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Tech TV, anyone miss those days?

I only used to watch Tech TV solely for X-Play when I was in college. Then when G4 merged with them, my TV hardly ever left that channel. But I started seeing the writing on the wall when Screen Savers turned into Attack of the Show which went downhill really fast.
 
I liked TechTV mainly for X-Play (wasn't it called something else at some point?), Icons, and Cinematech.

However, the channel was doomed once it was about Cops reruns all the time.
 
I started watching right when the merger was about to happen. I had just installed my first satellite TV and had access to TechTV. So I got to see Sessler-only Extended Play right before Morgan Webb joined and got to enjoy Leo...stuck around all the way up until the flaming mess that was the 24 hour Star Trek TNG marathon/ Attack of the Show channel.
 
I used to post on their forums a lot and I got my current user name from someone there calling me Fuzzy. I was offered a mod position around the time of the G4 merger but turned it down.
 
Slate Soda said:
G4 was amazing pre-merger at the time. Had zero interest in any of the non-gaming Techtv shows. The merger ruined G4.
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Both networks were better off seperate. Too bad Comcast wanted to off TechTV. I'm not sure I have any proof, but I'm pretty certain they bought TechTV up just to kill it. Of course they consistently said "Hey look, it'll be better together guys!" Meanwhile, on the first day, they immediately fired the vast majority of TechTV's staff and those who remained (mostly just X-play) they demanded they move with them to G4's LA offices (TechTV was San Francisco based).

Once they merged, they got rid of a lot of the good shows until eventually they just got rid of any remnants of TechTV. Then, for whatever reason, they just turned it into a repository for COPS, movies nobody else wanted and other crappy reality programs. To this day, I'm continuously confused as to what possibly happened at those executive board meetings. Then again, I'm confused similarly about what's happening to Cartoon Network. It feels like it is just going down the same path (look at what they did to Boomerang and then subsequently are now doing to the main channel).

There was a delightful golden era of time around 2002-2007ish that I will never forget and I just hope someday we could get back. With broadband, our area in Maryland started getting digital cable. With that, we got (amongst others) TechTV, G4, Toon Disney, Boomerang, Nick GAS (Games and Sports for Kids. Don't let the name fool you though, it was a repository for them to air constant reruns of their old game shows and some assorted Nicktoons), etc. It was brilliant and I miss it constantly. Late nights in summer I could watch Anime on TechTV and Adult Swim, tech shows, Robot Wars, Cartoon Cartoon Fridays, old gameshows like Double Dare, Nick Arcade and Legends of the Hidden temple, Darkwing Duck. It was incredible.

I know this post has gone long but I was incredibly upset when G4 and TechTV merged, and thus most of the channels I mentioned are defunct, gone or being mishandled (see: Boomerang). TV now just doesn't feel nearly as varied as some of the experimental stuff we were seeing at that time.
 
I used to watch that channel, everyday after college, that shit was my jam. I bailed after G4 started to cancel the shows and letting go of the on-air personalities. It was a very niche demographic so I'm not surprised it didn't last but yeah, it was great.

Speaking of similar shows like X-Play, I'm still surprised that the Electric Playground (now EP Daily) is still alive and kicking. They were around the X Play days.
 
In some ways, I credit ZDTV and Tech TV with helping me towards a successful career in IT. I was always interested in tech but I can't tell you how much I learned about computers, how they worked and how to troubleshoot them by watching those channels growing up. It was sad to see what it became in the end before going under.
 
TechTV was great, and then the G4 merger just killed it for me.

Even with that said, the writing was on the wall. The channel really didn't have much of a future with the rise of YouTube.

Ravager61 said:
In some ways, I credit ZDTV and Tech TV with helping me towards a successful career in IT. I was always interested in tech but I can't tell you how much I learned about computers, how they worked and how to troubleshoot them by watching those channels growing up. It was sad to see what it became in the end before going under.
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Similiar with me. I've always bee ninterested in computers, but TechTV was the catalyst that got me interested in an IT career (which I'm starting school for in a couple of weeks). I sat aside school due to being in the Air Force, but now that I'm out, I'm putting all of my focus into college.
 
Really miss the show ICONS. I loved its way of presenting history and troubles in game development. Wonderful show, I watched every episode I could when it was on. All Your History Are Belong To Us on Machinma was alot like it but that was also cut short. Would die for another series like ICONS.
 
Staccat0 said:
I want this Leo LaPorte dirt!!!
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I remember reading that Leo was having an affair with his producer, which led to his divorce and their daughter ended up abusing drugs to cope and dropped out of school. No idea if it's true. I always liked him as an on air personality.
 
