zap2xml - a free zap2it scraper

[linfor]

I am having a problem with this in that ever so often it will show all listings in one 6hour block instead of broken up like it should be. I have removed the cache and removed the xml file and update again with same result.

[pvruser]

looks like zap2it likes to change from channel frequency (ch 33) to channel numbers (3.1) for OTA channels. they switched to frequency at the beginning of the month and now they switched back to numbers.
quite unpleasant!

[pvruser]

ok here's an updated version of the script - it can once again read the subchannel (like 2.1, 20.2) for "over the air" tv instead of displaying just the "major" channel. may be useful for someone.

i just changed the regex $tnum =~ s/.*channel=(\w+(\.\w+|)).*/$1/; in the sub on_a to look for . (dot) and a few more alphanumerics.

hope it helps someone.

NOTE that it will mess us your lineup and you'll need to reschedule your recordings if you want to go back from just using the major channel (20) to major.minor (20.2) as it used to work some time ago.
you'll also need activeperl to run it.

[scezic]

Just recently lost the -A "new" functionality. It no longer marks new shows with * .
yapi2xml still works so i assume it's and issue with tvlistings.zap2it.com.

Anyone else having this issue?

[smajor]

Just recently lost the -A "new" functionality. It no longer marks new shows with * .
yapi2xml still works so i assume it's and issue with tvlistings.zap2it.com.

Anyone else having this issue?

YUP! Same here. Looks like they (zap2it) slightly changed their code for how they display "new" shows (at least on the web page). If so in the files zap2xml downloads, the author will have to update the script, I think.

I miss that 'lil * :p

[ApexHack]

Would this break the whole thing, or just not display the "new" stuff?

[smajor]

Would this break the whole thing, or just not display the "new" stuff?

One of the flags for it allows an * to be displayed in the guide for new (first run) episodes. For example:

Torchwood *

So, while the show and description is still listed just fine, the * is gone. The only thing this breaks is if you have scheduled recordings where it's looking for the * in the title, they will not get recorded.

Otherwise it is still working great. I emailed the author about it, and while I don't have a reply yet, in the past the response time to issues was pretty darn quick.

[ApexHack]

Thanks. I'm trying to figure out why my EPG is all wonky.

[pvruser]

One of the flags for it allows an * to be displayed in the guide for new (first run) episodes. For example:

Torchwood *

So, while the show and description is still listed just fine, the * is gone. The only thing this breaks is if you have scheduled recordings where it's looking for the * in the title, they will not get recorded.

Otherwise it is still working great. I emailed the author about it, and while I don't have a reply yet, in the past the response time to issues was pretty darn quick.

i'm sure the code fix is easy - take a look at the perl script and change it so it looks for the li items (class hd, new, live). i was tempted to use the * for some time but i assumed the show title with a * may not be well digested by gbpvr... and you just confirmed it :o

EDIT:
this appears to be fixed on the site - from looking at the script.

[requitas]

I am having a problem with this in that ever so often it will show all listings in one 6hour block instead of broken up like it should be. I have removed the cache and removed the xml file and update again with same result.

Me too, Linfor! This is my one complaint of the program. Does anyone have any idea why this happens? It is periodic, only during primetime, and lasts for a 1-3 weeks usually. It takes the show that starts at 6pm and has it lasting til about midnight on each channel. It's a parsing problem (or scraping) it seems because it is incorrect in the xml file. Therefore I do not think it's a GBPVR problem at all. Anyone have any idea? It seems to me something on the site must change from time to time for a given week's listings that makes a difference in the way the scraper reads it. When I look at the page I can't see any difference visually so it would have to be a programmatic difference. This has happened to me several times with periods in between working perfectly. Last week the most recent incident began and this week it is still messed up. I have cleared cache, updated my *.exe file, cleared the epg, remapped digital channels and so on. Again, it seems to me it's a problem with the way the xml file is generated, the ONE thing I rely upon this program doing without understanding or caring to know how it does it.

Help? Please...