AnchorDesk's Jesse Berst Clueless On Internet TV: ZDNet AnchorDesk columnist Jesse Berst wrote a recent column about Microsoft, Oracle, and Sun's plans for Internet TV, whether it be for a WebTV, a Net TV, or a NC. Berst complains that the plans are flawed, but he does not provide a solution or a suggestion on what he would do. (Click Here To Read Berst's Clueless Column.) One particular item he complains about is a plan for putting a TV picture in a WebTV or Net TV screen display. Berst complains that the TV picture would be too small. Oh brother! Geez, it would be like a picture within a picture on one of those expensive TV sets, except the smaller TV picture would be within a WebTV-Net TV picture. Berst doesn't like it because it would be TOO SMALL. I would guess that he hasn't even seen it yet. I haven't seen the proposed TV picture within a WebTV-Net TV picture, but I would guess it would be like what I see everyday on my PC-TV computer system. Take a look at a possible next generation WebTV display with a TV picture in it.

Possible Next Generation WebTV
With A TV Picture?

I took a screen capture of a WebTV home page and inserted a doctored up TV window. Now, does this look bad? No, it doesn't look bad at all. The REAL THING will look much better. And if it's too small for Berst, will someone please buy a Big-Screen TV for him?? Please? (I had to reduce the size and the resolution of this graphic to make sure the graphic was not too large for your computer or webtv browser to download to your screen.) I would guess that Berst has never watched TV on his PC before. On my PC-TV, I do all of my computer stuff while a small resizable TV window is on. According to Berst, this is what Microsoft, Oracle, and Sun are proposing to do with their respective Internet TV set-top boxes. That is, while you are surfing the Net, you can have a small TV window on so you can see what is on the broadcast/cable/satellite side of your TV. It's like picture within a picture on one of those expensive TV sets where you can watch one channel and check out what's on another channel in the picture within a picture. If you like what you see in the little picture window, you can switch to that channel on the whole screen. Now, that's nothing new, is it?? This is what you will be able to do with an Internet TV. You can surf the Net, have a small TV window on so you can monitor what is on the TV side. If you like what is on the TV side, you can press a button on your remote control to switch over to the TV side. And then after watching a little bit on the boob tube side, you can then switch back to surf more of the web with the TV window back on (or off if you want to turn it off). [I'm sure if you have the right television set that you can do this without upgrading the webtv or going to a new "enhanced TV" technology that Berst is criticizing. So what else is new?] Even if you add some buttons or controls to the TV window, it will not look bad. But Berst seems to be a computer purist who would say: Don't cross-breed computers with TVs. Sorry, but the cross-breeding has already started.

Berst also complains about possible advertisements attached to the TV window. So what? What else is new? I doubt that the ads would be annoying. The ads could be like the static banners we have nowadays on Internet web pages, but perhaps more like the smaller mini-banner graphics. Or the ads could be like the moving text advertisements you see in those java/javascript applets or those moving text ads at the bottom of the screen shown during Spanish-language televised sporting events. If you watch soccer on a Spanish-language television station, then you know what I'm talking about. Or they could look like the little banner-like logos attached to game score graphics shown during other televised sporting events. Watch a baseball or football game and you'll see those ads. Are those advertisements annoying? I don't think so. Berst's complaint reminds me of the old days when Prodigy first came online with its older classic service that had banner advertisements in the lower bottom part of the screen. Pure computer online users whined and complained about the advertising. But nowadays, people clamor to sign up with LinkExchange or other banner exchange services to advertise on the Internet. So what else is new if there is some sort of advertising attached to a TV window on an Internet TV screen? You're going to see a regular television commercial in the TV window anyways. So what's the big deal? Take a look at the pseudo mini-banner that I made for MSNBC for the top of the TV window in the above graphic. Any advertising attached to a TV window will most likely not be as annoying as Berst thinks they will be.

And Berst is poo pooing all of this. I usually enjoy reading Berst's columns, but this particular column reads like Yet Another Computer Writer's Idiotic Comments About Internet TV. Comments and attitudes like those in Berst's column show that computer purists don't have a clue about Internet TV. Yes, computers will always be around, but the majority of the world is watching TV and not a computer monitor. Get a clue, Berst. THINK TV.

Coming Soon: Coming soon to this webtv net page is a commentary on FutureNet. I get a lot of mail from people asking about FutureNet. People would ask what is FutureNet, whether it's worthwhile, etc., etc., and whether I would let someone sponsor me into the FutureNet fraternity of Internet TV entreprenuers. This will actually be the second commentary on FutureNet. I previously wrote something about FutureNet, but that commentary got zapped during some housecleaning of this website. The kind webtv and pc-tv users who have followed this site from day one may remember that commentary tried to be fair. My perspective is that of an wary outsider. For those who are wondering, yes, I have actually talked to FutureNet folks (in person too!). But, no, I haven't signed up to be in anyone's downline.

Also coming soon will be some interesting questions I've received via email about the webtv as well as some other tidbits. That's all for now, folks!

Happy TV Watching!
Ruel