[addon] BTV-Externinator (Dec 31 Update)

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

Also, I'm getting this error when I select a tuner from the Server->Tuner tab:

Had you rebooted the BTV server after adding the virtual capture devices?

Originally Posted by BleacherBum28

That is all I am able to see. I am unable to see the command line args.

With version 1.03 beta, you will be able to see the actual command line in the log, maybe that will help sort out the problem... Make sure to have the Debug enabled... You should try typing the command at a DOS prompt (or from a batch file).

[HomeyFour]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Had you rebooted the BTV server after adding the virtual capture devices?

Well, don't you have to create the virtual devices through BTV-E first? I get that message the first time I try to edit a tuner in BTV-E.

[BleacherBum28]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Had you rebooted the BTV server after adding the virtual capture devices?


With version 1.03 beta, you will be able to see the actual command line in the log, maybe that will help sort out the problem... Make sure to have the Debug enabled... You should try typing the command at a DOS prompt (or from a batch file).

Yes. I have rebooted BTV and BTVE. (And the entire machine for that matter)

Thats what I was saying before. When I launch VLC frm a command prompt with the params in BTVE I get that "command line args couldn't be loaded" error message. If I take out paramater 2, VLC opens, but nothing is displayed in VLC, its as if I just ran VLC.Exe without any paramaters.

IS VLC what is going to be used to actually save the stream from my firewire port?

[HomeyFour]

Well I decided to play with it some more. I did manage to get a tuner associated to the correct lineup and reading the DVICO files. I still get that weird error message though. But now, when I try to do a recording, it doesn't look like its getting dispacthed to record. Here is the BTV-E log..
3/25/2007 10:16:05 AM :: QAM0: Possibly setting up the next recording
3/25/2007 10:16:05 AM :: QAM0: Nothing to add/modify...
3/25/2007 10:21:49 AM :: Closing BTV-Externinator

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

Well, don't you have to create the virtual devices through BTV-E first? I get that message the first time I try to edit a tuner in BTV-E.

You create the virtual capture device in BTV-E, reboot and then associate it in BTV-E. But if you had removed other tuners before the BTV-E step, a reboot would have been needed.

Originally Posted by BleacherBum28

When I launch VLC frm a command prompt with the params in BTVE I get that "command line args couldn't be loaded" error message.

Then there must be a typo... You are putting a filename between Parameters1 and Parameters2, right?

If I take out paramater 2, VLC opens, but nothing is displayed in VLC, its as if I just ran VLC.Exe without any paramaters.

Well, you do need the closing quote around the filename.

IS VLC what is going to be used to actually save the stream from my firewire port?

Yes, VLC records the actual stream. Could you post the log of version 1.03b please?

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

But now, when I try to do a recording, it doesn't look like its getting dispacthed to record.

Actually, the dispatch was just before that, could you post more of the log please.

[HomeyFour]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Actually, the dispatch was just before that, could you post more of the log please.

Unfortunately, that's pretty much all there is...

3/25/2007 10:28:05 AM :: Starting BTV-Externinator version 1.01
3/25/2007 10:28:06 AM :: Connecting to http://localhost:8129.
3/25/2007 10:28:07 AM :: Filling/updating all the lists
3/25/2007 10:28:11 AM :: QAM0: Possibly setting up the next recording
3/25/2007 10:28:11 AM :: QAM0: Nothing to add/modify...
3/25/2007 10:31:17 AM :: Filling/updating all the lists
3/25/2007 10:31:21 AM :: QAM0: Possibly setting up the next recording
3/25/2007 10:31:21 AM :: QAM0: Nothing to add/modify...
3/25/2007 10:32:13 AM :: Filling/updating all the lists
3/25/2007 10:32:18 AM :: QAM0: Possibly setting up the next recording
3/25/2007 10:32:18 AM :: QAM0: Nothing to add/modify...
3/25/2007 10:38:11 AM :: Filling/updating all the lists
3/25/2007 10:38:15 AM :: QAM0: Possibly setting up the next recording
3/25/2007 10:38:15 AM :: QAM0: Nothing to add/modify...
3/25/2007 10:44:02 AM :: Closing BTV-Externinator

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

Unfortunately, that's pretty much all there is...

