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Thread: Quick intro..

  1. #11

    Smile Another Introduction

    I am the newest of newbies... just joined today! I live in Auckland, and have absolutely no puter training. Acutally work in the health profession. Can fix most of the nuts & bolts things that go wrong with my puter & OS myself, but know virutally nothing about writing code.

    Have been toying with the idea of tivo for a year of so, but having just got back from the UK and seen it promoted over there, am keen to do something about it.

    Am still in the deciding stages... would hate to get all the gear and find it goes in the "too hard" basket when it comes to installation.

    Nice to meet you all... are there many other girlies on this site??

  2. #12

    Another brief introduction ...

    Hi all! I am a IT Mrg in Palmerston North and am in the process of setting up a Thomson’s (UK) Tivo.

    It was Tim’s excellent website that convinced me that I must have one of these. Like a kid at a toy shop, I read through Tim’s website and the oztivo website. Finally, in a frenzy of techno-lust I purchased the Tivo off ebay in the UK.

    A few months ago I picked the Tivo up while on holiday. I have since purchased a 200gb hdd and have installed the UK image downloaded from oztivo.

    I had a small issue getting the UK image onto the boot cd from oztivo. I finally managed to add the image to the ISO file using MagicISO.

    My CasheCard arrived last week from 9thtee so my current task is to install the drivers. I am just getting over another slight hitch … I haven’t used my FDD for 2 years so forgot that it was broken. Who uses these things anyway?

    Anyway I’m having a lot of fun with this. It reminds me of the day I got my first computer. An Apple in 1983.

    I would be very interested in hearing from others that have set up or are in the process of setting up UK models in NZ.

  3. #13
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Wellington, NZ
    Posts
    477

    UK TiVo user

    I have a UK TiVo up and running. I am using the standard v2.5.5 installation that came with the unit and have patched it up myself. I do not run Sky or Saturn so am only interested in FreeToAir (FTA) channels.

    I have recompiled the ukchan-2.5.5_nz.c tuner module so that I now have perfect nicam surround sound - do not listen to the oztivo posts that say the MP3 encoding removes the surround channel... The sound is encoded at a constant 192kbps which is more than enough. The issue in Australia could be related to them only having PAL-B/G Stereo and not PAL-B/G Nicam. Either way it works fine over here.

    The RF (antenna) video output works well in the UK TiVo, but you will find that the audio comes out on a 6MHz offset (PAL-I) which is fine if you have an older TV that can handle this (PAL-B/G uses 5.5MHz). I have an old 33" Mitsi Diva that handles it fine, but the audio is not being recognised as nicam stereo, so I am using the left/right RCA audio connectors instead. I have available a Scart->Svideo adapter, but wanted to play with the RF first.

    I have attached a few programs that I have found handy... they are:

    Manual Record
    This is a plugin to TivoWeb/TivoWebPlus that allows you to manually record programs via a web interface. I have modified it slightly to allow you to set a recording for up to 2 months in the future. This removes the need to have the slice information working correctly and allows you to use the TiVo as a VCR until you are happy with slice updates.

    Tivo Title
    This is a small application that has the ability to rename/alter the program title information. I use it to change my manual recordings (made with the above tool) into "special" recordings - this stops the Tivo UI from prepending "Manual:" to all of my recorded shows.

    EndPadPlus
    This is a great little module that automatically pads your recordings so that you can have recording start 5 minutes early and run 10 minutes late if there are no other consecutive recordings scheculed.

    ukchan-2.5.5_nz-nicam.o
    This is a loadable module (loaded via insmod) that allows you to tune into PAL-B/G Nicam broadcasts using the UK Tuner supplied with the UK TiVo (which by default tunes to the UK frequencies and looks for PAL-I Nicam).

    NZ6001-headend
    This is a simple headend slice that I used to get the standard v2.5.5 software to tune to the Free To Air (FTA) channels in Wellington (NZ6001). It is unlikely to be of much use unless you are in Wellington and only want access to the FTA channels. Used in combination with the ManRec plugin it can turn a freshly-reset Tivo into a VCR in a short period of time.
    Attached Files Attached Files
    Last edited by thomson; 19-06-2004 at 01:46 PM. Reason: Updated all manrec

  4. #14
    Excellent! Some tivo life in Godzone....

    I am a 38 year old IT lawyer from Titirangi. I have been living in the UK since 1987 and have at long last dragged wife and 2 kids back home in December.

