Phillie14586

TV Guide not updating

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My eyeTV software preferences do not offer either of those service choices (USA). Only TV Guide and TitanTV Remote Scheduling (which polls schedules you save on the TitanTV web site after enabling Remote Scheduling in the My DVR Options tab on the web page (be sure to leave a trail of breadcrumbs to find your way out of the forest)).

I like to set up a week's worth of schedules at a time, but it's going to take at least one hour to do it via TitanTV, whereas I could do it in 10-15 minutes with built-in TV Guide EPG.

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I took a look at the Plex website. It's a whole other set of software, with a bewildering array of options I don't really need. I also looked at TitanTV. The schedule will need a whole lot of customizing, but at least it is customizable. All I need is a program guide/scheduler, and I have a very bad feeling about the TV Guide outfit. It works fine, but I wouldn't be too surprised if they just discontinued offering their services for EyeTV.

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Same here, I noticed over a week ago that it wasn't updating so that means it hasn't updated in 2 weeks since the updates are for 2 weeks in advance.

The only short term fix is to manually scroll, using the + on the keyboard, through the channels everyday. Out of 55 channels I only left the handful we normally record to save the pain.

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Assuming TV Guide is gone for good . . . Using xmltv format seems like an alternative, if it works. EyeTV does seem to include that capability (change the EPG source in the Channels window). There is at least one good US source, costing the same as the EyeTV TV Guide subscription, with a 14-day free trial: https://www.xmltvlistings.com/

That's as far as I've gotten. Has anyone used xmltv formatted EPG listings with EyeTV? My question: if you download the 7-day grid for your channel lineup (see above source), does EyeTV automatically identify it on your computer; if not, how do you get EyeTV to recognize the downloaded grid data? I am going to send Geniatech a support request with the same question, but I don't expect an answer - I assume they are swamped or in crisis mode.

(I am using EyeTV3 software on a 2010 Mac Mini running El Capitan, to be upgraded this summer to a newer machine running Mojave before 32-bit capability goes away)

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13 hours ago, Jim W said:

Promises aside, I see no signs that Geniatech is or will fix this issue. I suggest that everyone submit a ticket as described above, and at least they will know how many (or how few) people are affected.

I also received a follow-up reply to my own ticket. It's disturbing...

          We wanted to continue to support HdHomeRun, but things did not go as we expected.
          Therefore, it is a strategic decision from our Management to stop supporting HDHomeRun Devices, as they have no License Agreement and           not any Agreement in place between Silicon Dust and Geniatech.

 

What a loss for Geniatech.  They could of added a yearly subscription service to allow 3rd party hardware to work with EyeTV.   Geniatech seems like its not on top of things with EyeTV.  Since it purchased EyeTV, tech support is sub par, updates are sparse and bugs multiply.   I contacted support by email yesterday about the issue with the PAID subscription programming guide, no reply or fix today.  None of this shocks me.  We all need to accept that the party is almost over soon.

Edited by talltxn
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The EyeTV interface isn't perfect but is still the best for watching and recording on Mac.  However without TV Guide I am lost.  Feels like the Sony HDD250 DVR story again which I gave up and went to EyeTV.

Doing a quick look I saw too many complaints over in the Plex forums of things breaking that used to work.  Decided to give emby a try instead which I had never heard of but saw some decent reviews.  Loaded the server without much trouble. Everything is through a web interface on Mac OS.  Got a guide for $5/month to test and scheduling appears to work but selecting and changing channels is a dog.  All of these programs seem to be a media players first with TV being an afterthought.

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So to get recording to work using TitanTV, does one do this by choosing what you want to record on their website and using the remote scheduling feature in preferences?  I guess I'll give this a try for now.

I was planning on moving to another solution after my TV Guide subscription expired in June (mainly because of the out of stock notice on the product page and what seems to be an intentional kill off of Eye TV for the Mac).  Now that recordings cannot be setup using the TV Guide service, it looks like I'll need to switch now.

It really is a shame because under Elgato's ownership, EyeTV had great brand recognition and a really easy to use PVR / TV solution.  I'd been a happy customer for well over 10 years.   

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I joined the TitanTV site (free). When you click on a program listing a box opens with a red button to click record. Titan sends a small file via your browser, which EyeTV is able to read and set a recording. This doesn't appear in the grid, but should show up in Schedules. The Titan TV grid for my area has many superfluous listings that I don't actually receive, but listings can be customized by hiding irrelevant stations and changing the order channels are listed. This is hardly an ideal setup. It is intended for remotely scheduling, but it is an alternative than can be explored. At least this can be consulted for more detail than the EPG listings provide.

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Here are the basic TitanTV steps (using titantv.com). 

