UPDATE: EngadgetHD’s Ben Drawbaugh just posted a detailed article on setting this up!  Thanks a ton Ben!

UPDATE 2: MissingRemote’s Mike Garcen just posted a detailed article on setting this up in a CableCard environment!

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Thanks to Andy Van Til’s post on Missing Remote, I just purchased a copy of Dragon Global’s ShowAnalyzer for $20.

Basically, if you purchase ShowAnalyzer prior to v1.0 being released, you pay $20 one time and get free lifetime upgrades.  And it sounds like v1.0 will be released this Thursday…the same day as Windows 7’s official release.

ShowAnalyzer is THE BEST software out there for identifying when a commercial exists in a television program.

Another amazing, and FREE, piece of software is Andy Van Til’s DVSMSToolbox.  It “leverages” ShowAnalyzer, and when running in the background, will automatically skip commercials in Media Center recordings (.dvr-ms, .wtv, etc.).  The ShowAnalyzer/DVRMSToolbox combo can also automatically remove commercials and convert the resulting video file to a more desirable format (e.g. MPEG-2).

So, after I upgrade my Windows 7 RC to Windows 7 RTM and install the new ATI Digital CableCard Tuner firmware version 1.19.12, on my to-do list is to install ShowAnalyzer/DVRMSToolbox and:

1) Enjoy watching TV without having to reach for the remote during commercials

2) Remove commercials and save my favorite HD movies (and kids movies) to my remote file share…which will eventually be on a WHS