The Business Behind the Internet TV Revolution

The television is about to become the latest medium to get a major makeover at the hands of the Internet. Already more than half of Americans are watching TV and surfing the web simultaneously. But another trend — giving connectivity to the device itself — is going to fundamentally change the business models around television and the way we consume and interact with content.

Yahoo, which has been an early mover in the space, anticipates that 8 million to 10 million devices with its Connected Television platform preinstalled will be in consumers’ hands by March 2011. That’s triple the amount in March 2010, according to Russ Schafer, Yahoo’s senior director of product marketing for the platform. Market research firm iSuppli estimates that by 2014 some 148 million televisions with Internet connectivity will be sold annually.

Millions of consumers who buy televisions from the likes of Samsung, LG and Sony won’t just be plugging into the programming offered by their satellite or cable provider, they’ll also be able to access applications ranging from Facebook to eBay and view content from a limitless number of video publishers.



That represents a shift similar to what we saw in print media, where the Internet (and mobile phones) opened up the opportunity for anyone to become a content creator. Blip.tv, which bills itself as a “next generation television network,” has been eyeing this trend since 2005, hosting thousands of independently created shows. Now, according to cofounder Dina Kaplan, blip.tv is serving up nearly 100 million views each month (or, put another way, about 10% of the combined audience of the major TV networks) across the web, mobile devices and, increasingly, Internet-connected televisions.

United Kingdom TV Channels

United Kingdom
     BBC 1    [General]
     BBC 1    [General]
     BBC 2    [General]
     BBC 2    [General]
     BBC 3    [General]
     BBC 4    [News/Documentary]
     BBC 4    [General]
     BBC Arabic    [News/Documentary]
     BBC London Nightly News    [News/Documentary]
     BBC News 24 Full HD    [News/Documentary]
     BBC News 24 HD    [News/Documentary]
     BBC ONE | HD LIVE    [General]
     BBC Persian    [Political]
     BBC Ten O'clock news    [News/Documentary]
     BBC World News    [News/Documentary] (private)
     BBC World News Full HD    [News/Documentary]
     Bid TV    [Talk/Variety]
     Bloomberg UK    [News/Documentary]
     Bonobo TV    [Talk/Variety]
     Boomerang (UK)    [Children/Animated]
     Canned TV    [Sports]
     CBBC    [General]
     Channel 4    [General]
     CNBC Full HD    [News/Documentary]
     CNN International    [News/Documentary]
     CNN International    [News/Documentary]
     E4    [General]
     E4    [General]
     Eurosport News    [Sports]
     Film 4    [Movies]
     Five    [General]
     Fiver    [General]
     Islam TV    [Educational]
     ITN News    [News/Documentary]
     ITV-1    [General]
     ITV-2    [General]
     ITV-3    [General]
     ITV-4    [General]
     Jewelry TV    [General]
     JMC Live    [News/Documentary]
     London Webcam    [News/Documentary]
     London Webcam Abbey Road    [News/Documentary]
     More 4    [General]
     MTV Brand New    [Music]
     QVC    [Talk/Variety]
     Sky News    [News/Documentary]
     Sky News HQ    [News/Documentary]
     Sky News Summary    [News/Documentary]
     Testing    [Movies] (private)
     Top Gear    [Talk/Variety]
     TVPC Hold    [General]
     UK Entertainment 5    [Educational]