    Have 2 Thomson SA Tivo. the original one I upgraded to 120gb hard drive and left it in the UK so when my wife was "commuting" back and forward every couple of months she could record Smallville/Angel/Dead Like Me/Firefly. The other one I got from a friend who deserted to Sky plus once they remove the subscription charge so that one came over in my luggage (64kg per person via the States so all of a sudden the essentials such as computer, Tivo, DVD Xbox and PS2 all got squeezed into suitcases - oh yes and a bottle of sherry for the sheila )

    Have been running that one using the output from an NZ sourced VCR (ahh grasshopper the circle is complete - a VCR feeding a Tivo) to get the FTA channels. Have been hunting for NZ specific info to get the damned thing up and running properly for years - looking good for getting channel data now once the container with the serial lead makes the trip over.... now all I need is a cheap way to network the darned things!


    Cheers

    Chris

    p.s. Timmy - you might find "chics" this way, show them your Tivo. Most intelligent women who have seen a Tivo working think it is way easier than programming a video

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    Wellington
    Posts
    224
    Quote Originally Posted by Lurker
    p.s. Timmy - you might find "chics" this way, show them your Tivo. Most intelligent women who have seen a Tivo working think it is way easier than programming a video
    "Hey baby, c'mon over to my place and I'll show you my TiVo..."

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
    Location
    Wellington, NZ
    Posts
    573
    Hmmm might have to try that myself. The 'Show you my etchings' line doesn't work very well.

  7. #17
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    The Village
    Posts
    49

    NICAM PALMOD hack Qs

    Quote Originally Posted by thomson
    I have a UK TiVo up and running. I am using the standard v2.5.5 installation that came with the unit and have patched it up myself. I do not run Sky or Saturn so am only interested in FreeToAir (FTA) channels.

    I have recompiled the ukchan-2.5.5_nz.c tuner module so that I now have perfect nicam surround sound - do not listen to the oztivo posts that say the MP3 encoding removes the surround channel... The sound is encoded at a constant 192kbps which is more than enough. The issue in Australia could be related to them only having PAL-B/G Stereo and not PAL-B/G Nicam. Either way it works fine over here.
    Did you change any of the code in the ukchan-2.5.5_nz.c module to enable NICAM? As I understood that this module enabled NICAM decoding on the MSP chip already?

    If you did, have you posted the changes/new version back to the oztivo list so that it can be kept up to date?

    If you didn't, then why did you have to recompile the module? a .o version should already be there on the oztivo website somewhere.

    The RF (antenna) video output works well in the UK TiVo, but you will find that the audio comes out on a 6MHz offset (PAL-I) which is fine if you have an older TV that can handle this (PAL-B/G uses 5.5MHz). I have an old 33" Mitsi Diva that handles it fine, but the audio is not being recognised as nicam stereo, so I am using the left/right RCA audio connectors instead. I have available a Scart->Svideo adapter, but wanted to play with the RF first.
    Yes, thats a problem. I have tried to obtain the info [e.g. a PDF manual on the tuner] on how to change the output sound frequency of the RF antenna to 5.5MHz from software so thats its all 100% PAL B/G compatible, but no one has one of those that I've seen.

    And of course, even it did I don't think the NICAM signal will be there in the RF signal so you'll still need a hook up from your Tivo using Video,Left/Right Audio input on your TV/Stereo to get the proper stereo [surround] sound.
    I have a Panasonic TV that lets me select the sound carrier frequency and it doesn't show NICAM in RF mode either, so I doubt NICAM is there at all in the RF signal].


    BTW: I have two UK Tivos I sourced from the UK in late 2002 when they were selling for about 120UKP each as "run out" models.
    I think Daniel has [at least] one UK model also.


    Note: For folks with more than 1 Tivo, get one of the new remotes that Tivos online shop sells. Not only does it come in "transparent" colours [which are better than dark purple/black or silver] it also lets you control two Tivos from the one remote, removing the problem of always have the wrong Tivo remote in your hand...

    The Tivo online store only accepts US credit cards [as per billing address on card] and they'll only ship to the US, but if you've got someone over there to act as an agent you'll be able to source one easily.

    Either that or check out ebay - they pop up there often enough.

  8. #18
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Wellington, NZ
    Posts
    477
    Quote Originally Posted by number6
    Did you change any of the code in the ukchan-2.5.5_nz.c module to enable NICAM? As I understood that this module enabled NICAM decoding on the MSP chip already?
    I noticed that the object (.o) module that was provided was not compiled with the NICAMSTEREOMODE defined. So it did not include the section in the source code that flicked the tuner into PAL-B/G NICAM Stereo only. I must admit that I have yet to compare the two modules as I stopped when I found that the NICAM only module worked correctly. It could be that by setting PAL-B/G Stereo (as broadcast in Australia) it will automatically detect NICAM, but I prefered the hardcoded option.

    I have remapped the channels in the source so that I can use the numbers on the remote to jump to a channel. Previously I had to use 1-TV1, 2-C4, 5-TV2, 11-TV3, 60-Prime... by changing the mappings I can now use 1,2,3,4,5.
    Last edited by thomson; 31-05-2004 at 03:29 PM.

