The easiest, and really only method, is to use a stand-alone DVD player/recorder, to record from the analog outputs. That is, as long as there is no analog copy protection enabled on the video outputs as may be required by the copyright holder. You don't mention your service provider, or what the DVR is you have, however, chances are you should be OK using the analog outputs. It'll take a while since it's all done in real-time. And, no, you can not just do a digital copy from the hard drive - the DVRs record the entire "transport stream" from the head-end and they are not just clear unencrypted MPEG video files.

Is the 'channel 10' that you are trying to record an analog or digital signal? If analog, then you probably need to turn the converter OFF, so that the 'analog pass through' feature is enabled. Then tune your VCR to channel 10. (If you want to also watch the broadcast, your TV would need to be tuned to either channel 10 or channel 3 - depending on the specifics of your VCR.) If digital, then yes, your VCR would need to be on channel 3 (as does your TV.) If you are recording a digital signal though, you will get better audio and video quality by using the A/V connections from the converter box to the VCR. And same between the VCR and the TV set. I wonder if the reason you couldn't get the A/V connections to work was because some menu option in either the VCR or TV was not set to the correct input? What you might consider is to connect the VCR to the TV using the A/V cables. Period. Then use the TV tuner in the VCR for all the analog tuning for the next 2.5 months. (When watching/recording digital, you would turn the converter box on and set the VCR to channel 3.) After that, just use the A/V cables between the converter box and the VCR. This gets rid of all the 'channel 3' stuff and gives the best quality possible.

Let's all sit back for a minute and look at the bigger picture. Jim is allegedly with his son and daughter-in-law, and their child (allegedly) just died. Now, I've never had children, but I've had furkids, and those furkids were like my own children (especially when they're nearly 17 years old when they die). I know how awful it was for me and for my husband when each of our cats finally went to the Rainbow Bridge. I simply cannot imagine how horrible it must be to lose a human child, but from everything I've read and heard, there is nothing more painful and soul-searing. Even if you've never lost a child, surely you've lost a loved one -- a furry one, or a human one. Did you get over it in three weeks? For those who have unfortunately lost a child (and my heart goes out to you), did you get over it in three weeks? Perhaps Jim is telling the truth, and he is grieving over losing a grandchild, and is doing the best he can to support his son and daughter-in-law in their extreme grief. Having said all that.... e-mail me through My Page here on the forum and give me all the info you have -- names, dates, places, etc., and I'll see what I can find online. I have complete access to everything on Ancestry.com, so there might be something out there somewhere.

Here's some advice I have for you that will go a long way without costing too much money. First off, you need a new photographer. Those were horrible photos with unnecessary lens glare. My second biggest piece of advice is to lighten up and neutralize the wall colors, declutter and store a lot of your furniture. People are looking for light, airy, open and spacious. They want rooms to feel light-filled and to have lots of open space. When we got our house ready to sell we put a lot of stuff including extraneous furniture in storage and painted some of the rooms light, neutral colors. Those things made a lot of difference in updating our home. Front exterior: trim back the shrubs so that you see the porch railing and windows. They are also blocking the front walkway. You have a classic style house with lots of curb appeal but the massive shrubs will make it look dark and forbidding when they aren't blooming. You want people to see the front door and the inviting front porch from the street and right now your biggest asset is blocked. Green living room: I would paint the dark green living room and stairwell a light neutral color since the green doesn't photograph well and makes the room cave-like. I would also remove the giant chair next to the fireplace. It blocks the focal point and makes the room look too small. I would also remove the rug so you can better showcase your lovely hardwoods. Kitchen: I would also paint the kitchen, declutter the counters including removing the coffee cups and remove the valance. If you can't afford to redo the kitchen I would at least paint the bottom front of the peninsula the adjoining wall color to help it recede into the background. If the kitchen table is in good shape I would remove the tablecloth, candle, and placemats. Put a low bowl of fresh fruit on top. The ideal would be replacing the kitchen cabinet doors but even painting the cabinet boxes white would help update the the kitchen. Next I would declutter the buffet in the breakfast nook and remove the wreath. Pull back the curtains and open the blinds. The wall color is dark so the more you can do to make the rooms light filled the better. Dining room: remove the rug so that the buyers can see that you have pristine hardwoods. It will also make the room feel bigger. Living room: remove some of the chests. Having that many of them in the room is making it feel small and crowded. I would also remove the recliner if possible. The more open it feels the bigger the space will feel. Orange bathroom: paint the walls a light neutral color. If the floral trim is wallpaper, remove it. Paint the bathroom trim a glossy white. Master bedroom: Replace the curtains with neutral sheers. The ideal would be to remove the blue carpet but I know that's probably out of budget. If you have a neutral rug that's much larger than the bed float the bed on top of it to neutralize the blue carpet. I would also get an inexpensive bed in a bag that's a neutral color to replace your bedding. Your goal is to make the blue carpet less over whelming. Purple bath: I agree with everyone that the stairs have to go. You also need to paint the walls a neutral color. Hallway: either remove the bookshelves or pack up 50% of the books and most of the decorative items on top. When people see stuffed bookshelves and full surfaces they think the house doesn't have enough storage. I know the list looks overwhelming but these are all things you can do yourself without hiring someone.