How to record parts of the timeshift buffer?

[Eirikso]

I found the following description of a possible feature here at the forum:

1 - This one may be in version 3.4 based on the screenshot with the commercial skip. but my favorite feature of my old tivo was the ability to be watching the TV with timeshift on and seeing something cool like watching a home improvement show and than bam they fix something to do with a project you may be doing and then you hit record and it records the entire show from the minute the buffer started. So if you start watching at 3:30 and realize at 3:45 that you would like to record the show it will record the whole show from 3:30-- I would love to see this !!

Is it possible to do this in SnapStream? I thought it would be obvious that when I hit RECORD while watching live TV it would record from the point where I watch at the time I hit record. But it seems like no matter how long timeshift-buffer I have and no matter where in the buffer I am, when hitting record during live TV SnapStream jumps to present time and start recording.

In ShowShifter I have enabeled a script that keeps the timeshift-buffer. Right now I am trying out SnapStream because I may want to change, but without the possibility to keep something that I just watched I am really reconsidering the change.

The very nice control you have in SnapStream regarding the timeshift-timeline would suggest that this functionallity would be very easy to set up. Maybe it is there already, just me not knowing how to use it...?

Any suggestions?

The ability to just keep the timeshift-buffer after having watched live TV would be enough. I can then use the MPEG-cutter that followed my PVR-250 card to cut out the portion of the timeshift-buffer I want.

Best regards,
Eirikso

[rakeshagrawal]

sorry that you didn't get a reply sooner... we are aware of this missing feature and it's on the list of things to add, but I can't say when it will get added because there are other features ahead of this one.

[Eirikso]

Well, this answers all my questions. Now I know the following:

1. It is not possible to record parts of the timeshift buffer in SnapStream at present time

2. You are working on a solution

3. I am not the only one wanting this functionallity

Keep up the good work. Hope to see this functionallity soon :-)

regards,
eirikso

[Keith]

I have several times missed a part of a show that I am watching in LiveTV or wanted to save. I have just went to where my timeshifting setting is pointed and made a copy of the tsbuffer.dat and renamed to a .mpg and it plays fine in PVS it seems to have issues playing in other programs so I don't know if the file is not complete or if it would be editable.

Keith

[Eirikso]

Interesting! I will try to edit this file using the MPEG Editor that followed my PVR-250. If that is possible, then we have a solution until SnapStream includes a native functionallity for this.

_eirikso

[Eirikso]

I have now done some testing:

When I have seen something that I like I use the method mentioned earlier in this thread: rename the tsbuffer.dat to whatever.mpg

The results when trying to use this file:
Windows Media Player: does not play
NanoMPEG Editor (bundled the PVR-250): can not be edited
SonicFoundry Vegas Video 3: no problem! can edit the file
VirtualDubMOD: no problem. reads the file
XMpeg5.0: reads the file

It is quite annoying that the NanoMPEG editor does not read the file. This editor is capable of doing an edit on the file without recompression: i.e. I could have copied out the part I wanted from the 32 GB timeshift-file.

However, this method gives me the possibility to open the file in VirtualDubMod and recompress out the part I want.

At least some kind of a solution until SnapStream includes functionallity to keep a selected part for the timeshift buffer.

_eirikso

[Tuan]

I was wondering if there is any update on this issue. It would be nice to easily record parts of the current buffer, though I'm testing right now how copying/playing the tsbuffer.dat will work out.

Thanks.

[Gunn]

It just seems like such a simple bug fix! (and yes, I think it could/should be classified as a bug). BTV knows everything about the current show you are watching. When you are, say 25 minutes into a show, and you have a buffer that is 1 hour in length and you hit record, it should be able to copy off that portion of the buffer that is for the current show and save it off, and then record the rest of what you are watching live. And if your buffer doesn't contain everything (you changed channels at a commercial, then came back) then just save what it can.

This thread goes back to November when they said it was in the pipeline to be addressed....maybe with 3.5?