The MSN Remote Record service has been updated to support the newly released Windows Vista!

 

The MSN Remote Record service allows Media Center users to find TV shows and schedule recordings from web.  To use the service, you need:

 

·    A Windows Live ID (Passport).  If you don’t already have one, you can sign up for free on http://www.passport.net.

·    A Windows Vista Home Premium or Ultimate edition PC with TV tuner.  Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 is also still supported.

·    An “always on” Internet connection.

 

To get started, go to http://tv.msn.com/tv/rr/rrsetup.aspx on your Media Center, sign in with your Windows Live ID, and install the MSN Remote Record software.

 

Then, you can go to http://tv.msn.com/tv/guide on any computer, sign in with your Windows Live ID, and schedule recordings for your favorite shows.  Just click on any show in the TV Listings grid.

 

Then click on the “Record This Show” or “Record Series” button on the Program Details window that pops up.

 

The request to schedule the recording will be sent to your Media Center and you will receive a confirmation back within seconds.

 

You can also view your list of scheduled recordings and completed recordings from the web as well.  Just click the “Your recordings” link in the Confirmation window or on the left side of the TV Listings grid.

 

In addition to adding support for Vista, we have also recently exposed more ways for you to access TV Listings and Remote Record:

 

MSN TV Listings gadget for Windows Live.  The MSN TV Listings gadget lets you see listings for your favorite channels in a compact format on your Windows Live homepage.  In early January, the MSN TV Listings gadget for Windows Live was added to the gadget directory.  Now we have extended the service to support Remote Record as well.  To use it, go to http://www.live.com, click on “Personalized page”, and click on the “Next” button.  Select Add stuff…Entertainment & Media…TV & Video…MSN TV Listings, and click the Add button. 

                                                                                                                                                   

Click on a show in the listings grid and click the Record show link to schedule a recording.

  

Choose Record single show or Record entire series:

 

Then, you will get a confirmation that your recording has been scheduled:

  

MSN TV Series and Episode Pages.  MSN TV Series and Episode Pages provide rich content on popular TV series including photo galleries, episode information, news, and cast and crew information.  In December, the service was updated to allow users to do Remote Record from within the pages.  To see an example, go to http://tv.msn.com/tv/series/desperate-housewives.  The service support friendly URLs, so you can just add the name of the TV series you want to view after http://tv.msn.com/tv/series/ and use dashes in place of spaces.  In box on the top-right corner of the page, you get information on upcoming airings of the show and even schedule recording of the show without even leaving the page!

  

MSN TV Tags in MSNBC.  The MSN TV Tags service will be launching on MSNBC soon.  Within MSNBC article pages, you can simply hover over “tagged” TV show names to see the time and channel of the next airing, and from there you can schedule recordings as well.  Look for the green text links in articles on http://www.msnbc.msn.com.

 

More details about the MSN Remote Record service are available at http://tv.msn.com/help/tv/rrfaq.

 

Enjoy the new services!

 

Thanks for the update.  Does this version support media center users outside the US (e.g. the UK)?

Thanks

i would also like to kno if it does, but when i tried to enter my post code where it said zip it didnt recgonise it so my guess is no. its a shame really, looks like we will carry on using WebGuide, not that its a bad program, its very good. but it would of been nice to test out the competition.

I am missing something?  When I go to http://tv.msn.com/tv/rr/rrsetup.aspx from my Vista Media Center and sign-in, I don't see any links to download the software.

Which browser were you using to access http://tv.msn.com/tv/rr/rrsetup.aspx?

For the installation process, you will need to use Internet Explorer.

Thank you!

Peter

Currently, only US and Canada postal codes are supported.

I'm using IE 7.  On that page I see links for "Learn more about MSN Remote Record" and "Set-up Reminder".  What should I see?  Can you post the URL to the download?  Any chance this wouldn't work on 64bit systems like mine?

