Oct
26
Watching TV from outside the US or anywhere…
If you haven’t guessed by now, I do not live in the US. I live in Peru and occasionally miss some sporting events and TV shows that are not broadcast here. A slingbox, roku, boxee or something of that nature is not an option. HULU/Netflix/Amazon seem determined to block just about everyone, even those in the US: cell phone users, people who have certain providers of services, etc. While I have a satellite dish from Claro(formerly Tel-Mex), there are many shows and sporting events that I can’t watch. There are a few sites out there that allow you to view live streams of events and games, but I wanted something better. The problem with the streaming sites is the spamming of pop-up ads and the hit your limited bandwidth takes because of it and the lack of reliability of the streams themselves. In the past I have recommended this method to friends, but I like my new way better!
So… If you are not technically savvy or just too lazy to try, ignore what follows… my guide to unlimited free TV access from just about anywhere! First, to anyone who wants to say this is illegal, WRONG! Viewing streamed shows is not illegal, only providing them. Thus, the never ending whack-a-mole game ensues.
OK, you have two options. Both involve downloading FREE software and installing it(StreamTorrent is open-source, SoPcast is not). You may need to open or unblock some ports in your router and or software firewalls as well. Do a google search for ‘how to open ports’ you will see a list of various sites offering expertise on the process. Here is a link to the most comprehensive site on the web: http://portforward.com/guides.htm They also have a nifty utility to verify that you have properly opened the port.
The coolest thing about them is you can output the video through your HDMI port on your computer(if it has one) to your HDTV, if you have enough bandwidth, you can even get 1080p quality. If you don’t watch to mess with more cables, check out this post: http://saboraselva.com/blog/?p=835
Here are two youtube videos to walk you through the process: Without HDMI port on your computer and with.
There are numerous internet forums to facilitate your viewing experience, my person favorite is:
http://www.myp2pforum.eu/forum.php
Option 1:
StreamTorrent. It’s an open source P2P(peer-to-peer) streaming software that allows you to view live and previously broadcast content. As of this post, this is the most recent build, linked below.
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/File-Sharing/Stream-Torrent.shtml
Once you have it installed, do a google search for ‘stream torrent links’
The links will appear like this: st:// followed by a long string of seemingly random gibberish. Once you have installed the software, clicking on a streamtorrent link will open a video player on your computer screen. After a brief period of buffering, you will be good to go and enjoying your event, show or whatever it is you want to watch.
Option 2:
Sopcast. It’s also free, but not open source. It is much more widely used than StreamTorrent, but everyone has their favorite. SopCast has been around for a few years longer and has a better base of support. As of this post the latest version is 3.2.9.
Download here: http://www.sopcast.com/download/
Once you have it installed, do a google search for ‘SopCast links’ or ‘SopCast channels’
The links will appear like this: sop:// followed by a long string of seemingly random gibberish. Once you have installed the software, clicking on a SopCast link will open a video player on your computer screen. After a brief period of buffering, you will be good to go and enjoying your event, show or whatever it is you want to watch.
