The Red Hot Chili Peppers had it right; you don't need that TV. It's so 20th century. On this wondrous internet, you can watch what you want, when you want. No schedules. No repeats. It's the golden age of TV — without the TV. Here's your end all, be all, comprehensive guide to watching TV on the internet.

The basics: Stuff you need to know

First off, we'll admit that it's true you might not be able to catch every show you'd want to watch online by legal means, but we've been hard pressed to come up with many shows that aren't available through at least one of these sources.

All the sources we're listing here are legal ones in compliance with U.S. intellectual property laws. Yes, there are less reputable sources out there, but we're of the mind that most anything you might want to watch is available online through a legit service now, so there's not really a good reason to look elsewhere.

These services all fall into one of two categories: streaming and direct download. With streaming services, the episodes are sent to your computer in real-time via the internet. As such, you need to be connected to watch them. The majority of your options fall into this category. On the other hand, iTunes is a direct download service, meaning you'll download the videos in their entirety, and then you can watch them whenever and wherever you want. Amazon Video on Demand offers both types of service for many of its videos.

There's no such thing as a free lunch, so the companies providing the shows will make you pay in one of three ways. Most streaming services are ad-supported; you'll get a commercial break inbetween acts just like on live TV, albeit generally shorter. Netflix is an exception, as it's a subscription-based service. A monthly fee will get you access to all the shows (and a bunch of movies) without commercials. Finally, if you use iTunes or Amazon, you buy the episodes to own as if you were buying DVDs.

The essentials: What you'll need

You'll need a major web browser (Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, or Apple Safari) with the Adobe Flash 10 plugin. All are easy to get. Internet Explorer comes with Microsoft Windows, Apple Safari comes free on Macs, and Mozilla Firefox often comes included with Linux systems. Firefox is also available for download for Windows or Mac as well, as is Safari.

Flash is the tool most browsers use to play streaming video. You can pick it up at Adobe's website for free.

Netflix requires an additional plugin for your web browser, but it will install automatically when you try to watch a video there. Some websites — notably ABC and NBC's high definition offerings — require additional software downloads that you'll be prompted for when you visit.

And to use iTunes in Windows, you'll have to download the free iTunes software available at Apple's website. iTunes is included with all new Apple computers, though, so if you've got a Mac you're set.

Getting it from the source: Official TV network websites

The majority of the content out there streams on the websites of the big TV networks.  All the big over-the-air networks (NBC, FOX, CBS, ABC, The CW, and PBS) offer programming online in varying degrees of completeness and quality. In the TV network website olympics, we give the gold medal to ABC for keeping the entire episode history of some of its shows (like Lost) on file, with a lot of it available in high definition.

A close runner-up is NBC (much of whose content is available in better condition on streaming site Hulu as well, as you'll see below), which keeps recent episodes of most of its shows and hits the ball out of the park with clips from its late night and variety shows like The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (soon to be The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien), Saturday Night Live, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. There's also a wealth of behind-the-scenes content for these shows at NBC.

We can't be sure your favorite show is available, but there's a good chance it is. Navigate to these networks' websites below to check:

• ABC
• CBS
• FOX
• The CW
• NBC
• PBS
• Showtime
• Discovery
• Sci-Fi

Hulu, etc.: Streaming sites with shows from multiple networks

These sites are a bit more hit-and-miss, with the exception of the excellently-designed Hulu. They're often subsidiaries of or partnerships between big media companies, so they have a wide variety of content from multiple networks. For example, Hulu is a partnership between NBC and FOX, with occasional contributions from other partners like AMC as well.

While Hulu, TV.com (a former TV news and social networking site recently turned into a video portal by CBS), and The WB (which features old Warner Bros. shows like One Tree Hill and Veronica Mars) are dedicated solely to professional content, Joost and MySpace TV mix the big shows in with user-generated content ala YouTube. That's neat if you like user-generated content, but if you're just on the lookout for real TV shows you'll find it difficult to sort through the noise to find what you're looking for.

• Hulu
• Joost
• TV.com
• The WB
• MySpace TV

Netflix: Subscribe to the world's largest repository

Netflix was originally a DVD-rental-by-mail service, and it still is, but its "Watch Instantly" online streaming business has exploded in recent months. The company big whig is even convinced that its streaming video division will kill its DVD service in time.

Netflix has partnerships with a lot of cable networks in particular, including Showtime, The History Channel, and The Discovery Channel, but it has some network TV content too. The quality is excellent for streaming video, and there are no commercials.

Right now you can get a subscription plan that includes one DVD rental at a time plus unlimited access to Watch Instantly for $8.99 per month. The other, more expensive plans just let you keep more DVDs at a time, but word is that a streaming-only subscription will become available by the end of this year. No word yet on how much it will cost, though. For now, you can sign up and use the DVDs or not; it's up to you! Just check out our guide to Netflix to get the best of it.

• Netflix

iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand: Buy videos without ads

By far the priciest options, iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand make up for it with quality and quantity. Nearly every episode of every major TV show is available at any time from at least one of them, including obscure cable content not available from any of the other services.

Because direct downloads are possible, you can watch these videos commercial-free on your laptop or portable media device anywhere and anytime, regardless of whether or not you have access to the internet. And once you've purchased them, you own them.

Video and sound quality are superior to the other options, too. iTunes offers most of its shows in high definition that rivals the quality of the original TV source.

The downside is the cost. TV episodes on iTunes are usually $2.99 when high definition is available ($1.99 when it's not), and they're $1.99 on Amazon. That can add up quickly, but if you're a stickler for quality and need to watch on the go, these two services are your best options.

• iTunes
• Amazon Video on Demand