13. Using the TiVo Control Station

   14. Turning Your TV into a Virtual Window

   15. Streaming Internet Audio Broadcasts to TiVo

   16. Watching Your Email

   17. Listen to Your Email

5. Chapter 5 TiVo and the Web

   1. Hacks #63-80

   2. Signing Up for the Home Media Option

   3. Remotely Scheduling a Recording Through the HMO

   4. TiVoWeb, a Web Interface to Your TiVo

   5. Scheduling a Recording with TiVoWeb

   6. What's on and beyond the To Do List?

   7. Deleting Scheduled Recordings

   8. Undeleting Recordings

   9. Renaming Recordings

   10. Editing Season Passes

   11. Emulating the TiVo Remote

   12. Emulating TiVo's Screens

   13. Using TiVo Mail

   14. Changing Channel Logos

   15. Automatically Assigning All Logos

   16. Creating Your Own Custom Logos

   17. Dropping New Extensions into TiVoWeb

   18. Starting TiVoWeb with TiVo

   19. Putting Your TiVo on the Web

6. Chapter 6 Working with Videos

   1. Hacks #81-87

   2. Limitations

   3. Pulling Video from Your TiVo over FTP

   4. Pulling Video from Your TiVo via Web Interface

   5. Playing Extracted Video

   6. Streaming Video Directly from TiVo

   7. Converting Extracted Video

   8. Putting Videos Back into TiVo

   9. Moving Shows Between TiVo Units

7. Chapter 7 Writing Code

   1. Hacks #88-100

   2. A Crash Course in Tcl

   3. Navigating the Media Filesystem

   4. Inspecting MFS Objects

   5. Extracting Your Now Showing List

   6. Discovering Your Favorite Actors

   7. Discovering Your Favorite Writers, Producers, and Directors

   8. Turning Favorites Lists into JavaScript

   9. How Do You Watch TV?

   10. Browsing Through TiVo's Resources

   11. Making Recordings Start Late and End Early

   12. Editing Resources with a Point and a Click

   13. Catching TiVo Events

   14. Disabling the Live TV button

   15. Cross-Compiling C Code for TiVo

1. Colophon