Microsoft announced at CEDIA that customers will now be able to add digital cable tuners with a CableCARD™ to any Windows® 7-based PC with Windows® Media Center. The Digital Cable Advisor tool is being provided by Microsoft to analyze consumer PCs to ensure that they are capable of a quality digital cable viewing experience.
The Digital Cable Advisor measures system parameters such as CPU speed, RAM, graphics card support for hardware acceleration, and digital connection capabilities. If the PC meets the minimum requirements, the tool enables digital cable functionality on the PC. Then, users can add a digital cable tuner with a CableCARD™. With a digital cable subscription from a TV service provider, users can access cable pay-TV, including premium content. This post describes the steps to assess and enable this experience on a Windows 7 PC.
Digital Cable Advisor is available as a downloadable application within Windows Media Center. You can easily locate the tool by opening Windows Media Center and navigating to the Extras Gallery within Extras (see Figure 1).
Figure 1 – Navigating to the Extras Gallery in Windows Media Center
Within the Extras Gallery, you will find a number of offerings from Microsoft and Microsoft partners. Locate and select Digital Cable Advisor (see Figure 2).
Figure 2 – Locating the Digital Cable Advisor in the Extras Gallery
Note: If you do not see the Digital Cable Advisor in the Extras Library, then confirm that automatic downloads are enabled in your Media Center Settings (Settings | General | Automatic Download Options). You can also choose the Download Now option from this location.
When you select Digital Cable Advisor, you will be greeted with an introduction page and the opportunity to install the tool (see Figure 3). Please ensure that you are not running on battery power when installing and running this tool. Some of the tests will not run on battery power alone.
Figure 3 – Introduction page
After you select Install, you will be prompted to confirm whether to download the tool to start the download process (see Figure 4.)
Figure 4 – Download confirmation
After selecting Download, the End User License Agreement for the tool is displayed. Read the agreement and select Accept to download the tool (see Figure 5).
Figure 5 – EULA for Digital Cable Advisor
An additional elevated-privilege prompt is displayed, then the download process begins.
Please be sure that you are not running other applications when running the Digital Cable Advisor. Digital Cable Advisor will start automatically after it has been downloaded.
If any issues occurred during the download process or if the tool doesn’t automatically start, navigate to Extras | Extras Library in Windows Media Center to run the tool. If the tool was not successfully downloaded, try to download it again from Extras | Extras Gallery.
When you start the tool, the introduction page is displayed (see Figure 6).
Figure 6 – Introduction page
Select Next to start the tool and display the license agreement. This second set of terms relates to the updates that will be made to the system if it meets the minimum requirements. Read and agree to the terms of the license agreement to continue (see Figure 7).
Figure 7 – Terms of Service for system updates
After agreeing to the license terms, you are ready to test your system. Select Start Test to analyze your system (see Figure 8). If the system has already been configured to support a digital cable experience, a notice is displayed and the process is completed.
Note: Close all applications prior to running Digital Cable Advisor.
Figure 8 – Starting the test
The tool may take several minutes to run the tests to analyze the system. The tool's progress is indicated above the Start Test button (see Figure 9).
Figure 9 – Running the test
The tool will notify the user when the analysis of the system is complete (see Figure 10). Select Next to display the results of the system assessment.
Figure 10 – Completing the system analysis
If the system does not meet the minimum requirements, the results will indicate where the system has failed (see Figures 11 and 12).
Note: Most modern PCs and graphics cards provide the necessary level of support to provide a quality digital cable viewing experience. If the system fails any of the required categories, note the results and consult with a qualified computer reseller to upgrade the necessary components.
Figure 11 – Example of a graphics failure
Figure 12 – Example of multiple failures
If the system does meet the minimum requirements, you will be notified and prompted to update the system settings (see Figure 13). Select Update System Settings to configure the system to support a digital cable viewing experience on your PC.
Figure 13 – Updating the system settings
Once the PC has been updated with the necessary configurations to support a digital cable experience, a congratulations page is displayed along with additional considerations for ensuring the highest-quality viewing experience (see Figure 14.)
Figure 14 – Congratulations page
If the system does not meet the minimum requirements, update the necessary components and run the Digital Cable Advisor tool again from Extras | Extras Library (see Figure 15).
Figure 15 – Extras Library
After successfully completing the configuration process, you will still need to obtain a digital cable tuner, a CableCARD™ from your cable service provider, and a premium content subscription.
To uninstall Digital Cable Advisor
- Open the Control Panel.
- Under Programs, click Uninstall a program.
- Locate and right-click Digital Cable Advisor, then click Uninstall.
Troubleshooting
Problem: Tool hangs during assessment.
If you experience a hang while the test try the following:
- Check to ensure that you are plugged into a power source and not running on battery power only.
- Close the tool, re-launch Media Center and rerun the tool.
- If the problem persists close Media Center and attempt to run the Windows Experience Assessment.
a. Navigate to Control Panel | Performance Information and Tools (easily found via search for “Windows Experience Index”).
b. Select Windows Experience Index.
c. Select re-run assessment.
d. After completion, start Media Center and rerun the Digital Cable Advisor.
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