-Contributed by TechLore.com

The Slingbox Personal Broadcaster

Since the inception of television, every TV watcher has always had one thing in common... they're always sitting on a couch or chair in front of a TV screen. Sure, watching TV on the go is possible if you head to your favorite sports bar, restaurant, or cafe, but even there the TV seeker is bound by what the establishment puts on, whether it's what they want to watch or not. Has anyone really ever had a problem with this? I would venture to say that it's a fact of life that everyone has grown accustomed to. If you want to watch one of your favorite TV shows, you better be at home on your sofa to watch it.

Our friends at Sling Media have solved all that with their Slingbox Personal Broadcaster, which is one of the most innovative products released in years. Okay, the iPod lets you carry around every CD you own in a convenient portable package, but there is no way to do the same with your television shows... until now.

What is a Slingbox?

Before you think that this is a hard-drive based solution, to let you record a show and bring it with you, think again... you haven't seen anything like this before. The Slingbox connects to your home television source, be it a cable feed, DVR, or satellite box, and streams it over a broadband Internet connection (Sorry dial-up users) to a software player installed on a Windows XP computer. In real time, you can access your shows, change channels, bring up your DVR list, schedule a recording, etc. It's like transporting your couch anywhere you wish to go, provided you can find a broadband hot-spot, which shouldn't be too difficult these days. At home, at work, and on the go, your television shows are available to you anytime you want to watch.

How It Works

How does this magic happen? Well... you already have some sort of television service. You receive broadcast stations over an antenna, subscribe to cable, or have a satellite service; all which bring television stations into your home. The Slingbox connects to your TV source, like a cable box or DVR, as well as your home network via Ethernet or Wi-Fi.

The Slingbox has a specific number called a Finder ID, which is tracked by a server at Sling Media. The server at Sling keeps track of your Slingbox's IP address, so that when you try to connect to it, it knows where on the Internet your particular Slingbox is located. This is particularly handy if you either don't know your IP address, or if your IP address changes frequently.

On your computer, you need to install the SlingPlayer, which is the software program that connects to, and streams TV shows from, your Slingbox. During your setup of the software, you tell the software what kind of device is connected. So, if you have a DVR, cable box, or satellite box, you designate the make and model. If compatible, the Slingbox will spew remote commands through an IR emitter that's stuck to the front of the box, thus allowing you to control the unit from anywhere using the SlingPlayer software. Of course, if you just have basic cable or an antenna, the Slingbox has a tuner built it for this.

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