1. First, set yourself up as a user (free) and log in.

2. Click on the Site Preferences menu item at the top.

3. Click on My Channel Lineups tab.

4. If it hasn't filled in your provider, create a new lineup.

5. Click on the My DVR Options tab.

6. Enable the Remote Scheduling checkbox and Save Changes

7. Click on TitanTV Listings at the upper left to get back to the schedule for your system.

8. Click on a desired program.

9. In the popup window, click on the button with a red dot/black box (2nd from left).

10. Confirm you want to add it to your remote queue (that you have to do this for every program is a major PITA). This stores the temporary setting on the TitanTV site (somewhere)

11. Go to eyeTV Preferences/Guide tab. In the TitanTV Remote Scheduling region, click the Change button to add your TitanTV account name (not email address) and password. This will let eyeTV access those stored recording requests stored on TitanTV.

12. Click the Check Now button. (I also set the interval to every hour).

13. This should start populating your Schedules list in eyeTV with your TitanTV selections. You may encounter some channel issues (e.g., I don't have a digital TV subscription, I had to edit the channel listings on TitanTV to remove the "HD" from the names). Also, you won't know about time conflicts until this stage: TitanTV lets you set anything you want without signaling conflicts). 

14. If you see a program in the eyeTV Schedules list, and nothing is set to italic, eyeTV should record the program (at least it has for me). 

 

Okay, folks, this was a quick-and-dirty rundown based on my hunting around and experimentation. I am far from an expert on TitanTV, so don't ask me about the service. BTW, the iOS version of the TitanTV app does not let you set remote schedules. Booo!

 

Enjoy (as best you can) this clumsy operation.

 

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Thanks for the tutorial, dannyg. I had completely forgotten that I entered my TitanTV account name in the Preferences/Guide tab when I last experimented with TitanTV some time ago, so that already existed. However, earlier today, experimenting with it, I found that every time I clicked the red record dot, Chrome downloaded a .tvpi file which showed up in the little downloads box in the very bottom left corner of the browser window (also in Downloads). These soon were removed, I'm not certain whether because of my clicking on them, or EyeTV was recognizing them on its own, but once they deleted themselves, the programs appeared in Schedules. I never created a queue as such. Each time I clicked record, Chrome downloaded a file which was converted into a scheduled program.

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Thanks Danny!

Additionally, we can double click on programs within the Schedules area in EyeTV and click on the "Edit Schedule" button and then change the Repeat option to Weekly or whatever you prefer.  I don't know how well this will work. Also totally crude from what we've been used to, as it doesn't allow for skipping repeat episodes, etc.

Earl - I think you may be clicking on the leftmost "Record" button. Instead, use the smaller red button w/ black rectangle - for "Remote Schedule Queue."  Nothing should download via browser. EyeTV handles it internally. I tested it from a 2nd computer, and EyeTV on the other computer loaded it right up.

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ATSC EPG alternative

Here's an EPG stopgap that works, tested this evening. I have an over-the-air antenna (live in a rural area in Wisconsin without cable, don't want a dish). Not sure if it will work with cable. This is for a Mac running OS 10.11, should work through 10.14.

1. Go to the Channels listing in EyeTV. You will find a listing of your channel lineup you set up in EyeTV.

2. In the EPG column, there is a dropdown menu for each channel; it is currently set to TV Guide. Change it to ATSC for each channel (has to be done one at a time).

3. Go to the Program Guide window, which is still blank, and from the dropdown menu at the top, select Update ATSC (you should have several options, don't select Update TV Guide obviously).

4. I have about two dozen channels in my EyeTV channel listing (which remains active), the program download took under 2 minutes. When done, the Program Guide will be populated for about the next 24 hours (although our 4 public TV channels populated for 4 days out). The listings are barebones, but you can click to record as with TV Guide, and the individual programs do have a content description if you click on the program title. All the usual Record functions work.

5. I'll find out tomorrow if the autoupdate daily function works (set in Program Guide in Preferences), or if you have to do it manually each day.

Obviously not convenient like TV Guide, and only goes a day in the future, but it did work fine for me this evening and . . . this is how we did used to do it a decade ago with early DVRs (EPG's have spoiled us). xmltv is probably a better option, I'll tackle that over the next few days.

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I don't think I want to replace a tuner that's working fine just to try out their service. Almost all my recording is of the main and subchannels of two local PBS stations, though I can receive 30 or so. For the time being, I can schedule recording with EPG listings and just look up more info on the web where I want additional details. I noticed another poster here was was a veteran of the Sony DVR/TVGuide debacle. I had just recently paid $150 to have the software factory upgraded in that $700 DVR when TVGuide killed off their service and bricked the unit, in effect. Sony couldn't be bothered to patch their software so users could at least set the time/date. I have no love for either Sony or TVGuide.

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On 2/2/2019 at 6:11 PM, Phillie14586 said:

Anyone else having problems with TV guide? My guide currently goes out to Tuesday at 7:00PM but nothing after that. My subscription goes until Mar. 19. I did a update now and it said downloading and adding channels but still no additional programs.

