Virgin Tivo box - set to record future show?

[David]

If you know the first episode of a show is due to start in 5 days time,
can you set a series record option now?

I guess this is basically a question of how far into the future the Virgin
Tivo EPG can see in general, and if there are any clever options.

TIA

Dave R

--
Windows 8.1 on PCSpecialist box

[Roderick Stewart]

On 17 Jul 2015 10:18:57 GMT, David <wib...@btintenet.com> wrote:

>If you know the first episode of a show is due to start in 5 days time,
>can you set a series record option now?
>
>I guess this is basically a question of how far into the future the Virgin
>Tivo EPG can see in general, and if there are any clever options.

I don't know about Virgin Tivo, but my Panasonic Freeview box can do
this. Series recording couldn't depend on the EPG being available for
the full run of the series, because this could be several months. What
seems to happen is that as soon as the recording of an episode is
complete, it looks for another programme with the same title and the
next higher episode number, and enters that in the programmed
recording list, typically for a week hence. It does this week by week
until there are no more, and it then shows an entry in the list with
dashes instead of channel and time info.

The one situation I've found that can fool this system is when a pair
of consecutive episodes are broadcast as a "double bill". The system
doesn't set the second episode to record until it has completed the
first, which is at the end of however many minutes of end padding
you've set, so it misses the beginning of the second episode by that
number of minutes. The only way I know to beat this is to set the pair
of episodes manually as a single recording, and do the same each week.

I guess all TV recorders must work in a similar way, because EPG info
isn't usually available for more than a week ahead, so it couldn't
know about an entire series of more than 3 or 4 episodes, and some
programmes have many more than that. Even Digiguide only knows about
most programmes 3 weeks ahead, and sometimes that info can change,
presumably as a result of programme planners changing their minds.

Rod.

[Brian Mc]

Roderick Stewart <rj...@escapetime.myzen.co.uk> wrote:
: this. Series recording couldn't depend on the EPG being available for

: the full run of the series, because this could be several months. What
: seems to happen is that as soon as the recording of an episode is
: complete, it looks for another programme with the same title and the
: next higher episode number, and enters that in the programmed
: recording list, typically for a week hence.

I think many (most???) records don't work on Series title and episode number
at all - but on more accurate digital codes linking episodes and provided
(but not displayed) as part of the EPG entries

Sky+, if set for "series link", will wait for the next episode essentially
for ever - as it is just waiting for the correct codes to appear. Recently
the OS has started to be able to display these entries - "Doctor Who" on
my box is, for example, marked as linked and waiting for "next series"

[Indy Jess John]

On 17/07/2015 12:46, Brian Mc wrote:
>
> I think many (most???) records don't work on Series title and episode number
> at all - but on more accurate digital codes linking episodes and provided
> (but not displayed) as part of the EPG entries
>
> Sky+, if set for "series link", will wait for the next episode essentially
> for ever - as it is just waiting for the correct codes to appear. Recently
> the OS has started to be able to display these entries - "Doctor Who" on
> my box is, for example, marked as linked and waiting for "next series"

It seems to vary from box to box. My Humax Freeview box, if set to
series record, appears to get to the end of a set recording and then
look in the EPG for the next one. I say "appears" because I can't see
what it is doing, only the result. If I have a Series Record that gets
interrupted - a break in the weekly slot because someone has chosen to
broadcast a cup final or whatever instead, the series link is broken,
and it won't automatically find the next one in series a fortnight
hence, I have to manually tell it to record the next episode and the
series that follows.

By contrast, my Manhattan Freesat appears to look for programme title,
and it scans today's programmes each day and sets the record marker when
it finds it. If I leave the entry in its search parameters when the
series is finished, it automatically finds the next series when
broadcast. A bit like your Sky+ box.

I have a Samsung Freeview PVR which I don't use because it doesn't
behave (or rather if there are too many programmes broadcast at the same
time and I know I won't be in to watch one of them live, I will use it
as a last resort for a one-off recording). It has the facility to set
Series Record, but I found out from experience that mostly this doesn't
work at all, and I just get the first episode and then the programme
disappears from the recording schedule. About a third of the time it
will set a further recording after the first and therefore I get two
episodes of a series. I have never yet had it record more than two
episodes. It has been handy just often enough to stop me dumping it,
but it rarely gets powered on (the Manhattan was bought to replace it).

Jim

[ne...@address.invalid]

On 17 Jul 2015 10:18:57 GMT, David <wib...@btintenet.com> wrote:

>If you know the first episode of a show is due to start in 5 days time,
>can you set a series record option now?
>
>I guess this is basically a question of how far into the future the Virgin
>Tivo EPG can see in general, and if there are any clever options.
>

You can set the TiVo to record items with key words in the title or
cast list.

Recently I heard that Sky Arts was going to repeat a series of
Bethoven symphonies recorded in Vienna. I set the TiVo to record
anything with Beethoven in the title.
It has recorded all the symphonies I wanted, plus a load of unwanted
programmes about a dog called Beethoven!

[tim.....]

<ne...@address.invalid> wrote in message
news:0u8iqadfkqfp4fjl2...@4ax.com...

well that's better than losing stuff,

which is what my Humax freesat box does, because it relies upon the
broadcaster linking the progs correctly (not guaranteed) rather than its own
scan for a name

tim

[David]

Thanks - only response to notice I wanted to record an item where the
first episode was 5 days ahead!

Will look into the keywords thing.

Cheers

[alan_m]

On 17/07/2015 11:18, David wrote:
> If you know the first episode of a show is due to start in 5 days time,
> can you set a series record option now?
>
> I guess this is basically a question of how far into the future the Virgin
> Tivo EPG can see in general, and if there are any clever options.
>

I don't know about a TIVO but the PVR boxes I've owned don't need to see
into the future. They remember what you want to record (a series for
example) and find the program as it enters the EPG in a day/week/month
or year's time.


--
mailto: news {at} admac {dot] myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

[alan_m]

On 17/07/2015 21:59, David wrote:

>
> Thanks - only response to notice I wanted to record an item where the
> first episode was 5 days ahead!
>
> Will look into the keywords thing.

Keyword searching is a good option. The main UK channels (excluding
'5') tend to be quite good at broadcasting the correct series link data
but some of the lesser channel have a poor reputation.

Some PVRs can combine broadcast series link data and key word searching
to provide a more reliable way of recording a series.

[David]

Please note that it is a NEW series, not yet broadcast.

See the words "first episode" above.

Cheers

[tim.....]

"alan_m" <ju...@admac.myzen.co.uk> wrote in message
news:d0t90i...@mid.individual.net...

but that only works if you can see it in the EPG when you want to start the
process (which is what the OP wants to do)

None of the PVR's that I have owned will let you start series recording by
typing its name in a box, they all required you to select the first entry
from the EPG

tim