LInux laptop update

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I got a Linux laptop running on an older MacBook Pro. I said at the time that it had been going well.

Well, it has been a couple of weeks -- a little more than that, actually -- and now I am no longer saying that it's going well. It's going really well.

I'm actually a little surprised how much I've gotten used to using the MacBook Pro running GNU/Linux operating system. I really do like the experience.

Now, much of it is because it's really good hardware. I know a lot of people that really hate Apple products, but I have to say that they make really good hardware.

In fairness, Microsoft makes really good hardware. In fact, there is a noticeable difference in running Windows on a Microsoft Surface laptop and running it on a Dell laptop. Or any other brand laptop.

I will say that a Dell XPS 13 running Windows is a good experience as well, though I prefer the Microsoft Surface to the Dell XPS 13, but not by much. Most of my Windows experience is on lesser devices, and most of those lesser devices are, in my opinion, the problem with Windows devices. Windows itself is actually an operating system I could get used to running at home again. I just don't want to.

I liked using Mac OS (formerly OS X) and was disappointed to learn that the new version due out this fall won't work on my older (2015) MacBook. I gave Linux a shot, and I'm actually quite happy with the move.

So far I've not run into any issues with the laptop -- it is a MacBook Pro, after all -- nor with the GNU/Linux operating system. I'm running Ubuntu Desktop 22.04.1 on my MacBook, and it works quite well.

Switching to Firefox has been a little adjustment, but as I used Firefox in the past, it was easy enough to switch to Firefox from Chrome and Safari. Firefox works well, and there are plenty of Chromium based browsers if I prefer to use one of those. I don't, so Firefox it remains.

Office software has been surprisingly easy to use as well. I'm using OnlyOffice as my Office suite. It's very compatible with Microsoft Office document formats. LibreOffice has been good as well, but I'm focusing on OnlyOffice at the moment. Apache Open Office doesn't quite cut it for me. I prefer the LibreOffice and OnlyOffice interfaces much more, and the compatibility issues of Open Office were the deciding factors on that.

I've not yet done any video editing on Linux. I haven't actually had the need to. I have done that on my MacBook running Mac OS in the past, and will probably edit some videos in the next month or two, so I'll get a better feel about how that goes. I'm hoping it goes smoothly.

I've not ripped any videos from DVD or from purchase downloads on Linux yet. That will probably need to happen soon, as Better Call Saul has wrapped up, and I'll rip my purchases (I already bought the final season) for playback on Plex.

So, the next month or two will be a real test of my Linux laptop, as I'll try to do as much as I can using that device. I could use my Linux desktop, but there's no advantage to that. Well, using a desk vs a recliner is a difference. I'll use whichever I feel like. Since the desktop and laptop are both using the same version of Ubuntu Linux, it won't make a bit of difference.

I never figured that my Streaming Life would lead me to start using Linux on my everyday computer, but here we are. And so far, it's going really well.

Watching college football games this weekend: Week 1, Weekend 2

College football kicked off last weekend, and Week 1 continues into its second weekend.

Yeah, things are weird at the start of the season. In the past, last weekend would have been called "Week Zero," but not everyone is doing that this year. Week 1 now covers two weekends.

There were 11 games last weekend, 10 that were broadcast. And there were 16 games this past Thursday, and another 8 yesterday.

There are only 57 games today, one tomorrow, and one Monday. Not every game will be broadcast, but most will. In fact, all of the games from the SEC, ACC, Big 12, and Big Ten will be broadcast. The Pac 12 and the other conferences all have at least one game that won't be broadcast.

So where can you watch the games? The games that are broadcast will be on one of these networks:

• ABC
• ACC Network
• Big Ten
• Big 12 Network
• CBS
• CBS Sports Network
• ESPN
• ESPN 2
• ESPN 3
• ESPN U
• SEC Network
• ESPN+
• Fox
• Fox Sports 1
• Longhorn Network
• Pac 12 Network

How do you watch these networks? Keep reading.

