Improving the NEXTPVR Manual Recording Experience - Stage 1

[DVRMultiStreamer]

7-30-2017 - Improving the NEXTPVR Manual Recording Experience - Stage 1

Before I start I wanted to thank the developers of NextPVR for what they have accomplished. Without this software I don't think I could have recorded anything off my Comcast CableCard which already was a hassle to get working. So much thanks to you all. I'm currently using NEXTPVR on Windows XP and another on Windows Vista so please don't discontinue OS support for NEXTPVR on them.



Here are some of ideas to improve NEXTPVR as my contribution to making it a much easier and friendlier user interface.

I'll start with the easiest modifications. I've noticed that at times without the Keyboard it is nearly impossible to start a manual recording while watching Live TV.

So I'd like to see for the Right Click on the Mouse Menu on the list of options a Ctrl+K equivalent of bringing up the Manual Recording Menu. This would allow an individual with only a mouse to be able to use the program without needing any keyboard to start programming a recording or needing to Exit to the Main Menu aborting the Live TV feed.

On the Right Click Menu I would reorder as follows:
[ORIGINAL SETUP]
Open File
Live TV
Main Menu
Channels
Settings
Stay On Top
Show Fullscreen
Debug Info
About
Exit


[MODIFIED SETUP]
Manual Recording = Ctrl+K Keyboard equivalent here.
Live TV
Open File (Moved down the list because how often do people use open file method they would open a folder)
Main Menu
Channels
Settings
Stay On Top
Show Fullscreen
Debug Info
About
Exit


Now we move on to improving the recording experience.
On the Manual Recording Menu, here are some options I'd like to see added.

On the Manual Recording Menu it currently looks like this:
Recording Type: Record Once
Channel:
Default:
Date:
Start Time:
End Time:
Pre-Padding:
Post Padding:
Keep:
Advanced Rules:

OK Cancel


Under Start Time: I'd like to see an option if say for example it was set at 9:00AM if you double clicked on the the 9:00AM region it would pop up a where it would highlight the 9 or 00 region if you clicked on it. Then a slightly larger up arrow button that fit between the Date: and Start Time: would appear and a slightly larger down arrow button that fit between the Start Time: and End Time: would appear as well so you could manually adjust the hours with the mouse quickly up a few hours by clicking. Currently the mouse or keyboard clicking to the far right left and right arrow icons only increment or decrement by 10 minutes at a time.

I also would like the option if you double clicked onto the actual time again either on the hour or the minute it would allow manual entry by keyboard input to type in the digits. Say it was at 9:00 AM, you could change the 9 to 11, then click on the AM region and it would flip it to PM. So this would make it less work to change it then say 14 Hour mouse clicks.

I would like to see for the Keyboard which currently uses the Left and Right Arrow Keys to Increment and Decrement by 10 minutes and additional use of the keyboard using the Page Up Key (Numeric Key Pad 9) to Increase by Hour and if held down it would of course increase by Hours quickly upwards. And the Page Down Key (Numeric Key Pad 3) to decrease the Hours quickly downward till back to the original time.

The End Key (Numeric Key Pad 1) if tapped once to advance in one keystroke if the Start Time: was 9AM, by hitting the End Key (Numeric Key Pad 1) it would advance the start time 12 Hours. In the example the Start Time of 9AM would then become 9PM. Hitting the Home Key (Numeric Key Pad 7) would reduce it 12 Hours and change 9PM back to 9AM start time. This would shortcut a lot of work in setting Start Times using the Keyboard just using these simple modifications it would improve instead of holding down the Right Arrow Key until it hits the exact Hour and Minute you want which is a bit time consuming. I also want to add holding the down LEFT SHIFT KEY and or RIGHT SHIFT KEY in conjunction with the LEFT or RIGHT ARROW keys that instead of decreasing or increasing by 10 minutes at a time it will decrease or increase by 1 minute at a time respectively until the either SHIFT KEY is released and not held simultaneously. This feature would also apply to the End Time: as well for specific minute refinement.

Now going to the End Time: I'd like to see the same adjustability I mentioned for changing the Start Time: using a Mouse by clicking the time to pop up and down arrows adjustment for Hour and Minute and Manual Keyboard Entry of the digits if specifically clicked onto.

