37. A method of selecting content programming in video data, the method comprising: creating an active list of first search terms by receiving input from a viewer at a user interface to develop one or more first search terms for creating the active list; creating a passive list of second search terms by monitoring closed captioning textual data for creating the passive list of second search terms, the passive list comprising one or more character strings that have been extracted one or more times from previously received closed captioning streams of textual data of received video signals that the viewer has viewed or recorded, the one or more second character strings being extracted based on a frequency of occurrence in the previously received textual data; extracting, from a received video signal, a closed captioning stream of textual data; searching the stream of textual data for occurrences of textual data matching the first or second search terms by comparing the closed captioning stream of textual data to both the active list and the passive list, the comparing including determining whether a number of matches of the first search terms of the active list and the second search terms of the passive list with the textual data exceeds a threshold number, wherein when the number of matches of the first search terms of the active list and the second search terms of the passive list does not exceed the threshold number after a predetermined period of time, ceasing to search a first closed captioning stream of textual data from a first channel before an end of the first closed captioning stream is reached, deleting the corresponding content programming from the buffer, and searching instead a second closed captioning stream of textual data from a second channel; and outputting a notification when the number of matches of the first search terms of the active list and/or the second search terms of the passive list in comparison with the textual data exceeds the threshold number indicating that content programming determined to be of interest to the viewer has been located.
47. The method as defined in claim 37 , further comprising: accessing an interconnected network to transmit the notification as a notification message to an address thereon for notifying the viewer that the content programming corresponding to viewer interests has been located; receiving input including the address on the interconnected network; forming the notification message addressed to the address on the interconnected network and containing data relative to the occurrence of textual data matching said one or more search terms; and transmitting, upon each said occurrence of textual data matching said one or more search terms, the formed notification message to the address on the interconnected network for providing the viewer with notification that the content programming corresponding to viewer interests has been located.