Sub and the history of GB-pvr

[treads6464]

Sub,

Many of us have come here and started using GB-pvr because no other system is as easily set up on a Windows machine. What I am wondering is how did GB-pvr start out? Were you originally a Mythtv user or something else and one day you just decided to make it simpler and better? Among my family, GB-pvr has become a staple since i started using it not too long ago. Aside from just a hobby, what drove you to first start this thing and what still drives you to make it better with every release? Between your program and the plugins that many have created, as well as the awesome help here on the forums, you have created something quite grand and I just am interested to know what sparked it. It probably isn't said enough, but thank you Sub and all of the other contributors to this program, it has made my entertainment experience awesome!

[sub]

Here is what I posted in the past when someone else asked the same thing:

okay, here is where it all began...

I bought myself a PVR350 when I was on holiday in europe early in 2003. I'd read about them previously, but at the time they were selling for about NZ$780 (about US$500) in New Zealand - ouch! I bought one in Amsterdam for great price - I cant remember exactly but I think it was about NZ$300. Well under half.

We dont have anything like Tivo here in New Zealand, but I wanted something like it for recording TV, ideally with a tv guide. I initially setup a HTPC using one of the mini-itx VIA EPIA boards, and tried using the Hauppauge WinTV software, but quickly decided it was crappy.

Next I tried SageTV. It supported my PVR350's TV out (without OSD at that time), so sounded pretty promising, but I had all sorts of problems with - the old interface was butt ugly, it used to cause my PVR350 and machine to blue screen and lockup, and it didnt really cope with the different channel lineups on different inputs that I needed. I also tried MythTV around the same time, but after weeks of wasting time with that, I decided SageTV was a better option.

I persisted with SageTV for about six months, but was never really able to get the machine into a state where I could really start relying on it. I was one of the more vocal Sage users, pressing them to fix bugs and getting OSD support added for the PVR350 tv out. Around October 2003 they asked me to participate in a closed beta for SageTV v2, and was initially excited about it. Unfortunately it would have required me to sign an non-disclosure agreement which had some pretty stiff terms, including agreeing to not develop any tv software in the future. I was developer and was already thinking about maybe writing something - this gave me the final push. It was either give up these ideas and continue to use SageTV, or back myself to to develop something better.

After a couple of months of coding furiously in home office, I had a first release of GB-PVR. I posted a message on the shs forums asking for Hauppauge card owners that would like to give my secret project a test run. There wasnt much interest, but I did manage to get a few users willing to give it a try (Colin, AndyC, and some others).

These guys gave me good feedback, and I was giving them weekly releases. In early 2004, I posted a few screenshots on the shs website, and opened it up to the general public. It was pretty primitive, but had some great things going for it, like being first application to support the PVR350 tv out with full OSD, and the first application to support the MediaMVP.

The rest is history...

[sub]

and

Its funny though, at the time, one of my main motivations was the bugs I was seeing in apps like SageTV, and thinking I'll be able to do better. Looking back, I now know why a lot of these specific bugs werent fixed, and just how hard this stuff is in general.

I know where the bugs are in GB-PVR, and where it's shortcomings are, but the required available time, or vendor support is not always available to address these. I slowly chip away at these each release. Its generally a pretty good app, and pretty proud of it.

[mkenyon2]

I think the fact that you offer so much help to the plugin developers is pretty awesome too.

[martint123]

Its generally a pretty good app, and pretty proud of it.

It's bloody good and you should be very proud of it.

The huge variety of hardware that people are using and it working with them is testament to the above.

[elite]

Yeo it's amazing how much devlopement you put in - let alone the awesome response time on the forum...

[colin]

Sub has put together a great piece of software and it has been a privilege to test it in the early days and watch this software mature over the years. Kudos to Sub and an even bigger thanks to his family for allowing him time to work on this project

[Bathman]

It must be a great feeling to sit down at the end of the day. Turn the telly on and watch a programme that you've recorded and think - hey I did all this.

[McBainUK]

But does he have time to sit and watch it..?

[sub]

But does he have time to sit and watch it..?

Yeah, but I definitely dont watch as much TV as before I started the project. I pretty much record everything I want and watch it when I find the time rather than live. The kids make pretty good use of GB-PVR though...