EPG for Singapore Users - Starhub New Channels Numbering

[ralphy]

Well, we knew it was coming for weeks (Starhub's change in channel numbering). But I foolishly thought that the on-line program guide would have been updated for the new numbers. Alas, not the case, and the new on-lineguide pages are in a completely different format, using java. And now it's panic time, as all programming must be handled manually!

So, does anyone know how to process this type of page with TVxb, or know of an alternative to TVxb if TVxb can't handle it? I've played around with the tagtr and tagtd strings without luck so far..

Code:

[{"synopsis":"Behenein is a story about the special bond shared by a bunch of sisters and how that bond stands the test of time.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Behenein","displayTime":"00:00","scheduleId":1005467004,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 00:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000541278,"endTime":"Sat May 01 00:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Kuku Narang's wishes are fulfilled when he is blessed with a daughter. She becomes the centre of attention until a dark secret is revealed.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Sabki Laadli Bebo","displayTime":"00:30","scheduleId":1005467119,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 00:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000410530,"endTime":"Sat May 01 01:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Bidaai is a drama about two sisters, one fair and the other rather dark, and how their appearance leads to problems before and after their marriage.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Bidaai","displayTime":"01:00","scheduleId":1005467017,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 01:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000218605,"endTime":"Sat May 01 01:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"This drama is a romantic love story about how an innocent girl falls in love for the first time after marriage and it's with her own husband.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai","displayTime":"01:30","scheduleId":1005467206,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 01:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000360173,"endTime":"Sat May 01 02:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Pratigya is an educated girl who dares to speak up against disrespectful acts towards women, hoping to stop any injustices.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Mann Kee Awaaz Pratigya","displayTime":"02:00","scheduleId":1005467059,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 02:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000530717,"endTime":"Sat May 01 02:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Sajan Ghar Jaana Hai is a drama about a housewife's journey towards women empowerment after her in-laws kick her out and her husband remarries.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Sajan Ghar Jaana Hai","displayTime":"02:30","scheduleId":1005467131,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 02:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000465048,"endTime":"Sat May 01 03:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Sasuraal Genda Phool is a love story of two strangers, Suhaana and Ishaan, who fall in love after marriage.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Sasuraal Genda Phool","displayTime":"03:00","scheduleId":1005467148,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 03:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000543402,"endTime":"Sat May 01 03:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"This drama is a romantic love story about how an innocent girl falls in love for the first time after marriage and it's with her own husband.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai","displayTime":"03:30","scheduleId":1005467207,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 03:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000360173,"endTime":"Sat May 01 04:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Sarju leaves his family in the village to seek a better future in Mumbai, the City of Dreams.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Tere Mere Sapne","displayTime":"04:00","scheduleId":1005467193,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 04:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000496880,"endTime":"Sat May 01 04:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Behenein is a story about the special bond shared by a bunch of sisters and how that bond stands the test of time.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Behenein","displayTime":"04:30","scheduleId":1005467005,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 04:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000541278,"endTime":"Sat May 01 05:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Bidaai is a drama about two sisters, one fair and the other rather dark, and how their appearance leads to problems before and after their marriage.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Bidaai","displayTime":"05:00","scheduleId":1005467018,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 05:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000218605,"endTime":"Sat May 01 05:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"This drama is a romantic love story about how an innocent girl falls in love for the first time after marriage and it's with her own husband.