Which means that you don't have anything schedulled on that specific tuner...

[HomeyFour]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Which means that you don't have anything schedulled on that specific tuner...

Riiiiiiiiight. I think that BTV-E isn't "hooked" into BTV for some reason. I've got 1 channel in my lineup un-hidden for QAM, its channel 231 which is ABC. That channel is associated in BTV-E to like 7021-0001 or something like that. It shows up in the BTV guide, I click to record, it puts the little red dot on it, and voila! nothing happens. I'm not sure if BTV is even dispatching a recording though. A regular recording will leave lots of trace in the BTV log, but I get NOTHING in BTV's log when I do a QAM recording - I may have a BTV problem here first.

Edit: I went into Web Admin, just "looked" at the virtual tuner and clicked Save. (I know this is not good to do). Now though, at least when I try to record something, it gets dispatched, but its being recorded on the "real" tuner device that I did the save-as-new in BTV-E.

I think BTV-E is not "hooked" into BTV on my system properly, particularly with the tuner. I think this has to do with that error message I get whenever I go into the Tuners tab.

I think that I am like -->| |<--- close to getting it to work!

[cmcquistion]

Are you going to Configuration - Parameters and clicking the Update Recordings button? If you do this, BTV-E will immediately check to see if there are any recordings it needs to be aware of. If you don't do this, it may take a while for BTV-E to get the information. (Not sure how/when it checks, but I use the Update Recordings button to manually check.)

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

I click to record, it puts the little red dot on it, and voila! nothing happens.

The integration is not that tight... You need to shedul a recording in the future... So that BTV-E has time to see it and schedul an event where the recording job will be added to the database 45 seconds before the actual recording... While I had started to work on adding a "Record now" to BTV-E, the official support for HDHR in BTV kinda killed the motivation for it...

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

Edit: I went into Web Admin, just "looked" at the virtual tuner and clicked Save. (I know this is not good to do). Now though, at least when I try to record something, it gets dispatched, but its being recorded on the "real" tuner device that I did the save-as-new in BTV-E.

Yes, by saving within the web admin you just switched to the clone mode, so that now your virtual capture device is also linked to a real capture device, which will then create 2 recordings whenever you create a recording job in advance on the QAM0 Tuner...

[HomeyFour]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Yes, by saving within the web admin you just switched to the clone mode, so that now your virtual capture device is also linked to a real capture device, which will then create 2 recordings whenever you create a recording job in advance on the QAM0 Tuner...

Ok, I think I got something now. First, I didn't realize that I had to schedule a recording off in the future. I've gotten 1 recording to work so far... but it recorded on the QAM and on the "real" tuner at the same time. Any idea how to fix that?

Also, I assume Live TV cannot work using this method... but, when I do try Live TV, I again seem to get a feed from the "real" tuner.

Making progress... slowly...

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

Any idea how to fix that?

First make a copy of the device.xml file located in:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\SnapStream\Beyond TV

The fix is to delete the virtual capture device, reboot and recreate it using the "Save as new".... ;) If you really can't access the Tuner sub-tab to do that, you could instead edit the copy of the device.xml file, locate the entry for the virtual capture device and set the VideoDeviceName to @device:pnp:\\?\stream#QAM0.

Also, I assume Live TV cannot work using this method... but, when I do try Live TV, I again seem to get a feed from the "real" tuner.

Indeed, there is no LiveTV, and the reason why it works for you is because of the cloned mode which uses the real capture device for that... You might be able to use the "Recorded shows" to view shows in pogress, with some limitations.

[HomeyFour]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Indeed, there is no LiveTV, and the reason why it works for you is because of the cloned mode which uses the real capture device for that... You might be able to use the "Recorded shows" to view shows in pogress, with some limitations.

Ok Fonceur, seems to be working. It's recording Matlock right now. It seems like I can't play it while its recording... I'm getting the "file is corrupt" style BTV error. Is there a way to wiggle around this one?

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by HomeyFour

It seems like I can't play it while its recording... I'm getting the "file is corrupt" style BTV error. Is there a way to wiggle around this one?

That is a known issue with the FusionHDTV software, not being able to playback a file as it is being recorded, though not everyone seems to experience that issue...