Windows 7 EPG Beta Readme: 24/02/2009 (Please read this first)

[Russell at IceTV]

Hi, and welcome to the beta test for IceTV's EPG for Windows 7.

Please post feedback in this board only.  Usually it's best to start a new topic rather than replying to this one.  If you'd like to be notified via email whenever a new post is added to this board, click here to go back to the board level, and then click Notify on the right (above or below the list of posts).

We'll post new "sticky" messages at the top of this board when things change, so always check for these first.

What is this?
This is a beta test, meaning that we need help from our users in getting the final touches working.  Things may be broken or may not work at all.  Things might work and then suddenly break.  Your TV shows might not get recorded, your channel listing might get completely hosed, and you might even have to reinstall Windows 7 to get things working again.  We'll of course avoid these problems as much as we can, but don't blame us if your significant other's favourite show doesn't get recorded and you cop the blame for it.  :)  Needless to say, this should probably not be used for your primary TV recorder.

Who can use this?
All IceTV subscribers are welcome to join.  You'll need the User ID and password for your account.  If you forgot your password, you can get it emailed to you here.

What is the goal?
To get the EPG working in Windows 7's Media Center at least as well as it does in the XP and Vista versions.  Windows 7's Media Center has some nice new features, and we'll try to support them as best we can.  The Interactive client will be updated for Windows 7 some time in the future.  Right now we're concentrating on the guide data.

What's working now?

• TV guide data for all regions.
• Automatic channel mapping for guide listings (although there may be a couple where we don't have the channel names quite right yet).
• Program attributes such as titles, descriptions, genres (categories), ratings, year, original air dates (on some programs), and indicators for movie, repeat, CC, and HD.
• Series and single recordings.
• Series and episode descriptions both displayed on the program details pages.
• Searching. Categories should show up right away, but searching by Title and Keyword takes some time for the data to be indexed by Media Center. See note further below about searching.

What's not working yet?

• Cast list. On the program details pages, you can use the left and right arrow keys to move between the pages "synopsis", "actions", and "other showings". There's supposed to be a 4th page for "cast + crew", which probably only shows up on Movies. We've been told that this is currently broken in beta 1 of Win7, but has been fixed in a later release (which hasn't been released to the public as of yet).
  Update: The cast list is now working also.

Setup Media Center First
If you just installed Windows 7, run through the Media Center setup before loading the IceTV guide data.  We've had reports of problems when the IceTV guide data is loaded before scanning for channels in Media Center.  Once it finds all your channels and you have your tuners and other hardware setup, then continue with these instructions.

Download
Download the file "icetv_win7_epg_2.zip" attached at the bottom of this post. This file contains the "webget.exe" program for downloading the guide data, and a batch file to run webget and load the data into MCE.

Install
Unzip the files to any directory on your hard drive.  For example, "C:\IceTV" would be fine.  Open the file "load_icetv_epg.bat" in Notepad and edit the following line, changing "USERID" to your User ID and "PASSWORD" to your password:

webget.exe "http://iceguide.icetv.com.au/cgi-bin/epg3/iceguide.cgi?op=mxfguide" -u USERID -p PASSWORD -o icetv_epg.mxf

If your Windows directory for Windows 7 isn't on the C drive, change the path "C:\windows\ehome" also.

Load the guide data
Double-click the file "load_icetv_epg.bat".  This will run webget to download the guide data and load it into MCE.  This can be done with Media Center running or not, so there's no need to shut it down first.

Check the channel mappings for guide listings
In Media Center, go to Tasks / Settings / TV / Guide / Edit Channels.  Take a look at all the channel names.  They should end with "-IceTV" when they're correctly mapped to IceTV listings.  For example, if you have a channel with the scanned name "ABC1", it should show up here as "ABC1-IceTV".  If it doesn't, see below for how to map it manually.  Be aware that in some cases such as with regional channels, it might create a new channel that you don't actually have.  For example, in Adelaide, 7 Digital can be on both 6 and 7, and you'll probably see "7 Digital-IceTV" for both of these channel numbers.  If you only get a TV signal on channel 7, you'll want to uncheck 6 to hide it.  If you're not sure, go to the TV guide (use the green button as as shortcut) and see if you actually have a TV signal on all the listed channels.