  9. #19
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    The Village
    Posts
    49

    remapping channel numbers

    Quote Originally Posted by thomson
    I noticed that the object (.o) module that was provided was not compiled with the NICAMSTEREOMODE defined. So it did not include the section in the source code that flicked the tuner into PAL-B/G NICAM Stereo only. I must admit that I have yet to compare the two modules as I stopped when I found that the NICAM only module worked correctly. It could be that by setting PAL-B/G Stereo (as broadcast in Australia) it will automatically detect NICAM, but I prefered the hardcoded option.
    I think you'll find that with NICAMSTEREOMODE defined it only enables NICAM mode, whereas in the "default" mode it enables both NICAM and whatever the Aussies use and lets the chip work it out for itself.

    Quote Originally Posted by thomson
    I have remapped the channels in the source so that I can use the numbers on the remote to jump to a channel. Previously I had to use 1-TV1, 2-C4, 5-TV2, 11-TV3, 60-Prime... by changing the mappings I can now use 1,2,3,4,5.
    There is a capability in the US Tivos to remap the channel numbers without changing the channel numbers in the module like you did.

    The US Tivos have a field called "FCCChannelNum" in the MFS Station object in the MFS which is I gather the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) official assigned "number" for the channel.

    I am not sure which of Number and FCCNumber when both are available provides the VHF/UHF channel number and which is the number you key into your Tivo remote to select that channel.

    e.g. in your case you had to key in 11 to get TV3, thats because against your TV station object in the mfs you had Number=11.

    What I'm not sure of is if you added a FCCChannelNum=3 would that mean that you can enter "3" to get to TV3?
    Or should it be setup with FCCChannelNum=11 and Number=3? to make that work?
    Note: In your case, you've changed the UHF channel numbers so this wouldn't work on your current palmod.o file but would work on original (unmodded by you) palmod.o file.

    Also what I don't know is does the UK Tivo software support this feature (FCCChannelNum) [the US Tivos do/did].

    As far as I can tell in the UK Tivos the Station line ups don't use the FCCChannelNum field in the Station Object and so you have to enter the UHF channel number of the channel you want to watch. However that doesn't mean you couldn't use it.

    Note: When if/when you do enable the ability to just enter "3" for TV3, and you have a TV3 setup on your Sky decoder then you will find that whenever you select TV3 (by just entering 3) your Tivo will generally tune into the Sky channel TV3, if you enter 3 again it will then flip to the TV3 channel on UHF and will toggle between them as you keep entering 3 (enter) on the remote.

    This is due to the Tivo always selecting the highest quality source available by default for any given channel where multiple channels with the same number (station ID) are available. But will then cycle to the next highest quality when selected a second time etc.

    Also, when a Station is on a Settop box [e.g. controlled via IR], then you may be able to control which "numbers" are sent to the settop box to select that channel as compared what you key on the remote to select it using the same technique (setting FCCChannelNum).

    If you do experiment and it works, please report back what you find.
    [both here and to the OzTivo forums]

  10. #20
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Wellington, NZ
    Posts
    477
    Quote Originally Posted by number6
    I think you'll find that with NICAMSTEREOMODE defined it only enables NICAM mode, whereas in the "default" mode it enables both NICAM and whatever the Aussies use and lets the chip work it out for itself.
    Actually no... you need to ignore the comments in the file. Without NICAMSTEREOMODE set it uses 0x00200003 which selects Zweiton analogue stereo - which results in mono in New Zealand. If you want it set to automatically detect then you need to use 0x00200001. This will recognise the format and switch to it within 0.5 seconds.

    I however prefer to force it to Nicam using 0x00200008, as all our channels use Nicam. If you wish to test this for yourself then you can use the following:
    Code:
    # iicset4 0x88 0x10 0x00200001
    # iicset4 0x88 0x10 0x00200003
    # iicset4 0x88 0x10 0x00200008
    You will notice that the first and the last will sound the same, but the second line will switch your whole system into mono (it may also increase in volume slightly).

    Quote Originally Posted by number6
    I am not sure which of Number and FCCNumber when both are available provides the VHF/UHF channel number and which is the number you key into your Tivo remote to select that channel.
    The UK TiVo (v2.5.5) uses Channel/Number setting for the UHF Channel frequency and ignores the Station/FccChannelNum. When I use the numbers on the remote, it tunes directly to that UHF frequency - there does not seem to be any translation or mapping happening.

    The ChannelMap.itcl plugin alters the Channel/Number field and as such results in setting the UHF channel mapping... so for me (as a programmer) it was just easier to make changes to the ukchan module.
    Last edited by thomson; 11-06-2004 at 04:13 PM. Reason: Correction

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