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.

Introduction to JoeSoHatesCommercials

I think this is my most anticipated weblog, for me at least.  When I did my Pirates Season Tickets, Baby blog in the Summer of 2012, I really enjoyed it and I know a few other people did as well.  Since then I've realized that I should keep more weblogs for other activities I "get into." I tend to dabble in various hobbies or go through phases where I get into something for a little while and then move on -- bowling, NPR, sewing and other crafts, baking, Urban Eco Stewards, various exercise programs, etc.  Some of things, though, I will keep coming back to and continue doing... For a hobby like cooking or DJing, keeping the blog is a way for me to document what I'm doing, explore principles that evolve and lessons learned, and plan ideas for the future.

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But this one, the ... anti-cable, down with Comcast, I hate commercials, streaming internet rules, you can download anything ... blog, this one might actually be of use to other people.  Nobody really cares how many calories I burned on my exercise bike or that I burned them while watching the Minnesota Timberwolves, but somebody might like an experienced opinion about how I'm watching it without cable: the hardware, software, cost, parties involved, usability concerns, etc.

I'm still not entirely set on the name -- JoeSoHatesCommercials. I think I will settle on that.  It's not entirely about going off the cable TV grid, although that's part of it.  It's not just about the fact that you can get a lot of quality programming streaming online, although clearly that is a major part of the solution.  It's not just about avoiding commercials, but that's a major part of it too. Maybe I should just call it JoeSoWatchesTV or something like that.  

So this JoeSoHeady weblog will document and share my experience as an active TV viewer -- someone who watches sitcoms, movies, sports, and more -- viewing solely with the internet and whatever hardware, software, subscriptions, and services I can get my hands on.

It's not so much about money. I don't mind spending some entertainment dollars on "TV" (used broadly to mean everything you watch) as long as I'm getting solid value.  I wouldn't even mind paying for Comcast, but their product isn't worth it.  Here's where commercials factor into it, for me at least.  

This is where you have to "pay twice" to watch cable TV.  You have to pay 100 dollars a month, or more -- well over a 1,000 dollars a year -- just to "get" some shows.  Then, almost everything you watch has commercials, which means you're paying again.  You have to pay two and a half minutes out of every ten.  You're paying twice because the programming you're already paying 100 dollars a month for has commercials in it.  DVR Fast forwarding got really old really fast.

When you get free TV over the air, with an antenna, that kind of TV is supposed to have commercials -- because you're not paying for it.  Cable TV is a racket.  If I were ever to care about a mainstream American presidential election, it would be because there is a consumer advocate type person running (sort of like Ralph Nader) who might care about this kind of issue.  This is real life, day to day, American politics -- the amount of pure consumerist lifestyle driven advertising that we are forced to see and hear, especially on cable TV, which is a service we are paying a lot of money to have!

The power of the Internet! credit

Anyway, around January of 2012, I finally made the bold move I had been mouthing off about for a long time -- I cancelled my Comcast cable TV!  My price (for TV + internet) had somehow gone up from, like, 120 to 140 to 160, and it was just time to cut the cord.  

I kept my internet service of course, for about 60 a month, and instantly had an extra hundred bucks in my pocket monthly.  I was already someone who had a computer hooked up to the main living room TV.  I was already using a computer to watch Netflix, ESPN3, and my own downloads, so I was ready for the transition.  I had a mentor who was already off the grid ready to coach me through the process.

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So far I don't miss it at all. I'll go into detail about the various avenues I've pursued to replace cable TV with more affordable, mostly commercial free, options in more posts... but the main things I use are:

• the internet, duh
• Mac mini. wireless keyboard, magic trackpad
• 2 TB external hard drive
• Samsung 42" Plasma HDTV
• Lenovo Thinkpad T420, Kindle Fire, iPod Touch, Windows desktop
• pirate sites like demonoid and superseeds, both of which are now down!
• Plex media server
• Netflix
• Hulu
• NBA League Pass Broadband
• MLB.tv
• FirstRowSports live sports streaming
• ESPN3.com
• PBS online: Nova, Nature, American Experience
• YouTube subscriptions
• Pandora internet radio, etc