United States of America TV Channels

United States of America
     Cinemax    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Hbo    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Abc    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Espn    [Sports]
     1 Fox    [General]
     1 CINEMAX HD | USA live    [General]
     1 Curb your enthusiasm    [Comedy]
     1 Everybody Loves Raymond    [Comedy]
     1 FOX HD | USA Live    [General]
     1 HBO HD | live    [General]
     1 HBO HD | USA    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Home Improvement    [Comedy]
     1 King of Queens    [Comedy]
     1 M*A*S*H*    [Comedy]
     1 Movies and Munchies    [Action/Adventure]
     1 MST3k - Mystery Science Theater 3000    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Seinfeld    [Comedy]
     1 Slip's Comedy Channel    [Comedy]
     1 TBS HD | USA    [Comedy]
     1 That 70's Show    [Comedy]
     1 The Big Bang Theory    [Comedy]
     1 TNT HD | USA    [Action/Adventure]
     1 Variaty Shows    [Comedy]
     1How I met your mother    [Comedy]
     1Two and a half men    [Comedy]
     80s    [Children/Animated]
     A Documentary Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     A&E    [General]
     A2 Documentary Channel 2    [Action/Adventure]
     ABC CH    [Action/Adventure]
     ABC - CHANNEL    [General]
     ABC - East    [General]
     ABC - West    [General]
     ABC Family    [General]
     ABC News Ticker    [News/Documentary]
     ABC USA | HD LIVE    [General]
     Adventure Time    [Action/Adventure]
     ALL YOUR FAVORITE CARTOONS FROM 1969 - 2011    [Action/Adventure]
     Amazing Facts Christian TV    [Educational]
     AMC    [Drama]
     Animal Planet    [Educational]
     Anime 24/7 AnimeLinkHero    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     Anime Saturday Block    [Children/Animated]
     Aqua Teen Hunger Force    [Children/Animated]
     At Home Channel    [General]
     Awesome HD movies    [Action/Adventure]
     Back Lot Pictures    [Drama]
     Backyard TV    [Children/Animated]
     Backyard wrestling    [Sports]
     Badlands Westerns    [Action/Adventure]
     Best Free TV Studios    [Drama]
     Betty Boop and Friends Studio    [Children/Animated]
     Beverly Hillbillies and Friends    [Comedy]
     Block Party Channel    [General]
     Blockbuster Pictures    [Action/Adventure]
     Board TV    [Sports]
     Bonanza Westerns    [Action/Adventure]
     Boob's Channel    [General]
     Boogervision    [Children/Animated]
     Boxoffice Pictures    [Drama]
     Bravo    [Talk/Variety]
     Brittney\\\'sChannel    [Action/Adventure]
     Bubble Guppies    [Children/Animated]
     Bugs and Friends Channel    [Children/Animated]
     Cable Andino    [General]
     Camp Cartoon Studios    [Children/Animated]
     Cartoon Network    [Children/Animated]
     Cartoon Network    [Children/Animated]
     Cattle Trail Television    [Action/Adventure]
     CBS - East    [General]
     CBS - West    [General]
     CBS EAST | HD LIVE    [General]
     CBS News    [News/Documentary]
     CBS WEST | HD LIVE    [General]
     Channel Live    [Music]
     Charles Anderson    [Action/Adventure]
     Charlie bit my finger    [Comedy]
     Chester Channels    [Action/Adventure]
     Children's Christian TV    [Educational]
     Christian Broadcasting (CBN) News    [News/Documentary]
     Chuckle TV Network    [Comedy]
     Cinema Pictures    [Drama]
     CINEMAX CHANNEL EAST    [Action/Adventure]
     Cinemax ch    [Action/Adventure]
     CINEMAX East    [Action/Adventure]
     CINEMAX EAST HD    [Action/Adventure]
     CINEMAX USA | HD LIVE    [Action/Adventure]
     Classic CSU TV    [Music]
     Classic Laughs Studio    [Comedy]
     Classic Rock Music    [Music]
     Classic Television    [Action/Adventure]
     Classic Toons Network    [Children/Animated]
     Classic TV Studios    [Comedy]
     clayjess@isu.edu    [Comedy]
     CNBC HD    [News/Documentary]
     CNN    [News/Documentary]
     CNN    [News/Documentary]
     CNN International    [News/Documentary]
     CNN International HD    [News/Documentary]
     CNN Pipeline 1    [News/Documentary]
     CNN USA | HD LIVE    [Action/Adventure]
     Comedy Classic Channel    [Comedy]
     Conservative Political Network    [Political]
     Cowboys TV    [Action/Adventure]
     Crack Up TV Studios    [Comedy]
     Crazy Toons TV    [Children/Animated]
     Current TV    [News/Documentary]
     CVM TV    [General]
     CW - East    [General]
     Dads Network    [General]
     Dave TV    [News/Documentary]
     Dinner Time Network    [General]
     Disney    [Children/Animated]
     Disney    [Children/Animated]
     Disney Tvlinkhero.blogspot.com    [Action/Adventure]
     Disney XD    [Children/Animated]
     Disney XD HD Live    [Comedy]
     Double Feature Films    [Drama]
     Dragonball Z 24/7    [Children/Animated]
     Eat This HD    [Educational]
     Emmanuel TV    [Educational]
     Entertainment Pictures    [Drama]
     ESPN (Sports)    [Sports]
     ESPN 2 HD | USA    [Sports]
     ESPN AMERICA | HD LIVE    [Sports]
     espn football    [Sports]
     ESPN HD 2    [Sports]
     ESPN HD | USA    [Sports]
     ESPN | LIVE HD    [Sports]
     ESPNU    [Sports]
     Eu's Wonderland    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy] (private)
     EWTN    [General]
     Fashion Lingerie    [Talk/Variety]
     Fashion Swimwear    [Talk/Variety]
     ferrell tv    [Action/Adventure]
     Food Network    [Talk/Variety]
     FOX CH    [Action/Adventure]
     Fox Business    [News/Documentary] (private)
     FOX HD 11 | LA HD    [General]
     Fox Network East    [General]
     Fox Network East    [General]
     Fox News Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Fox News Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Fox News Channel    [News/Documentary] (private)
     FoxMovie | HD LIVE    [Action/Adventure]
     Friends Channel    [Comedy]
     Frog Network    [Action/Adventure]
     Frontier Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     Fun TV Studios    [Comedy]
     FXA TV    [General]
     GBTV (Glenn Beck)    [Political]
     Gene Scott    [Educational]
     Giggle TV Network    [Comedy]
     God Tv    [Educational]
     God TV    [Action/Adventure]
     Golden Era Television Network    [Comedy]
     Good girl music    [Music]
     Good Old Days Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     Grin TV Channel    [Comedy]
     Gunslingers Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     HBO    [Action/Adventure]
     HBO    [General]
     HBO EAST    [Action/Adventure]
     HBO CH    [Action/Adventure]
     HBO HD | HD LIVE    [Action/Adventure]
     Heartland Television    [Comedy]
     Hee Hee Channel    [Comedy]
     High Noon Network    [Action/Adventure]
     History Channel    [Educational]
     History Channel    [Educational]
     History Channel Espanol    [Educational]
     Hollywood Classics    [Comedy]
     Hollywood Movie classics    [General]
     Hollywood Movies    [Drama]
     Home Shopping Network (HSN)    [Talk/Variety]
     House MD    [Medical]
     hustler_84    [Action/Adventure]
     Imagi-Nation TV    [Music]
     Jersey in the Shore    [Drama]
     Jesus Trevino    [Talk/Variety]
     JMC Live    [News/Documentary]
     John Wayne and Friends    [Action/Adventure]
     John Wayne and Friends    [Action/Adventure]
     Judge Roy Bean and Friends    [Action/Adventure]
     Just TV    [Music]
     KABC (ABC) CH    [General]
     Knee Slapper TV Studios    [Comedy]
     Kombat TV    [Sports]
     KTL USA | LA LIVE    [Action/Adventure]
     KTTV (FOX11) CH    [General]
     Laugh Track TV Studio    [Comedy]
     Laugh Track TV Studio    [Comedy]
     Liberty TV Christian    [Educational]
     Lifetime    [General]
     Lifetime | HD LIVE    [General]
     Live at Best Buy Union Square NYC    [Music]
     LOL Television Network    [Comedy]
     Lucy and Friends Channel    [Comedy]
     Lucy and Friends Channel    [Comedy]
     MagicmoSports    [Action/Adventure]
     Main Street Studio    [General]
     Makarzi TV Farsi language    [Talk/Variety]
     meddi23    [Action/Adventure]
     Mezz TV    [Music]
     Mohabat TV    [Educational]
     Moms Channel    [General]
     Movies Newest and Best    [Action/Adventure]
     MSNBC    [News/Documentary]
     MSNBC    [News/Documentary]
     MSNBC HD    [News/Documentary]
     MTV    [Music]
     MTV-2    [Sports]
     My Fam Channel    [General]
     My Psychic TV    [General]
     My TV Network    [Comedy]
     MZM    [Action/Adventure]
     Naruto Stream Live HD    [Children/Animated]
     NASA TV    [Educational]
     National Geographic    [Educational]
     NBC - East    [General]
     NBC - East    [General]
     NBC 30 Hartford    [News/Documentary]
     NBC 4 KNBC LA    [News/Documentary]
     NBC News Brief    [News/Documentary]
     News Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Nick jr    [Children/Animated]
     Nick Teen    [Children/Animated]
     Nickelodeon    [Children/Animated]
     Nickelodeon    [Children/Animated]
     Nicktoons Rewind    [Children/Animated]
     Old Time Classic Network    [Comedy]
     Old TV Network    [Comedy]
     Oral Roberts Ministries    [Educational]
     Our Clan Classics    [General]
     Our Gang Studio    [General]
     Our House TV    [General]
     Our Street Network    [General]
     Ozzie and Friends Channel    [Comedy]
     Ozzy Osbourne TV    [Music]
     Palomar College online    [Educational]
     PBS - Kamu    [General]
     PBS - KQED    [General]
     Pentagon Channel    [Political]
     pentecostales de san carlos    [General]
     Phleez TV    [Children/Animated]
     Playground Channel    [Children/Animated]
     Pokemon TV    [Children/Animated]
     Popeye and Friends Channel    [Children/Animated]
     Progressive Topics TV    [Political]
     Project Runway Live    [Talk/Variety]
     QTV2008    [Children/Animated]
     Rabbit Ears Television Studios    [Action/Adventure]
     Rawhide Network    [Action/Adventure]
     Recess Network    [Children/Animated]
     Remember Television Network    [Comedy]
     Remember TV Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     Rock N' Roll    [Music]
     Ron Paul TV    [Political]
     Roo Dishes    [Educational]
     Roundup Westerns    [Action/Adventure]
     Roy Rogers and Friends    [Action/Adventure]
     Sandlot TV    [Children/Animated]
     SCCTV Broadband    [General]
     SCCTV Science Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Sci Fi Space Flicks    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     ShowTime HD    [General]
     Siempre Fi !!!    [Action/Adventure]
     skynet@mailmetrash.com    [Action/Adventure]
     Sled.tv    [Sports]
     Small Town Channel    [General]
     Smile TV Network    [Comedy]
     SN SPORTS    [Sports]
     South Park Live Stream    [Comedy]
     Spike TV    [Action/Adventure]
     Spirit Television Network    [Music]
     SPOTLIGHT MOVIES    [General]
     Starz    [General]
     Surpris2@yahoo.com    [Action/Adventure]
     SyFy Channel    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     TBN    [Educational]
     TBS (very funny) Ch    [General]
     TBS - East    [General]
     TBS USA | HD LIVE    [General]
     TBS | HD LIVE    [News/Documentary]
     Tea Party Express    [Political]
     Telecare TV    [General]
     Telemundo    [General]
     The Big Show    [Drama]
     the_budness@tampabay.rr.com    [General]
     Thriller TV    [Drama]
     Thriller TV    [Action/Adventure]
     Tickle TV Network    [Comedy]
     Time Machine Television    [Action/Adventure]
     Time Warp TV Channel    [Action/Adventure]
     TNT ch    [Action/Adventure]
     TNT CH    [Action/Adventure]
     TNT - East    [General]
     TNT EAST | HD LIVE    [General]
     TNT MOVIES/SERIES    [Action/Adventure]
     Together TV    [Drama]
     Toon Studios Network    [Children/Animated]
     Toon TV Studio    [Children/Animated]
     Toonami Aftermath    [Children/Animated]
     Toonami AfterMath    [Children/Animated]
     Tru TV    [Action/Adventure]
     TubTub All Time Classics    [Action/Adventure]
     TubTub Cartoon Classics    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Classic Favorites    [Action/Adventure]
     TubTub Classic Movies    [Drama]
     TubTub Classics    [Comedy]
     TubTub Comedy Television    [Comedy]
     TubTub Crazy Classics    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Family Network    [General]
     TubTub Films    [Drama]
     TubTub Flicks    [Drama]
     TubTub Flicks    [Drama]
     TubTub Fun Time Studios    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Fun Zone    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Funny Toons    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Funny TV    [Comedy]
     TubTub Hit Movies    [Drama]
     TubTub Kids    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Kidvision    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Motion Pictures    [Drama]
     TubTub Motion Pictures    [Drama]
     TubTub Picture Show    [Action/Adventure]
     TubTub Play TV    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Play Zone    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Silly Toons    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Silly Toons    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Spaz Channel    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Star Pictures    [Drama]
     TubTub Toon Vault    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Toons    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub TV Shows Studio    [Comedy]
     TubTub Wacky Toons    [Children/Animated]
     TubTub Westerns    [Action/Adventure]
     TubTub Wild West TV    [Action/Adventure]
     Tumbleweed Westerns    [Action/Adventure]
     TV central    [Action/Adventure]
     TV central    [Action/Adventure]
     TV LAND    [General]
     TV Mania Channel    [Drama]
     TV Rama Channel    [Drama]
     TV Time Classics Studio    [Comedy]
     TV TV TV Channel    [Drama]
     TV Vacation    [General]
     TVJ    [Action/Adventure]
     TVlicious Studios    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     University of Michigan    [Educational]
     USA Network - East    [Action/Adventure]
     UWTV    [Educational]
     Vintage Television Studios    [Action/Adventure]
     Vintage TV Network    [Comedy]
     Voice of America Farsi language    [Political]
     Waddani TV    [News/Documentary]
     Weather Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Weather Channel    [News/Documentary]
     Weather Nation    [News/Documentary]
     WEEKDAY WARRIORS    [Action/Adventure]
     Western TV    [General]
     WGN America    [General]
     What The Fain Show    [Comedy]
     White Springs TV    [Educational]
     Wild Toon Studio    [Children/Animated]
     Willham    [Educational]
     WMTY    [Educational]
     World Invisible    [Educational]
     World Series of Poker Live    [Games]
     Yesterday Television    [Action/Adventure]
     Yoga TV    [Educational]
     Zenith Road Baptist church    [Educational]
     zuaylina_2211@hotmail.com    [Action/Adventure]

