I'm a ReplayTV fan. Don't get me wrong: I'm not a TiVo-hater. I just like ReplayTV's extra benefits.

Now you're going to say, "TiVo can do everything ReplayTV can!" Granted, many of the things you can do with ReplayTV you can do with TiVo -- but it's not as easy.

If this is the first ReplayTV segment you've seen, read a couple of my previous ReplayTV articles.

• Turn your PC Into a ReplayTV Unit
• Burn ReplayTV to DVD

This time around I'm showing you how to stream any video you have on your PC to the ReplayTV unit in your living room, den, bedroom, or supermodels-only Jacuzzi pavilion.

Note: This process requires a lot of hard drive, but only temporarily. Back up your stuff first. You've been warned.

Software you'll need

First you must download and install these applications.

DVArchive

1. Download and install DVArchive.
2. Configure DVArchive by following the instructions in step 3 on this page.
3. Download and install Java 1.4.2.

RTVTools

1. If you haven't downloaded RTVTools, grab it here.
2. Extract RTVTools to its own directory.

TMPGEnc

1. Download and install TMPGEnc.
   
2. Download and copy qtreader.vfp to the installation directory. This is a plug-in that will let TMPGEnc convert QuickTime files.
   
3. Copy the two .mcf files from the /template subdirectory of RTVTools (see above) to the /Template subdirectory of TMPGEnc. These .mcf files are ReplayTV output templates.

VirtualDub
Download and install VirtualDub. You'll need this program only if you want to convert DivX movies.

Get all the codecs
Make sure you have all the proper codecs for the file types you'll be converting from.

Converting the files to MPEG-2

Now you can convert your file(s) to MPEG-2.

It's easy for most common file formats, but converting DivX and RealMedia files requires an extra step.

• If you aren't converting a DivX or RealMedia file, click here for instructions.
• If you're converting a DivX file, click here for instructions.
• If you're converting a RealMedia file, click here for instructions.