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai","displayTime":"05:30","scheduleId":1005467208,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 05:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000360173,"endTime":"Sat May 01 06:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Pratigya is an educated girl who dares to speak up against disrespectful acts towards women, hoping to stop any injustices.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Mann Kee Awaaz Pratigya","displayTime":"06:00","scheduleId":1005467060,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 06:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000530717,"endTime":"Sat May 01 06:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Aek Chabhi Hai Padoss Mein is an amusing slice-of-life depiction of the daily life in a middle class neighbourhood, their problems, their aspirations and more.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Aek Chabhi Hai Padoss Mein","displayTime":"06:30","scheduleId":1005466992,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 06:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000154602,"endTime":"Sat May 01 07:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Aek Chabhi Hai Padoss Mein is an amusing slice-of-life depiction of the daily life in a middle class neighbourhood, their problems, their aspirations and more.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Aek Chabhi Hai Padoss Mein","displayTime":"07:00","scheduleId":1005466993,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 07:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000154602,"endTime":"Sat May 01 07:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"An NRI family living in London tries to instill traditional values in their children as they long to return to India.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Des Mein Nikla Hoga Chand","displayTime":"07:30","scheduleId":1005467039,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 07:30:00 SGT 2010","id":191780,"endTime":"Sat May 01 08:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"A mini-movie with stories scripted, directed and produced by a group of Bollywood's best youth talents.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Star Bestsellers","displayTime":"08:30","scheduleId":1005467187,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 08:30:00 SGT 2010","id":173488,"endTime":"Sat May 01 09:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Shanno has finally got her prince charming, but will they live happily ever after?","imageUrl":null,"title":"Shanno Ki Shaadi","displayTime":"09:30","scheduleId":1005467173,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 09:30:00 SGT 2010","id":236426,"endTime":"Sat May 01 10:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Three generations of women in a family have inherited magical powers, but have little idea about how to use them correctly. Watch out for some whacky witchcraft by the witless women.","imageUrl":null,"title":"SHARARAT","displayTime":"10:00","scheduleId":1005467178,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 10:00:00 SGT 2010","id":220490,"endTime":"Sat May 01 10:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"The Parekhs portray an ideal example of an undivided joint family. Nasty and yet lovable, the characters bring out unintentional fun of everyday life.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Khichdi","displayTime":"10:30","scheduleId":1005467052,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 10:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000000917,"endTime":"Sat May 01 11:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Mum Tum Aur Hum is a fun family game played with young kids that tests their understanding with their mums, as they stand to win great prizes.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Mum Tum Aur Hum","displayTime":"11:00","scheduleId":1005467088,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 11:00:00 SGT 2010","id":243979,"endTime":"Sat May 01 11:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Shanno has finally got her prince charming, but will they live happily ever after?","imageUrl":null,"title":"Shanno Ki Shaadi","displayTime":"11:30","scheduleId":1005467174,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 11:30:00 SGT 2010","id":236426,"endTime":"Sat May 01 12:00:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"The Parekhs portray an ideal example of an undivided joint family. Nasty and yet lovable, the characters bring out unintentional fun of everyday life.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Khichdi","displayTime":"12:00","scheduleId":1005467053,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 12:00:00 SGT 2010","id":1000000917,"endTime":"Sat May 01 12:30:00 SGT 2010"},{"synopsis":"Rani is living happily with her Prince Charming but the scheming step mother along with her son and daughter-in-law continue their wicked ways.","imageUrl":null,"title":"Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat","displayTime":"12:30","scheduleId":1005467093,"nowShowing":false,"startTime":"Sat May 01 12:30:00 SGT 2010","id":1000245062,"endTime":"Sat May 01 13:00:00 SGT 2010"}
.....

