Posted on 05/05/2015 4:53:03 PM PDT by dayglored
Windows Media Center has come to the end of the road with Windows 10.
Microsoft’s next client operating system won’t include Redmond’s media software, for recording and playing TV, music and video.
General manager for OSG data and fundamentals Gabriel Aul Tweeted:
We can confirm that due to decreased usage, Windows Media Center will not be part of Windows 10.For those who are using Windows Media Center, Aul said Microsoft would deliver a “DVD option” in an update later this year.
— Gabriel Aul (@GabeAul) May 4, 2015
Windows Media Center debuted as Windows XP Media Center Edition in 2002, with subsequent evolution through the following versions of Windows. Its centrepiece was the ability to connect television receivers (as cards or USB peripherals) to the PC, which could then use its hard drives to provide DVR-style capabilities. The software also offered options for handling a user's photos, home videos, music etc.
The idea was that the PC became the digital centerpiece of your home. In the event, however, most people found it easier to use dedicated DVR tellyboxes, often supplied by pay-TV companies, and Media Center was further eclipsed as VoD and streaming became common...
(Excerpt) Read more at theregister.co.uk ...
That’s unfortunate. It was a draw for the system. Great for those who just want to watch a movie without needing bells and whistles.
People will still be able to watch their recorded videos and music without Media Center, right? Or, maybe that is why its being discontinued, because they DID?
Hey don’t worry, before the year is over there will be a huge service pack to make it all better.
lol
Windows Media Center is different than Windows Media Player, isn’t it? WMP stands alone with no necessary connection to the internet. They rarely if ever offer updates for it. So we should be able to continue using it to play our stored videos and music, correct?
Good question. I assume the content will be around, just not playable through the media center system software. But not having used it myself, honestly I'm not sure.
I think it was one of Microsoft's attempts to create a market with a Windows PC that didn't want or need a Windows PC.
That’s why we wait.
There should still be a way to do that, just not using the Media Center software system.... I would surely hope so.
Never mind! Tanks anyway. :)
“We can confirm that due to decreased usage, Windows Media Center will not be part of Windows 10.”
Yes, quite different.
There’s always K-Lite with its Media Player Classic.
WMC is more interactive with the internet I think. I just use WM Player.
With the advent of smart tvs, however, there's much less of a ‘need’ for a media center version of Windows. And to get media center working on 8 required too many hoops to leap through.
All in all, I think there's still a big hole in the market that Roku, Apple TV, etc have utterly missed and there's still room in the market for a media box for tvs. But to do it right would require a mountain of cash and a corral of lawyers.
Man, have you sure got THAT right!
I will miss it. It’s been amazingly convenient to watch LIVE TV right on my computer, courtesy of Windows Media Center. And, thanks to TCM, I have recorded over 1,000 movies from the Windows Media Center “TV” to DVDs (using Windows DVD Maker), creating quite an extensive library of classic movies.
Yes, I will miss it.
“I think there’s still a big hole in the market that Roku, Apple TV, etc have utterly missed and there’s still room in the market for a media box for tvs. But to do it right would require a mountain of cash and a corral of lawyers.”
Yep...
Valve Steam Machine, coming Nov 2015
http://store.steampowered.com/sale/steam_machines
come to think of it, I don’t think I ever started Media Center. lol
amazingly convenient to watch LIVE TV right on my computer
Yeah. Me too...
Windows Media Center was for playing live TV through your desktop system with a tuner card. It had some serious performance issues, and while tolerable, did not ever really live up to its promise.
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