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From: pew@ew07.nas.nasa.gov (John A. Pew)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics,rec.video
Subject: Re: VCR comercial eliminator
Keywords: VCR
Message-ID: <898@amelia.nas.nasa.gov>
Date: 30 Aug 88 14:33:10 GMT
References: <257@ivucsb.UUCP> <16314@apple.Apple.COM>
Sender: news@amelia.nas.nasa.gov
Reply-To: pew@ew07.nas.nasa.gov (John A. Pew)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center
Lines: 37

In article <16314@apple.Apple.COM> lemke@apple.com.UUCP (Steve Lemke) writes:
>In article <257@ivucsb.UUCP> todd@ivucsb.UUCP (Todd Day <todd>) writes:
>>I just saw this ad in the June, 1988, issue of Video Magazine on page 43:
>>
>>Ad Zapper
>>Selective Recording Technology
>>VCR Commercial Eliminator
>
>Well, the other thing is, how many VCRs allow you to pause the recording when
>it is in unattended (ie: programmed) mode?  I don't think many do, and if this
>is the case, then this device (if it indeed just sends an infrared "pause" cmd
>to the VCR at the beginning and end of each commercial) would only work if you
>had started the recording with either the "play/record" buttons or the "quick/
>one-touch recording" button.  Not very useful if you're away (and it seems to
>me that if you were there you could practically do the job yourself, although
>I guess it would be nice to have something do it for you).

I got a brochure on the Ad Zapper a while back.  I don't have it in front of
me but the way it gets around the problem of the pause during programmed
control is that it has its own programmable remote.  Apparently, it is
somewhat similar to the universal remotes which are widely available.  You
do not use the programming feature of your VCR, rather you program the
supplied remote which you then place at a strategic point so that it
can turn on the VCR, put it in record mode, and then pause when appropriate.
It is even smart enough to know that most VCRs have a pause timeout, so
it will--if it believes that it is still commercial time and after the timeout
has been reached--take the VCR out of pause and then put it back into pause.

It doesn't claim to be perfect.  The brochure says that part of the program
can be lost, but the maximum program loss is 35 seconds.

I'll try to find the brochure and post it's contents.

---------------------
John Pew
NASA Ames Research Center
pew@ew07.nas.nasa.gov