I think I am going to TiVo :(
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Look at it the other way. We still don't have a solution that works as well as Tivo. WMC seems closest, though there are some tradeoffs.
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The Rovi acquisition of TiVo adds uncertainty to their future plans. A 6 tuner Bolt could be a strong candidate for a WMC replacement for us - but if Rovi is going to move TiVo out of the hardware business - not sure we'd want to purchase new TiVo hardware that is already end-of-the-line.
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But you'll already have the hardware by then. What are your concerns?
Clearly the guide will continue. So maybe Rovi chooses down the road to get out of the hardware business, and instead license their technology to hardware builders. But you'll already have the hardware. What's your concern?
Clearly the guide will continue. So maybe Rovi chooses down the road to get out of the hardware business, and instead license their technology to hardware builders. But you'll already have the hardware. What's your concern?
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I'm looking forward to what comes out, if anything. Their release cycle would be late September. I'll certainly test one if it has six tuners. Whether or not we will see the promised 'pro' product time will tell.
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Until TiVo/Rovi announces plans on their hardware (post acquisition) or that they've got commitments from at least two credible hardware partners, there is risk in making an investment in TiVo.
Today, we have a 7 tuner WMC and 6 xbox 360's. If we used the latest hardware, that would require 2 Bolts plus 6 minis - and about $500 per year for Comcast cablecard rental and TiVo subscriptions. That's a major investment - and something we'd prefer to make if we have confidence this will work for at least 5 years (which is how we justified the original PC investment and subsequent Xbox 360 investments for WMC).
If TiVo produces a new 6 tuner Bolt or 3rd party hardware product, that would cut our annual costs to $250 per year - and would help considerably.
Until there's more clarity on the Rovi/TiVo strategy - we'll likely continue to do what we can to keep our WMC working - and hope it lasts long enough until there is a clearer long-term replacement.
Today, we have a 7 tuner WMC and 6 xbox 360's. If we used the latest hardware, that would require 2 Bolts plus 6 minis - and about $500 per year for Comcast cablecard rental and TiVo subscriptions. That's a major investment - and something we'd prefer to make if we have confidence this will work for at least 5 years (which is how we justified the original PC investment and subsequent Xbox 360 investments for WMC).
If TiVo produces a new 6 tuner Bolt or 3rd party hardware product, that would cut our annual costs to $250 per year - and would help considerably.
Until there's more clarity on the Rovi/TiVo strategy - we'll likely continue to do what we can to keep our WMC working - and hope it lasts long enough until there is a clearer long-term replacement.
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I did the same 5 year ROI calculation on WMC, and made it.
While I don't have the cable TV problem, I still prefer WMC--for now. However, Tivo--regardless of its current political and strategic state--is still attractive, and I may jump before the ol' WMC setup dies. I don't have 7 TVs, I have only 4, so that changes my equation. And OTA certainly doesn't require even 4 tuners, so there's that.
But what really intrigues me is Tivo Stream. Frankly, that could eliminate one of my TVs completely--while giving extra flexibility throughout the house, streaming to phones and tablets. Same price as a Mini, but extra flexibility. Fair tradeoff.
While I don't have the cable TV problem, I still prefer WMC--for now. However, Tivo--regardless of its current political and strategic state--is still attractive, and I may jump before the ol' WMC setup dies. I don't have 7 TVs, I have only 4, so that changes my equation. And OTA certainly doesn't require even 4 tuners, so there's that.
But what really intrigues me is Tivo Stream. Frankly, that could eliminate one of my TVs completely--while giving extra flexibility throughout the house, streaming to phones and tablets. Same price as a Mini, but extra flexibility. Fair tradeoff.
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Just a warning on the Tivo Roamio -- Comcast has been doing something to the H.264 HD channels that has broken the ability for the Roamio hardware to record/pause some of those channels. The Tivo Bolt and the Tivo HD seem unaffected. The theory is that something in their transcoding of the original content to fit more streams on a channel (1920x1080i -> 1280x720) has caused an incompatibility and it's still not fixed.
The other potential issue is that Rovi is working on getting their guide data on the Tivo and we know how well that went with WMC.
The other potential issue is that Rovi is working on getting their guide data on the Tivo and we know how well that went with WMC.
