I have another suggestion for you: get your broadcast TV over the airwaves for free. My desktop monitor has an ATSC tuner in it, to which I've attached an indoor antenna. One push of the remote and I'm watching DTV off the air; another push and I've got broadband. Oh, and the over-the-air TV works even when the cable goes out. It's wireless without Wi-Fi, and the quality's a lot better than streaming broadband.

Can we get a few suggestions on set-up and hardware involved to connect computer-to-TV? Maybe a site with some type of tutorials? I don't like the 'ask at your local electronics store' suggestion-most of them know about as much as I do(not a whole lot) and, besides, their job is to SELL and UP-SELL-so I'm a little hesitant to totally trust them.

Here's a suggestion: for the millions of Americans who live in rural communities with no access to affordable broadband call up your satellite provider and say, "Thanks satellite people for making it possible for me to not give a damn about the DTV switchover because you already send me a digital signal." Oh, and for those who think satellite Internet is a viable broadband alternative: 1.) it costs $70/month; and 2.) the speed isn't nearly fast enough to make watching shows on your computer feasible.

These online, Internet viewer people are living on another planet.

Currently, the penetration of that kind of "real world" viewing is less than 2% of the potential program viewing audience. It is mostly made up of techno geeks who already live and break via text messages, not human interaction.

AppleTV and ZULU...don't make me laugh. They'll both be gone in 18 months or less.

Get real - if you folks want to watch TV on your 2", 4", 10", and 17" screens....go right ahead....just leave the reast of us normal people alone with your bizzare and stupid ideas.

HDTV and Blu Ray are here now and growing in major leaps - Blu Ray is now up to 15% of all DVD purchases after less than 2 years - these are the future and the future is now.

BOXEE.

You don't have to have an APPLE TV to use BOXEE.

Download the alpha program right now for your linux or apple system...and soon the PC.

It' GREAT!

To plug my computer into my TV was simple.
My TV has analog and digital audio inputs. It also has analog and digital video inputs.
I ran the highest quality cables i could from my computer to my television.

In this case it was a 15 foot DVI to HDMI cable from my computer to my television.
And a 13 foot digital optical cable from my computer to my television.

BOOM!

Now I can watch High Definition television AND movies in DOLBY DIGITAL from all the places Daisy listed as well as over TEN THOUSAND selections from NETFLIX that I can download!

Boxee ROCKS!

TAKE THAT LUDDITE PETE!!! SPINNING DISCS ARE FOR THE BIRDS!!!! AND SO IS CABLE AND SATELLITE!!!

It seems unlikely that anyone who is ready to switch to watching TV on broadband or cell phones is doing so because the government is sending mixed messages about DTV.

At one end of the spectrum you have people like yourself who are tech-forward - you are figuring out what new technology can offer and what old habits you can ditch, like owning an television.

At the other end are people who are not ready for the digital conversion - they are either living under a rock and haven't heard the message or just don't care that much about TV, procrastinators who won't adopt new technology until forced, or those who can't afford a new TV or a converter box, and don't necessarily even have a computer or internet service in their homes, let alone broadband.

Notageek, I would ordinarily agree with you. However, today's economic climate is forcing even normally upscale households to look for ways to cut costs. The combination of free DTV and improved broadband video services will tempt others beyond the small segment of "tech-forward" viewers.

Pete, you really need to take a closer look at the evaporating DVD retail business. Blu-ray may be around for a long while, but it will never scale the heights reached by its standard def forerunner.

As stated in previous comments, this style of online viewing is not for everyone, and as an avid console gamer, I don't see myself giving up television anytime in the near future. It's a possibility, but I bought an LCD TV so that I could play games and watch TV shows and movies in hi-def, and I simply don't want to bother with hooking up yet another piece of hardware (my computer) in order to enjoy this 'easier' online lifestyle.

In the coming months and years, I could change my mind, but convenience is key for me and paying for that cable subscription is a lot easier than finding all the shows I want online or paying for them à la cart. It's also more complicated when, like me, you live in a rural area with few broadband choices. If I want more than 1.5Meg download, I have exactly one choice, and anything under 3Meg doesn't stream HD very well. That's changing, but very slowly in my neck of the woods.

I do enjoy Netflix streaming. If it wasn't for the inclusion of Xbox consoles in the list of streaming devices, I wouldn't watch near as much media that way. Kudos to Netflix for adding the option. It just might be what eventually pushes me to cutting the cable/satellite strings (or at least getting me interested).

Bamabrad: I will look into specific suggestions of hardware to connect your PC to the TV and post them here.

Notageek: I don't think the digital delay will spur people who only had analog. I think other consumers who lean a little tech-forward or who simply are evaluating expenses as many of us are in this climate will see the missteps in the delay as a reason to say, forget it, it's easier to get TV online.

FG is right to frame the choice in terms of download bandwidth. Let's not be fooled by claims such as: "upto umphteen gazillion terrapiddles download per nanosecond". For the moment, all of the anecdotal reports that I hear say that AT&T and Comcast promise a great deal more than they deliver, and blame the customers' wiring for the deficit, which usually turns into an expensive, frustrating, useless, and time-consuming fire-drill. I'd switch to an IPTV approach, if only I could trust my ISP to provide what they claim.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has had success in making this transition with AT&T U-verse, Verizon FOITTH, Comcast hollerith cards, Cox ShadowPuppets, or any other technology.

http://richreader.blogspot.com/

Daisy - you won't find the right "cord" at your local electronics store. Trust me, I've looked. You can find them here: PCTVCables.com

TVWeek readers might also like to try ovguide.com to help cut the cord!

There are lots of great Internet TV options that have been listed in the story and through the comments. Another option is Windows Media Center. You can watch your TV via a TV Tuner (and it supports digital signals in the U.S.) as well as get free Internet TV content, like "Arrested Development" and the MSNBC News beta. The best part is, Windows Media Center is included with Windows Vista Home Premium and Ultimate, so most people that don't know they have this capabilitiy, do.

FAO sports fans::

myp2p.eu ;)

no high def, but i have only once in however many years not been able to find an event: calzaghe vs. hopkins.

otherwise, the selction is better than cable/sat