More failed recordings

[time_lord]

That makes sense. I didn't know NZ listings are usually 7 days. I'm accustomed to the 11-13 days of data that we get in the U.S.

Yep,

...my PC had been 'offline' for over a week, so the epg was out of date...

7 days only

[time_lord]

However, manual recordings aren't tied to any EPG data, so if you want that you'll have to do what I do: Edit out the video you want, and use MpegImport or VidImport. I followup by manual database edits to change the recordings to actual EPG entries, but don't recommend it unless you want to get your hands dirty. It isn't hard, but it does require decent SQLite administration software.

Hmmm, seems like a drama, think I'll stick with the manual recordings.

[time_lord]

Yep, the guys above are correct. No listings = no new recordings scheduled. You can use manual recordings if you're not going to have listings though.

Ok, manual recordings sound like the way to go.
So why the dependence on the epg - is it like stustunz says, that gbpbr can use the epg data to "adjust to the exact length of time within the time slot etc"? But if the epg timeslot varies, then if gbpvr changes the recording duration it may introduce a conflict, yes?
Another question - if gbpvr makes use of the epg data, does it identify the program by name? What happens then if "The Program" changes to "The Program (new series)" but is in the same timeslot? Will recordings start failing?

Also a question (may be a feature request ), if gbpvr is going to alter recording time based on epg data (and/or possibly introduce a conflict if my above assumption is correct), could gbpvr have a task running a few hours in advance which is looking for these potential issues and display warnings? That'd be really nice to avoid recordings problems.

[stustunz]

i have been using gbpvr for a few years now and havent had any conflicts(that i can remember)
yeah you are correct that if the name changes then it will miss the recording
ie at one point the news on tv 3 changed its name from "news" to "news nr" so it missed recording it
it works well as it is as long as you have a reliable data source and the name doesnt change
i use revens epg data which updates automatically
what epg data source do you use ?
and why dont you have it updating automatically ?

[sub]

So why the dependence on the epg - is it like stustunz says, that gbpbr can use the epg data to "adjust to the exact length of time within the time slot etc"? But if the epg timeslot varies, then if gbpvr changes the recording duration it may introduce a conflict, yes?
Another question - if gbpvr makes use of the epg data, does it identify the program by name? What happens then if "The Program" changes to "The Program (new series)" but is in the same timeslot? Will recordings start failing?

Thats the way season recordings are designed to work. It looks for shows with the same name each time the EPG is imported. If the name changes, then yes it can miss a show. That is very very rare though, and the benefits of catching changes to the broadcast schedule make this current behaviour worthwhile - much more so than dumb VCR like operation.

I dont think there has been a another single post in the history of the GB-PVR forums where another user has been surprised that season recordings were tied to the listings imported with the EPG. I really like the way it works, and no plans to change it in the future.

[time_lord]

i have been using gbpvr for a few years now and havent had any conflicts(that i can remember)

Ok, great to know!

i use revens epg data which updates automatically
what epg data source do you use ?

I use djkxml. Never heard about 'revens' and cannot see it mentioned in the wiki... where do I find that [or should I just google...]

and why dont you have it updating automatically ?

I'd like to use the broadcast epg but am using dvb-t, so the epg is useless (i.e 2 hours). I have a new box and simply haven't set it up to download automatically (this is not my 'permanent' install until I am satisfied I have all issues resolved).
I've usually downloaded the epg every couple of days manually, but if I'm awol for a few days then the home pc doesn't get updated and I'm screwed!

[time_lord]

Thats the way season recordings are designed to work. It looks for shows with the same name each time the EPG is imported....
I dont think there has been a another single post in the history of the GB-PVR forums where another user has been surprised that season recordings were tied to the listings imported with the EPG...

Cool, good to know the process and that this is the preferred way.
Also I assume then that a once-only recording (set a day or 2 in advance) might get altered automatically in the same way to fit in with the epg data (if it changes)?

So what tolerance does gbpvr have... i.e if I have a 30minute recording set for 7pm but it's delayed by 1 hour (the epg says this), then will gbpvr still record it? What about 2 hours? One-off sports events would most likely be the cause of something like this... But I'm also wondering if we're going to get those party political broadcasts in the next few weeks that disrupt everything at 7pm (or hopefully that is a thing from the past!) but thankfully they used to be quite short.

[sub]

Cool, good to know the process and that this is the preferred way.
Also I assume then that a once-only recording (set a day or 2 in advance) might get altered automatically in the same way to fit in with the epg data (if it changes)?

No, this logic only applies to season recordings. One-off recordings are set in stone when you schedule them.

So what tolerance does gbpvr have... i.e if I have a 30minute recording set for 7pm but it's delayed by 1 hour (the epg says this), then will gbpvr still record it? What about 2 hours? One-off sports events would most likely be the cause of something like this... But I'm also wondering if we're going to get those party political broadcasts in the next few weeks that disrupt everything at 7pm (or hopefully that is a thing from the past!) but thankfully they used to be quite short.

If you do a normal season recording, then it doesnt matter what time it airs - it'll be scheduled if the name matches any show on that channels. If you do a "timeslot" season recording, then the default timeslot is +/-90, but that is tweakable in the config.xml file.