Last night I got my first introduction to Al Gore's much hyped Current TV network. The majority of the station's content consists of short "pods" -- quick news magazine type reports on a wide array of topics each lasting only a few minutes -- and most about 25% of these pods are produced and submitted by viewers in what the network calls "Viewer Created Content" or "VC2." Current feels a lot like a video version of NPR's documentary series, "This American Life." The NPR series, however, only airs 1 hour of programming per week, making it easy for listeners to keep up with the content. Current, on the other hand, is always on, and knowing what's going to be on the network at any given time can be a struggle. The "pods" only last a few minutes each, and the network isn't releasing any kind of programming info to cable and satellite providers. As a result, on-screen program grids simply list something generic like "Current TV Programming" when you check to see what's on. The network does place graphics on the bottom of the TV screen from time to time with logos representing upcoming pods, but these logos seem to be more artistic than informational. At one point last night, four different logos were on screen, but only one of them contained words. In that case it was a single word -- DVD -- which did little to inform me of what the pod would actually be about. As for the other three logos, God only knows what they were trying to tell me. The network's website is a bit more helpful, with more information about upcoming content. But with only the next 8 pods listed in their highly stylized grid, you can only really expect to know what will be on the station for about 30 to 45 minutes in advance. Want to know what will be on next Tuesday, or tonight, or an hour from now? Tough luck. Other signs that the people running Current have no idea what they're doing:

• The network's website doesn't seem to function properly in Firefox.
• To find out whether your cable or satellite provider carries Current TV, the network requires users to submit their full mailing address, email address, and birth year.
• With no programming data submitted to cable and satellite providers, it is virtually impossible to use a PVR with Current.
• The network makes a huge deal about being in tune with the Internet generation, yet the channel's blog hasn't been updated since yesterday. (You'd think they'd have a lot to blog about on their very first day on the air, but you'd be wrong.)

These hiccups aside, this could be a revolutionary concept. Blogs are already occasionally scooping traditional news outlets on major stories, so maybe the time has come for viewer created content on TV as well. And while Current seems to be trying to create something resembling a video blog for the medium of television, the web will still play a major role in the network's content development. Current's website will eventually become the channel's primary "studio," with users directly uploading their VC2 pods to the site. Web visitors can then view and rate all of the uploaded content. Pods receiving the highest user ratings will be shown on the TV network. In today's on-demand world, however, the TV portion of this model can't succeed if the network doesn't inform viewers what will be on the air for more than 45 minutes in advance. The pods I watched last night were very well-done and actually quite enjoyable (even the ones without nudity), and I would probably become a regular viewer of Current if I simply knew what was going to be on and when it would be on. How else can I be expected to make an informed decision about when to watch (or record)?