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TiVo Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools (Hacks)
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 006.7
EAN: 9780596005535
Edition: 1
Format: Illustrated
ISBN: 0596005539
Label: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Manufacturer: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 278
Publication Date: August 22, 2003
Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Studio: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
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Editorial Review:
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.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Serious hackers only need apply
The majority of the book is working the TiVo at the operating system level to alter the software or to transfer movies. This is advanced stuff that requires a good deal of technical skill. The first chapter of the book does have some hacks that are done from the interface itself, like enabling the advanced season pass. The second chapter covers adding more disk space to your TiVo. Then beyond that you get into the advanced topics; putting your TiVo on your network, changing the software, transferring ... Read More
Rating: - Not for everyone
Tivo is a software service, coupled with a digital video recorder, which changes the way one watches TV. O'Reilly's "Tivo Hacks", part of their outstanding "Hacks" series, explores how to tinker with these magical little boxes. "Tivo Hacks" follows the same format as the other titles in the "Hacks" series. Each chapter is an enumerated series of tips and tricks that will have your Tivo doing summersaults by the time you're finished going through all of them.
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Rating:  - Nicely organized and easy to read
I have not read the other tivo books yet, but I think this one is pretty good. Yes, you can get all the information online from the forums, but this book does a nice job of organizing it all in one place that you can flip through in your leisure. I found the pictures helpful too. The other reviewers seemed a bit harsh on this book, but maybe since I borrowed it from the library, I'm a bit more forgiving.
Rating:  - Almost worthless for version 2
As near as I can tell, all the material applicable to version 2, the current version, requires elaborate, dangerous procedures that will void your warrantee.
Rating: - "TiVo Hacks" Disappoints
Book contains lots of hacks, but lacks clarity. Writing seems muddled at times, and instructions for hacks such as backing up TiVo's disk and adding a new disk are unclear/confusing (at best). Although I've not been a TiVo hacker, I do build & repair PCs as a business (and dabble in LINUX)...so I consider myself to be somewhat knowledgable.
Ultimately, the book disappointed me. I shall keep searching for one that's clear, accurate and useful.
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