Streaming media is when the server transmits only a portion of the data before the client starts displaying it. Contrast this with the traditional download model where the client has to receive the whole file before it can start playing.

It's similar to the difference between buying a CD and listening to the radio.

Technically, YouTube is not streaming - it's playing as the buffer fills up. However, the data is not discarded once it is played - it is still in the buffer. If you were to watch the video again, the computer would not re-download the same data.

Chez Kitty has an Xbox 360, and SpouseKitty has a NetFlix subscription (I subscribed her just prior to her first neck surgery so she would have it during her convalescence, many years ago.) This means we have access to NetFlix's Instant Queue, their particular name for streaming video.

It contains not just movies, but many television shows as well. Of particular note, it makes available the latest episodes of NCIS and Numb3rs a day or two after they air.

Less for the TiVo to do.

Also, many Comedy Central shows are available on their respective websites. Specifically, full episodes of Jon Stewart's Daily Show and Stephen Colbert's self-named show are available shortly after they air.

NetFlix seeks to provide the subscription DVD model, so there are no ads in the shows themselves. The web sites are free, so they have an ad at the beginning and in the middle of each episode.

The TiVo quickly dropped from being the center of our entertainment universe to the periphery...