India TV Channels

India
     Apninet    [Music] (private)
     CNN IBN    [News/Documentary]
     DD News    [News/Documentary]
     DDS News 2    [News/Documentary]
     Filmy    [Talk/Variety]
     Filmy    [News/Documentary]
     FUN BOX FANTASY    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     GSTV - Gujurati    [News/Documentary]
     IBN 7 English    [General]
     IBN Lokmat    [General]
     IBN TV 7 Live - India    [General]
     Idhun 1    [General]
     Idhun 2    [General]
     Ind-News    [News/Documentary]
     India TV    [General]
     India TV - DD News TV    [News/Documentary]
     Indus    [Music]
     Maharishi Open University    [Educational]
     MTV    [Music]
     NDR    [News/Documentary]
     NDTV    [News/Documentary]
     NDTV    [General]
     News X    [News/Documentary]
     Nimbooda    [General]
     Peace TV    [Educational]
     Sanskruti    [Educational]
     Set Max    [Music]
     Sony Max    [General]
     Star Gold    [General]
     Star News    [News/Documentary]
     Star News    [News/Documentary]
     Star News    [News/Documentary]
     Star Plus    [General]
     Sub Havaartha    [News/Documentary]
     Sun TV    [Music]
     Zee Cinema    [Drama]
     Zee Sports    [Sports]
     Zee TV    [General]

Germany TV Channels

Germany
     123 TV    [Talk/Variety]
     192 N-TV    [News/Documentary]
     3SAT    [General]
     Ballroom TV    [Talk/Variety]
     Berlin News 24    [News/Documentary]
     Center TV    [General]
     Del TV    [Sports]
     Deluxe Music    [Music]
     DW-TV    [News/Documentary]
     Eberswalde TV    [General]
     Euro TV    [General]
     Germankids    [Children/Animated]
     Golf and More    [Sports]
     Massive Mag Xtreme Sports    [Sports]
     MTV    [Music]
     NDR    [News/Documentary]
     PETn    [Sports]
     PETN City    [Talk/Variety]
     PETN Movies    [Action/Adventure]
     Premier TV    [Sports]
     RTL    [General]
     Spirit ON TV    [Sports]
     Street Clip TV    [Music]
     Toon TV    [Children/Animated]
     TV Halle    [General]
     Wetter    [News/Documentary]

China TV Channels

 China
     ATV    [General]
     BJIP Movies    [Action/Adventure]
     Cartoon    [Children/Animated]
     CCTV 4    [General]
     CCTV 9 Asia News    [News/Documentary]
     CCTV 9 Documentary    [News/Documentary]
     CCTV 9 second feed    [News/Documentary]
     CETV    [General]
     ESPN China    [Sports]
     NBA China    [Sports]
     NBA China    [Sports]
     NDTV    [News/Documentary]
     New Tang Dynasty Television    [News/Documentary]
     NJBG    [News/Documentary]
     NYTV China    [Talk/Variety]
     Phoenix TV    [General]
     SCTV 1    [General]
     SCTV 4    [General]
     SCTV 5    [Drama]
     SCTV 7    [Talk/Variety]
     SCTV 9    [Talk/Variety]
     SDTV    [General]
     Shanghai Sports    [Sports]
     Shanghai Sports. alt    [Sports]
     Star Sports .alt    [Sports]
     Star TV    [General]

Brazil TV Channels

Brazil
     Band Sports    [Sports]
     Bloomberg Brazil feed    [News/Documentary]
     Cinamax    [General]
     Discovery    [Educational]
     ESPN    [Sports]
     ESPN Brasil    [Sports]
     Esporte Interactiva    [Sports]
     Fox    [General]
     Globo    [General]
     HBO    [General]
     History Channel    [Educational]
     Lutas    [Sports]
     Nickelodeon    [Children/Animated]
     NSC Sports Channel    [Sports]
     Pipoca    [Children/Animated]
     Space    [Sci-Fi/Fantasy]
     TC Premium    [General]
     TV Cidade    [News/Documentary]
     TV Correio    [General]
     TV Fortaleza    [Political]
     TVE    [General]
     Viva    [General]
     Yourvida    [Music]

Afghanistan

     Armaghan Movie TV    [Action/Adventure]

     Farsi1    [News/Documentary]

     Gunaz    [News/Documentary]

     Islam Channel    [News/Documentary]

     Khorasan    [News/Documentary]

     Masih Christian TV    [Educational]


     Noor    [News/Documentary]

     PARS TV    [News/Documentary]

     Payamea TV    [General]

     Tamadon TV    [News/Documentary]

     Tapesh TV    [General]

     VOA Pashi-ASHNA    [News/Documentary]

     VOA Persian News    [News/Documentary]

Is Your Television Well Adjusted?

