Coming Soon: v1.6.1

An evolving, supported alternative to Rovi
Forum rules
★ Download the latest EPG123 here: https://garyan2.github.io/ <> Setup guide here: https://garyan2.github.io/install.html
User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

Coming Soon: v1.6.1

#1

Post by garyan2 » Sat Jan 09, 2021 6:25 pm

There's going to be a new release soon to take care of a few minor things but I want to give you a preview of changes to the Transfer Tool. It was initially intended to basically be a one-time use during initial setup, but can be useful for some users on a day-to-day / as desired feature. The tool will now give you quite a bit more information. A light-green entry will show that there are current recordings scheduled for that request. A dark-green entry will be an active request but no scheduled recordings for it. There is similar information for any requests for import. Due to the extra info, the form is much more friendly to resizing and viewing as well.
transfertool.PNG
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

Space

Posts: 2838
Joined: Sun Jun 02, 2013 9:44 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#2

Post by Space » Sat Jan 09, 2021 7:52 pm

Very nice.

I see that it shows some extended information about the entry such as "Any" and "New", but does it also display other info such as if it is restricted to a certain channel? This is one piece of information I'd like to see, because I believe the transfer tool removes this setting when it converts the Series, and I have had to manually add it back for some of them and it would be nice to see in a list all the ones that are locked to a particular channel and those that are not.

Also, will this show OneTime entries for shows that are not in the current guide listings? Will it show sXXeXX for episodes if that was in the episode name at the time it was set to record?

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#3

Post by garyan2 » Sat Jan 09, 2021 10:08 pm

I'm concerned about it looking too busy, but it's livable.
transfer2.PNG
transfer2.PNG (7.07 KiB) Viewed 1837 times
I'm going to revisit changing the specific channel of the request to Any when transferring over. This was more expecting changing over from Rovi to SD which is really much of a concern anymore.

OneTimeRequests will show the episode title as you can see in the first image. The only way for it to be missing is if you are transferring a OTR and the program does not exist in the current database. WMC doesn't know what the episode title is... just the program ID.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#4

Post by garyan2 » Sat Jan 09, 2021 10:42 pm

So a different format I'm looking at is "{SeriesTitle} [{New/Repeat|New|Live}, {SD/HD|HD Preferred|HD Only|SD Preferred|SD Only|ChannelNumber&CallSign}]"

ex: "Batwoman [New, SD Preferred]" or "Walker [New, 58.1 KWBADT]"

Doesn't look too bad or too crowded.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

kkingsto

Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 8:36 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#5

Post by kkingsto » Sat Jan 09, 2021 11:37 pm

Looks good.

Space

Posts: 2838
Joined: Sun Jun 02, 2013 9:44 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#6

Post by Space » Sun Jan 10, 2021 2:16 am

New format looks good.

Also, the original reason for converting all channel-specific Series to "Any channel" was because if the Series was originally created as channel specific, and the cable company changed what channel that network was on (or you changed service providers, which changed what channel it was on), it would retain the old channel number instead of being updated to the new channel number (see here). Have you found a way to have it display the new (correct) channel number?
It's strange that WMC was able to change the Series to use the correct channel, but it never updates the backup of that Series to use that new channel.

Also, the terminology used by WMC for the Series setting is "New & rerun" not "New/Repeat", so you may want to use "New/Rerun" (or "New&Rerun") instead, just so that it's consistent.
"Repeat" is used in the TV listings, and is often used interchangeably with "Rerun", but I see it as having a slightly different meaning. "Repeat" means that the particular airing of that episode/program is not within 7 days of the OAD, "Rerun" means a "Repeat" that has not already been recorded by the Series. Thankfully, a Series does not record all "Repeats" (or all "New" episodes/programs either), just the first one it is able to record.

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#7

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 10, 2021 3:07 am

Actually, I think it wasn't necessarily the channel number, but the service (station) that was assigned to the request that caused them not to work before since they were Rovi IDs. Setting any channel would allow any service to be selected an therefore any channel number. Going off the assumption that at any point from now, the backup being restored is from EPG123, I don't think it will be an issue. Just a note on changing channel numbers, when opening a file to restore, it will show the old channel number but the proper callsign of the service. So if the old request was channel 1002 KABC that was later moved to channel 1009, the old request will show 1002 KABC and should still work because the service is the same. When it is transferred, I believe it will say 1009 KABC (I have to verify).