Manually map channel listings (if needed)
If any of your channels aren't already mapped to the IceTV listings, you'll need to map them manually:

• First, make a note of the original channel name as it was scanned by Media Center.  
• Then click the channel name to go to the settings page.  For example, when mapping channel 2 for ABC1, the title of the settings page would be "Settings for 2 ABC1".  
• Then click "Edit Listings" to go to the page titled "Channel 2 Listings".  
• There should be a list of channel names in the lower right part of the screen.  Scroll down until you find the channel name you're working on, but with "-IceTV" at the end of it.  In this current example, we'd look for "ABC1-IceTV" (sometimes you have to scroll down further than you think, but they should be in alphabetic order unless you've clicked "Sort by Number" on the left side).  If you don't find the one you need, then something's wrong.  Skip down to the section below named "Help! It's not working!".  
• If you find it, click to select it, and it should take you back to the page titled "Settings for 2 ABC1".  On this page, look for the "Channel listing" and make sure the name still has "-IceTV" in it.  In this example the "Channel listing" value would be "ABC1-IceTV".  If it doesn't end in "-IceTV", try editing the listings again, and if it still doesn't work, skip down to the section below named "Help! It's not working!".

Important: If you have to manually map a channel to the IceTV guide listings, please post a message on this board to let us know what the original scanned channel name was before you mapped it.  We'll use that to update our database, so the next person gets it mapped automatically.

Check the guide
When all the channels look ok, go to the guide (use the green button as a shortcut) and check your listings.  Hopefully you have good guide data for all your channels.  If you need help, skip down to the section below named "Help! It's not working!".  If it all looks good, celebrate by dancing on the nearest table, and then post a message in this board to let us know.

Tip: Disable EIT guide data
Once you get the IceTV guide data working, you won't need (or want) the limited guide data that's sent over the air with digital channels.  Here's how to disable it:

• Go to Tasks / Settings / TV / Guide / Edit Channels.
• Click one of the channel names that you've enabled with a check mark (for example: ABC1-IceTV).
• Click "Edit Listings", and then click "Disable Inband".  Then click Save, and then Save again, to take you back to the Edit Channels page.
• Repeat for each enabled IceTV channel, then click Save on the Edit Channels page when done.

Tip: Setup automatic guide downloads
You can use Win7's Task Scheduler to have the batch file run automatically to update the guide:

• In Windows 7, go to Start / Control Panel / All Control Panel Items / Administrative Tools / Task Scheduler.  
• Click "Task Scheduler Library" on the left side of the window to list existing tasks.  
• Click "Create Basic Task" on the right side of the window.  
• Enter a name for the task, such as "Update IceTV Guide", then click Next.  
• Leave the Trigger option set to "Daily" and click Next.  
• Set a start time for the task.  We usually recommend that the guide data be updated sometime after 1pm, but please do our servers a favour and pick some time other than exactly 1pm so everyone doesn't hit us at once.  ;)  Then click Next.  
• Leave the option "Start a program" selected and click Next.  
• Click the Browse button and navigate to the directory where you saved the files you downloaded earlier.  Select "load_icetv_epg.bat" and click Open.  In the "Start in" box, type the directory again, so it's the same as where the file is located, then click Next.  For example:
  
  Program/script: C:\IceTV\load_icetv_epg.bat
  Start in: C:\IceTV
  
  
• Check all the settings, then click Finish.
• You should then see your task in the list at the top.  If not, make sure you have "Task Scheduler Library" selected on the left side of the window, and not "Task Scheduler (Local)".
• To edit the task's settings, double-click it in the list.
• To run the task manually, select it and then click "Run" on the right side.

