Recording your favorite television shows from your Dish Network or DirecTV Satellite TV or Cable service, then watching them when it is convenient for you, was the promise of VCRs. However, that promise was never truly fulfilled. Few of us, including myself, could ever set the clock on a typical VCR, or figure out the programming routine to have the VCR "wake up" and record the correct channel at the chosen hour. One time, I actually dug out the instruction manual and tried to set my VCR to record the last episode of Seinfeld while I was away. Inevitably, I forgot to put a blank tape in the machine and ended up with nothing to show for my efforts. I, for one, believe that most Video Cassette Recorders spent their entire existence only playing prerecorded tapes and flashing 12:00 from their front panel.

Thankfully, Digital technology has made it possible to realize the original promise of VCRs. Now, with the addition of a Digital Video Recorder, or DVR, and an Interactive Program Guide to your Dish Network or DirecTV Satellite TV Receiver or Cable Box, everyday recording of favorite programs is within the reach of even the most technologically challenged among us.

The DVR system is simple and intuitive. You find programs for recording by scrolling through an on-screen guide which displays channels and times in a familiar grid format. Then you select the show you want to record with a single button on your remote. That