ABC

• Antenna, over the air, free.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ACC Network

• Sling Orange, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.

Big Ten Network

• Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.

Big 12 Network

Big 12 Network games are available through ESPN+.

CBS

• Antenna, over the air, free.
• Paramount+ Premium, $10/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

CBS Sports Network

• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Ultimate, $105/month.

ESPN

• Sling Orange, $35/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN2

• Sling Orange, $35/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN U

• Sling Orange, $35/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.
• Fubo TV Elite, $80/month.

ESPN3

ESPN3 is usually included with a service that carries standard ESPN/ESPN2.

• Sling Orange, $35/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN+

ESPN+ is a standalone sports programming service. It is not the same thing as regular ESPN that you get with cable or one of the live streaming services. Some content from ESPN, ESPN2, or other ESPN networks may be available on ESPN+, but often, it's content that is only available on ESPN+.

• ESPN+, $7/month.
• Disney Bundle, $14/month.

Fox

• Antenna, over the air, free.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

Fox Sports 1

• Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Fubo TV, $70/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

Longhorn Network

• Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.

Pac 12 Network

• Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• Fubo TV Pro, with Fubo Extra, $78/month.
• Fubo TV Elite, $80/month.

SEC Network

• Sling Orange, $35/month.
• Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
• Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
• YouTube TV, $65/month.
• Hulu+Live TV, $70.
• DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.
• Fubo TV Ultimate, $100/month.

You may have noticed that NBC and Peacock are not listed. That's because they don't have any games so far. That will change when Notre Dame begins playing at home.

Those networks, and the services on which they're carried, will cover all but seven of the 59 games. So what's the cheapest way to watch (or have access to) all 52 of the games this weekend?

That's complicated. No streaming service carries both CBS Sports Network and Longhorn Network. The cheapest service with Longhorn Network is Sling TV Orange with Sports Extra. That's $46/month. None include ESPN+, so that's another $7/month. Meaning that the $80 Fubo TV Pro plan is the cheapest option to add to those, giving you a total of $133/month for those three services to get all this week's games.

I'm not interested in all those games, meaning I can get by with Sling TV Orange with Sports Extra, totaling $46/month. If I want more, I'd need to get YouTube TV for $65/month to cover the games I care about. But if it's everything you want, plan to pay $133/month.

If college football is something that you want as a part of your Streaming Life, you have options. And they can get expensive.

MeTV gains and losses

I've been a fan of MeTV for a while. It's family friendly entertainment of classic TV shows from the 50s through the 80s.

If I have to explain what MeTV is, we are definitely of different generations.

Losses

Anyway, I saw where some TV stations were dropping MeTV. Tyler the Antenna Man mentioned it in a video the other day, and cited several reasons this is happening. The main reason? Money.

Some stations that are dropping MeTV belong to companies that own their own channels. Maybe not the same thing as MeTV, but still channels the parent company owns, and can get a lot cheaper.

[YouTube]

This may be happening even more as time goes on.

So, how do you watch MeTV if your local station drops it? Well, it'll cost you. But not all that much. And, in fact, if you already use one (or both) of the streaming services that carries MeTV, it won't cost you a cent more.

Gains

I posted a while back about MeTV being added to the Frndly.TV lineup. So, if you already subscribe to this family friendly $7/month service, you already have another way to watch MeTV. And, if you don't, you can -- again, it's just $7/month.

And there's another way that somehow crept past me. Philo is now carrying MeTV as well. I last looked over the Philo list of channels in July, and MeTV was not there. But it is now. If you want a good, inexpensive live streaming service that carries many popular cable channels (but no sports or news; at least very very little), then Philo is an excellent option. And now it also has MeTV.

Summary

Money, the reason for most things happening, is the reason that some stations are dropping MeTV, meaning some of you won't pick it up over the air. But there are inexpensive (but not free) ways to get it.