On the End Time: I'd like to see next to it just a bit to the Right of the End Time: text Two Buttons. One button for 24 Hour Recording (Perhaps a 24 Number inside a button) and to the right one button for Non Stop Continuous Recording which will be represented but two arrows in a circular fashion one top arrow curved towards the right and then a bottom arrow curved pointed towards the left. Kind of like this picture but rotated 90 degrees to the right.
http://peopleatwork.com.mt/wp-content/up...-Photo.jpg

Also when using the Keyboard I'd like to see the the End Key (Numeric Key Pad 1) increase the End Time: 12 hours so if the End Time was 10AM, it would advanced 12 hours to 10PM. Hitting the End Key (Numeric Key Pad 1) again would increase it to 24 hours from the Start Time or 9PM next day. Then hitting the End Key Time (Numeric Key Pad 1) one more time would trigger the Non Stop Continuous Recording feature. This is the main feature I've been wanting to see added using the Keyboard method and simplifying it using the End Key (Numeric Key Pad 1) to have these quick options for 12 Hour, 24 Hour, and Non Stop Continuous Recording would save a lot of time in Manual Recording Programming.

Now another Keyboard Option I'd like to see added to shortcut to Confirm OKAY on the Recording Menu instead of using the Down Key to get Down to get to the very bottom of the Manual Recording window to select OK or Cancel. By holding the LEFT SHIFT + END key and or alternate method of (RIGHT SHIFT + END key) would advance to the very bottom Highlighting OK so you can then hit the ENTER key to confirm the Manual Recording settings.


Now for other keyboard and mouse shortcuts for Instantaneous Mouse and Keyboard activated recording:

On the Manual Recording Menu it currently looks like this:
Recording Type: Record Once
Channel:
Default:
Date:
Start Time:
End Time:
Pre-Padding:
Post Padding:
Keep:
Advanced Rules:

Under Recording Type: and between Channel:
Recording Type: Record Once
Record NOW!:
Channel:

Default:
Date:
Start Time:
End Time:
Pre-Padding:
Post Padding:
Keep:
Advanced Rules:

Record NOW! will be a clickable Mouse button or can be selected using the Down Arrow Key and hitting Enter on the Keyboard.

What I propose Record NOW! button to do is make it easy for a keyboard user to select it on the Ctrl+K Manual Recording Menu or Click it with a single mouse button and it will start recording that current channel it is tuned to for continuous recording. This cuts down on the amount of keystrokes and delay time to get a recording started right away.

Also I would like this feature added using the Right Click Menu.
[MODIFIED SETUP]
Manual Recording = Ctrl+K Keyboard equivalent here.
Record NOW! = Instant Mouse way of Instant Non Stop Continuous Recording of the Current Channel.
Live TV
Open File (Moved down the list because how often do people use open file method they would open a folder)
Main Menu
Channels
Settings
Stay On Top
Show Fullscreen
Debug Info
About
Exit

While watching the LIVE TV I would also like the F5 key to be the Record NOW! single keyboard button and a way to customize Record NOW! in the Settings options for Keyboard Shortcuts for those wanting to use another customized keyboard shortcut. LEFT SHIFT + F5 and the alternate RIGHT SHIFT + F5 could both be used as keyboard shortcuts to STOP the current tuned channel being recorded.

I would also like to remove the dreaded Ctrl+K when on the Main Menu from being "Delete Recording". This should be changed to Ctrl+D to avoid confusion. I few times I almost accidentally deleted my video files thinking Ctrl+K was going to pull up the Manual Recording Menu and luckily there was a delete confirmation prompt.



These are just some of the user interface options I thought about over the many months of using NEXTPVR Daily for on the fly recordings that would greatly improve the user experience and I'm a Heavy DVR user so sometimes I tend to record continuously if I'm away and come back then next day for example or I just want to do a Manual Recording and let it start and not worry about stopping it until I return. Also when I'm home I do a lot of quick on the fly 1 hour manual recordings as well so a lot of stop and start recordings are not as easy with the programming delays without some faster keyboard shortcuts.

Now an interface to Stop the Manual Recording using an Android SmartPhone connecting to some Home server that NEXTPVR runs on would be useful one day when I know I want to stop or start a recording early on the fly without being at Home at the computer to do it.

