Any VCR experts out thar? I'm a pretty decent electronic tech but I can't

[karlschneider]

figure something out. I just replaced my old worn out VCR and got a new
Panasonic for a good price. It marks the tape somehow where commercials come on and fast forwards thru them automatically at playback. How does it know? :wtf:
:crazy:

[Terwilliger]

1. the play head is looking for blank space

which usually denotes separation between broadcast segments and commercial space on a video output

it forwards either 2:00, 2:30, 3:00, or 3:30 looking for another break, then plays from that point

[karlschneider]

2. ahhh...okay that makes sense. Thanks!

:D

[Kellanved]

3. it analyzes the signal

Especially the sound in the commercials is usually very different from the sound in the show.
Some information (subtitles, Stereo sound, in Europe: original language) is missing in commercials and the vcr can detect that. This is why the commercials are marked on the tape during recording: the used information itself is not recorded. And the black frames already mentioned are used as well, of course.