Initial channel setup (1 Viewer)

[Unregistered]

Hi -- I just got MediaPortal yesterday and have been fidgeting with it for awhile. I'm trying to get the TV guide/channels working perfectly, and I think I'm close, but I want to make sure I'm doing everything right.

First off, I found mc2xml. I was originally going to use WebEPG, but (I think) it requires you to manually add each channel/name...which does not sound fun. I downloaded and extracted mc2xml, copied xmltv.dtd into this folder that I found elsewhere, then ran the following:

mc2xml -c us -g 24060 -o tvguide.xml

I went into MediaPortal, enabled the xmltv plugin, refreshed/saved the mappings, then imported on the settings tab...and it worked! So now I seem to have a basic working program guide.

Here are my questions:
1. Is mc2xml the best option? I'm in the US. Am I correct that each channel for WebEPG must be set up manually?
2. How can I automatically set the names for the channels? All the data is there; in the Mappings tab under XmlTv, each channel is shown with its name under the "Guide Channel" column. Is there some way to use this mapping to name all of my channels?
3. What's the best way to update the xml file? I figure the easiest solution would be to simply create a scheduled task that runs mc2xml every week, but I was wondering if there was a better way to integrate this updating into MP.

Thanks!

 

[dcwp]

Hello and welcome!

I think the most common EPG among us Yankee users is SchedulesDirect (https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...mexico-epg-plugin-updated-10-01-2007-a-26951/). It does require a paid account at schedulesdirect.com, but it's somewhere in the neighborhood of $15/year and very worth it. If you aren't sure if you want to pay, you can sign up for a two week trial and try to get the plugin running before you commit.

SchedulesDirect will not require you to map channels manually, you set your lineup on their website, then the plugin retrieves channel and EPG data automatically. This is especially convenient if you re-install, get a corrupt file, etc. You will find lots of options in the plugin config for updating, etc.

Once SchedulesDirect has set up your EPG, you will be able to manually change channel names, add Logos, etc if there is something cosmetic you want.

I hope this helps. You should plan on tinkering with SchedulesDirect a little bit as there is a learning curve, but once you get it hammered out, you'll never have to touch it again.

BTW - Consider registering for a user account here so we all know who you are and recognize you when you post in more threads.

 

[MasterNES]

Thanks for the reply.

I've actually heard of SchedulesDirect, and I've considered purchasing a subscription. However, I'm a rather poor college student, and I was trying to get the free alternatives to work if possible. At this point, I do seem to have a fully working TV guide, so I'm probably going to stick with mc2xml (for now). If there's no way for me to get my xmltv channels mappings to the MP mappings, it wouldn't be TOO painful to just enter them manually, though I was hoping there was an easier way. Perhaps I'll make a script to help with the process.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll be getting SchedulesDirect in the future. Once I get a job, that is :-P

 

[dcwp]

Yep, I feel your pain. I'm a poor grad student - going on 10 years now. So it took me a while to move to SD. There used to be a free service called Zap2it, which was awesome.

I finally took the jump once everything else on my HTPC was working and the only thing keeping it from seeming professional was a working EPG. For $15/year I figured it was worth it. It's one of only a few subscriptions I actually pay for. I have ultra basic cable (just 8 channels), internet, just got netflix for $8/month, and now SchedulesDirect. All told, all of the subscriptions for my HTPC cost around $60/month. Not incredibly cheap, but a far cry from what most poeple pay for similar functionality.

Good luck with the setup! (and school)