Sorry guys, been away for a while... Sure, I can do an IRC chat sometime... When is best??
MythTV is kinda like Tivo. You build a pc with regular parts (obviously the faster the better) and this "knoppmyth" acts as an operating system (kinda like Windows Media Center). IT has a bunch of functionality. I use the "web" features most.
I have this unit with no keyboard, mouse or monitor, sitting in my office, connected to the cable tv. I program it from a webpage to record whatever I want on TV. It can also stream live tv, stream recorded programs, etc. What I do mostly, is I have about 20 programs on TV that I record each week. The system keeps tabs on everything I record. Even if I have already watched a show and deleted it, it will not record a re-run. Once a show is recorded, I have a script that automatically converts that recording into a Neuros friendly file (the original program is recorded as 720x480 and is about 2.2gb per hour) and dumps it into a directory, that I can then download it from the web, or connect my Neuros to that box, issue a command and copy everything over.
I also use this same box to keep my music collection and have a different program that acts as a streaming server, so wherever I have an internet connection in the world, I have access to "good" music and TV.
Why??? Well, I travel A LOT. And have found that hotels have crappy TV selections sometimes, even high end several hundred $$ per night hotels. This setup is a life saver... How cool is it to be out to dinner and be able to set your "vcr" with your blackberry or cell phone when you realize there is something you wanted to see... Very cool!!!
Check out this website for info:
http://mysettopbox.tv