Yup my TV guide finally quit updating today 2/5/19! The schedule kept getting shorter by the day until it was completely gone. My subscription doesn't expire until September 2019 but stopped updating, it gives me an error message the the sever is not. responding.

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So I set up TitanTV last night to record my wife's favorite TV Shows and except for the fact it does not show what has been selected and conflicts it does work ok.

I have 3 HDHomerun dual tuners, 1 newer and 2 older, I got the third just to handle overlaps so I could record 4 channels at a time and not have recordings get cut of when another starts recording before the others are finished. I just have to keep track of how many channels are recording at a time in my head now with TitanTV.

Using a browser from another computer, laptop or iPad makes it a bit more complicated, for my wife, but has the advantage of being able to program the shows when the MacMini and EyeTV are not running, I have it power down at 2am every day and start it around 4pm each day.

I've looked at Plex and Kodi a number of times but the biggest issue with them is they do not group recordings by show in sub menus and to find a show you have to scroll through, in my case thousands of shows, which is a HUGH PIA.

Edited by Russ One

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Now having a go with ATSC guide and cut and pasting show info from TV Guide.com... This is going to be tedious.  6 months of subscription of TV Guide left to go.  Damn.

Agree with comments here that EyeTV is a good Mac recording solution - and depressing that EyeTV has dropped support for HD HomeRun.  I particularly like EyeTV capability to edit out commercials (though it requires manual work, I find it's worth the effort).

EyeTV RIP? :(

Edited by chuckles67

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For what it's worth, when I capture packets upon doing an "Update Now", EyeTV talks to web01.t150.synaix.de on port 443.  This appears to be a server in Germany (based on a traceroute).  The connection is encrypted so I can tell much.  However, if you go to https://web01.t150.synaix.de/ with a web browser, it takes you to https://www.geniatech.eu/.

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A little more tutorial for TitanTV. My earlier tutorial was for doing remote scheduling (where your eyeTV software polls TitanTV for programs you've saved on the site), which I find useful for my usual week-long bulk scheduling tasks. Following up on Ed Noe's earlier post, you can also schedule single programs from TitanTV without using the Remote settings on titantv.com or in eyeTV preferences. You still need to set up a free account and set your channel lineup to match your provider.

1. Find a program on TitanTV you want to record and click on it.

2. In the popup window, click on the big red circular button.

3. This action downloads a file named program.tvpi to your Mac. I use the Chrome browser, so the file name shows up in the browser's bottom bar. But in Safari, it appears in the list of downloads visible from the downloads icon at the right in the browser's titlebar. In either case, double-click on the file (or locate it in the Finder and do the same). If you have eyeTV running with the Schedules view, you'll see the program added to the schedule, and the program.tvpi file is deleted. The file is no longer needed; when the program is in the Schedules list, you're all set -- await the future!

 

Now, I have an ancient eyeTV tuner (analog) running on a Comcast cable system (which goes out anytime someone in Schenectady sneezes). As I mentioned in an earlier post, the channel names may be different between eyeTV and TitanTV, even though the channel number alignments are correct. I found it necessary for several channels to edit the channel names in eyeTV and/or TitanTV to get them to match, allowing eyeTV to add the programs without complaint. For example, "Comedy Central (West)" on eyeTV won't match with TitanTV's "CMDY-W" designation. The steps to fix this are a little tedious, but you only have to go through it once per channel you need to change. This renaming is also necessary if you use the Remote Scheduling option I described in an earlier post.

In eyeTV:

1. Activate the Channels view, and scroll so the desired channel listing is visible.

2. Ctrl-click on the row with that channel to view an action popup menu.

3. Choose Rename..., and enter a SHORT description (e.g. for Comedy Central, I use CMDY), and click Rename in the dialog box.

At TitanTV:

4. Click on the red toolbox icon near the top center of the page, next to the programming provider.

5. Click on the My Channel Lineups tab. Click the Edit Channels button for the lineup you use (you probably have only one).

6. Scroll to your desired channel listing row, and click the Edit button.

7. Change the Callsign field to the same name as in eyeTV Step 3, above (e.g, CMDY for my Comedy Central channel). This field is artificially short at TitanTV, so don't expect to enter long names here. Entries may also be case-sensitive. Click Save Changes when done.

8. Click "TitanTV Listings" at the top left of the page to return to the channel listings.

Now test your work by clicking on a future program for the just-edited channel, and the red record button. Double-click the program.tvpi downloaded file and see if the eyeTV Schedules list accepts the program. If there is a naming problem, you'll see an error about the channel designation. Go back and try another name for both entries, or just confirm that both are identical to each other.

 

Hope this helps you out as hope fades for TVGuide ever coming back to eyeTV,

Danny (dannyg.com)

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