DVR PC Question

[Tom Snyder]

I should know how to do this for so many reasons. I was mentioned on a TV show today, and I want to grab the video from my D* DVR and convert it to WMV. I know how to do the conversion, but I've never tried to copy video from my DVR. What's the easiest way?

[Bebop]

http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_hdpvr.html

It's not WMV, but you can always convert H.264 to WMV.

[Olias]

Or if you don't require a pristine image, you can use the svideo out of the dvr (if it has one) and recapture the show on a tuner card that has an svideo input and then do the conversion. Both of my PC tuner cards can do this.

Either way, with Bepop's hd-pvr suggestion or mine, you'll need to re-capture the contents of the dvr, as my understanding is D* encrypts the streams it places on its hard drive.

(Shameless plug) That's why I built an HTPC server with SageTV. I feed it programming with two ATSC internal tuners and two D* H23 boxes. My whole CD and DVD library is on it and using HD extenders, I can watch/listen to anything at every TV. It's got automatic commercial skip and this afternoon I'm adding a neat little caller-id plugin that pops up the incoming number on the screen when a call comes in.
If I want to burn something to a DVD or to my portable player, it's just a few clicks away.
Sorry for getting a bit off topic