[mythtv-users] [Request] Channel guide behavior while watching TV

[James Armstrong]

>>The first thing that I've noticed that I would like to request a small
>>change to seems relatively simple on the surface:
>>
>>    
>>
>
>I think you will find it signfniciantly more complex once you delve into it.
>
>AIUI the US system of TV (I'm UK based) is that channel 1 is channel 1 no
>matter what, if I select 1 then I will always get the same program.
>
>Not so in the rest of the world. By _convention_ in the UK analogue TV
>uses 1 for BBC1, 2 BBC2 etc, but that relies on the user tuning their TVs
>as such.
>
>With the advent of different distribution systems the channel number
>required to get a specific channel is different, as is the selection of
>available channels, so
>BBC1 is 1 on analogue, 1 on DVB-T, 1 or 101 or 401 on DVB-C dependent on
>the distributor, 101? on DVB-S (Astra) etc etc.
>
>Take into account the 400+ channels now available in the UK and you have a
>nightmare!
>
>xmltvid's are the closest thing to a unqiue identifier that has been created.
>
>  
>
>>Tuner card 1 is set up for basic cable and uses the native tuner to
>>change channels
>>
>>Tuner card 2 is setup for digital cable and is using the dct-channel
>>program to change my digital cable box's channel.
>>
>>
>>
>>Obviously, one tuner has access to many, many more channels than the
>>other.
>>
>>    
>>
>
>The Bodge solution is to create 2 video sources and link them to seperate
>devices. This will permit you to only tune to channels available on that
>tuner. Doesn't work well on Live TV watching, but OK on recording mode.
>
>You will get scheduling difficulties with duplicates of every channel...
>
>
>  
>
>>
>>When watching TV on Tuner card 1, I have access to 2-85 but the Channel
>>Guide will show me all my channels.  When I switch find a show above the
>>85 and select it in the channel guide, it will not change and I get no
>>message on the screen.
>>
>>
>>
>>Would it be possible to a) only show those channels accessible on the
>>current tuner card in the guide or better yet b) change to the
>>appropriate card if it is available.
>>
>>    
>>
>
>IMHO: We need a Tuners capability table that describes the channels
>available on each tuner (and the preference of that tuner for the
>channel). (Could be extra fields on the channel table).
>
>Thoughts anyone?
>
>
>-malc-
>tp://mythtv.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users
>  
>
Isn't there already something that says tuner #1 svideo0 is on 
/dev/video1 and uses Source #3 where Source #3 is Dishnetwork (from 
datadirect). Can't we just use that.?
Let's say your watching LiveTV on tuner #0, which is broadcast cable 
(us) which is using the channels defined in Source 1 (datadirect 
broadcast cable), and are tuned to channel 2 ABC. If you bring up the 
EPG and press Select on channel 4 it will change to it because my Source 
#1 has the following channels (2, 4, 5, 6, 7). Currently if I press 
Select on channel 122 it just stays on channel 2 because channel 122 is 
not on tuner 0. Can we look in the database and see that channel 122 is 
using source 3 and tuner 1 uses source 3 so change to tuner 1 instead of 
tuner 0, then change to channel 122 on that card?  We might have to 
lookup the channelid when pressing Select instead of the channelnum 
because I think there can be duplicate channel numbers.

- James