Any difference between "New/Repeat" and "New & rerun" is totally up to how the user interprets it. I originally started with the WMC enumeration for this field which is 'Any'. Then I changed to "New & rerun" like you pointed out because that is the actual selection when editing the request in WMC. I landed on "New/Repeat" because I think that will be better understood because the user spends way more time in the guide than the series recording settings. Speaking of interpretation, a "rerun" to me would be any episode showing that is not from the current season, a "repeat" would be an episode from the current season that has already been aired.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#8

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 10, 2021 3:13 am

garyan2 wrote: Sun Jan 10, 2021 3:07 amSo if the old request was channel 1002 KABC that was later moved to channel 1009, the old request will show 1002 KABC and should still work because the service is the same. When it is transferred, I believe it will say 1009 KABC (I have to verify).
Just verified. I'm dropping the 'any channel' setting when transferring.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
StinkyImp

Posts: 669
Joined: Thu May 11, 2017 7:53 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#9

Post by StinkyImp » Sun Jan 10, 2021 5:45 pm

Thanks for the heads up on the Walker premiere! :D

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#10

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 12:23 am

I just released this as v1.6.1.0 along with a couple fixes/improvements. Feedback on the Transfer Tool is of course welcome.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#11

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 12:26 am

garyan2 wrote: Sun Jan 10, 2021 3:13 am
garyan2 wrote: Sun Jan 10, 2021 3:07 amSo if the old request was channel 1002 KABC that was later moved to channel 1009, the old request will show 1002 KABC and should still work because the service is the same. When it is transferred, I believe it will say 1009 KABC (I have to verify).
Just verified. I'm dropping the 'any channel' setting when transferring.
I ended up having a hybrid of this. If the service channel exists in the current database, it will keep the channel setting. If the service channel does not exist, then I will set the anyChannel value to true... this will take care of any old Rovi service IDs or current lineups in the WMC database.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

kkingsto

Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 8:36 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#12

Post by kkingsto » Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:05 pm

OK just downloaded. Running the transfer tool, I'm seeing Light Green, Green, and Pink in the right panel.

I see from above, the Light green is "recording scheduled" and Green is "No recordings scheduled" What's pink?

EDIT: Just went though my list found duplicates for scheduled/not scheduled and cleaned them up. Is there a way to put a date on the entries of when the last recording was done? May help to get rid of more entries.

Thanks!

User avatar
StinkyImp

Posts: 669
Joined: Thu May 11, 2017 7:53 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#13

Post by StinkyImp » Sun Jan 17, 2021 4:30 pm

The program "epg123Transfer.exe" won't open on my system (Win7 Pro x64 SP1). When I replace it with the 1.6.0.6 version it opens.

I'm replacing both "epg123Transfer.exe" and "epg123Transfer.exe.config" when I switch them out.

I've tried "right click - open", "right click - open as Administrator", "double-click", etc. I even opened SysInternals Task Manager to see if I could see it try to open even for an instant... Nothing.

I tried to run it in a few different compatibility modes and ran the compatibility troubleshooter to no avail. When I'd swap them back out, the version in 1.6.0.6 ran fine.

I searched all my event logs to see if there was an entry in there that could shed some light on it but there's nothing.

Do you have any additional pointers?

I don't know if this is applicable, but here's my installed .NET Versions.

Code: Select all

PSChildName                                                 Version
-----------                                                 -------
v2.0.50727                                                  2.0.50727.5420
v3.0                                                        3.0.30729.5420
Windows Communication Foundation                            3.0.4506.5420
Windows Presentation Foundation                             3.0.6920.5011
v3.5                                                        3.5.30729.5420
Client                                                      4.7.02558
Full                                                        4.7.02558
Client                                                      4.0.0.0

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#14

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 4:42 pm

kkingsto wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:05 pm OK just downloaded. Running the transfer tool, I'm seeing Light Green, Green, and Pink in the right panel.

I see from above, the Light green is "recording scheduled" and Green is "No recordings scheduled" What's pink?

EDIT: Just went though my list found duplicates for scheduled/not scheduled and cleaned them up. Is there a way to put a date on the entries of when the last recording was done? May help to get rid of more entries.