If local stations have removed MeTV from your channel lineup, you have options to get it back as part of your Streaming Life. And that's good news indeed.

Kinda Cutting the Cord? Tablo has advice.

If you have started streaming, but still subscribe to a cable service, you really haven't cut the cord.

My mother was like that for a while. She began streaming, and even had a Plex server running for her DVDs ripped to stream, but still kept her cable subscription for a while.

It took a while for her to realize and acknowledge that she was paying for a service she wasn't using. She did use Roku as a Comcast/Xfinity TV box using the Xfinity app, but eventually realized that some free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) services offered enough content of the type she wanted.

She did drop her cable bill from nearly $300 to less than $100 for cable and Internet, but later on realized she could do even better.

I'm not criticizing what she did, as her saving nearly $200 is a very good thing. And I never pushed, as she needed to be comfortable. So, it was kind of an insurance policy, but her cable watching was eventually non-existent.

Her experience is more common than you might realize. Or perhaps it's very similar to yours.

Tablo had an article this week talking about this. As you might expect, they pushed adding an antenna. That's understandable as they are in the over the air (OTA) TV recording, and that's antenna driven.

For times when you would normally reach for your cable remote to tune in to news, sports, or shows like Jeopardy, The Bachelor, or Abbott Elementary, you’ll want an Over-the-Air TV antenna.

With an antenna, you can watch major network channels like ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, the CW, PBS, and many more subchannels with awesome retro content, perfect for times when you don’t want to pick something specific to watch.

And I have to agree. I'm not in the business of selling DVRs, but if you can put up an antenna, that is a great way to watch TV for free.

I suggest reading the entire article, as it offers good suggestions about the equipment you have for streaming, as well as suggestions on how to watch free streaming content.

I think Tablo, or any quality antenna TV DVR, can help your Streaming Life be better. I has certainly done that for me.

How to record streaming content

So, how do you record streaming content?

Short answer: You can't.

Long answer: You cannot or may not record streaming content, for both technical and legal reasons.

For some who are new to streaming, this may not make much sense. After all, if you subscribe to Sling TV (for example; any streaming service could be the example), you get cloud DVR functionality. So why can't you use a Tablo or other similar device to record streaming content.

Well, let's think for a second. When you record content from Sling TV using their cloud DVR, where is that content stored? That's right, in the cloud. And what is the cloud? That's right, it's somebody else's computer. And it's computers owned or controlled by Sling TV (in our example).

That means that the folks who got the original stream from the network and formatted that content to work with streaming are the ones who made the recording. They got to it before it ever went out the Internet from their servers to your location. It was all done "in house."

What they did with the streaming content was essentially turn it into what Hulu has: content that was sent out live earlier but nor in an on-demand format rather than a live streaming format (yes, they're different).

In order for, say, Tablo to record the streaming content, you'd need to feed it from your Roku (or other streaming device) to your Tablo. And the content from an on demand stream is a different format than the content Tablo is designed to get, from an antenna.

Sure, to you, they seem the same. But they are not the same, and being able to record one format (the over the air content) is not at all the same as being able to record live streaming content.

Besides the technical issues, there are the legal issues. I won't go deep into this, but the summary of it is that Tablo (or other local DVR) can't legally record it. Over the air is one thing. Streaming is a very different other thing.

If I want to keep content for a long time (what passes for forever), I'll simply buy the content. I can still watch it live if I want, or I'll watch it after it comes available via the purchase.

You may have noticed that I didn't say flat out that it is totally impossible. The Short Version was a summary only. The Long Version never said it was 100% impossible. Rather, I mentioned the obstacles with it, including the legal issues.

I'm not one to suggest, nor offer assistance to, some who breaks the law. I'm saying don't do it. I won't help you get around the legal stuff with technical stuff. Others might, but I won't.

I want to enjoy my Streaming Life knowing that I'm doing the right thing, and not depriving anyone, even a large fat company, of what is legally theirs.