There are a couple of hints here on how to record FireWire video from cable boxes such as the Motorola DCT-6000 family (I've got a DCT-6200 myself). But they involve using AVCVideoCap.app from the FireWire SDK, or weird hacks based on it. I've stripped out the important stuff from AVCVideoCap.app, and written a CLI utility that can be run without the need for a UI. I call it clover, after our dog. (This source is distributed per the terms of the Apple license in the original SDK.)

It's currently beta but works for me; anyone who wishes to help me test it is encouraged to give it a shot. To use it, you simply hook up your Mac to your video tuner with a FireWire cable, then run clover with the following options:

• -c channel_number
• -d duration_in_minutes
• -o output_filename
• -v -- verbose mode, if you wish to see what it's doing

For example, clover -v -c 67 -d 30 -o my_recording.ts would change the tuner box to channel 67, and record for 30 minutes, dumping the transport stream to a file named my_recording.ts in the current directory. The resultant file can be played with VLC or Plex.app directly without the need for transcoding. My intent is to eventually build a very simple DVR that I can use on my Mac Mini without needing to buy a TiVo.

It should be noted that some channels, such as HBO or HD on Demand from your cable company, will be encrypted. While you will be able to dump these files to disk, you will not be able to view them. However, for broadcast channels that are unencrypted, this works great; it can even record HD content with AC3 audio without breaking a sweat.

[robg adds: I can't test this app, but it sounds pretty useful if you've got a FireWire cable box.]