INTERRUPTION TOLERANT VIDEO PROGRAM VIEWING

摘要

Allows a video broadcast viewer to pause at anytime while viewing a program, and upon returning to be able to view the intervening segment. The video received during the pause period is stored and available for recall upon user command. The storage medium is circular in so much that the memory, upon becoming filled to capacity continues to write incoming information data over the previously stored data. The storage circuits employs a sequential access storage device and/or a direct access storage device. The storage circuit has a high speed memory input buffer and a high speed memory output buffer to account for the relatively long READ and WRITE access times of the storage device employed. At the end of the pause period, the user can view the stored video. The user has a choice between catching up to the regular broadcast or watching the remaining program video in a delay mode. The stored video may be viewed intermittently or continuously in regular, slow or fast motion, under user direct or remote VCR-type of video function control.