After all, they're free, unlike the ones you buy from for, on average, $1.99 a pop.

Sadly, Windows Media Center records in Microsoft's proprietary DVR-MS format, which is incompatible with iPods, iPhones, and, for that matter, iTunes.

Enter , a free utility that converts DVR-MS files to iPod-appropriate MPEG-4 or H264.

Just install the program, point it to Media Center's Recorded TV folder (which is usually in the Public folder), and configure any options you want.

For example, iPodifier can convert all new shows or just those you choose, and it can automatically add transcoded shows to iTunes for on-demand syncing.