The default settings on any new television are not necessarily the ones that will produce the best picture at home in the living room. Settings that are too high or too low can result in an early demise of the screen or simply provide a poor picture. Ideally the picture settings on the television should be adjusted to coincide with the lighting conditions in the room where it will be viewed. Settings on all televisions can be adjusted and some even allow resetting the controls for the various input devices.

Picture control settings can be accessed through the television set up menu. It is easiest to make the appropriate adjustments by purchasing or renting a test pattern DVD although it is possible to use other pictures on the screen with known colors to determine the new settings. An example of a known color would be a scene with a snow covered landscape when adjusting contrast or the white within a picture.

The following modifications are common:

Contrast: Contrast is the intensity of white within the picture on the television. If the intensity of white is too high there can be a loss of detail in the picture or increased deterioration of the phosphors in a plasma or CRT screen. By adjusting the contrast to the lowest setting, white will become somewhat grey. From here the contrast is advanced gradually upwards until the point when the grey just becomes white.

Brightness: Brightness is the intensity of black within the picture on the television. With brightness turned up to maximum, blacks will become grey. The level should then be slowly reduced until it first becomes black again.

Sharpness: A television with the sharpness set too low can have a blurry picture while having it set too high can result in a "grainy" picture.

Color/Saturation: Adjusting the color is important to achieve a realistic picture. Many automatic settings are insufficient. When unable to use a test pattern, many experts advise using skin tone as a good guide in adjusting color to the optimal level.


Basically, the important thing to remember is that factory set controls on a television are not set up for the viewing conditions in most homes and to get the outstanding picture consumers pay for and to assure the longevity of the television, some adjustment is necessary. Video Essentials and AVIA are two test pattern tools that are available to assist in adjusting setting on the television for clear, vivid, color accurate images.

Television's Impact on Kids

girls watching TVTelevision is one of the most prevalent media influences in kids' lives. According to Kids' Take on Media, a survey conducted in 2003 by the Canadian Teachers’ Federation, watching TV is a daily pastime for 75 percent of Canadian children, both boys and girls from Grade 3 to Grade 10.

How much impact TV has on children depends on many factors: how much they watch, their age and personality, whether they watch alone or with adults, and whether their parents talk with them about what they see on TV.

To minimize the potential negative effects of television, it's important to understand what the impact of television can be on children. Below you will find information on some areas of concern.

Violence

Over the past two decades, hundreds of studies have examined how violent programming on TV affects children and young people. While a direct "cause and effect" link is difficult to establish, there is a growing consensus that some children may be vulnerable to violent images and messages.

Researchers have identified three potential responses to media violence in children:

    Increased fear—also known as the "mean and scary world" syndrome
    Children, particularly girls, are much more likely than adults to be portrayed as victims of violence on TV, and this can make them more afraid of the world around them.

    Desensitization to real-life violence
    Some of the most violent TV shows are children's cartoons, in which violence is portrayed as humorous—and realistic consequences of violence are seldom shown.

    Increased aggressive behaviour
    This can be especially true of young children, who are more likely to exhibit aggressive behaviour after viewing violent TV shows or movies.

Parents should also pay close attention to what their children see in the news since studies have shown that kids are more afraid of violence in news coverage than in any other media content. Fear based on real news events increases as children get older and are better able to distinguish fantasy from reality.

Effects on healthy child development

Television can affect learning and school performance if it cuts into the time kids need for activities crucial to healthy mental and physical development. Most of children's free time, especially during the early formative years, should be spent in activities such as playing, reading, exploring nature, learning about music or participating in sports.

TV viewing is a sedentary activity, and has been proven to be a significant factor in childhood obesity. According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada almost one in four Canadian children, between seven and 12, is obese. Time spent in front of the TV is often at the expense of more active pastimes.

A Scientific American article entitled "Television Addiction" examined why children and adults may find it hard to turn their TVs off. According to researchers, viewers feel an instant sense of relaxation when they start to watch TV—but that feeling disappears just as quickly when the box is turned off. While people generally feel more energized after playing sports or engaging in hobbies, after watching TV they usually feel depleted of energy. According to the article "this is the irony of TV: people watch a great deal longer than they plan to, even though prolonged viewing is less rewarding."

As well as encouraging a sedentary lifestyle, television can also contribute to childhood obesity by aggressively marketing junk food to young audiences. According to the Canadian Paediatric Society, most food advertising on children's TV shows is for fast foods, candy and pre-sweetened cereals. Commercials for healthy food make up only 4 per cent of those shown.

McDonald's signA lot of money goes into making ads that are successful in influencing consumer behaviour. McDonald's, the largest food advertiser on TV, reportedly spent $500 million on their "We love to see you smile" ad campaign.

Sexual content

Kids today are bombarded with sexual messages and images in all media—television, magazines, advertisements, music, movies and the Internet. Parents are often concerned about whether these messages are healthy. While television can be a powerful tool for educating young people about the responsibilities and risks of sexual behaviour, such issues are seldom mentioned or dealt with in a meaningful way in programs containing sexual content.

According to a 2001 study from the Kaiser Family Foundation, entitled Sex on TV, three out of four prime time shows contain sexual references. Situation comedies top the list: 84 per cent contain sexual content. Of the shows with sexual content, only one in ten included references to safe sex, or the possible risks or responsibilities of sex. In shows that portrayed teens in sexual situations, only 17 per cent contained messages about safe and responsible sex.

Vga to TV Converter Enjoy Output From The PC on The Television Without Upgrading Equipment

VGA signals can be converted to PAL, NTSC or SECAM by using the VGA to TV Converter. VGA signals relayed from the computer are converted to signals which can be viewed on a television. Easy to use, this device works on plug and play functionality and does not require any additional software or device drivers for operation. It receives power from a standard power adapter. Consisting of two VGA ports, with one end plugged into the VGA input port of the computer and the other to the converter, the unit acts as a translator and converts the VGA signals sent from the computer into signals that can be understood and displayed by the television. This is how the converter works.

Key features of this VGA to TV Converter horizontal and vertical scaling, picture positioning, and brightness, sharpness and flicker control, thus enabling adjustment of video as required. The most special feature is the area Zoom function which allows areas of the screen to be enlarged for special emphasis. This converter can handle almost any refresh rate along with resolutions of 600x480, 800x600, and 1024x768. Compact in size, this device is compatible with any operating system and from its single input, it can relay video to three outputs including, S-Video, RCA and VGA for simultaneous TV/CRT viewing. Hence, a user can simultaneously watch video on both the PC as well as the television.

Also known as the PC to TV Converter, this unit is available in variants that offer bi-directional conversion of VGA signals to television compatible signals and S-Video signals to VGA. It works well with PC's, iMacs, Laptops, or desktops with video cards that have the 15-pin HD connector and with displays that accept S-Video. Certified by CE, FCC and RoHS, these devices allow direct connectivity of audio from the source to the destination device. All these features make this converter a thing to use for home entertainment or commercial purposes.

This unit separates the brightness and color signals without compromising image quality while providing excellent detail. The PC to TV Converter ensures that the crispness and clarity of VGA signals are not lost and the images displayed on TV are similar to the ones on the PC.

The Joys of Satellite Television

Satellite television is no longer the television of the future, it is one of the fastest growing forms of television viewing today. Satellite television has come a long way from the days where viewers struggled with large, clunky dishes on the sides of their house. Now, thanks to technological advancement, companies have successfully shrunken those bulky devices down to a compact satellite dish which has more quality and affordability than it's predecessor.

Today, Satellite TV offers an impressive amount of choices for the avid television fanatic. From newly released movies to your favorite sports game, satellite television has the capabilities to take you where you want to go and farther.

