scheduling changes not handled well?

[Reddwarf]

I've just checked this here by editing some times in my xmltv file, then doing an Update EPG and seeing the new times in the updated recordings. It seemed to work fine.

If you post your GBPVRRecordingService.exe.log, should be able to check that its correctly emptying your EPG during the update process (or if there is some reason it isnt emptying it).

Do you have any capture sources setup which use the 'none' epg source option? This can cause the epg to not be emptied during the EPG update.

I guess doing a "complete epg-update" would solve the problem, but then again; sometimes the listings are screwed up, and if I do a complete update I'm left with no epg at all until tha next day...

[sub]

I guess doing a "complete epg-update" would solve the problem, but then again; sometimes the listings are screwed up, and if I do a complete update I'm left with no epg at all until tha next day...

Yes, you need to be using the 'complete epg update' option. I wouldnt recommend any have that option turned off.

The reality is there is very few situation where you'd end up with no listings. For example, it wont proceed with the epg update (deleting old listings etc) until it confirms its successfully retrieved a bit pile of listings. ie, if you had an empty xmltv file, or the file was missing, then it wouldnt do the epg update.

[roy]

Do you have any capture sources setup which use the 'none' epg source option? This can cause the epg to not be emptied during the EPG update.

I do have my PVR500 composite input as a capture source with 'none' epg source. Are you saying this is the problem, or it could be the problem?

[roy]

I found an overlapping double listing in the guide that was not even a scheduled recording. One from 8:29 - 9:00, the other 8:30 - 9:00, an obvious changed listing. I added an epg source for my composite input, did epg update, and the double listing is gone. Can't say for sure this will resolve changed scheduled recordings, but sure looks like adding the epg source did the trick.

[johnsonx42]

sub,

This issue has occurred again, but I have evidence for you this time.

I have a recurring recording for Star Trek, which airs normally at 4:00am on Monday mornings here on KTLADT (these are the 'refreshed' versions of the original show with restored audio and video, and have all space sequences re-done with CGI). This week's episode was scheduled to record when the episode showed up in the EPG from Schedules Direct (about 10 days ago I guess). At some point since then the show vanished from from the schedule; however the recording is still scheduled and the TV Guide still shows Star Trek at 4:00am on Monday for 1 hour; visually it is a half-hour block, but the text shows 1 hour. At 4:30am, the TV Guide displays a news program. (tvguide.jpg attached)

I've examined the c:\zap2it.xml (zipped and attached); Star Trek no longer appears in the file. At 4:00am (PDT, GMT-7) on KTLADT (channel id 19515), the EPG download says a show called "Punk'd" is supposed to be on for 30 minutes, and then at 4:30am it's "KTLA News at 4:30" (correctly displayed in the TV Guide)

So again, it appears somehow that the database will not accept new show info for a timeslot already scheduled to record.

I've attached my config.xml, but here's the part relevant to the EPG download:

Code:

<!-- EPG settings -->
  <EPGProcessingMode>normal</EPGProcessingMode>
  <UpdateEPGHour>2</UpdateEPGHour>
  <WakeMachineForEPGUpdate>true</WakeMachineForEPGUpdate>
  <BlebUserAgent>GBPVR</BlebUserAgent>
  <Zap2itListingDays>10</Zap2itListingDays>
  <Zap2itPreferGzip>true</Zap2itPreferGzip>
  <DvbEpgHarvestDuration>60</DvbEpgHarvestDuration>
  <DvbEpgHarvestOtherServices>true</DvbEpgHarvestOtherServices>
  <SaveZap2itXML>true</SaveZap2itXML>
  <CompleteEPGReload>true</CompleteEPGReload>
  <UpdateEPGFromSystemMenu>true</UpdateEPGFromSystemMenu>

I have no idea exactly when the show disappeared from the epg, but the way you described the intended behaviour it is supposed to refresh all the recurring recordings every time the epg update occurs.

Recording service logs attached as well.

Thanks.

edit: just in case you wonder, I restarted the recording service just after midnight to change a channel mapping, and again a little after 1am to change the <SaveZap2itXML> parameter because I had noticed the Star Trek issue earlier in the evening, but had forgotten to set the parameter to save the epg download.

[johnsonx42]

additional info:

It occured to me this afternoon to wonder what would happen if I looked for the 'missing' show "Punk'd" in the Search Guide. Sure enough, it lists episodes every weekday at 4:00am, EXCEPT this Monday even though the episode is listed in Zap2It.xml. I happened to notice that next Monday's episode is also missing from the Search Guide list... so I went to next Monday in the TV Guide, and it shows Star Trek again, exactly as it does for this monday (but a different episode of course).

At least it is being consistent...

[Reddwarf]

Off the topic: Good to see that I'm not the only Star Trek fan in this forum

[johnsonx42]

Off the topic: Good to see that I'm not the only Star Trek fan in this forum

The funny thing is I *thought* I was recording these for my wife; she's generally more of a fan of the old series than I am. Like everyone else I've seen them all a dozen times of course. But with these new 'refreshed' ones, I found I was quite interested in seeing what they had done, while she mostly couldn't care. For the most part I found the CG sequences pretty limp, though the space combat bits in "The Ultimate Computer" weren't bad. I really wanted to see what they'd done with "The Doomsday Machine", but now they've stopped airing them again.... oh well.

edit: wow, these episodes are available on Netflix Watch Instantly... I had no idea!
edit again: oops, just season 1... but still, nice

[Reddwarf]

A pity that Netflix isn't available for non-us residents...

[johnsonx42]

Sorry about that; in this age of almost everything being world-wide, I sometimes forget there are things that are limited to one country or region. I suppose one day there will be a netflix-europe or equivalent.