I absolutely loved TechTV -- even followed a lot of the personalities post demise. Diggnation, Twit. I followed Twit from the start up until a few years ago though, just didn't enjoy it or the guests anymore.
 
I miss those videogame tv shows with reviews, previews and stuff. We had a couple of those in the Philippines back then and was the only way I knew about the latest games coming out. Cybernet was one I remember. There was another, older one that I can't remember though :(
 
When I got digital cable back in the last 90s, early 2000s, TechTV was like a revolution to me. Bare in mind, as a 16-year-old who was really into computers and technology there was just nothing in TV, newspapers, or even the internet to really fill that void of computer-minded entertainment. I loved Screensavers.

What I really miss was whatever the low budget videogame review show that Tommy Tollerico was on.
 
As someone who still had dial up until about 2005, TechTV was a godsend for me. I wouldn't be in the career field I'm in now had I not watched that growing up when I was about 11/12 years old. I even kept watching into when it was G4/TechTV and just G4. It was perfect to put on in the background. I loved Judgement Day and Electronic Playground. Going back to watch some of the super early episodes of EP is pretty fun. Giant Bomb had someone on who brought clips I think two years ago (?) that led me down a pretty long hole of that show's history. The first season is all hosted by them on Youtube btw
 
I feel sorry for all those who missed out on Extended Play and only got to experience X-Play. Extended Play was such a phenomenally-produced show.
 
TechTV was my favorite channel. I was excited by the G4 merger, but it totally killed TechTV.

Man, I do miss the days of TechTV. I remember just about every personality from the ScreenSavers.

Remember the show Big Thinkers? Awesome show.
 
Wonder what would have happened if G4 never bought TechTV.

Anyone remember that musical episode X-Play did? It was nice.
 
I got into The Screensavers right before they merged with G4.

G4TechTV was probably my most watched channel for awhile though. The lineup was great. Arena, Cinematech (great for throwing on in the background while playing WoW), Electric Playground, Judgment Day, Cheat!, Screensavers, Xplay, and Icons made for a fantastic channel for awhile. Was Code Monkeys also on G4TechTV or was that a little after? That was good too. I'd love to see that come back.

I stopped watching G4 after it became the cheaters and cops channel though. I liked Attack of the Show and Xplay, but once Xplay stopped having skits it fell apart fast imo.
 
The small feeling of TechTV made it great, coming home from school to watch Fresh Gear and Extended play. Call for Help made me so much more computer literate, if only I could have went down the path to do more with computers and coding. Sigh.
 
I was so sad when Call for Help was cancelled. I loved that show. Whether the stuff about Leo being an asshole is true or not, I'll always remember how he taught me to disable those annoying message prompts back in the early 2000s.

Anybody else remember those things? "Annoyed by these messages? Send $$$ to (address) and we'll make them stop!" Ugh. When I was finally disabling them, it was like they knew what was happening and where even more insistent on appearing. It really felt like the end of an epic battle by the time I was done.
 
Loved it. The one guy used to talk about iptv being the future and boy was he right. Liked some stuff on G4 Aots and Xplay.


Also they had the best comprehensive E3 coverage ever. Still unmatched.
 
Yeah, I really do miss them. TechTV and G4 were huge parts of my gaming fandom growing up. But even if they were still around, I think I've probably outgrown them. If I watched a current version, it would probably be out of pure nostalgia.
 
I skipped TechTv and watched G4 and then, like, noticed all this hate one day!
 
I remember not having anything but a ps1 and seeing kingdom hearts and animal crossing come out. Wow the amount of cheat codes and tips and hype. That was fun and probably more fun than the games
 
I loved G4 as a kid. I discovered E3 because of them. When the merger occurred I didn't think much of it until I realized I had less of my favorite shows and all these new, weird shows I didn't care for. Plus I distinctly remember an obscene amount of Star Trek marathons after the merger.
 
When I was in high school I had TechTV on practically 24/7. Loved just having it on in the background. I haven't really kept up with any of the people on those shows, though. I know many of them have gone on to much bigger and better things.
 
I miss them like I miss Goldeneye N64... fond memories but ultimately shit in comparison to modern competition
 
TechTV was absolutely fantastic. I spent a lot of my time watching everything on that channel for years and there will never be anything like it ever again. It was an extremely sad day when I read the news of them being bought by G4. Ruined every bit of that channel. Gutted everything. Makes me sad thinking about it.
 
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