I didn't mention this last week because I didn't want to deal with the massive outpourings of grief and sympathy…but last Thursday evening, my office TiVo almost died. It had apparently not been well for some time but it kept up a brave front, soldiering on and continuing to record the silly things I watch for as long as it could. Eventually, the strain of saving all those infomercials for the Magic Bullet took its toll and the poor thing collapsed. I rushed it to these people who performed lifesaving surgery, installing a new power supply and harddisk…and now my old pal is back on the job, seemingly reborn.
I lost everything I'd stored on my TiVo — about 150 hours of shows, some of them unwatched, some things I wanted to watch again or dub off. All gone. So are my settings, my season passes, my preferences and all memory of what I've recorded in the past. I put back the settings, season passes and preferences but it's just not the same.
I have several friends reading this who have recently written or appeared on or otherwise been involved with recent TV broadcasts. They keep asking me, "Did you see it? What did you think?" And I've been replying, "Haven't had time to watch it yet…got it on my TiVo." Well, now I don't got it on my TiVo. I don't got anything on my TiVo except last night's Daily Show. I'm sorry, friends who recently had a show air but it's the truth. If you don't believe me, I'll fax you the repair bills.
And if your TiVo breaks, I recommend the above-linked folks who fixed mine. I drove it to their offices but most folks mail their TiVos in, and it sure looks like the company does a great job.