What makes Satellite TV so different than basic cable? Just one viewing experience would reveal a sharper picture quality and much larger selection of channels along with helpful customer service and reasonable prices.

When shopping for the best satellite TV retailers, be wary of scammer's advertising "Free Satellite Television" promising the best deals, installation, subscriptions and many more unbelievable promotions. If a website offers you a deal which seems too good to be true. Most likely, it is.

In order to insure a legitimate company, go with a satellite TV provider with a positive and well-known reputation.

Shopping online for satellite TV usually proves advantageous to customers through free gifts and exclusive promotions offered only online. Go ahead, take advantage of the offers and convenience of ordering online. Just remember to take caution as with any other online purchase. Here are a few tips to discern a great provider from a scammer:

1. The longer the satellite TV provider has been in business, the better.
2. Check to see if the web page is security enabled.
3. Beware of hidden fees.
4. Guarantees are always a plus.
5. Customer service is readily available and easily accessible.

Is Dish TV a Valuable Alternative

Are features offered by Dish TV making its Satellite TV service a valuable alternative? With interactive tools, guides, and myriad options made available to every subscriber, the offerings made by Dish TV cannot be surpassed. Moreover, the affordability of Dish TV's services seems almost criminal when one considers all of the incredible options made available to them with Dish TV's amazing features! In fact, it is no surprise that Dish TV has been deemed the number one Satellite TV company in terms of customer service by J.D. Power and Associates.

First, Dish TV provides a Satellite TV installation screen that puts the subscriber in control of the installation process. A Dish TV subscriber can change satellite transponders, and detect the strength of their satellite signal with a satellite signal meter. Moreover, the satellite signal meter is accompanied by a special audio sound that lets the subscriber know when they have aligned their Satellite TV dish properly-leaving no question that the installation has been performed correctly. Finally, the satellite signal meter allows subscribers to easily determine if there is a problem with their satellite signal and to maintain the signal by removing any obstructions and retesting the signal.

Next, every single Satellite TV program broadcast through Dish TV services is accompanied with a complete description of the program. With a click of the Dish TV remote, subscribers are provided with a brief description of the current program, the time the programs starts and ends, the date the program is being aired, a parental rating of the program and a stars critique of the program in question. What's more, the program information can be viewed with a white background or a clear background, whichever the subscriber prefers at the moment.

Additionally, Dish TV services offer Dish TV Interactive. Dish TV Interactive gives subscribers access to news, sports, horoscopes, games, instant weather reports for the local area, account information, access to special shopping offers and myriad miscellaneous entertainment including Karaoke and Rapzit. Along with the Dish TV Interactive features, subscribers are free to order Pay-Per-View films anytime they desire and Pay-Per-View shows can, in some instances, be ordered well in advance of the event.

With all of the features listed above, it is certainly surprising to discover that there are even more fantastic Dish TV services available. In fact, when subscribers first receive Dish TV services they will find themselves pleasantly surprised-Dish TV often offers installation promotions and a typical promotion will include a free Satellite TV dish and anywhere from 1 to 4 satellite receivers! What does this mean for the subscriber? It means Satellite TV access in up to 4 rooms of their home!

The channel selection offered to subscribers, of course, depends upon the programming they have purchased. Nonetheless, what is made available to the subscriber is a diverse array of programming. Packages are offered that include America's Top 60, America's Top 120, America's Top 180, and the America's Everything Pak. Adult programming can also be ordered for additional fees.

The America's Everything Pak includes all of the programs offering in any other package along with all of the Cinemax, Starz! Showtime and HBO channels. So, if a subscriber wants the complete Dish TV experience, the America's Everything Pak is definitely the package to order.

In essence, Dish TV offers diverse programming. Subscribers can choose from 10 Showtime stations, 8 Starz! Stations, 8 HBO offerings, and 5 Cinemax offerings. Moreover, sports lovers will truly get a kick out of Dish TV's features-a selection of sports programming is provided by Dish TV that can't be beat. You can watch the Multi Regional Sports channels, The Outdoor Channel, MLB Extra Innings, ESPN College Grand Slam, NBA League Pass, ESPN Game Plan, NHL Center Ice, MLS Direct Kick, and English Premier League programming. Finally, those individuals that prefer adult programming can easily get access to ECLIPSE, The Erotic Network, Extasy, Hot Zone and Play boy programming, respectively.

Along with all of the fantastic Satellite TV channels, Dish TV subscribers also get access to Sirius satellite radio channels. Music lovers can listen to theme orient music like New Age, Pop, the 70s, the 80s, the 90s, Jazz, Rap, Classic Rock, Hard Rock, Christian Music, and more. It certainly appears that Dish TV goes beyond the call of customer service to offer subscribers Satellite TV and radio entertainment.

Did you know that Dish TV is now offering Internet services? In conjunction with Earthlink, Dish TV is now providing high-speed Internet access. For as little as 19.95 per month, subscribers can get high-speed Internet service, Earthlink DSL service, DSL equipment and free activation. Thus, for those dialup users formerly without high-speed Internet connection, Dish TV has created an additional service for you! Downloads are significantly faster with Dish TV's Internet services and Dish TV offers all of the software applications and security features that the top Internet Service Providers offer.

Alternatively, the quality of customer service supplied by Dish TV cannot be overstated. Dish TV representatives are available every day of the week, 24 hours a day either by phone or a subscriber can use the customer support option provide by Dish TV Interactive. Either way, friendly service is readily available. Furthermore, if a subscriber has any difficulties whatsoever using their Satellite TV equipment, there are technicians readily available to assist them. Finally, calling Dish TV at any time is always free.

What is clear is that Dish TV strives to provide outstanding customer service. In every way possible, Dish TV offers features that make Satellite TV entertainment an enjoyable experience for the viewer. With fantastic features, programming and services, it is clear that Dish TV will remain one of the leading companies in Satellite TV service for many years to come. Subscribing to Dish TV's offerings is as easy as making one toll free phone call. A free installation can be planned for you and a skilled technician will come to your home and install your service for free. Once the service is installed, the technician will show you the ropes and you will be well on your way to enjoying the same features supplied to every Dish TV subscriber: unbelievable features that you will thoroughly enjoy for many months to come. How's that for truly fantastic customer service?

alking to Your Kids About Television

teens watching newsTV can send powerful messages to children. One of the best ways for you to minimize any negative effects from these messages is to teach your kids to think critically about what they see on TV.

Help your kids to understand that TV is only a construction of reality

    Explain how everything they see on TV (even news and documentary programming) is a reality that has been created by producers, directors, cinematographers, actors, editors, advertisers and others—and they bring to it their own points of view, biases and commercial interests.

    Ask your kids what points of view are most often seen on TV (i.e. middle class, male, western society, etc.)? Whose views are not being heard and what cultures and lifestyles are not being shown? Why? Explain how, through these omissions, television can teach that some people and ideas are more important than others.

Talk about whether TV characters look and act like real people

    TIP: Don't analyse or comment on everything you see on TV. If your kids feel that watching television with you means having a lecture, then you've taken all the fun out of the exercise.
    Do people on TV look like people in real life? What are the differences?

    How do they feel about the lives they see portrayed on television? Do they envy some aspects of the lives of people on TV? Are they content with their own lives?

    Do they want to look like the people they see on TV? Is this realistic?

    Do kids on TV act like kids do in real life? Should they?

    With young children, talk about "make-believe" and the difference between real life and TV.

Talk with children about violence on TV

    Talk about the different types of violence they see on TV: emotional (yelling, put-downs, name-calling) and physical (threatening, bullying, hitting, shooting, stabbing).

