So last week we served up some sites and programs you could use to watch television programming on your computer or mobile device.  While some people have certainly embraced the glory of streaming internet television, some people still prefer getting their fix from the 60″ flatscreen holding court in their living room. But what if you could get all that lovely internet TV on your actual TV?  Without the pesky bother of paying for cable?  Well, look no farther.  Here are a handful of options you can use to accomplish just that feat.

Just connect them!

Lots of newer televisions and computers come with the inputs for proper connection built right in: VGA, DVI, S-Video, HDMI… with a paltry $30 investment in a nice long cable, you can connect your computer directly to your television and treat it like an extra-large display. Newer operating systems (Tiger through Snow Leopard for Mac, and Windows 7 for PC) even have custom interfaces like Front Row and Media Center for watching videos. Some even support the use of remote control devices.  If your hardware is new enough, this might be the cheapest and simplest option. A tip: take photos of the ports on your television and computer, take them in to your local electronics store, and make sure you walk out with the proper adapters for your system. And keep in mind, that may have to include audio cables.

Game Systems

If you enjoy video games as well as videos, you might have a streaming option available to you already. Most of the newest major gaming consoles have some option for streaming video through their internet connection to your television.  The Nintendo Wii has a Netflix “channel,” so you can enjoy all the titles available to Watch Instantly. The Sony PlayStation 3 also has the Netflix option, with other portals to MLB.tv, Hulu+, and additional Sony content. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has Netflix, ESPN3, and Zune content portals, and will soon feature Hulu+ as well.  You should note, however, that in addition to the cost of the console, Xbox requires you to pay for a yearly Xbox Live membership in order to access any of its online features.  And of course, Netflix and Hulu+ are only available to users who have paid for a membership.  While using your gaming console (either with an online account for video streaming or the system’s built-in browser on a site like YouTube) to watch video can be easy, it’s not particularly cost-effective unless you already own the system or will use it just as much for gaming as watching.

Magic Boxes

If you’re not much of a gamer, but connecting your TV directly to your computer is impractical, one of the “magic box” systems might be perfect for you. The two most popular are the Roku player and AppleTV. The boxes are separate components, like a cable box or DVD player, that you connect to your TV and an internet source (both have the option to connect via ethernet or wirelessly.  They stream content from either your PC or the internet through a series of “channels.” AppleTV, of course, gives you full access to the downloads and rentals available on the iTunes Store, as well as YouTube.  Roku has access to Hulu+ and Amazon Connect. Both boxes support Netflix Watch instantly.  The AppleTV has MLB.tv, while Roku has the UFC and NHL.  Both boxes have NBA GameTime. Just like the gaming consoles, subscription fees apply for all streaming content, but since these boxes are single purpose, the hardware is cheaper (AppleTV is $99, Roku runs $60-$100).

Boxee

As the name implies, Boxee could technically qualify as a “magic box,” since you can buy the system from them directly on their website for $199.  However, anyone with a spare computer and a little technical know-how can make their own Boxee. The software, which actually does the heavy lifting in a Boxee system, is free. What it provides is a streamlined, easy-to-use interface for navigating different “channels” of content, from Netflix to YouTube to your computer’s hard drive. It has an excellent search function that lets you search for specific content across all channels, and even a Watch Later feature that lets you save programming to a list so you don’t have to search for it again. Boxee is also the most social of the streaming options, since it links your activity to your login and lets you share it with friends in the form of recommendations. If you have a spare computer that will successfully connect (à la the first section) to your television and feel comfortable following the instructions on their website, creating your own Boxee is the least expensive way to get a great user interface for watching internet TV on your TV.  If you choose the DIY-route, you’re only paying for cables and content subscriptions and rentals.

So those are the methods we’ve come across to watch streaming online content on your TV.  What have you guys been using to do the job?

Image courtesy of netflix.com

Open up terminal ( it’s in your application folder under utilities, you can also just type terminal in spotlight).
Enter this in the window:
defaults write com.apple.dock no-glass -boolean YES; killall Dock

The dock should close out and open up in 2D mode. There you have it, a short and sweet hack. If you ever want to change it back all you have to do is set the Boolean value to NO in that command.

I’ll admit that this is a little more techie than some people can handle, but it’s really only 12 steps!  Once you find the right software to download (explained in the link below) it’s a pretty easy thing to get working.

Basically you install OS X from a DVD, then the drivers, cross your fingers and everything should “Just Work”. YMMV

How to install OS X on an HP Mini

HP Mini 110 Product Page