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Is it possible that at least some of the WMC Rovi guide data issues are being caused by Microsoft's processing of the Rovi data - and not the data itself?
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Partly.
Presently content is terrible with RoVi™
You may have the correct program listed for channel and time slot but the metadata accompanying it can be well below par (missing / incorrect / generic).
Most probably will eventually iron out, but I believe it's going to be a bumpy road getting to that goal and it's going to be grumpy TiVo users that apply the pressure.
Presently content is terrible with RoVi™
You may have the correct program listed for channel and time slot but the metadata accompanying it can be well below par (missing / incorrect / generic).
Most probably will eventually iron out, but I believe it's going to be a bumpy road getting to that goal and it's going to be grumpy TiVo users that apply the pressure.
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Yep. This is a case of garbage in - garbage out. Incorrect processing of the data would not change it in the ways that we are seeing. It's mostly the data itself, hence Rovi, that is to blame.
Tivo users are a very picky bunch and will not tolerate Rovi's current data quality for long. Rovi will either step up and fix it, or Tivo will start losing subs. I know I will drop Tivo just as I dropped WMC if Rovi doesn't clean up their act.
Luckily, Tivo apparently hasn't switched to Rovi guide data yet. It will be obvious when they do.
Tivo users are a very picky bunch and will not tolerate Rovi's current data quality for long. Rovi will either step up and fix it, or Tivo will start losing subs. I know I will drop Tivo just as I dropped WMC if Rovi doesn't clean up their act.
Luckily, Tivo apparently hasn't switched to Rovi guide data yet. It will be obvious when they do.
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So I am the originator of this thread. I am still on MC, and the reason I stayed is because of Epg123. Much better guide data = happy mc user.
That being said, I read a review of the latest Dish Hopper system that comes with 16(!) tuners. If I ever think of switching again, that Dish system would be worth a long look.
That being said, I read a review of the latest Dish Hopper system that comes with 16(!) tuners. If I ever think of switching again, that Dish system would be worth a long look.
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Is that anything like putting a ring on it?
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EPG123 has most certainly brought WMC back to life and has even expanded its feature set let alone its longevity. Cheers to Gary for the fantastic insight and knowledge, and rkulagow @ SD for his commitment to 100% truethful guide goodness and recently glugglug for his razor edge abilities. It's all leading to building a much more fruitful basket of WMC guide goodies. This is how a set of co-op businesses should be (even if Gary is doing this gratis with official donations! ). Open, active, responsive. It equals win for everyone. In a big way.
I have never seen a guide bursting with as much perfect data as I have now, on any platform.
I have never seen a guide bursting with as much perfect data as I have now, on any platform.
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I did a search using Soft Sled but this was the last post on this. Curious if this project ever went into production?Crash2009 wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2016 3:41 amMy little test network is a little maxed out at the moment. I need to move the project over to the Gig network to do a fair test. Also the CPU on the Win10 box is weak. I expect better results when the project goes production.dkrom wrote:Sounds good! What's the frame rate like though?Crash2009 wrote:How bought we all go to Soft Sled Surprise! Surprise! The Remote works. Change channels in WMC in an RDP Session. 3 Live and 2 Recorded in the picture.
The previous picture was RDP from Win7 (Xeon 12 core client) to a Win10 (Old I3 Laptop Host).
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It's still technically possible, though you'd need to use WMC 8.8.x for Windows 10 or the RDP Patch for Windows 7, and configure RDPWrapper to enable simultaneous connections. Without RDPWrapper, you'll only be able to have a single session running at a time, either directly from the machine or over RDP.ncarty97 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 07, 2021 2:51 amI did a search using Soft Sled but this was the last post on this. Curious if this project ever went into production?Crash2009 wrote: ↑Sun Feb 21, 2016 3:41 amMy little test network is a little maxed out at the moment. I need to move the project over to the Gig network to do a fair test. Also the CPU on the Win10 box is weak. I expect better results when the project goes production.dkrom wrote:
Sounds good! What's the frame rate like though?
The previous picture was RDP from Win7 (Xeon 12 core client) to a Win10 (Old I3 Laptop Host).
Bear in mind though that the Windows 7 RDP Patch is a double-edged sword, as it will also prevent extenders from displaying WMC... Swings and roundabouts