    Explain that we can be hurt emotionally, just as we can be hurt physically. Yelling, put-downs, name-calling and threats are what kids are most likely to experience in the schoolyard. Emotionally violent acts can begin a cycle that leads to physical violence.

    Talk about the violence they see on the shows they like. Why is the violence there? Does it contribute to the plot of the show? Do they find it exciting? Scary? Why?

    How do people on TV handle conflict? Is it appropriate? Are there better ways to handle conflict in real life?

    What are the real consequences of violence, and why are they not always shown on TV?

    How do kids feel about the portrayal of violent events in the news?

Explain what stereotypes are and talk about them

    Talk about stereotypical portrayals of children and teens on television. Seeing inaccurate portraits of themselves will help them to understand the concept of stereotyping.

    Provide some examples of stereotypical roles given to men, women, children, ethnic minorities, the elderly, the disabled and others. Ask your kids to look for these stereotypes in the TV shows they watch.

    Discuss the negative impact of stereotyping by examining the differences between their perceptions of real people, and stereotypes shown on television. For example, negative portrayals of young people affect not only how adults see teenagers, but also how teenagers see themselves. (For more information on youth stereotyping see the Media Toolkit for Youth.)

Help kids understand that commercial TV is a business—and its job is to sell viewers to advertisers

    TIP: Try not to be too negative about your kids' favourite TV programs. Choose a show they don't often watch to make a point or raise an issue.
    Talk about the television business: producers sell programs to networks, networks sell time to advertisers, and advertisers sell products to viewers.

    Explain that information about which audiences will likely watch which programs is sold to advertisers, who then tailor their ads to appeal to those specific viewers.

    Explain that advertising doesn't just encourage us to buy, it teaches us to buy. What are commercials really selling? A product? A feeling? A lifestyle?

    Ask kids if they believe everything the ads say. Can the product actually do what the ad promises? What are some of the tricks used in commercials to sell products?

    Talk about the kinds of commercials aired during the shows they like to watch. Point out that many of them are for fast food, candy and pre-sweetened cereals.

    Watch for commercials with adult content that air when kids will be watching, such as beer commercials during The Simpsons and trailers for restricted films during after-school shows. Are marketers deliberately targeting kids with these ads? If so, why?

    Explain that when a product appears in a TV show, it's not accidental. This is called "product placement" and it is an increasingly popular revenue-generating device for television producers. Look for examples of product placement in the programs your kids watch.

Understanding Television Rating Systems and Codes

Regulation of television content in Canada is primarily a voluntary system. Broadcasters, cable systems and speciality channels follow voluntary codes of conduct that address issues such as violence, gender representation, ethics, and advertising to children.

The Canadian television industry has also developed a TV classification system. Canadian television services are responsible for classifying certain Canadian or foreign programming that they show.

Below you'll find information about the Canadian television ratings system and the voluntary broadcasting codes.

Canadian Television Rating System

Our TV classification (or rating) system is designed to work with a filtering tool called the V-chip. V-chip technology, which is integrated into most new TV sets, allows viewers to use the classification system to block certain programming.

Three TV rating systems work with the V-chip: Canadian English, Canadian French, and the U.S. system used by American broadcasters. To add to the confusion, not every television for sale in Canada is configured to work with all three systems. (Before you purchase a new set, be sure to ask which rating systems it will work with.)

In Canada, children's programming, drama and comedy programming, "reality-based" shows, and feature films must all be classified.

The rating system uses seven age-based categories, similar to Canada's film classification systems. Each classification includes information on violence, nudity and sex, and coarse language. The ratings icons must appear in top left-hand corner of the screen at the beginning of each TV program.


The English classification categories are:
E     Exempt
C     Children
C8+     Children eight years and older
G
      General programming, suitable for all audiences
PG     Parental guidance
14+     Viewers 14 year and older
18+     Adult programming

For detailed information about these categories, see  Canadian TV Classification System on the right sidebar.

Canadian Broadcasting Codes

In response to public concern and demand, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) developed broadcasting codes as guidelines for radio and television stations.

While adherence to these codes is voluntary, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) requires that TV services follow the Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming, the Sex-Role Portrayal Code and the Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children as a condition of licence.

The codes are administered by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC), which responds to complaints from the public about television and radio content.

The Broadcast Code for Advertising to Children is administered by Advertising Standards Canada.

For more detailed information on the voluntary codes, see Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) Codes and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Codes on the right sidebar.
 

Managing Television in the Home

Television watching should be a fun and relaxing activity for kids and adults alike—but too often it's a source of family conflict.
57% of U.S. children, between 8 and 16, have a television set in their bedroom.

(Source: Media in the Home 2000, Annenberg Public Policy Center)
If you're concerned about television, banning it isn't a practical solution. Instead, you need to learn to co-exist with television by managing how much your kids watch, and what.

Take control of your family's viewing habits by using some of these strategies:

    Start young. It's wise to work on developing good TV viewing habits well before your children start school. As they grow older, it will become more difficult for you to enforce restrictions or influence their tastes.

    Limit the amount of time your kids spend watching television, especially on school nights. Make sure they're involved in other activities such as sports, hobbies and playing outside.

    Monitor what your children watch, and whenever possible watch with them and discuss the program.

    Young children are at higher risk of becoming aggressive after watching violence on TV—especially cartoons. You should limit the amount of violence they're exposed to and monitor their behaviour after watching violent shows. Use the Managing Superhero Play handout on the right sidebar for tips on controlling aggressive play.

    Kids model their behaviour on that of their parents—so take a hard look at your own viewing habits, and if necessary, change them.

    Encourage your children to watch a variety of programs: sports, nature and science shows, the arts, music and history shows. There's a lot of great TV programming out there that makes learning about the world interesting and fun.

    Consider the best place for your television set. When your children are small, use the old adage "out of sight, out of mind"—and keep the TV in a room away from where your family spends most of its time. When your kids get older, you might want it to be in a more visible place for easier monitoring. Never put a television set in a child's bedroom!

    Don't leave your TV on when you're not watching it. Turn it on for a specific show, and turn it off again when the show is over. This makes television a special experience that your children can look forward to.

    When your children's friends come to visit, insist on some "no-TV" time. Don't be afraid to restrict viewing of certain shows, even if your children's friends are allowed to watch them. You have the right to protect your children from inappropriate viewing and they will accept your concern as a sign of caring.

    Make sure your kids know that it's their right to say no to programs they find too frightening when visiting friends or relatives.

    Tell the parents of your children's friends about your television rules. It's hard to control what your children see at other houses, but if parents talk about their TV rules with others, it's easier to protect children from unsuitable programming.

    Make sure your caregiver or sitter knows about, and follows, your TV rules.

    Try going without television for a few days to help you re-evaluate the role it plays in your family's life. You can also join thousands of others and give up TV for a week during the annual TV Turnoff Week event. For more information see our TV Turnoff Week section.

    Learn about the Canadian and U.S. television ratings systems by viewing Understanding Television Rating Systems and Codes. If your TV has a V-chip, consider using it to control what programs your child can access. Most new TVs come with a V-chip that enables users to block programming based on a ratings system. However, not all V-chips are configured to work with both the U.S. and Canadian TV ratings systems—so make sure that the set you buy will work with both systems.

The Good Things About Television

Television is an inescapable part of modern culture. We depend on TV for entertainment, news, education, culture, weather, sports—and even music, since the advent of music videos.
TIP: Create your own family TV-viewing traditions, such as watching Olympic coverage, the NHL playoffs, classic movies or a weekly comedy show.
With the recent explosion in satellite and digital speciality channels, we now have access to a plethora of both good quality and inappropriate TV content. In this crowded television environment, the key for parents is to search out high quality TV programs for their kids, and whenever possible, enjoy them together as a family.

