Pausing Live TV on my TV with a remote using SnapStream?

[Gunn]

I'm being overwhelmed with different products and somehow I got here and SnapStream seems pretty hopeful among a list of a couple others to purchase.

I started out by reading out WindowsXP Media Center. That got me thinking. I found out about the ATI All-in-wonder cards and thought that was the ticket. But then I have a Satellite TV and this wouldn't work completely with my TV...I wouldn't be able to schedule recordings in advance. So I'd have to keep my danged VCR.

I started reading about IR blaster's, remote controls, ahhhh! So my simple question...

I want to be able to sit at my TV with a remote control, watch a TV program and be able to pause Live TV and continue later...stuff that a PVR is supposed to do. Or, record programs to my harddrive and be able to watch it later. All *without* having to go to my PC which is in another room.

I liked the idea of the ATI AiW cards having the RF remote so I could keep the PC in another room. I also like the idea of video out so I can watch the captured video on my 32" tv with the rest of the family and not at my little 19" PC monitor.

So, can someone give me, in a nutshell (hahah), what it would take to do this? Specifically, have a remote control control the PC software AND my DirecTV receiver (using the available RCA cable pack?) so that I can flip channels, record, pause LIVE TV and watch it all from my living room?

As I said, the ATI almost does this...if only it had an IR blaster...

Thanks!

[V_D_O]

OK, for this you will require the following:

Either:
1) A tuner card with coax and/or S/composite video in (e.g. Hauppauge WinTV PCI) and a seperate video card with S/composite video out. With this, you must connect your sat box to your PC via an S/composite video cable or an ordinary coax cable (S/composite preferred, provided your sat box supports S/composite video out)
Or:
2) A video card with S/composite video in and out (e.g. a GF4 Ti4200 VIVO). With this, you must connect your sat box to your PC with an S/composite video cable (provided your sat box supports S/composite video out)
Or:
3) An integrated video and tuner card (e.g. an ATi AIW). Same setup as in 1)

Either:
1) A very long S/composite video wire
Or:
2) An X10 (or equivalent) wireless transciever to connect PC audio/video output to TV

Either:
1) An IR Blaster connected to your PC to change channels on your sat box. (these are more or less universal due to their learning functions)
Or:
2) A cable pack to do the same (provided there is one compatible with your sat box)

Either:
1) An RF remote such as an X10 Mouse Remote or an ATi Remote Wonder
Or:
2) An IR remote such as ones supplied with many tuner cards (provided your video transciever can also send and receive IR commands - many can). Many require a 3rd party app (e.g. Girder) to work with 3rd party apps (e.g. PVS instead of WinTV 2000)