]

[ralphy]

For all you Singapore users out there, here's a possible fix to the new Starhub channel listings and Mediacorp's recently change to their online guide.

EDIT: The better solution is now at http://www.sgmce.com


I couldn't get TVxb to parse the downloaded pages in the OP, so I wrote a short program to insert <td> and <tr> tags without any regard to making the page conform to html rules - All I wanted to do is to get TVxb to parse the file. TVxb will run this program as a 'precommand', reformating files that are in the cache. (You must use the cache). Then TVxb runs. Any EPG that is not in the cache will be downloaded, but WILL NOT PARSE by TVxb, since if is in the incorrect format (errors will be reported in the TVxb log). The EPG will always miss the last day - ie if you have been getting a seven day download, the seventh day will not show in the EPG unless you immediately rerun TVxb. A pain - yes, but functional.

I ended up doing a similar thing with MediaCorp, although instead of relying on TVxb to download the page (a URL is in the ini file, but this URL is in a format that TVxb does not handle as a known limitation) I use the program to do this and then insert the <tr> <td> tags. This is also done before TVxb runs as part of the precommand.

So,

1. download the Sinagpore TVxb.ini and Reformatter.zip file and extract
   • the exe file into program files\tvxb\bin
     
   • the ini file / edit as necessary into the approriate location (in my case C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TVxb\ini)
     

Known limitations:

• Expects the cache to be in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TVxb\cache
  
• chinese characters don't display properly.
  
• TVxb seems to give up after several failures, so if you are trying to donwload all 100+ channels for a week, you will need to run TVxb two to four times to get the complete listing downloaded. Once the cache is populated, this should be a problem.
  

Use at your own risk (with TVXb 2.0009). Provided AS IS, WHERE IS. WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED!. I can't guarantee support, so I have included the source for the program. (It's not elegant and a single, not general/customizable solution)


Please feeback if this has been useful. I'm curious to see how many PVRX2 users there are here in SG.

[johnaray]

Ralphy,
thanks a million for putting in the effort to compile all of the items!! This is a huge undertaking to get all the links correct for the programming data for each channel as well as writing the code. I have slightly modified your source to cater for vista installations & so far it seems to be working fine for me. I typically put the channel numbers before the names in the ini file, so I have updated it for my particular use. However, those who don't mind & want the entire list should use Ralphy's ini file.

For everyone else, all limitations/instructions as above except the following:

• Expects the cache to be in C:\ProgramData\TVxb\cache (typical Vista TVxb installation)
  

I like your disclaimer so I will reuse as well:
Use at your own risk (with TVXb 2.0009). Provided AS IS, WHERE IS. WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED!.

I hope this helps you guys as well!!

FYI....the Star Movies download link in your ini file is incorrect. The channel ID is 33 & not 31 as was in the ini file attached. See below. So far that is the only one I noticed that is incorrect. Will advise if I find more.
url=http://www.starhub.com/dev/channel.json.html?channelId=33&date=[day=yyyymmdd]

[ralphy]

Thanks johnaray.

Just noticed Nat Geo Wild also wrong - Should be Channel 256
url=http://www.starhub.com/dev/channel.json.html?channelId=256&date=[day=yyyymmdd]

[sgmce]

Doh! Came accross this about 4 hours too late! I was tired of not having EPG data so I started writing a server-side fix that has been working for me temporarily...

May be helpful to some that dont want to run more programs and modify their cache - just stuck a scraper/reformatter on sgmce.com for the purpose of delivering the proper EPG to tvxb. Works great so far for all the starhub channels and mediacorp for titles & showtimes, but no descriptions.

I registered sgmce.com cause I hate having to search through oz/uk forums for basic config settings for sing!

www.sgmce.com

[gbpdem]

Thanks ralphy ! Appreciate the effort.
Will try this out when I get back tonight.
Have been a frustrating past 3 days for me trying to search for a new guide ...

regards,

[gbpdem]

hi guys,

just tried to run G:\Program Files\TVxb\bin\TVxb.exe (my set up is on drive G:
and I've changed the drive letter accordingly for the reformatter - will this cause any problems?)

Immediately on the window where i usually see xx shows being downloaded in the past, i now see
these error messages : "Failed to understand schedule format ....."
"ERROR : Giving up on ......"
"0 shows processed"

any ideas where i am going wrong please?
i am using windows 7 btw

thanks

[johnaray]

hi guys,

just tried to run G:\Program Files\TVxb\bin\TVxb.exe (my set up is on drive G:
and I've changed the drive letter accordingly for the reformatter - will this cause any problems?)

Immediately on the window where i usually see xx shows being downloaded in the past, i now see
these error messages : "Failed to understand schedule format ....."
"ERROR : Giving up on ......"
"0 shows processed"

any ideas where i am going wrong please?
i am using windows 7 btw

thanks

Hi gbpdem,
as Ralphy mentioned what you are seeing is the tvxb program downloading the schedules but not understanding the format. The reformatter reformats the web pages downloaded prior that is in the cache folder.....it does not do anything for the downloads in progress. This is what you should see the first time you run it. As he mentioned, you will need to run the tvxb program a few times to build up a week's worth of schedule. The second time you run the tvxb program (with the reformatter in the precommand) you should begin to see some shows being understood. For your Windows 7 installation, you should make sure that the tvxb cache folder directory is the same as vista. If it is not, let us know the directory & we can rebuild the formatter for you.

