Streaming television shows on the computer is probably one of the most convenient ways of keeping up with one's favourite shows. This can also be said for watching films, rather than take the trouble of buying the DVD or watching the film on a normal television, it's a much more pleasant viewing experience to stream these online. But what does one do when the stream breaks, or worse, suddenly does not work on your computer? The last thing anyone would want is for the streaming to stop when immersed in the suspense of the show.

Here are some things to keep in mind to ensure that one has a smooth and uninterrupted streaming session:

1. Station Schedule: A number of online television channels are not based on the 24-hour format. So, if you are unable to access it or are getting an error message, you could check the station schedule and try again later. 

2. Switching Stations or Players: If the stream is intermittent, it can be most irritating. Therefore, one could try switching stations while keeping the first station on pause, just to check where the root of the problem lies. Alternatively, one could also try streaming directly through a system player, such as Real Player or Windows Media Player. 

3. Check your Internet Connection: A slow Internet connection can often lead to poor streaming and breaks in the middle, this can be highly irritating when in the middle of a good film. Sometimes, this can be resolved by turning off the modem and unplugging its power source. Once done, wait a couple of minutes before plugging it back in and turning it on. 

4. High Definition to Regular: High definition streaming could take more bandwidth and, therefore, if the Internet network is congested, it might be a good idea to stream in regular rather than HD. 

5. Speedtest: An Internet speedtest might be just the solution that the system needed. An Internet speedtest is a simple test that will help viewers ascertain if the problem is with the site that they are trying to access, or if the problem actually lies with their own Internet service provider. What an Internet speedtest does is to assess the upload and download exchange speed between your server, and the server that the connection is trying to stream from. This speedtest can pin point the source of the connection error. There are a number of free websites available that will conduct a speedtest. Most of these sites use a file transfer system to identify the source of the problem. They can measure the upload transfer rate, download transfer rate and the ping, or the time taken for data to be transferred to the desired web location and back. The speedtest is a recommended and sure fire way to diagnose any Internet service provider problems. Once the speedtest is done and the problem diagnosed and fixed, all that's left to do is to continue streaming and enjoy the entertainment.