Tip: Searching in Media Center
After loading new guide data, it may take some time before Windows indexes everything. Until that happens, searching in Media Center by Title or Keyword may not find what you want. You can either wait for Windows to re-index everything on its own schedule, or you can force it to re-index everything immediately:

• In Windows 7, go to Start / Control Panel / All Control Panel Items / Indexing Options.
• You should see "Windows Media Center" in the list of "Included Locations".
• Click Advanced, then click Rebuild, then click OK.  This will rebuild the index and include all the latest guide data.
• When it says "Indexing complete" at the top, click Close, and then searching in Media Center should include all the latest data.

Tip: enable colours in the guide
To turn on different colours in the guide based on the show's category (Movie, News, etc.), go to Tasks / Settings / TV / Guide / Guide Page Options.  Then enable the checkbox for "Apply colored backgrounds to shows, based on their category".

Help! It's not working!
If something just isn't working, then, well, maybe you found a bug.  It might be our bug, or it might be Microsoft's (remember that Win7 is still in beta too).  Instead of using the normal support options on our web site, please post a bug report in this board and tell us everything you can think of that might help us (and other users) understand the problem.  At a minimum, please include the guide region you're in (Sydney, Melbourne, etc.).  If you're having trouble with channel mapping (which is the trickiest part of this whole process -- we feel your pain), let us know the original channel name as it was scanned by Media Center ("ABC1"), the channel number it's on (2), and what you're seeing (or not) when you try to map the listings to it.  Details are good -- we love details -- we can't get enough of them.  :)

Good luck!

Russell

[moocow]

thanks very much, will test it soon.

I know that its early days, but will ICETV incorporate:
tv logo's into the guide?
interactive
iphone app etc etc.

Also, any possibility of a Nokia touch screen app for ICETV? (i'm probably dreaming :))

[Daniel Hall at IceTV]

We are definitely looking at ways to enhance the guide and use the built-in functionality of the guide in Windows 7.

From the original post:

What is the goal?
To get the EPG working in Windows 7's Media Center at least as well as it does in the XP and Vista versions.  Windows 7's Media Center has some nice new features, and we'll try to support them as best we can.  The Interactive client will be updated for Windows 7 some time in the future.  Right now we're concentrating on the guide data.

So, yes, IceTV Interactive will be updated in the future to support Windows 7 and this will include support for recordings via all the current available options like iPhone app and IceTV Widget.

[zoszos68]

Hi I don't have ABC1-ICETV in my list to choose. The original name is ABC1. I am in Melbourne and I hope it's just an oversight on your part and it was forgotten to be put in.

Also TEN HD is doing the same as above but I use ONE HD so I get away with that.
At least the ABC1 over the air EPG is fairly good.
Also does anyone know where I can see the file with the guide data so i can check if ABC1 is listed correctly or not.
Kevin

Edit: I tried Sydney and got the same so I went in and reset up the tv (Melbourne again) and got ABC1-IceTV but now ONE HD is missing hmmm do I blame ICE or Microsoft lol back to try again.
Kevin

Edit2: Got all working but had to do one manual edit. "Nine Digital HD" was the original in Melbourne.
Also One HD has 3 listings in the edit Menu all have IceTV after the name but at least only one shows in the guide no mater how many are ticked.
Ah the fun of playing with betas.
Kevin

[ancall]

Well done! So far so good.
ancall

[Patricio]

Hi there,

As I am also located in Melbourne, my initial experience is similar to that of zoszos68.

* The only channel listing that didn't automatically map was Nine HD-IceTV.  As he said, the original scanned channel name for Channel 90 is Nine Digital HD.

* There were no IceTV channel listings downloaded for ABC1 or ABC HDTV.

* The Network Ten mapping was:

• 1 - ONE HD - no mapping
• 10 - Ten Digital - Ten Digital-IceTV
• 11 - ONE HD - no mapping
• 12 - One Digital - One Digital-IceTV

Thanks for this guys.  Whilst I know it's only beta, I was getting frustrated watching my subscription tick away after moving to Windows 7.  Happy to provide any feedback you need.

