I Want a Toy

Ok, I understand what my problem is.

I have been working very hard for a long time. I want a toy. I feel like I deserve a toy.

The problem is that there are no toys that I really need.

I could buy a new car, but my old car is quite suitable and running nicely. It's also eight years old which is longer than I usually keep a car, but I have one new car payment right now and am not really in a hurry to get another one. I have also noticed that between the new car payment for the van and the tuition for extended-day kindergarten for Katie and preschool two mornings a week for Julie that my unobligated income is about $900 / month less than it was at this time last year. That probably helps explain why money is stubbornly refusing to accumulate in my bank account.

I have a tablet that I'm quite happy with. And a large collection of laptop computers that I don't use that much any more since I got the tablet.

My desktop computer is a quad-core that does pretty much everything that I need it to do.

I have two cameras and a video camera that cover all of my photographic needs.

The TV in the bedroom is old, but works just fine. In fact, it works much better in many respects since we plugged it into the satellite box and started using that as the tuner. It doesn't have an HDMI input, but it's got a DVI input that is working fine with an HDMI to DVI converter, so that's a win.

When you start looking at replacement refrigerators (our current fridge is a bit over 16 years old, so it could decide to fail), you start to realize that you're trying very hard to find a toy you could justify buying.

I could always buy a guitar, I suppose, but I have enough guitars. (Yes, I understand that this is a heretical statement. :) ) I have guitars that I don't have time to play.

*sigh*

I'm considering getting a new DVR from DirecTV to replace the one non-DVR receiver in the house. But if I get a standard HD-DVR, they may send me an older model that is not as good as the receiver it will replace. If I get the new Genie HD-DVR, it will have five tuners, which may result in having to muck around with the other hardware in the house.

I am now off to the basement to see exactly what DirecTV put in there when they installed the dish two-and-a-half years ago. And we'll see what I find...

N+1

And having taken a good look at the DirecTV installation in the basement, I now see what my problem would be.

DirecTV uses a device called a SWM to support multiple tuners. Right now, I have five tuners: two in the HD-DVRs and one in the HD receiver.

I would like to swap out the HD receiver for the new Genie HD-DVR. It will tune and record five programs at a time and has twice the capacity of one of my current HD-DVRs. But I'd like to keep the HD-DVRs, because I like them, they work well, and there's no such thing as too much recording capacity. :)

So subtract one tuner and add five and you get nine tuners.

Apparently, the SWM for my installation is built into the dish on the roof outside.

It supports eight tuners. That would be one less than nine.

Solutions appear to exist, but will be entertaining.

Honestly, if there were a way to just disable one tuner on the Genie, I'd be fine. :) (But that doesn't appear to be possible...)