XMLTV Importer for 3.5

[srigby]

Hi Stephane,

How's it going?

Does the new 3.5 build work for you?

Look forward to your next iteration of the BTV XMLTV Importer (and Program Guide!)

[mickwall]

Stephane

I've just noticed that with the latest Beta the program guide is not being updated. I ran the update manually and in the BTV log it says 'Guide update started' but nothing else.

Anyone else seeing this problem.

Regards

Mick

[StephaneM]

Hello Mick,

BTV log it says 'Guide update started' but nothing else.

I think that there is a race condition between process regarding their priorities. Verify that another BTV process is not running and almost maxing CPU.

Try a manual update when BTV is idle, this should work (at least it worked for me for the brief time I played with 3.5, the guide update was blocked at 'update started' but had a showsqueeze in progress)

Regards,
Stéphane.

[ScAtMaN]

I am having the same problem.
When running the GUI importer it gets stuck at "Importing new programs..."

Something else I have noticed is that it does not seem to remember my channel numbers:
If I click on Edit channels and enter all my channels numbers when I exit and go back in they are gone again.
I have been using it happily under 3.44 but today decided to take the plunge with the latest 3.5 beta.

Any ideas?

[StephaneM]

Hello All,

I have posted version 2.1 of the importer.

It adds :

• support for time zones with minutes (that is you can choose a time offset of -2.5 if you have a time zone of +0230 in your XMLTV file. Note that the decimal separator is not necessarily a dot, use the separator used in your regionnal settings)
• adds an original air date for all programs, to restore the previous "Record New" behavior of 3.4
• adds movie date (displayed as "Released 2002" in program description in FSUI) if the importer can find the <date> node in your XMLTV file
• changed the program identifier creation algorithm : you should delete your lookup.xml file
• The program identifiers are preserved during a year, this should help if you have a record jobe whose episodes are not airing during a long time), but the lookup.xml file may become huge, I have not a very long testing with it for telling if it's a good or bad thing.

Regards,
Stéphane.

[srigby]

Hi Stephane,

Thanks for putting out a new version of your XMLTV importer so promptly after the latest iteration of BTV 3.5

Even though you tried to accomodate the problems I was having with shows not being recorded (due to the same description) - it doesn't seem to have worked.

I tried Record All Episodes - but only the first one was scheduled to record and the other's crossed. Even other shows that are only on once a week, show up with (Repeat) on the end of the description.

I'll attach my latest XML file if you want to look into it for me.

All your effort is, as always, greatly appreciated.

[ScAtMaN]

Just tried with the new version but with the same result im afraid.

My xmltv file appears fine when I open it in a browser and I have made sure btv was not busy doing other tasks during the updates.

I have has to manually create some channels in BTV so I can at least tune to channels and record but im missing the data.
Help!

[mickwall]

Yep, can confirm the same, I just raised a problem on the Beta site Tried this with 1553 and 1558 I guess something got broke. Anyone know how I can get 1503 back, without guide data I'm knackered!

Mick

[StephaneM]

Hello Scott,

Originally Posted by srigby

Even though you tried to accomodate the problems I was having with shows not being recorded (due to the same description) - it doesn't seem to have worked.

No this version doesn't have anything to correct the problem you have.

Indeed I have asked in this thread if the modification that will resolve your problem wouldn't mind for other users of the importer :

• I plan to add the date (only the date not the time) as episode name for shows that doesn't have an episode title. This way an episode that is the same during a whole week, will be different each day. (Note : the date will not appear as episode name in the FSUI)
• Drawback : the method to differenciate episodes based on description will not work anymore.

So is this ok with everybody ?

Originally Posted by srigby

Even other shows that are only on once a week, show up with (Repeat) on the end of the description.

Yes this is new for 2.1, but doesn't change anything : Repeat = Not new, that's all this means, but doesn't change the way the importer know if an episode is different from another one.

Regards,
Stéphane.

[StephaneM]

Hello

Originally Posted by ScAtMaN

Just tried with the new version but with the same result im afraid.

This is strange, I have posted a reply to your first post, but can't find it... So I post it again.

The problem you see is not the same as BTV that won't load the data. It seems that the importer is not importing anything at all...

So could you check that the importer can write to the channels.xml and lineups.xml files located in the settings directory of the importer (you can choose it in the GUI of the importer). The importer should not "forget" your channel numbers at all : as soon as you click on the "Update" button in the channel editor, it must save the channels and lineups files.

If the importer doesn't have a channel number, it will not import anything...

When you were on 3.4.4, do you use the same version of the importer (2.0), and if so was it working?

Regards,
Stéphane.

[pukka_parker]

Originally Posted by StephaneM

Indeed I have asked in this thread if the modification that will resolve your problem wouldn't mind for other users of the importer :

• I plan to add the date (only the date not the time) as episode name for shows that doesn't have an episode title. This way an episode that is the same during a whole week, will be different each day. (Note : the date will not appear as episode name in the FSUI)
• Drawback : the method to differenciate episodes based on description will not work anymore.

So is this ok will everybody ?

Hi Stéphane.

I think your proposed solution will work nicely. I have been manually inserting date/time into my XMLTV episode names to get this behaviour for several versions of your importer - it does mean that BTV records things when it otherwise would not...

Regards,

Nigel

[srigby]

Hi Stephane,

I must have misunderstood what you meant by:

adds an original air date for all programs, to restore the previous "Record New" behavior of 3.4


Anyway, it seems as though you have a solution and are just waiting to see whether other people agree with it.



Thanks - Look forward to the next version.

[StephaneM]

I must have misunderstood what you meant by: adds an original air date for all programs, to restore the previous "Record New" behavior of 3.4

Yes this one is for those who used the "Record New" : when the importer can find a <premiere> node in XMLTV, it sets an original air date for the show in BTV. In 3.4.4, shows that were not having an original air date was considered as a repeat, but in 3.5 they are considered as new. So, the importer now adds an original air date for all shows (wether he can found one in XMLTV or not).

Now all users of XMLTV will see a nice "Repeat" in FSUI for all shows, except one that are really new.

Regards,
Stéphane.

[peter]

Stephane,

I've just been using the latest version of your importer, and I get a lot of programs marked as repeats that I know aren't (live sports/ Glastonbury festival etc). I'm assuming this is because the xmltv data (tv_grab_uk_rt) isn't providing the correct info, but its quite annoying at times.

Is there a way to disable the repeat functionality? (perhaps a config file flag setting?)

Thanks
Peter

[StephaneM]

Hello Peter,

Is there a way to disable the repeat functionality? (perhaps a config file flag setting?)

No there is no way to disable the repeat "detection". This "Repeat" information you see in BTV is only cosmetic, it changes nothing to the way you can record your program (compared to 3.4). Repeat means that shows are not new, this was implicit in 3.4, and must be explicit in 3.5.

Regards,
Stéphane.