Notes:
1. Ensure the cache folder is where the reformatter thinks it should be
2. Ensure the reformatter is in the location specified in the tvxb.ini file (at the precommand= "C:xxx line)

Alternately, you could use/modify the ini file from sgmce

Hope this helps!

[fhmanas]

For all you Singapore users out there, here's a possible fix to the new Starhub channel listings and Mediacorp's recently change to their online guide.

I couldn't get TVxb to parse the downloaded pages in the OP, so I wrote a short program to insert <td> and <tr> tags without any regard to making the page conform to html rules - All I wanted to do is to get TVxb to parse the file. TVxb will run this program as a 'precommand', reformating files that are in the cache. (You must use the cache). Then TVxb runs. Any EPG that is not in the cache will be downloaded, but WILL NOT PARSE by TVxb, since if is in the incorrect format (errors will be reported in the TVxb log). The EPG will always miss the last day - ie if you have been getting a seven day download, the seventh day will not show in the EPG unless you immediately rerun TVxb. A pain - yes, but functional.

I ended up doing a similar thing with MediaCorp, although instead of relying on TVxb to download the page (a URL is in the ini file, but this URL is in a format that TVxb does not handle as a known limitation) I use the program to do this and then insert the <tr> <td> tags. This is also done before TVxb runs as part of the precommand.

So,

1. download the Sinagpore TVxb.ini and Reformatter.zip file and extract
   • the exe file into program files\tvxb\bin
     
   • the ini file / edit as necessary into the approriate location (in my case C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TVxb\ini)
     

Known limitations:

• Expects the cache to be in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TVxb\cache
  
• chinese characters don't display properly.
  
• TVxb seems to give up after several failures, so if you are trying to donwload all 100+ channels for a week, you will need to run TVxb two to four times to get the complete listing downloaded. Once the cache is populated, this should be a problem.
  

Use at your own risk (with TVXb 2.0009). Provided AS IS, WHERE IS. WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED!. I can't guarantee support, so I have included the source for the program. (It's not elegant and a single, not general/customizable solution)


Please feeback if this has been useful. I'm curious to see how many PVRX2 users there are here in SG.

Hello, I am trying to recompile your code with SharpDevelop, but it is looking for Drawing and Window. I am not familiar C#, am just trying to do it on my own. In any case, my problem stems from the fact that the default cache directory is hard coded to "c:\Documents and settings ..." and mine is in "d:\Documents and settings\ ...". Can you help out?


Thanks.

[gbpdem]

For your Windows 7 installation, you should make sure that the tvxb cache folder directory is the same as vista. If it is not, let us know the directory & we can rebuild the formatter for you.

Notes:
1. Ensure the cache folder is where the reformatter thinks it should be
2. Ensure the reformatter is in the location specified in the tvxb.ini file (at the precommand= "C:xxx line)

Alternately, you could use/modify the ini file from sgmce

Hope this helps!

hi johnaray,
thanks for the response.

I used to have my PVR program in C: drive (XP Pro SP2), so there is also a ready cache folder in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\TVxb\cache
I cleared all contents in this older cache file and the also cleared the present one in G:\ProgramData\TVxb\cache ; just to be sure.
G: is where my present OS Windows 7 resides and is the OS where i have the present PVRX2

I ran the G:\Program Files\TVxb\bin\TVxb.exe and noticed something strange.
The cache file in C: drive became populated with local tv listings only, no cable channels
while the cache file in G: drive remains empty

When i ran the TVxb.exe a second time as suggested,
G:\ProgramData\TVxb\cache becomes populated with the cable channels' programme listings , although they only show day 1 listings ...
and the C: drive cache file still show the earlier local tv listings, nothing new was added ...

so perhaps, i need help in getting the reformatter move things into the correct drive and folder.
any suggestions please?

regards,