Thank you NEXTPVR developers and I hope if any of what I have written needs clarification please feel free to ask and I will clear any worded confusion. I hope to make the next version of PVR include these simple modifications I've explained that will enhance both the Mouse only user experience and a Keyboard only user experience.

[mvallevand]

tl;dr but maybe explaining why you need manual recordings instead of series based recordings would give some context.

Martin

[p37307]

7-30-2017 - Improving the NEXTPVR Manual Recording Experience - Stage 1
Now an interface to Stop the Manual Recording using an Android SmartPhone connecting to some Home server that NEXTPVR runs on would be useful one day when I know I want to stop or start a recording early on the fly without being at Home at the computer to do it.

That already exists. You just have to open you router's firewall, point it to the computer that has NPVR on it and then http://yourOutsideIPaddress:8866 and go to recordings and stop it.

[DVRMultiStreamer]

tl;dr but maybe explaining why you need manual recordings instead of series based recordings would give some context.

Martin

I don't prefer Manual Recording programming for what I normally do. Maybe you can explain the "series" based recordings what you meant? The Manual Recordings are only helpful when leaving the house and not wanting to record continuously wasting hard drive space until it reaches the program start time. I typically record 8 HD channels simultaneously and do on the fly recording start and stops with WinTV which has an easy Record Start and Stop button which NextPVR seems to lack at the moment. This provides more accurate cuts of programs in 30 mins or 1 hour chunks and doesn't require pre or post padding since it is done in real time. There isn't an easy way to do this yet with NextPVR manual recording since it adds delay where it can't be done in a split second. I will be discussing more of the advanced features in Stage 2 which I'm almost done revising. But even Stage 1 suggestions will greatly speed up the TV programming process in less time.

I suggest you spend at least 3 minutes to read what I wrote as TL;DR probably answered your questions of what I'm trying to achieve. It takes more time to compose and revise multiple times than to read it once. It's really not that long and more explanatory. Once these Stage 1 features are implemented using less source code manipulation I hope it might be possible to add these in the next release update. The Stage 2 improvements probably would require more time to implement but would definitely put this DVR program at the highest tier if accomplished.

[sub]

I don't prefer Manual Recording programming for what I normally do. Maybe you can explain the "series" based recordings what you meant? The Manual Recordings are only helpful when leaving the house and not wanting to record continuously wasting hard drive space until it reaches the program start time.

Why wouldn't you just select to record from the TV Guide (whether a one-off or season recording)? This way it automatically knows the start/stop time of the recording.

Very few people around here do manual recordings. I'm just trying to understand why your processes seem to revolve around manual recordings.

[DVRMultiStreamer]

Why wouldn't you just select to record from the TV Guide (whether a one-off or season recording)? This way it automatically knows the start/stop time of the recording.

Very few people around here do manual recordings. I'm just trying to understand why your processes seem to revolve around manual recordings.

Sub, I hardly do manual recordings myself except when I'm away or need to sleep. However the WinTV scheduler is defective. A few times using it created defective video recordings that VLC could not play back. Then this caused me to only record in WINTV while I was present only to do it. Regarding the NextPVR system I don't hook this particular system up to the internet. This is only hooked up to the SD HDHome Run Prime. It only has direct access to the Comcast CableCards. On another system with WinTV tuners it only records directly OTA. I usually don't hook up systems to the Internet when there's no need. Nor do I use my system as a Tivo using a Guide to click on programs to record.

On other systems that are hooked up to the Internet where I am typing for example I frequently check the TV listings on http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/...aid=zap2it. Map out what I want to record and if I'm using WinTV I have all 8 WinTV Tuner windows ready each on a different channel I usually record on. Once say 758PM rolls around I'll get ready and have all 8 WinTV Windows overlapping slightly but enough to click on the Red Record Button in each WinTV Tuner windows in rapid succession. Around 759PM-800PM I can recognize certain Pre-show cues before the actual 8PM show begins and start my recordings about 5 seconds prior to starting on each of the 8 WinTV Windows manually hitting each Red Record Button to start. That's one method I use WinTV for instantaneous recording start and also ending it around 859-900PM when I see the show has ended for each. It usually takes a few seconds to complete closing 8 programs as each broadcast station doesn't end exactly at the same second. So I can usually end the video clip and restart the new recording hour by double tapping the Rec Recording button which stops the Recording in Progress and Begins a new one.

