Setting Programme Start Stop times from Ice Guide

Started by ndibs, September 05, 2013, 08:14:50 PM

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ndibs

I must say that with a subscribed service such as IceTV, we the end user should not have to pad the start and finish of any recorded program. The system via the IP link should be capable of identifying and adjusting for those programs that we have set in a dynamic manner.
I'm starting to get peeved with having to wind through 30% of the recording set to the IceTV programmed start time and then missing the end of that program because it stops and/or the recorder is switching to another channel to record there, again as defined by the IceTV programmed start time.

I've been a subscriber now for a couple of years but don't seem to see a lot of value in continuing with the current way IceTV is operating.

TobyDog

I totally agree. I have been a subscriber for 3-4 years now & if ICE hadn't automatically resubscribed me last week when it became due I was not going to renew. I don't think there would be a day go by that we don't face late starts to programs & subsequent frequent misses to the endings. I could almost handle a one-off situation but often the same program goes week after week without being corrected.

It's just not good enough.

prl

#2
The networks vary their actual start times pretty much at random. IceTV does in fact try to compensate for this for some programs, but IMO, they have been pretty unsuccessful at doing it, occasionally moving the IceTV start time for a program to after its actual broadcast start time, and I think they should actually abandon this, because it doesn't seem to help. I've actually had to increase the amount of pre-padding I used since IceTV started doing this to cope with the problem of them having an IceTV start time that's after the actual start time.

If you want to get annoyed about this, blame the networks, for whom it's IMO most likely deliberate programming strategy.

Even if IceTV were able to predict the start times of all programs with 100% accuracy, it still won't fix all the problems caused by the networks not adhering to their schedule. For example, in a PVR limited to two simultaneous recordings, the following scenario will always result in the loss of some part of some program, no matter what IceTV, or anyone, does:

Schedule:
ChA 20:00-21:00
ChB 21:00-22:00
ChC 21:00-22:00

Actual broadcast times:
ChA: 20:05-21:10
ChB: 21:05-22:05
ChC: 21:07-22:10

A PVR that can only do two recordings at once can't record the whole of all three programs, no matter what you do. The way IceTV is at the moment, if it changed its schedule to the actual broadcast times, one of the two recordings on ChB or ChC would fail completely.

Be careful what you wish for.

The networks are supposed to be delivering the capability you want from IceTV via the Freeview EPG. If you think their data will be more reliable than IceTV's and you can live with the fact that shifting schedules might mean that you miss out on a recording entirely (I'm not sure how Freeview EPG PVRs would handle problems like the above one), get a Freeview EPG PVR.

I work around this problem by having 2 PVRs in our lounge setup, and by trying to avoid programming situations like the one above by splitting the recordings across the two PVRs. This takes a bit more care than the IceTV "Never miss your favourite show again" slogan* might lead you to think.

It's the networks who are, in the end, responsible for this fiasco, not IceTV.

* Yes, I have read the "never miss" fine print.
Peter
Beyonwiz T4 in-use
Beyonwiz T2, T3, T4, U4 & V2 for testing

Heinz

I was just about to post a reply when I read prl's contribution below. Peter is spot on with his posting.

Every vendor's blog (incl. Freeview-related ones) are calling out the same problem. There is just no legal way of forcing the broadcasters to comply with their published start times.

The only way for consumers is to lodge a complaint with ACMA, requesting to legislate broadcast scheduling strategies.

Vendors and consumers are in the same boat here on the receiving end of broadcast scheduling practices.