PIMP for Topfields

[JPP]

PIMP is a web based service. PIMP clients communicate with the server by using HTTP POST requests.

Hi Peter. A copy of what I posted on the Toppy forum below:

peteru wrote:
That's not how PIMP works. There's a PIMP server at IceTV that provides the PIMP web service. It integrates with all sorts of databases as well as the web interface and mobile phone interface.

The client runs on the PVR (in the case of PVRs that are more sophisticated than the Toppy) or on a device attached to the PVR, that acts as a PIMP controller for the "dumb" PVR. The Toppy qualifies as a dumb PVR - i.e. a PVR that needs to be managed by a device that can connect to a webserver.

The PIMP architecture is a polled model. It's the responsibility of the PIMP client to contact the PIMP server on a regular basis. The PIMP server can not contact a PIMP client for a number of reasons - the most obvious being NAT/firewalls.

The missing link in the "PIMP for Toppy" equation is an implementation of a PIMP client that speaks to the PIMP server and translates the various commands to something that can be used by the Toppy.

This is how I envisaged it to be - the Toppy, or ICEBOX2 has to ask the PIMP server for updates to the timers in the Toppy. This would be very similar to the way it now asks for a daily update/download of the EPG.

In its simplest, almost "dumb" form, this would mean that you would do all your timer settings on the PIMP server, and it would then send these to the Toppy via the ICEBOX2 at the request of the Toppy/ICEBOX2. It would mean that the PIMP server would have no knowledge of existing timers on the Toppy, and could thus easily overide existing timers.

A second, more sophisticated form would be for the Toppy to send its current timer info up to the PIMP server first. The PIMP server would then digest this and resolve any conflicts that could arise. It would of course also allow the end user sitting in his internet caffe to see what is going on and let him/her decide how to resolve timer conflicts.

But, this requires an UPLOAD of info from the Toppy to the PIMP server - probably a good deal more difficult than the current situation where the Toppy simply requests data from the EPG server.

As a first round, I would suggest that we keep it simple and simply go for the first option. That shouldn't place an enormous burden on the ASUS router limted ROM space as it would involve no more than a second request for data. As I suggested in an earlier post, it could in fact be tagged onto the current EPG request.

The current ICE EPGUploader TAP would need to be modified so that it can read the timers. Tony's EPGUploader can already do this, so that code could be written into the Ice Uploader. Tony has already kindly offered to help with this task.

Yes, that means a once only daily timer and EPG upload - not the kind of service some want where you have a connection to your Toppy at a moments notice. And, timer conflicts would not be resolved either. However, if you were to manage all your timers via the PIMP server, you'd be in complete control, anywhere in the world.

And, if you set your Toppy's EPG/PIMP download time to say around 4pm, you wouldn't miss out on any shows that'd be on that night. It's only when you start to put in timers locally that you would run into strive.

However, if you're sitting at your PC (which is connected to the ICEBOX2 via your router), you could simply request an EPG/PIMP download at any time which is exactly what you can do now.

Over to you guys now for some more brain storming.
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And, as a comment more directly couched at ICETV, I would have thought that if it was important enough or sufficiently commercially viable to produce an ICEBOX specifically for the Topfields, why not go that extra little step and add at least a limited PIMP to it.

[deangelj]

So how do we get on the beta?  I sent an email over 2 weeks ago and haven't heard anything?

cheers,
John