I love my TiVo. For me, it is a truly transformative technology. Why? Well, first is the notion of time-shifting. I don’t know the last time I watched a non-sporting event on TV in real time. When I tell people I know that The Daily Show and Colbert Report are among the two best shows on TV, they often reply that it is on too late for them. As it happens, I do know exactly when the shows are broadcast because I am just that kind of guy, but with TiVo, I don’t really have to know. For me, it is on whenever I want it to be on.
The second reason for loving TiVo is the ability zap uninteresting content, whether it is commercials or a really boring story arc. I have developed a twitch in my right thumb that operates whenever I am confronted by less than interesting content. No matter where I am, I reflexively start hitting the 30-second skip button. This has proved embarassing when I find myself at someone else’s TiVo-free household and am forced to watch regular TV. It gets downright pathological as the thumb starts spasming when I’m in boring conversations at cocktail parties. But that’s another story.
This weekend I was faced with a sporting dilemma. I was playing golf late in the day on Sunday, and was therefore going to miss the final round of the US Open. So I set up the TiVo to record the final round, which was scheduled to end at 9PM eastern time. As it turns out, that was precisely the starting time of game 5 of the NBA finals (Celtics vs. Lakers), so I set that game up to TiVo.
My goal was to maintain a news blackout until I could watch the Open on the TiVo, which is no mean feat given that I was on a golf course. Fortunately, I arrived home ignorant as to the outcome, and proceeded to watch 5 hours of golf coverage in a little over an hour. The end result was a dramatic finish as Tiger sunk a birdie on the final hole to get himself and his recovering left knee into the a playoff scheduled for Monday (more on that in a bit). By that time, we were well into the Celtics game, so I fired up the TiVo and watched that game in its entirety, catching up to the live broadcast by 11 PM or so. While the result wasn’t what I wished for, it was a perfect example of why TiVo rocks.
Now that I was on a roll, I set up the TiVo to record the 18-hole US Open playoff on Monday, which was taking place on ESPN from 12-5:30. As with the day before, I came home having shielded myself from all news about the match, so I was in my naturally ignorant state when I started watching. I got through the first 8 holes or so, and then realized that the good-for-nothing bozos at ESPN switched their coverage to another one of their channels (I assume ESPN2). Switching in midstream is one thing that TiVo just can’t do. So I had to find out who won the Open the way other working stiffs had to find out–by watching selected news highlights.
It was a sad day to be sure, but don’t cry for me Argentina. The British Open is coming up next month, and I’m sure I’ll be in love with my TiVo again.