* Andrew Ingram <andrew@uk.clara.net> [031127 11:34]: > On Fri, 2003-11-21 at 21:57, Matt Price wrote: > > Anyone out there built a tivo-like DVR to record programs off of > > cabsle or stellite tv? What's involved? I imagine one of the big > > tricks is justtuningthe hcannel -- or am I wrong? > > I have done this. All you need to know is at: www.mythtv.org Mythtv is _great_ if you want a machine dedicated to recording and watching tv, and you intend to interact with that machine primarily through a remote control. If you just want to record tv on your desktop, however, mythtv is overkill. For example, unless you have hardware encoding such as Andrew suggests, mythtv records to a modified version of the nuppel format that _cannot_ easily be played using other viewers. Also, media files in mythtv have cryptic names like "1068_20031126130000_20031126133000.nuv". So, even if you _could_ view mythtv media files using some other viewer, the only practical way to browse your media files is to use mythtv's own (slow slow slow) browser. Don't get me wrong, the user interface would be great if you're sitting on a couch with a remote control, but it's soul-killing if you're sitting at a keyboard. Webvcr+ (http://webvcrplus.sourceforge.net) provides a nice set of php scripts for scheduling television programs to record. Recording is done using whatever command line you prefer, and files are saved using informative names, such as "The Prisoner - The Arrival.avi". Files can be played with whatever viewer you like. In other words, the _only_ thing webvcr+ does is schedule recordings and issue your chosen command line at the appropriate time. So, to sum up, for a full-blown tivo-replacement to be used on a dedicated machine and interacted with using a remote control, mythtv is what you want. Otherwise (IMHO), not. -- Lance Simmons
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