Patricio.

[Russell at IceTV]

* The only channel listing that didn't automatically map was Nine HD-IceTV.  As he said, the original scanned channel name for Channel 90 is Nine Digital HD.

Thanks for letting us know.  I've updated our database so hopefully it should auto-map for the next person in Melbourne.  Strange that the scanned name is different in Melbourne than Sydney, but I guess that's just the way it is.

* There were no IceTV channel listings downloaded for ABC1 or ABC HDTV.

Sorry to hear that.  All the listings for those channels are being downloaded, but for some reason MCE isn't letting you select them when doing manual mappings.  We saw something similar in our own testing, but only on one machine, when other machines worked fine with the same data.  I've also been reading similar reports from other forums, so my guess is that we're looking at some kind of bug in Media Center that will hopefully be corrected in a future version.  We're still investigating, and will get back to you when we know more.

Thanks for the report.

Russell

[dgaust]

ABC data not being able to be mapped is a known bug in Windows 7 Media Centre and it's being worked on by Microsoft. AFAIK, it's close to being resolved and will hopefully be in the RC1 build.

[s3070416]

Hi guys,

Maybe i'm missing something, but after running this beta on Windows 7 i find that media centre no longer recognises any shows as being a series. This means the record series option is never present. Any ideas?

Also, I'm in Canberra and the following channels didn't map automatically:

SC10 Canberra
WIN TV Canberra
Prime Canberra
Prime HD

Cheers

[Russell at IceTV]

...media centre no longer recognises any shows as being a series. This means the record series option is never present.

Looks like you found a bug!  ;D  It was being displayed for some shows, but not nearly enough.  I've fixed it now, so if you update your guide you should see the Record Series option available on a lot more shows.  There may be the odd one still not showing right, but about 99% of them should be ok now, and by the end of today (Thursday, 26 Feb) they should all be fixed.  Thanks for reporting this.

Also, I'm in Canberra and the following channels didn't map automatically:

SC10 Canberra
WIN TV Canberra
Prime Canberra
Prime HD

Great, thanks, I've updated the database so they should be correct for the next person.

Russell

[s3070416]

Great, thanks, Russel.

[hamping]

I am in Sydney and have had technical problems with recording in MCE. It may be the way in which MCE treats my dual Haupauge HVR-1100 tuners or something to do with the guide until recently entirely EIT. So I am interested to hear that ABC guide entries are a 'known problem' for ICE. Does the problem apply to EIT entries for ABC too?  I have not been able to load ABC ice entries in Sydney so am still using EIT for ABC, but ICE for all the other channels which have been correctly mapped by Russel's software. After one (1) day, it seems that the tuner issues may be resolved for the channels that are now using ICE data, but not the ABC on EIT. Has anyone else experienced this issue or any change since the release of this beta? What is the particular problem with ABC?

Regards
Stuart

[Russell at IceTV]

Hi Stuart,

I can't really say why your recording problems are different with the IceTV guide vs. EIT guide, but I do know a bit about the ABC mapping problem.  Most of our test machines mapped all channels fine, but one machine had trouble with ABC1 and ONE HD.  We have no idea why, since the data was the same on all machines, but we've been hearing through the grapevine that this may be a known issue in Win7 beta 1, and that Microsoft may be working on it already.  We're still trying to get confirmation on that, and we'll let you know when we know more.  In the mean time, it seems like some people are able to map all channels successfully (even automatically, in most cases), but others are seeing the problem.

Thanks,
Russell

[csmlsim]

Hi,

Just wondering if I can get ahold of the beta program. It would seem I'm either blind, or it has been removed from your post. I am very interested to try it

Thanks

Chris

EDIT: Ignore me, i'm blind!

[csmlsim]

Ok, all installed, but I only get listings for ABC, and nothing else! Im in the Canberra region