EPG Woes

[muskgrave]

Hello All,

I was a happy user of GBPVR a year or so ago and decided to fire it up again with my new computer. I installed the application and reinstalled my ati theater 550 in my new computer. I went through the old familiar setup but was troubled that the simple zap2it option for downloading EPG was no longer there. The only options that appear simple are pay sites!

So I started looking at the xmltv stuff and it looks to be a serious pain. Perhaps it isn't, but I can't find much info on how to set the thing up (yes I searched this forum). I downloaded the xmltv application or whatever it is and it's own documentation is wrong (it says I need to reference some _na folder that doesn't exist.

So where do I go to figure out how to set this up for north america??

thanks

[whurlston]

You need to run it with the "configure" option before it creates the na_dd config. xmltv na_dd now uses Schedules Direct, the same pay service natively supported in GBPVR, so if you were thinking that it would be free, it's not anymore. The free data feed from Zap2It no longer exists.

There is an EPG page on the wiki that will show you all your options. Schedules Direct is the only option that is pretty much guaranteed. All the others are scrapers or convertors that are more prone to breaking and require more setup. I don't know if the wiki has been updated in regards to CTPVR but they are no longer an option.

[muskgrave]

thanks for your reply. So it looks like the golden era of free EPG is over . Oh well $20 for a year sounds more than reasonable to me.

I downloaded the xmlTV GUI instead as it seems to be a bit more user friendly.

So just so I have the basic data flow correct I need to:

1) Get an account with Schedules Direct

2) Configure XMLTV GUI "grabber" to use Schedules Direct. According to some instructions I found I should be able to put in my name/password in the settings for Schedules Direct under the "grabbers" tab and it will pull my preferred lineup.

3) After having configured XMLTV to grab from Schedules Direct, I can tell XMLTV to get my listings and it will download an XML file which I can then import directly into GBPVR.

does that sound correct? Do I need to use one of the converter services also found in XMLTV GUI?

Once i get that set up then I'll start looking into how to automate the process.

Thanks Again,
dlv

[sub]

If you going to be using Schedules Direct, you can skip the whole xmltv thing if you want to and just use the built in 'Schedules Direct' EPG Source option, then just enter your username and password.

So it looks like the golden era of free EPG is over . Oh well $20 for a year sounds more than reasonable to me.

The easy free days of zap2it are over, but there are still free options, but they require a bit more work than zap2it did in the past.

[zehd]

I don't know if the wiki has been updated in regards to CTPVR but they are no longer an option.

Updated

[muskgrave]

thanks for your quick replies/helpful answers.

I think for less than $2/month I'll just opt for the easy familiar option with Schedules Direct .