PVR (for free) with HackTV for OSX
HackTV is a developer app for Mac OS X that you can download for free. It enables you to watch TV (or any video source) on your Mac. Better yet, it enables you to download that content to your hard drive. Erica Sadun shows you the ins and outs of HackTV.
In the second article in a series about watching TV with Apple's (free) HackTV utility, you'll learn how to convert your Mac to a low-end but working PVR. You'll see how to control HackTV through Apple's GUI scripting extensions for AppleScript (at least as much as Mac OS X will let you) and how to schedule your recordings with iCal.
View: Build Your Own PVR (for free) with HackTV by Erica Sadun
View: Schedule HackTV with iCal by Erica Sadun