It does work on 64 bit systems, but there are issues with the website and (on my machine at least) the install process.  Try the following as a workaround and let us know how it works:

1. Create a registry key using regedit "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Service\Remote Record".
2. Launch IE in 64 bit mode (Start->All Programs-> Internet Explorer (64-bit)).  Navigate to
http://tv.msn.com/tv/rr/rrsetup.aspx and install as normal.

You can try it without creating the key, but if you get a message "The installer failed to connect with the MSN Remote Record service. Please make sure your Internet connection is working and try installing again."  The message is misleading in this case, as it never tries to connect - the real reason for the failure on my machine, at least, is this missing key (or more technically the key was not created).

As for what the site should look like - a button with the text 'Install Remote Record' should be visible.  If it doesn't work for you, log in to an MSN website with passport then try this link: https://mediaevent.msntv.msn.com/RemoteRecordWS/DownloadRRClient.ashx?DeviceType=MCE&DeviceVersion=5.0.

Steve

 

STILL can't use MSN RR to schedule HD recording!?!?!?!?!?!?

WebGuide (www.asciiexpress.com) for MC on Vista is infinitely better than MSN Remote Record!

Opening the link in the 64-bit version of IE7 did the trick.  No need to change the registry.  Thanks sbone!

To install it successfully on x64, you WILL need the registry key.  You can get the DL offered via the 64-bit IE trick - a successful install requires the registry key.  I forwarded my data on the issue to Aaron Stebner from Microsoft who posted a prompt, detailed blog entry as to the causes for these various problems on x64.  The URL is:

http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/02/05/how-to-workaround-install-problems-with-msn-remote-record-on-windows-vista-x64.aspx

Anyone publishing software for Media Center should take a look at that - lots of info there, including a useful track-back link in the comments.  Thanks for posting the nitty-gritty, Aaron!

Steve

I'm having problems with this.  My Media Center is set up to receive OTA HD through my ATI 650 TV Wonder.   Vista Media Center assigns the HD channels in the 1000 range (eg. 1021 for CBS).  However, when I go to the MSN web site, there is no option to configure this.  Choosing Antenna in the setup page only gives SD channels, and the only other options are cable and satellite.  In the FAQ section of MSN TV, there is a question regarding whether MSN Record supports HDTV, but the answer they provide does not give any insight into whether this is supported, only that Vista supports HDTV cards.

I've been asking MSN for more than a year about the status of supporting HD listings, and they have always been extremely ambiguous. I use OTA HD constantly, so for remote scheduling, HD support is MANDATORY!

I've since discovered WebGuide (www.asciiexpress.com), and it is far better and more functional than MSN RR will ever be! Not only can you view schedules & initiate recording of SD & HD, but you can also WATCH recorded & live TV from your MC with WebGuide via LAN or Internet! You can also get to all your music, pics, videos. Give it a try.

I'm not associated w/asciiexpress, just a very satisfied customer!

-dave

Yes.  The limitations on OTA HD are really, really annoying.  However, as posted elsewhere in these forums, similar to the workarounds for getting the HD listings to appear in Media Center (by telling it you've got cable and editing the channel listing), you can do something similar for Remote Record. 

1. Choose "Change provider" at the top of the tv.msn.com page.

2. Select "cable"

3. Choose a cable provider with HD listings, etc.

4. Now, back on the main listings page, scroll through the list of the hundreds of cable stations to find the HD channel you want to record (for example, WGNDT).  Record as normal.  Even though the station number is wrong, Media Center is smart enough to look at the station call letters instead of the channel number.

Hi,

We recent updated MSN Remote Record to support ATSC.  The web page will display listings for the analog channels since ATSC listings are not currently available from the data provider we use, but when you schedule recordings they will be recorded on the corresponding digital channel on your MCE if you have configured an ATSC tuner.  We hope that you find this useful and you enjoy using the MSN Entertainment site which including articles, news, photo galleries, and coverage of awards shows such as the Golden Globes, Oscars, and Emmies in addition to TV listings and Remote Record.

Thank you!

Peter Wu