[mythtv-users] detecting live video within mythtv?

[David Watkins]

> Question is, is there any way from within mythtv to tell whether or not the
> satellite box is currently sending video?  I'd rather not cycle the box if
> we don't have to.
>
> I was thinking that maybe I could do a quick test capture
>
> cat /dev/video0 > test.mpg
>
> for a set number of seconds, and then look to see how big the resulting
> file is.  (presuming an mpg captured this way would vary its size based on
> complexity and content.)
>
> Is there any slicker way to do this test?

I think any slick method is going to depend on knowing what your
capture device is.