Thanks!
The pink means it is not a valid EPG123 recording request. The requested program or series does not have an epg123/sd program or series ID.
StinkyImp wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 4:30 pm The program "epg123Transfer.exe" won't open on my system (Win7 Pro x64 SP1). When I replace it with the 1.6.0.6 version it opens.
There must be a entry that contains an empty value where I expected something.

Could both of you create a [Backup] in the client and send me the zip file to support@garyan2.net? I'll see what I can find.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#15

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 5:21 pm

StinkyImp wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 4:30 pm The program "epg123Transfer.exe" won't open on my system (Win7 Pro x64 SP1). When I replace it with the 1.6.0.6 version it opens.
Okay, this is for some old OneTime requests of “Bad Influence” back in 2019. Looks like it was on a station that is no longer part of your lineup… I didn’t account for that when trying to add the channel number and callsign to the list view.

I've tried to send you an updated exe file to check it out, but gmail always kicks back that it couldn't be delivered any time I send an attachment. Let me know if you get them.

EDIT: Looking at my code, I had protected against this situation for all the requests except the OneTime requests... I missed that.
Last edited by garyan2 on Sun Jan 17, 2021 6:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#16

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 5:45 pm

kkingsto wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:05 pm OK just downloaded. Running the transfer tool, I'm seeing Light Green, Green, and Pink in the right panel.

I see from above, the Light green is "recording scheduled" and Green is "No recordings scheduled" What's pink?

EDIT: Just went though my list found duplicates for scheduled/not scheduled and cleaned them up. Is there a way to put a date on the entries of when the last recording was done? May help to get rid of more entries.

Thanks!
You have a lot of duplicate requests in there so at some point you imported the recordings.mxf file repeatedly. The pink series are from Rovi, so you can delete those... they won't work.

There is no accurate way I can determine when the last recording was done for a request. The big thing is if you do a rebuild or have a database recovery, all that information is lost. That is one other benefit of having 2 different green colors... you can easily find those series requests that aren't currently recording anything and be able to determine for yourself whether the series will be returning for another season, or the other requests are wanted/needed anymore.

EDIT: Just another note. I notice you still have Rovi lineups in your database so looks like you never did a clean start.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

kkingsto

Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 8:36 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#17

Post by kkingsto » Sun Jan 17, 2021 7:24 pm

garyan2 wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 5:45 pm
kkingsto wrote: Sun Jan 17, 2021 1:05 pm OK just downloaded. Running the transfer tool, I'm seeing Light Green, Green, and Pink in the right panel.

I see from above, the Light green is "recording scheduled" and Green is "No recordings scheduled" What's pink?

EDIT: Just went though my list found duplicates for scheduled/not scheduled and cleaned them up. Is there a way to put a date on the entries of when the last recording was done? May help to get rid of more entries.

Thanks!
You have a lot of duplicate requests in there so at some point you imported the recordings.mxf file repeatedly. The pink series are from Rovi, so you can delete those... they won't work.

There is no accurate way I can determine when the last recording was done for a request. The big thing is if you do a rebuild or have a database recovery, all that information is lost. That is one other benefit of having 2 different green colors... you can easily find those series requests that aren't currently recording anything and be able to determine for yourself whether the series will be returning for another season, or the other requests are wanted/needed anymore.

EDIT: Just another note. I notice you still have Rovi lineups in your database so looks like you never did a clean start.
You're right. I used Rovi before I switched over to EPG123. I cleaned these out so they should be gone. Got to look at the duplicates. Just need to figure out what to delete and what to keep.

Thanks for looking at this!

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#18

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 8:16 pm

Just released v1.6.1.1 to address the null check for OneTime requests and also addressed some issues with databases that still contained MS/Rovi lineups and channels that would cause problems with the client GUI.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

kkingsto

Posts: 77
Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 8:36 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#19

Post by kkingsto » Sun Jan 17, 2021 9:40 pm

Any chance you can read "Media Center.evts" to find when something was recorded?

User avatar
garyan2

Posts: 7438
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2015 7:23 pm
Location:

HTPC Specs: Show details

#20

Post by garyan2 » Sun Jan 17, 2021 9:58 pm

I'm not exactly clear on what you are looking for and what you plan on doing with it, but I'm not going to be scanning the event log to find all the recordings completed. There would be no way I could match individual recordings with any specific request.
- Gary
Keeping WMC alive beyond January 2020. https://garyan2.github.io

Post Reply