PVR - tv capture card question

[Mazstyle]

Hi all, I would like to record TV. I have and older pentium dual core computer w/ MCE 2005 I'd like to use, but I'm just not sure how it all works together never having used or even seen a setup like this.

Basically my question is can I just add a capture card w/remote, and have no monitor hooked up and be able to fully function the unit as a PVR, or do I need to use the remote with a monitor? That'd would be kind of a pain in the ***

The computer currently only has a d-sub so S-video out is not an option...

[Mike P.]

You add a capture card and you don't need a monitor. The software will will be viewable on your TV. As for a capture card, there is SD, and SD plus HD. Do some reading so you pick the right card for your application. Heres an excellent article on capture cards.

http://dvr.about.com/od/capturetvwit...p/toppick1.htm

[Mazstyle]

I ended up getting the Asus p-7131, It's cheap and has gotten pretty good reviews.

Althought it is not MCE friendly, I initally put on my MCE machine but I could not get it to recognize the card even after a few drivers changes, which is pretty common with this card I guess. I ended up putting it in another machine with XP and using the provided software - Power cinema which (in my limited experience) seems to be pretty good so far, I love the preloaded new sites etc.

I'm recording the discovery channel right now, I just need to figure out how to set a timer for various programs.