It all depends on how you have things configured.  The Slingbox AV has one set of A/V inputs.  If your DirecTV receiver has one set of outputs, then you would have to feed the same content to the Slingbox as the person at home was watching.  One content source can only show one thing at a time.

To use the AV to watch something different than what the person at home is watching, you'd need a DirecTV box with multiple, independent outputs - or a second DirecTV box to feed the AV.

Just think of it as content sources - you need multiple sources to watch multiple things at the same time.

-MegaZone, Sling Media Beta Manager
Slingbox Pro, HD Connect, TiVo Series3, TiVo Pioneer DVR-810H, SPM Treo 680, SP WinXP
(I also run GizmoLovers.com)

I've never heard of a DTV box with independent outputs. There are some Dish boxes but in my opinion they don't work well because 1 input is coax and it's not controllable by IR.. The best idea is to add another receiver or put the slingbox on one in another room that isn't used much.. While you're at it get one with a DVR..

Slinging Tivo Series 2, Tivo HD, and TW cable from a Pro. Slinging Tivo HD from a Solo, Slinging Humax DRT800, and TW cable from a Classic to Sprint Mogul, AT&T SX66, N62, 8525, and Dell Inspiron 8600 with Sprint EVDO over Windstream DSL.

Sbynyc - What you have is not a TiVo, it is an UltimateTV.  Many years ago DirecTV offered DVRs using software from TiVo and Microsoft - Microsoft's DVR line was branded UltimateTV.

UltimateTV was dropped after a short life, and DirecTV sold only TiVo based units until recently, when they introduced DVRs using 'in-house' software from NDS.  (After News Corp bought DirecTV - they also owned NDS.)

So you must have one of the UltimateTV units they sold for a short time several years ago.

As for upgrading, it all depends on the dish you have.  But if it is the original, it is probably either a single-LNB or dual-LNB, and these days they install three- or five-LNB dishes, depending on the service because of the new satellites. 

-MegaZone, Sling Media Beta Manager
Slingbox Pro, HD Connect, TiVo Series3, TiVo Pioneer DVR-810H, SPM Treo 680, SP WinXP
(I also run GizmoLovers.com)