TV: is the timeshift buffer still deleted when zapping? (1 Viewer)

[igalan]

I'm using 0.1.3.0 because one of the issues that I found with 0.2 RC2 was that the timeshift buffer is deleted when you change channel. Since this feature was very important for me I went back to 0.1.3.0 and lost track of CVS updates for RC2.

So I want to know if this feature has been brought up again on a new CVS. In that case I would update to 0.2 RC2, and benefit from the new features that this version has .

 

[ASiDiE]

As far as I know, this has not been added back in. Some people say this is a feature while others say it's not. I think this should be added back in and the user should have an option to select how they want the time buffer to work. I don't use the TV part of MP currently but for me, I would like to see it work this way.

If I am using the remote and select a new channel to watch, the buffer should be deleted. (This means I don't care about the old buffer and would like to watch something new)

If I am watching a show and I am delayed (watching the buffer) and a scheduled show is getting ready to record. I would like to see some sort of notification saying Blank Show is about to record. To cancel hit Stop, otherwise hit exit (To remove OSD) or just let the timer run out. (I personally think the notification needs to be there for this reason. You started watching a 1 hour show and a scheduled show is going to record for the last 30 minutes of this. At this point you would be able to decide what show you really want to watch. Do you want to finish up your hour long show? or Start recording your scheduled show. You decide at this point.)

This should appear about 30 seconds before the show is about to record with a timer counting down to when the show actually starts.

At this point if you let the show record as scheduled, the time buffer should NOT be deleted so you can finish up what you are currently watching. At the point where the time buffer ends the picture should just stop, letting you know that is it. Now you can go to your currently recorded shows and start the show that is recording from the beginning or watch another recorded show.

Because this topic seems to be important to some but not everybody... I vote on having a choice of how the time buffer works... I personally would like to see the above

 

[igalan]

Thanks for the answer .

There are many valid reasons to hold the timseshift buffer; many have been already pointed out in the past, but let me put an example that happened too often with 0.2 RC2: While I'm watching a timeshifted program, for instance 1 hour behind, my wife might change channel to see if the show she's waiting for has already started, causing to completely loose my program. I fail to see where is the improvement when the buffer is deleted.

 

[Ralph]

There are many good reasons for keeping timeshifted material, but it's still not available in MediaPoral.
We discussed this for quite some time: http://nolanparty.com/mediaportal.sourceforge.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9594&highlight=ralph

Maybe they want to get tv module stable, first?

Regards
Ralph

 

[ASiDiE]

In Igalan situation, what I have proposed would work perfectly for him. First, the show your wife was waiting for should have been set up as a scheduled recording. The show seems important to her, so it should be set up that way. The notification would come on, letting her know her show is about to record. (No need to check it). Because it's a scheduled recording it would NOT remove the buffer. You could finish watching the rest of your buffer while her show records. At the end of the buffer the video would stop. At this point you would head on in to recorded shows and select the show that is either recording or recorded. You would be able to watch the rest of your show, and she would know that her show is being recorded and would be able to watch her show.

It all makes perfect sense

 

[igalan]

I'd rather have MP behave as it did before 0.2 and not delete the timeshift buffer. It looks much more intuitive this way and also allow more flexibility: you can change channels and not worry about being able to keep watching whatever you were watching. I've set my timeshift buffer to two hours, and sometimes I do pause for over 1 hour (if you have children, you'll understand the need ).

 

[Marcusb]

has anyone here ever been watching a timeshifted show and accidentally bumped the channel button. That goes down very bad with the partner.

I still dont see what the deal is. If you don't llike the buffer being kept, simply don't go back when you have changed a channel. There is no beneift at all, as has been discussed before.
Even if you don't want to keep the buffer, you will be thankful if the above example ever happens to you. I don't think a prompt really makes any sense either. Maybe just an option to delete in config or something but this still seems like it's unnecessary.

It's not a matter of keeping MyTV stable before a new feature is released. This was the way it used to work in .0.3 and then it was removed when someone mistakenly reported it as a bug. Then in .0.2 it worked the correct way again until it was removed after a few weeks (there was an entry about a bug fix in the change logs). As you can see, fixing the "bug" actually seems to be creating more work for the devs.

 

[zombiepig]

i might be totally wrong here - but possibly the reason it was removed is that sometimes changing channels requires a different graph, like when switching to a channel with AC3 sound. maybe the buffer can't be kept when using a different graph?

 

[Marcusb]

that actually sounds like a good explanation, but there was never any mention of this, it was always just called a bug fix because people said they didn't want it (mostly people who also said they never used the TV section at all).

Before this feature was removed I don't think it caused any such problems, but thena gain, I don't use AC3.
Do AC3 channels always transmit AC3 or can they change depending on what show is on? If they change then this must also cause issues with TV if your hypothesis is correct.

Like I said, I don't use AC3 so it would be good to hear from someone who does if they had issues during this time...

 

[gxtracker]

While I believe your solutions is a clever one ASiDiE, I still don't see the need to have the timeshifting buffer kept after changing a channel.

- If a television show is that important to watch, why not just record the whole thing and watch it at the same time?

- If you want to use your PVR to watch live TV AND act as a PVR at the same time, you might want to look at investing in a dual tuner PVR card.

I actually find the current solution fits my needs. If I have to pause TV to answer the phone or get something, I can just fast forward back to realtime during a commercial - never missing a point of the show.