Television offers lots of benefits to kids, including:

    Because of its ability to create powerful touchstones, TV enables young people to share cultural experiences with others.

    Shared viewing gives family members of all ages an opportunity to spend time together.

    Parents can use TV as a catalyst to get kids reading—following up on TV programs by getting books on the same subjects or reading authors whose work was adapted for the programs.

    Great television can teach kids important values and life lessons.

    TV programs often explores controversial or sensitive issues, which can make it easier for parents and kids to discuss them.

    Educational programming can develop young children's socialization and learning skills.

    News, current events and historical programming can help make young people more aware of other cultures and people.

    Documentaries can help develop critical thinking about society and the world.

    TIP: Whenever possible, choose Canadian programs for your family viewing time.
    TV can help introduce your family to classic Hollywood films and foreign movies that may not be available in your local video store.

    Cultural programming can open up the world of music and art for young people.

How to choose good TV

How can you select viewing that is good for your children? David Kleeman, Director of the American Center for Children and Media, says ask yourself the following questions:

    Does the program actively engage my child, physically or intellectually?
    Television watching doesn't have to be passive. It can prompt questions, kindle curiosity, or teach activities to pursue when the set is off.

    Do I respect this program?
    Parents don't have to like every show their children choose—in fact young people need their own district culture. But parents should trust that a program's creators understand and respect how children grow and learn.

    Does my child see others like himself or herself on television?
    Young children believe that television reflects the real world. To not see people like themselves—in race, ethnicity, or physical ability, for example—may diminish their self worth. A lack of role models should spark discussion about how TV portrays different types of people.

    How do makers of this program regard my child?
    Some program creators see young people as consumers to be sold to. Others see them as students to be educated, as future citizens to be engaged in the community, or simply as children, whose work is play.

Use the resources on the side bar to help you find good quality television for your kids.

Color television

Baird gave a demonstration of color TV in London in 1928, but it was not until December 1953 that the first successful system was adopted for broadcasting, in the USA. This is called the NTSC system, since it was developed by the National Television System Committee, and variations of it have been developed in Europe; for example, SECAM (sequential and memory) in France and PAL (phase alternation by line) in West Germany. The three differ only in the way color signals are prepared for transmission. When there was no agreement on a universal European system in 1964, in 1967 the UK, West Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland adopted PAL while France and the USSR adopted SECAM. In 1989 the European Community (now the European Union) agreed to harmonize TV channels from 1991, allowing any station to show programs anywhere in the EC.

The method of color reproduction uses the principle that any colors can be made by mixing the primary colors red, green, and blue in appropriate proportions. (This is different from the mixing of paints, where the primary colors are red, yellow, and blue.) In color television the receiver reproduces only three basic colors: red, green, and blue. The effect of yellow, for example, is reproduced by combining equal amounts of red and green light, while white is formed by a mixture of all three basic colors.

Signals indicate the amounts of red, green, and blue light to be generated at the receiver. To transmit each of these three signals in the same way as the single brightness signal in black-and-white television would need three times the normal band width and reduce the number of possible stations and programs to one-third of that possible with monochrome television. The three signals are therefore coded into one complex signal, which is transmitted as a more or less normal black-and-white signal and produces a satisfactory – or compatible – picture on black-and-white receivers. A fraction of each primary red, green, and blue signal is added together to produce the normal brightness, or luminance, signal. The minimum of extra coloring information is then sent by a special subcarrier signal, which is superimposed on the brightness signal. This extra coloring information corresponds to the hue and saturation of the transmitted color, but without any of the fine detail of the picture. The impression of sharpness is conveyed only by the brightness signal, the coloring being added as a broad color wash. The various color systems differ only in the way in which the coloring information is sent on the subcarrier signal. The color receiver has to amplify the complex signal and decode it back to the basic red, green, and blue signals; these primary signals are then applied to a color cathode-ray tube.

The color display tube is the heart of any color receiver. Many designs of color picture tubes have been invented; the most successful of these is known as the ‘shadow mask tube.’ It operates on similar electronic principles to the black-and-white television picture tube, but the screen is composed of a fine mosaic of over 1 million dots arranged in an orderly fashion. One-third of the dots glow red when bombarded by electrons, one-third glow green, and one-third blue. There are three sources of electrons, respectively modulated by the red, green, and blue signals. The tube is arranged so that the shadow mask allows only the red signals to hit red dots, the green signals to hit green dots, and the blue signals to hit blue dots. The glowing dots are so small that from a normal viewing distance the colors merge into one another and a picture with a full range of colors is seen.

Best Indian TV Actresses

The ten best Indian TV actresses are all beautiful and talented. As new cable channels feature Indian TV shows there are more and more Indian TV actresses gaining mainstream popularity every day.

    Aamna Shariff. Shariff became known when she appeared in the Indian TV show "Kahin To Hoga" from from 2003 to 2007. In this role she was one of five sisters and the ideal girl next door.
    Smriti Zubin Irani. This actress played the role of Tulsi in "Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi," a famous soap opera in India. Her mother was a popular actress, Tripti Mitra. She was also in the top five in the Miss India pageant.
    Saakshi Tanwar.  Tanwar is from a Rajashthan and studied at Lady Sri Ram College in New Delhi University. She was first a TV anchor but became famous for her role as the dutiful wife Parvati in the show "Kahani Ghar Ghar Kii."
    Shweta Tiwari. As Prerna in the TV show Kasautii Zindagii Ki, Tiwari became a popular Indian TV actress. She has also starred in major Hindi movies and was married to actor and producer Raja Chaudhury.
    Gauri Hiten Tejwani. Tejwani is known from her role in the serial "Kutumb." She aptly played the role of Gauri an independent middle class woman.
    Juhi Parmar.A former Miss Rajashthan, Juhiwas also a Indian TV anchor and seen in reality television shows. She is known for her roles in the show "Shaheen" and the hit show "KumKum."
    Tina Parekh. Tina is married to a musician, Vikram Harza. She received many awards for her work on the Indian TV show "Kasauti Zindagii Kii" as the character Mukti.
    Panchi Bohra. This army officer's daughter studied at Fergusson College and while a student landed a role in the soap opera "Kayamath." Panchi is already one of the viewer's favorite Indian TV actresses.
    Mona Singh. Singh gained popularity as a not-so-attractive woman with braces and glasses. She works at a fashion house and falls in love with her boss.
    Neha Bamb. This is another one of the Indian TV actresses who found fame on an Indian TV soap opera. She has appeared in "Kaisa Yeh Pyar Hai" and "Maayka." She also has had some roles in Indian movies.

Hardware: TV - The Basics

Today TeamXbox is proud to launch the first chapter of our Hardware section. Considering the Xbox is the most powerful console when it comes to graphics, sound and online play, we considered that a hardware section of an Xbox related site can't be only reviews of peripherals.

Considering the Xbox specs, it's important that we discuss topics such as HDTV, Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, A/V amplifiers, speakers and more ...

Our mission is to have the ultimate resource for all the hardware you need with your Xbox in order to have the best gaming experience. With your feedback and help, these articles will answer all yours questions and also reveal the major details of tips and tricks when buying electronics. Yeah, we're doing shopping guides.

Introduction:

A few years ago a discussion about which TV is the best for your videogame console wouldn't have made any sense at all. Why? Simply: Consoles' graphics were just 2D sprites moving on your screen. Gone are the days when the screen characters were simple rectangular lines and later 2D figures.
In the last two decades we have evolved from 2D games with simple graphics (Miyamoto once said that Mario has a moustache because they couldn't draw a mouth!) to high-resolution graphics running at high frame rates, like Dead or Alive 3 or Unreal Championship.

