I'm really aching to control my XM satellite radio account via my HTPC and remote.  A GBPVR plug-in seemed like the natural answer...if it's possible.

My first question is, does this exist already?  If so, I'd be indebted for a link.  If not, read on.

The next question is, is it even possible?  Currently, XM's online service can be accessed via their website (link) or via Windows Media Player 10.  I haven't looked into WMP 10, but my assumption is that it's just using Media Player as a browser for the Flash file that controls the service online.

XM themselves aren't responding to the question.  The only thing I've gotten from the XM community is to try and obtain the .SWF file, decompile and go from there.  Not knowing jack about Flash, I don't even know if that's possible without XM just giving me the code.  

If it got that far, it would certainly have to be tied to each user's XM Online account and I'd be hesitant to talk about supporting any sort of recording options as XM seems touchy about that subject outside of it's own applications (read their tuners).

Assuming it's even possible to put something like this together, I'd be interested in working with someone that has experience with creating GBPVR plug-ins, but if no one is interested, it'll be my first foray into that area.  

So, anyone have any thoughts?

It seems that GBPVR like the tuner on my old VCR will not receive channels above 125 or so.....anyway, it will not receive my Canadian digital cable tv channels in the 100s 200s 300s 400s etc. (Oddly, it tunes in a channel at 132, however)

That's a bummer! Is there anyway to use the internal tuner to receive channels above 125? The ZAP2it enters most of them into the EPG (again, oddly skipping some), but of course this is just a listing. The Channels are not really available.

I have tried adding them manually to the channel configuration, but, again that is only a channel listing.

I don't really want to use the external tuner of the digital cable box or the satellite receiver.

One more quick question - I've got a Hauppage 250 card, and I've noticed, like others, that the remote "eye" is not particularly sensitive or angle-friendly. It's ok, just not fantastic. Here's my question - is the PVR-150 much better? I've been thinking about getting a USB type remote device, but if the 150's remote "eye" is good, then I can just wait and get the 150 as a second video card and solve 2 issues at once.

Hey I've got an idea - I don't really want my HTPC to connect to the internet (updating windows & stuff all the time seems like a major hassle) - but it is connected to my "home" pc via an ethernet connection. So...

Can I use my "home" pc to get listings via XMLTV, store that in a folder, and have my HTPC look for that file a few times a day? Seems like my "home pc" would likely be turned on at least once during such attempts if I have my HPTC look often enough. Would this work? Am I a nut for thinking this way? Ok, thanks guys.

I can't seem to get the screen saver on my MediaMVP to shut off while using GBPVR. When I view pictures with the pictures plugin, the screen saver kicks in after a minute. I turned it off using the Hauppauge software, but it doesn't work in GBPVR. Anyone else have the same issue? Any way to resolve this?

When I try to playback GBPVR mpg files over network on another computer, I get a playback error: unable to download codec.

I am able playback files fine with main PC.  Both PC's are Windows XP home.  I check the file types in WMP and mpg files are checked.  Is there a codec I need to install and how do I do it.  Thanks

I am soon going to move to a new house and will have only satellite. I want to eventually have 4 satellite receivers feeding into 4 capture devices using GB-PVR. What is the status of satellite support with GB-PVR? What issues will come up and what equipment will i need to make this work with GB-PVR?

Thanks

I have a Hauppauge MediaMVP unit and one of their PVR-150s. I have seen problems(stuttering/lockups) when trying to playback a video to my MVP *while* GB-PVR's Recording Service is recording a program. Is this beyond Gb-PVR's capabilities? I am using the latest version og GB-PVR.

I have a XP Pro workstation running on an AMP Athlon XP3000+ processor and typical Maxtor 160GB 7200rpm HDDs (9 ms access time). So my hardware is reasonably powerful.

I am thinking of delegating the MediaMVP playback to another PC in my home. So one PC (with the PVR-150) will have the sole job of recording, other PC will stream recorded programs to the MVP. Anybody do this yet? Tips appreciated :)

When choosing to record programs using TV Guide, how can I select what folder the recordings are saved in? I'd like it to offer me the the same folders that I created with the My Videos plugin, but there are no "settings" for the standard TV Guide that comes with GB-PVR.

So I guess TV Guide uses the location entered for "Recordings Directory" from the Directories tab of the Config program? Then it creates a folder named with the same title as the program to be recorded, then lastly writes the recorded MPG file to this folder. AND the MPG filename is also the name of the program. So if I selected to record a program named "Program Name" from TV Guide, it would store it in x:\Recordings Directory\Program Name\Program Name_date_<starttime><endtime>". Why does it create the extra folder - I'm confused about this?

TIA,
-Mike

If you're having GB issues, look at your background processes.

I had issues of program studdering and a random freeze (after fixing same issues for separate reason). It turned out, in my case, it was Diskeeper doing smartscan defrag.

If you have a PVR only box, you can really cut back on things your system uses and does during times of "low activity" (of which it seems most GB activities are). If your sys acts up, try doing a ctrl+alt+del and see what services and programs are running, and if there is high system activity even after you've stopped GB.