Rupert Goodwins' Diary

Tuesday 23/04/2002

Paid-for terrestrial TV may be in trouble, but the free-to-air channels are still going strong. Which no doubt explains the report I read online of Hauppauge -- digital TV adaptor specialists -- doing its first set-top box. It's just like the Pace box, except if you plug it into a PC over USB it can do hard disk recording too. Now that seems like an excellent idea.

So why is Hauppauge so uncomfortable talking about it? Turns out that it was due to launch in the near future, but someone important at the company got so excited they told a journalist ahead of time. And supplied a nice picture. The PR company charged with sorting out the launch properly found out after the event, and was... well, I think I detected the merest hint of exasperation in the voice of the professional, composed and thoroughly unfazed representative I talked to about the whole sorry affair.

Doesn't help that the box itself resembles nothing more than a pair of leopardskin pattern underpants. I mention this in the news story I write, and even produce an illustration of the box next to a picture of the aforementioned garments that prove things beyond doubt, but saner minds than mine prevail and the observation doesn't make it onto the site.

I send the picture to the PR, though, who responds with a sordid tale involving orange nylon Y-fronts that I cannot bring myself to repeat. Sometimes, this job really is just pants -- and none the worse for that.