I do this to prevent having to do a long sustained recording making the files >8GB. I'll later have to use a TS cutter to cut them down to 1 hour chunks if I let a recording go too long.

The purpose of NextPVR was it works with the HD HomeRun Prime which WinTV does not. The only way I can use NextPVR is for manual recording as it doesn't have the simple real time Red Record and Stop button method I've been using in WinTV. This was something I was going explain in Stage 2. However, I still felt the Keyboard only or Mouse only method of using NextPVR could be improved to make it possible to use with either input device if both were not available. Sometimes I unhook a USB mouse or USB keyboard to use on another system temporarily so I might leave one input device on the system. I hope that explains a little more about the suggestions in Stage 1. I felt these were the easiest to implement without changing the code too much which Stage 2 might do. Would my suggestions be easily added despite not a lot of people using Manual Recordings? There might be other users who do not use the internet with their DVRs.

[sub]

To be honest, I don't really see me making these changes. There would be a quite a bit of effort required for what you've described, and some of these don't really fit in with my vision of the app - since the main focus is people sitting across the room driving it with a remote, and I don't want to clutter up the screen with infrequently used controls or menu options.

Given how you're trying to use it, without a guide, and just wanting a manual start/stop recording button, you might be better off using a utility like capture4me, which is based on NextPVR, but closer to the manually started/stopped recording behaviour. See http://www.capture4me.com

[DVRMultiStreamer]

Okay I hear you Sub and I've simplified it to just two functions.


[Keyboard Shortcuts in Live TV Mode]
F11 key - for "Record Nonstop". It just starts recording the current foreground Live Channel being watched but there is no End Time duration set or called "Record Nonstop". It just starts the recording instantly and you will have to manually cancel it from the Main Menu. So you could start a second instantaneous recording of the same Live channel using F11.

F12 key - Pull up "Recordings Menu" without deactivating Live TV in the background.
This would allow the ability to enter the Recordings Menu and manually cancel an active recording while Live TV is still running in the background.

If this can't be done an alternative solution is the F12 key will automatically close the earliest active recording on the same Live TV channel while Live TV is still running in the background.




[Modified Right Click Mouse Menu]
Add the "Record Nonstop" to the Right Click Mouse Menu at the very top for easy access.

Add the "Recordings Menu" foreground with Live in the background to the Right Click Mouse Menu below "Record Nonstop".



Here is the new modified Right Click Mouse Menu:
Record Nonstop
Recordings Menu foreground (Live TV still in the background)
Live TV
Open File (Moved down the list)
Main Menu
Channels
Settings
Stay On Top
Show Fullscreen
Debug Info
About
Exit



[Keyboard shortcut revisions involving time adjustments]
I got a better idea for the adjusting the times on the keyboard which is simpler than what I previously wrote. All it adds is the use of the (Numeric Keypad 5) key to do the work. This will work for Start Time or End Time or where Time adjustments are involved.

Current configuration:
Left Arrow (Numeric Keypad 4) does 10 minute decrement.
Right Arrow (Numeric Keypad 6) does 10 minute increment.
Holding down the (Numeric KeyPad 5) which sits between 4 and 6 will change it so it decrements or increments an hour at a time or rapidly in hours if the Left Arrow or Right Arrow is also held down.

If the End Time hits 24 Hours the next increment is "[B]Record Nonstop".
[/B]


Modified configuration assuming right hand:
Holding down (Numeric KeyPad 5) with the Middle Finger and tapping (Numeric Keypad 4) with forefinger will decrease by 1 hour at a time instead of 10 minutes.

Holding down (Numeric KeyPad 5) with the Ring Finger and tapping (Numeric Keypad 6) with forefinger will increase by 1 hour at a time instead of 10 minutes.

This will keep the ease of use functionality using just one hand without altering anything significant for the user interface.

Let me know if any of these can be done or worst case even the F11 Keyboard - Record Nonstop function would be a good start with the Record Nonstop also at the top of the Right Click Mouse Menu.

Thank you Sub.