To understand which is the best TV for your Xbox, we should first discuss the different technical terms associated to TVs and understand how a TV works.
If you want to run, you need to learn how to walk first, so in this first installment we're going to review the basics of TVs so we can later discuss HDTV and other advanced features. After all, those are an evolution of the technology developed for television.

It's always important to know first what a term means and in the case of TV, the television term comes from two latin words: Tele and Vision. The latin word tele means "in the distant" while vision comes from vîsum, which means "something seen". It's important to know this, since we'll see in later installments that this "something seen in the distant" is also the cause of lack of speed in the implementation of new technologies.

Although TV's technology is one of the greatest inventions, it works thanks to another technology, the one everyone of you have: the human eye's technology. In fact, the moving image is actually an illusion that relies upon several different properties of human perception. Let's see why we see in colors and how motion is achieved.

Color Vision: (and why we use an RGB model)
So many people think that displays use a Red/Green/Blue model (later on this) because those are the primary colors which, when mixed in different quantities, can make any color. But that's not the answer, since the real question should be why when we mix those primary colors we can see any other color? The truth is that this lies in the human eye's "technology".

The retina is the sensing element in the human eye and serves a similar purpose to a film inside a camera; Light is focused by a lens at the front of the camera onto a light-sensitive film at the back, to form a picture. In a similar way, light entering your eye is focused onto a light-sensitive tissue, which lines the inside of the eye at the back. This tissue is the retina, which is made of two main layers, a thin one called the pigment epithelium and a thicker one, made up of many layers of cells, that contains two types of photoreceptors, rods and cones, which are located at the bottom of the retina.

Rods are responsible for low level light detection and sensitive to blue/green, but they respond very little to red light. They are more numerous than cones, some 120 million. They are very light sensitive and motion sensitive but, like everything in nature, at a cost of something: resolution. In the center of the visual field, called fovea, rods are almost missing but are scattered elsewhere throughout the eye. At night, the fovea is very insensitive and most of the visual information is being carried by rods in the periphery of your eye. This is the explanation of why human beings see so poorly at night.

The 6 to 7 million cones are concentrated in the fovea, thus providing high resolution central daytime vision. Cones are the ones which carry the color information (human eye can detect over 10,000,000 different colors) and they provide higher resolution, but once again at the cost of something: sensitivity. Current understanding is that the 6 to 7 million cones can be divided into cones with red sensitive pigments (64%), with green sensitive pigment (32%), and with blue sensitive pigment (4%). The green and red cones are concentrated in the fovea . The blue cones have the highest sensitivity and are mostly found outside the fovea.

The missing of any of these pigments will cause color blindness, people known as daltonics. To this day nobody knows how a daltonic sees. We only know that certain lengths of waves are not perceived or are confused, for a genetic deficiency of cones.

The closure phenomenon:
When you see a photo you see an image as a whole and continuous picture. But the fact is that the photo is made of small dots, which are more obvious in low quality prints like newspapers. Your brain does not see the individual dots, unless you deliberately concentrate on them. Instead, the brain assembles the dots into a meaningful image. In other words, it sees the image as continuous. This phenomenon is called "closure".

Televisions and computer screens, as well as newspaper and magazine photos, rely on this fusion-of-small-dots capability in the brain. On a TV or computer screen, the dots are called pixels (picture elements). You can see them if you look closely, but most of the time you ignore them and instead let your brain do what it does naturally: see the overall image the small dots create.

TV Anywhere will need hardware security

The debate over whether pay TV security is best done in hardware or software may now finally be resolved with the answer being that both are needed, especially if premium content is on offer. This is the thrust of some recent industry developments, such as the announcement by Verimatrix, vendor of the software-based VCAS system, that it is licensing Cryptography Research's CryptoFirewall security core technology to help build advanced solutions protecting video delivery revenue streams.

This seems to be recognition that some form of hardware security is needed to augment the Verimatrix public key-based approach to content delivery and provide an extra layer of defence. In fact Cryptographic Research itself acknowledges that even this may not ultimately be enough to enable premium pay TV services to work over the Internet and mobile networks, with other ingredients becoming necessary, including digital watermarking and also snooping agents that prowl around the network on the lookout for security attacks and breaches.

Pay TV security has two objectives, to buy time and create confidence among content providers that the service can be trusted. No system is immune from attack forever, and to an extent Cryptography Research has already shown it can meet these two fundamental requirements in the different field of Blu-ray discs. The company developed the digital rights management system called BD+ for Blu-ray based on the idea of self-protection where the content itself contains embedded codes needed for it to play. With the participation of the Blu-ray players, this meant that rights owners could change the DRM security in the event of a breach by changing the codes, without having to make any alternations to the players themselves. BD+ succeeded on the first criterion of buying time and is still in use today. It also succeeded on the second count of creating confidence, since several movie studios cited Blu-ray Disc's adoption of BD+ as the reason they supported the Blu-ray Disc rather than the alternative HD-DVD. Cryptography Research is now hoping to generate similar confidence in the pay TV world around CryptoFirewall.

For OTT services it is also vital that any solution can work across multiple platforms, and on this front Cryptography Research has been signing up the major vendors of system-on-chip (SoC) silicon for pay TV devices including STBs, with ST Micro Electronics, Broadcom, MStar, and ViXS on board so far. This will ensure the firewall is compatible across most leading boxes, which is valuable for pay TV in general because it enlarges the target market and reduces costs. For OTT it will be essential that a given service reaches all devices irrespective of whose chip is in them.

The function of the CryptoFirewall is to protect session encryption keys themselves from attack by shielding them within the SoC, while also providing a layer of security that enhances the CA system it is working with. The point here is that CryptoFirewall is not a complete security system but designed to interoperate with a CA system from Verimatrix or some other CA vendor. In doing so, it provides a kind of double-layered security, in that compromise of either a given CA system or the CryptoFirewall on its own is insufficient to crack a pay TV service that uses both in combination. CryptoFirewall was designed on the assumption that the associated CA is insecure. Similarly, CA systems such as Verimatrix VCAS are stand-alone and do not intrinsically rely on any other component. Now Verimatrix's licensing of CryptoFirewall reinforces the security offered.

It remains to be seen whether systems such as the CryptoFirewall/CA combination will hold up against piracy, although there are signs that the studios and other content houses are gaining confidence for now. One thing is becoming clear though: Any security system must be transparent to consumers if it is to be successful. On this front, Cryptography Research's CTO and VP of engineering makes an important point when he argues that two factor security, where the user has a separate token to generate one-time passwords in synchronisation with service, will not work in pay TV, even though it is being used in some cases for online banking.

In the case of banking, the interests of both parties coincide, since neither the customer nor the bank want money to be stolen from an account. But in pay TV, a registered user may also be stealing the service by transmitting content on to friends. Two-factor security would still protect the user from having the service stolen, but not the pay TV provider. For example, the user could point a webcam at the token to transmit the temporary passkey immediately to friends.

The second reason two-factor will not work for pay TV follows from this. Since users do not care as much if the service is compromised as in the case of online banking, they will be less willing to endure the inconvenience of having to sign on via a separate device — i.e. the second factor. Any pay TV service that tries to impose two-factor security is therefore likely to have to withdraw it pretty quickly.

Instead therefore other remedies will be used to strengthen single-factor security. One will be to deploy supervisory processes within the network to provide defence in depth by monitoring for any signs of security breaches. The use of fingerprinting or watermarking in various ways to mark content can also help. Verimatrix, for example, uses on-screen display (OSD) fingerprinting in its recently launched VCAS for Internet, forcing periodic display of a device identifier overlaid on streamed content to deter its unauthorized retransmission.

It can be seen then the battle lines between the content security industry and pirates are being redrawn in the era of TV Anywhere and OTT.