Windows Media Center brings together all your favorite entertainment for you to enjoy on your PC, on your TV or on the go. Recording options for a series Setting It Up Getting Started Beyond the Basics Sign up for the Exploring Windows newsletter and get the latest tips, tricks, and news for Windows XP and Media Center.

Setting up recording options

Default recording settings

1. Press the Green Start Button on your remote to open the Media Center Start menu, and then select Settings.

2. On the Settings page, select TV.

3. On the TV Settings page, select Recorder.

4. On the Recorder Settings page, select Recording Defaults.

5. On the Recording Defaults Settings page, make your choice for each option:

Setting	What it controls	Options	More info
Keep	Controls how long your Media Center PC stores new recordings.	Until space needed For 1 week Until I watch Until I delete	Because computers have limited storage space, the longer you save shows and the more shows you record, the fewer shows Media Center can store. Until space needed helps ensure that your Media Center PC will not run out of space.
Quality	Controls the quality level Media Center uses to record TV shows.	Best Better Good Fair	Higher quality levels provide a better picture, but use more storage space. To store as many shows as possible, choose the lowest quality setting you find acceptable.
Start when possible	Controls recording start time prior to scheduled start.	On time 1 minute before 2 minutes before 3 minutes before 4 minutes before	Your Media Center PC can start recording a show before the scheduled start time, if it is not already recording a different show. To always start recording at the scheduled time, choose On time. Or, start recording early by choosing anywhere from 1 minute before to 4 minutes before the program is scheduled to start.
Stop when possible	Controls how long your Media Center PC records after the scheduled ending of a show, if it does not need to immediately begin recording a different show.	On time 1 minute after 2 minutes after 3 minutes after 4 minutes after	This helps to ensure that Media Center records the entire show if a show starts-and therefore ends-late because it is pre-empted, or if a sporting event runs longer than scheduled. To always stop recording at the scheduled time, choose On time. To record past the scheduled time, choose anywhere from 1 minute after to 4 minutes after the program is scheduled to end.
Preferred Audio Language	Determines which language Media Center records when multiple languages are available.	Choose the language you prefer Media Center to record when multiple languages are available.	Some shows may air in multiple languages.
Show Type	Controls the type of episodes of newly scheduled series Media Center records.	Live First run First run and rerun
Channels	Controls whether Media Center records shows when they are broadcast on any channel or only when they are broadcast on the channel specified.	Any Channel One channel only	Often, old episodes of a series air in syndication on other channels. Choose Any channel to record these syndicated episodes, or choose One channel only to record only episodes airing on the channel you designate.
Airtime	Controls whether Media Center records episodes only at the original airtime (select Specific time), multiple times per day (select Anytime), or only once per day.	Specific time Anytime Anytime, once per day	If the same episode of a series you are recording is aired more than once a day, select Anytime, once per day to allow Media Center to record an episode that does not conflict with other recordings.
Keep up to	Controls how many episodes of a program Media Center keeps before deleting the oldest episode.	As many as possible 10 recordings 7 recordings 6 recordings 5 recordings 4 recordings 3 recordings 2 recordings 1 recording

6. On the Recording Defaults Settings page, select Save.

Media Center will use the specified recording settings for all new recordings. Any series that you have previously scheduled to record will continue to use the previous recording settings.

Advanced recording settings

1. Press the Green Button on your remote to open the Media Center Start menu.
2. On the Media Center Start menu, select My TV.

3. On the My TV page, select Guide.

4. On the Guide page, select the TV show you want to record.

5. On the Program Info page, select Advanced Record.

6. On the Advanced Record Settings page, make your choice for each option:

Setting	What it controls	Options	More info
Frequency	Controls how often Media Center records the show.	Record single show Record series	To record only a single episode of the show, choose Record single show. To record all future episodes of the same series, choose Record Series.
Stop	Controls how long Media Center records after the scheduled ending of the show.	On time 5 minutes after 10 minutes after 15 minutes after 30 minutes after 1 hour after 90 minutes after 2 hours after 3 hours after	If a show starts–and therefore ends–late because it was pre-empted, or if a sporting event runs longer than scheduled, use this setting to ensure that Media Center continues to record the show after the scheduled ending.
Quality	Controls the quality level Media Center uses to record TV shows.	Best Better Good Fair	Higher quality levels provide a better picture, but use more storage space. To store as many shows as possible, choose the lowest quality setting you find acceptable.
Keep	Controls how long your Media Center PC stores new recordings.	Until space needed For 1 week Until I watch Until I delete 4 minutes after	Because computers have limited storage space, the longer you save shows and the more shows you record, the fewer shows Media Center can store. Until space needed helps ensure that your Media Center PC will not run out of space.
Keep up to	Controls how many episodes of a series your Media Center keeps before deleting the oldest episode.	As many as possible 10 recordings 7 recordings 6 recordings 5 recordings 4 recordings 3 recordings 2 recordings 1 recording	This setting is available only for recorded series.
Channels	Controls whether Media Center records an episode of a series when it is broadcast on any channel, or only when it is aired on the specified channel.	Any channel One channel only	This setting is available only for recorded series. Often, old episodes of a series are aired in syndication on other channels. Choose Any channel to record syndicated episodes on other channels, or choose One channel only to record only episodes airing on the channel you designate.
Airtime	This setting controls whether Media Center records episodes of a series that are aired only at the same time as the episode you selected, multiple times per day, or only once per day.	Anytime Anytime, once per day	This setting is available only for recorded series. If the same episode of a series you are recording is aired more than once a day, select Anytime, once per day to allow Media Center to record an episode at a time that does not conflict with other recordings.
Channels	Controls whether Media Center records first-run or repeat episodes of the series.	Live First run First run and rerun	This setting is available only for recorded series.

7. On the Advanced Record Settings page, select Record.

8. On the Guide page, the red Record icon by the program title shows that your recording is scheduled.

Using Advanced Record becomes more useful as you record more and more shows because it enables you to minimize recording conflicts and makes sure the TV shows that you want to see are always available.