TV remote hacked to auto-mute [Archive]

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screamingflea

9-9-11, 1:50am

Awesome!! (http://articles.cnn.com/2011-09-07/tech/closed.caption.hack.maker_1_closed-captioning-richardson-snooki?_s=PM:TECH)

"A while ago it was Charlie Sheen. And then it was Sarah Palin. And then it was Donald Trump," said Richardson, who is a video producer for Make Magazine. "And after a while I realized there's sort of always someone who I don't really want to hear about." Like any good hacker, Richardson decided to come up with a fix: He developed a do-it-yourself TV remote control that will automatically mute the television when certain celebrity names are mentioned. [ ... ] The DIY gadget reads the closed-captioning transcript as it's aired and then automatically mutes the television for 30 seconds when it picks up certain words. That list of unspeakables can be re-programmed (so if you really love Sarah Palin, don't worry -- you could mute President Obama or Sen. Harry Reid references instead).

As long as that person's name keeps coming up, the remote keeps muting the TV. The first time he got it to work, Richardson said he "was in silent bliss for that 30 seconds I didn't have to hear about Kim Kardashian."

'Nuff said.

iris lily

9-9-11, 2:39am

Like.

Wildflower

9-9-11, 4:46am

CathyA

9-9-11, 7:45am

Wildflower.....I've been wondering the same thing about them!

puglogic

9-9-11, 9:53am

This sounds like an urban legend in the making. I can't see that this could be true.

But anyway, the problem is that 90% of television is mindless drivel like that. I would have to spend hours programming the thing to mute all of the things that I hate.

Instead, I just keep the TV off except for a couple of hours a week, and stay away from stations that pander to that crowd. And oh, the things I can do with all of those TV-watching hours! :)

Bastelmutti

9-9-11, 9:59am

I was thinking this sounded like an urban legend, too, but I would dearly love a remote that would automatically mute commercials during broadcast or automatically fast-forward DVR'd programs! I do prefer DVR or Netflix streaming to broadcast - I watch just what I want to and skip the commercials. Shows are much shorter that way, too.

iris lily

9-9-11, 11:05am

And what is it with those Kardashians???? What the he** are they famous for? I see and hear about them everywhere. They have no talents, don't act, don't sing, haven't done anything worthwhile for humanity that I know of. I can't figure out why anyone is interested in them..... Big butts, fake boobs, plastic surgery galore, and they're rich - I guess that's it.... :confused: :devil:

I would love to have one of those remote thingys! :+1:

One of my friends has a Hollywood connection, his niece is an agent and he recently spent some time there working for her. He says that the Kardashian's mother is hot property because she figured out a way to make her talentless, nobody daughters into a reality show that is kicking *ss in ratings. The mother is a genius.

Bastelmutti

9-9-11, 11:54am

Wasn't the mother married to Bruce Jenner?

rosarugosa

9-9-11, 9:42pm

I'm not even entirely sure how to turn our televesion on, and we don't have cable. I believe this helps protect my psyche from all kinds of unpleasantness. My Yahoo homepage often has articles about Kardashian stuff, but I never click on the articles, and so remain blissfully unaware.

Gina

9-9-11, 11:15pm

Wasn't the mother married to Bruce Jenner?
I believe she still is. He used to be handsome till he had cosmetic surgery on his nose.

The Kardasians' bio father, now dead, was one of O.J.'s lawyers.

And, no, I have never watched their show, and don't intend to. I believe that just like talentless Paris Hilton, one of the Kardasian girls got first noticed in a sex tape of some sort.

Selah

9-21-11, 12:58pm

I want one of these remotes...the guy could make a fortune selling them!

screamingflea

9-21-11, 2:14pm

Yeah, I slapped my forehead when he said he had posted his idea online for free. I think he'll come to regret that ..

leslieann

9-21-11, 2:22pm

I always thought the Kardashians were on Star Trek; you know, with those funny ears. Imagine my surprise!

The remote that I have works just fine. As long as I know where the power OFF button is, I am happy. I watch tv about two hours a month and so I can mute out whatever I don't want to hear but honestly, during those two hours I even watch the commercials. Helps me to remember WHY I don't watch tv.

Having said that, yeah, flea, that guy could make a bundle...if in fact it is not an urban legend. I like the idea for sure.

Spartana

9-21-11, 5:48pm

I always thought the Kardashians were on Star Trek; you know, with those funny ears. Imagine my surprise!

I always thought the same thing! Although they do look similair to each other except the Kardashian sister's wear more make-up ;-)!

puglogic

9-21-11, 9:22pm

I always thought the Kardashians were on Star Trek; you know, with those funny ears. Imagine my surprise!

ROFL. Live long and prosper, leslieann! :)