How To Find Video Programming to Download to a PC

Watching video programming over the Internet is the latest big thing. Internet video is popular because it's a form of on-demand programming. The web is a tremendous storehouse for all kinds of videos, and you can watch them whenever you want on your own PC.

Understanding Streaming Video

Internet video uses streaming video technology. Unlike downloading a video file, streaming video lets you start viewing as soon as you click the PLAY button -- you don't have to wait for the entire program to download before it starts.

Streaming video works by enabling access to the first part of the video file before the last part is fully downloaded. This process eliminates the long wait associated with typical video file downloads, since streaming video files begin playback almost immediately.

A good way to think of streaming video versus normal file downloading is to envision a glass placed under a faucet. Normally, you'd turn on the faucet, fill the glass with water, and then take your drink. This is the way normal file downloads work; you can't access the file until the file is completely downloaded. With streaming video, you access the file before the download is done. This is the equivalent of placing a straw in the glass of water as it's being filled, and drinking through the straw.

In fact, if you continue drinking through the straw, the glass might never fill up. This would be the equivalent of streaming a live broadcast, where there really isn't a file that gets completely downloaded. It's almost the same as drinking directly from the faucet, except that the glass acts as a kind of "buffer" in case you drink slower or faster than the water pours from the faucet.

Naturally, streaming video plays better when you have a faster Internet connection. With a slower connection, it not only takes longer to start the video playback, but you may experience some unexpected pauses or stuttering while the video is playing.

What's Online

All kinds of on-demand programming is available online: TV shows, music videos, live and recorded concerts, news stories, weather reports, sports highlights, live sporting events, movie clips and trailers, full-length movies and more. And let's not forget the latest "viral videos." These are video clips of any sort that take on a life of their own once they're distributed online. Viral videos are passed around from friend to friend through email, just because they're fun or interesting. Some online video programming is available free of charge. Other programs have to be paid for before you can watch them. Fortunately, most of this paid programming is affordable -- just a few dollars to watch the latest episode of your favorite TV show, for example.

AOL Video on Demand

One of the best sources for streaming video is AOL Video On Demand, which has lots of good content:

• Featured Daily Videos in a variety of categories -- Music, Television, Celebrity News and more

• What's Hot on AOL, including the Top 11 Music , In2TV and Viral Videos

• Featured Channels, which highlight video programming by channel, including TMZ.com (celebrity news), AOL Music on Demand and AOL Television.

And then there's the Video Catalog. This is a huge database of thousands of videos from across the AOL websites, organized by category: Comedy, News, Sports, Games, Health, Travel, Homework Help and more.

Once you find the video you want, playing it is a snap. All you have to do is click the link, and the video automatically begins playing. If you don't like viewing in a small window, click the Full Screen button to view a bigger version. (Then double-click the screen to exit Full Screen mode.) Once the video starts, you can pause, rewind or fast-forward the program, using the controls under the video window.

In2TV

If you're a fan of classic television, you'll love AOL Television's In2TV. This site offers full-length episodes of all favorite classics, including Alice, Babylon 5, Chico and the Man, Eight is Enough, F Troop, Falcon Crest, Growing Pains, Kung Fu, Perfect Strangers, Sisters, Spenser for Hire, The Fugitive, Welcome Back Kotter, and Wonder Woman -- for free.

AOL Hi-Q Video

When you're watching on-demand videos on a big monitor -- or on your living room television --you need a higher quality picture than what you get with most streaming video services. To that end, you should check out AOL Hi-Q Video, which delivers full-screen, DVD-quality videos over any broadband Internet connection.

The programming available on Hi-Q covers a broad gamut. You'll find classic TV shows, music videos, movie trailers and more. Hi-Q videos look great, even on a big-screen TV, and they're free too.

AOL Music on Demand for Media Center

Streaming video on your PC screen is nice, but it's even better when you can watch it on your living room TV. To do this, you need to connect a PC to your TV. The best way to go is with a Windows Media Center PC, which is designed for living room and home theater use. With a Media Center PC, you have access to AOL Music on Demand for Media Center, which is part of Media Center's Online Spotlight. AOL Music on Demand offers all the latest music videos, in-studio AOL Sessions performances and select performances from the Network Live concert series. And all these videos are optimized for viewing on a big-screen TV.

Michael Miller is a writer and commentator on technology and digital lifestyle topics.