Do not adjust your set. The problem is on the network, not with your TV.
In the earliest days of broadcast television, that notice often appeared on the screen, interrupting the program. Some glitch would blank out the program for long minutes. When service resumed, you were left to wonder if the bad guy was captured, or if the hero and his reluctant girlfriend were ever united.
Viewers understood. Television was still something of a miracle and problems were to be expected with something so new.
That's where we are today when it comes to streaming video from the Internet to the big screen TV in the den. The technology is new and there's a lot to be figured out before it works as dependably as cable or satellite TV.
We've spent a couple of columns talking about the joys of Internet TV. Today we'll examine some of the reasons it may not yet ready for prime time.
None of this is to say you shouldn't try it -- I think you should, it's terrific when everything works. And it usually does. But you can plan on getting reminders that there are still kinks to be worked out.
Service interruptions
Online streaming of video can put real excitement back into watching TV. That's because you can never be sure, when you flip the switch, that it will work at all.
At times, I've settled on the couch, clicked on the Sony Blu-ray player to connect to Netflix and discovered that the server at Sony that relays the signal to subscribers is down. Other applications work just fine, but Netflix just won't flick.
Other times, my Blu-ray player becomes convinced that my home wireless network is down, even when it is not. There's nothing I can do to change its mind. And unlike with my computers, or wireless networks, I can't really tinker with the player to fix things. All that's left to do is to wait it out.
Eventually, for reasons as complicated and confusing as a cat's reasoning process, the player will decide that everything is fine and connect flawlessly.
The same thing happens at times with my Boxee box. That's another way I stream content to my TV. It's more versatile than the Blu-ray player.
Like the Blu-ray it can stream video from a pre-installed list of sources to the TV. But, unlike the DVD player, it also has a built-in Web browser that lets me get programming from almost any Web site. Or I can use it to watch downloaded content on my computer.
Well, it can do all that when it is working correctly. Every so often, it will solemnly proclaim a network error. Then, like the Sony DVD player, it'll decide that it's safe to go back to work.
Content problems
Netflix is my favorite commercial source of movies and TV programming. And it's a major bargain. For about $8 a month, I can stream that programming -- as much as I want at no additional charge -- to my HDTV. Because of the flat rate charge I end up checking out movies and programs I wouldn't bother with if, as is true on some other services, I paid a fee for each one I watched.
But all too often I'll find that the movie I want to see isn't available on the Netflix online service. It will be available to those who pay about $2 a month more to add the ability to get DVDs by mail. But online-only subscribers like me have to settle for a much sparser menu of programs.
I don't like that but I can live with it. What I can't live with is the deal from Hulu Plus. Like Netflix it charges about $8 a month for an all-you-can-eat supply of movies, documentaries and TV entertainment. But, unlike with Netflix, Hulu interrupts that programming with commercials. That is an understandable annoyance when the content is free. But when I'm footing the bill, I prefer Netflix's commercial-free delivery system.
Compatibility problems
I love cruising the Web right on the screen of my big TV. Boxee does that for me and it's a major plus over what the Blu-ray player provides. But in a few instances, the Web browser used by Boxee doesn't seem compatible with the software used on some Web sites. The video either won't play at all, or will freeze halfway through the playback.
Here comes the sun
We've spent today walking on the shady side of the street, concentrating on the problems of this infant technology that delivers programming from the Internet to the TV. You need to know about the problems. But you also need to know that they are the normal growing pains any tech-savvy person would expect from a technology so new.
The sunny side of the street is still a fine place to be. There's real freedom to watch what you want. And in many cases you can tune in for free. The picture quality is terrific for the most part -- at least as good as what I would expect to see from a DVD. More often than not, things work just as they should.
And things will get better fast in the months and years to come. New devices, or new versions of old ones, will be more reliable and offer more programming choices.
But along with that broader choice and greater reliability, less pleasant changes probably will also come. Some content providers that are free now will begin to charge. Many of the small companies that provide unique content will fall by the wayside as big media companies figure a way to control more of what you watch.
So, as was true in the early days of broadcast TV, this truly is the golden age.
You don't want to miss having a ringside seat as this baby technology grows into a giant. So with eyes wide open to all the glitches and flaws, pull up a chair and watch with me. As always, I'd love to hear about your experiences, including the bad ones.
