Netflix

Ok, so this one is obvious. Whether you're living off the cable TV grid or just want to supplement your cable TV package, Netflix is one of the most popular sites for streaming media. It's one of those words like  Kleenex or Xerox -- not just because it has an 'x' at the end -- where the brand name equals the product. No one says, I'm going to watch streaming internet programming. People say things like, Oh I don't know I'll probably just stay in and watch Netflix. They don't say they're watching TV or watching a movie; they're watching Netflix.

Netflix offers a variety of movies and traditional television, including full seasons and series of popular network and cable TV shows.  They have an extensive collection of documentary movies in addition to more traditional choices, which is often what people are referring to when they say they're going to stay in on a Friday night and watch Netflix.  

They have two separate services.  Netflix offers DVD borrowing in addition to streaming (or vice versa if you want to look at it chronologically -- the DVD service came first).  But I only subscribe to the streaming service.  It's $7.99 a month and very easy to use. You can get Netflix on every possible device imaginable: smartphone, roku, tablet, standard desktop computer, etc. It won't be long before they can stream it right into your brain! (Sweet.)

Now, some people complain about the lack of content. They don't have new stuff, people complain. They hardly ever add anything. To some extent this is true.  But shows have to get produced and run for a season or two before Netflix gets them.  And it's only $7.99, so they're not going to have last night's episode of Boardwalk Empire.  Or any episode of Boardwalk Empire for that matter.  It's only 7.99 a month! It's all on demand, full DVR controls, and some of it is decent HD quality.

And there are no commercials.  That's absolutely huge. There is literally no advertising in Netflix.  It almost makes you want a commercial every now and then to tell you what else to watch ;-)

Now, look, I agree. Sometimes I sit there and look at Netflix and I'm like Jesus Christ there isn't a single goddamn show worth watching right now.  But that just means I'm watching too much TV anyway! So let's look at the upside.

Pros

The Price.  7.99 a month is practically free. Just eat peanut butter and jelly for lunch one day instead of going to Panera and you're set.

Recently Watched, etc. The Interface. Recently viewed row at top of home page lets you see what you've been watching.  You can pick up exactly where you left off -- for any show you've watched, not just the most recent.

Variety.  They have a ton of different kinds of programming, from sitcoms to history documentaries.  There may not be a million choices within a genre, and you might get sick of seeing the same things over and over, but the overall depth of the Netflix library is great.

Now a few of those problems... 

Cons

Variety. If you rely solely on Netflix and you're someone who watches a lot of TV, this just isn't going to be enough for you.  Some categories can be remarkably thin.  There's something there, but not much. If you stick to just one category or genre, you're going to run out of options in a hurry.

Cue.  You can't cue individual episodes of a show, just the the whole show. Your cue is just one long list. It's a relic of the movie/DVD cue mindset, but it just doesn't work for TV -- especially serial television.   When you browse or see something you like, you can add it to your cue. But it has no organization and no playlist-style cueing. Sometimes, let's say Sunday night, I know I'm about to watch a few hours of TV, and I know what I'm going to watch. I'd like to create a playlist with an episode of Family Guy, then Parks and Recreation, followed by How the Universe Began, and then finish it up with an episode of Animal Hoarders.  Why can't they give me an interface to create a little playlist by dragging in these episodes? That should be easy, right?!

Anyway, in summary, Netflix is a bang up service, very affordable, with adequate depth and variety, and absolutely no commercials! If you've never seen Netflix you're probably living deep in the third world far from electricity, so it's not like this is a particularly provocative post, but hey, I just like documenting what I do.

FirstRowSports Great Streaming Site

weak logo haha

My anti-commercial Boooo-Comcast blog is due for an update! I am still living the dream with no cable TV about a year after fully cutting the cord. I've been able to download all the shows I watch regularly, and when the pirate torrent sites go down I'm fine using Hulu.

Today I want to talk about a fantastic site for streaming live sports called First Row. The hardest thing about giving up cable is figuring out how to get sporting events. I've posted about NBA League Pass Broadband, which is a great subscription service. But what free options are out there? Plenty! 

Streaming BOTH the Pitt game and the Pens game!

The site I've been using almost exclusively -- on my mac mini and windows machines -- is called FirstRowSports. They have everything. I would say almost everything, but I have never been unable to find a single event I wanted to watch. It's a perfect solution for the hockey or basketball fan who wants to cut ties with cable TV. Today is a perfect example.

Pitt basketball played today against #6 in the nation Syracuse. They've been close a few times recently against top tier opponents, but haven't been able to close out a big signature win. So this game at home looked like a good one. Then the Penguins are hosting the Devils in a game that started about an hour later.

Pitt on 42" Plasma streaming from the MacMini

It's a lazy Saturday and I was lounging in bed all morning. I vaguely knew both teams played today, but wasn't aware of the actual start times. My iPod chimed in, however, at noon, to let me know Pitt was tipping off down at Peterson Event Center. I was laying there browsing on my laptop anyway, so I just clicked over to FirstRow, found the Panthers game listed, and started it up. It's incredible, they have sports from all over the world, too.

As I continued lounging and playing on my iPod with the Pitt game streaming on my laptop the game started getting interesting. Then my iPod spoke up again to alert me that the Pens and Devils were about to start! Awesome! Time to get the day started, hah. Early in the second half Pitt led by a few, and it was shaping up to be a great finish. The Panthers bench rolls 5 deep and they were dominating the Orange's second unit all day.

Crosby and the Pens streaming on Thinkpad

So I decided to pull myself out of bed, percolate some coffee, put the basketball game on the Plasma and hockey on the laptop. Am I dreaming? Nope, I'm streaming, baby! Living the streaming dream. Once Pitt had sealed the deal and emerged victorious, I switched the hockey game over to the TV, and now I'm writing this blog post on the laptop. The Pens are leading 2-1, Pitt goes to 6-4 in the Big East, and watching all of this cost me nothing more than my standard monthly internet rate. Sweet.

Now, with FirstRowSports, when you start a game playing, it's plastered with pop-up ads. Once you know how to patiently get rid of them, though, it's a breeze, and you'll be watching uninterrupted, live sports with confidence.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY POST ABOUT DEALING WITH THE POP-UP ADS ON FIRSTROWSPORTS! (coming soon)

Pitt extends their lead