New To Sage, couple of questions

[SomeWhatLost]

1st. I was, and currently still am, a very happy BTV & Theatertek user... the only two reasons I am even considering the switch to the darkside (ie Sage + HDextender) is well, because of the extender for one, and the CQC Sage diver is the other...
My HD200 should be delivered Friday, so I have a few questions...

what all is required to make Sage, well work, for lack of a better word?
I have it set up on my desktop for now, no tuners as they are all in/connected to my BTV/media/cqc server box.. so I can't really play with the guide data or see how that all sets up, any tricks to make it work?

I can't get DVD's to play, but I think that's a non-issue, my guess is sage doesn't have a DVD codec? even though it does have an mpeg2 codec? either case, it should be irrelevant with the HDextender?

what is video orbiting? does that matter with the extender?

whats a STV Package and how does that compare with a STVi Import? do I need either one?

how does the zap2it guide data compare with BTV's guide data?

whats the sage equivalent of BTV's smartskip, and how do you turn it on?

how do I get rid of the pictures and music sections? I only want TV and DVD.

Theatertek remembers the AR you set for a movie, so you don't need to reset it each time you watch it, does sage do this too?

dvd playlist? you can just feed TT a playlist and it will happily go out and play dvd a, then dvd b, etc, can sage do this?

can the HDextender play back Bluray & HDDVD? not really high on my list as I believe both formats are on their way out, but still something seem like the answer is yes, others seem like it is no, but if it is no, that would be kind of silly, as in whats the point of a hdextender that cant play HD media?


I am sure I will have more questions Friday or Saturday

[Djc208]

I can't speak to all of these as I don't know the other programs but I will throw out a few answers where I can.

what is video orbiting? does that matter with the extender?

Unless I'm mistaken it's a feature that moves the picture slightly (one or two pixels) in each direction on the screen to prevent screen burn in TVs/monitors where that could be an issue. Mainly old Tube-type and modern Plasma TVs can have issues with this. So it's not an extender issue but a TV issue.

whats a STV Package and how does that compare with a STVi Import? do I need either one?

These are how you customize SageTV. An STV will usually replace the stock interface with a new one. While an STVi will usually add functionality to an existing interface. Check out the downloads section to see a listing of each type.

whats the sage equivalent of BTV's smartskip, and how do you turn it on?

SageTV does not provide commercial skipping out of the box. It has to be added in. To find and mark the commercials you can use either comskip or showanalyzer. Then there are a few different add ons (STVs and STVis) that will allow Sage to use the markers generated by the above programs to skip commercials. Not as out-of-the-box friendly but not hard to set up either.

how do I get rid of the pictures and music sections? I only want TV and DVD.

Not sure why you'd really want to, doesn't hurt anything and can come in handy. But in any event you can always use the dynamic menus or one of the other interfaces built off of them to remove those options from your menu and just not set up any media directories for Sage to find those files.

Theatertek remembers the AR you set for a movie, so you don't need to reset it each time you watch it, does sage do this too?

Again, I think there is an add-on that will allow you to do this if Sage does not get it right (i.e. the actual AR of the image is not the same as the file).

can the HDextender play back Bluray & HDDVD? not really high on my list as I believe both formats are on their way out, but still something seem like the answer is yes, others seem like it is no, but if it is no, that would be kind of silly, as in whats the point of a hdextender that cant play HD media?

Well, it really is yes and no. The HD extender can handle most of the HD formats stored on the disks, but cannot handle the copy protection. So you'd have to re-package the file without the protection in order for the HDextender to play it. There are plenty of threads on this issue if you do a search.

[SomeWhatLost]

thanks for the info, its kind of what I thought... except for commskip/smartskip thing, that seems pretty silly for a PVR to not have that built in...

figured out my DVD thing, it was just a missing codec...

overall, everything that I can play with without tuners installed seems to work rather well... so no complaints...

what about hulu.com & netflix? are those doable over the extender?

[Brent]

Welcome. As a former BTV user, you might find this thread worth reading.

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

thanks for the info, its kind of what I thought... except for commskip/smartskip thing, that seems pretty silly for a PVR to not have that built in...

I think BTV is the only one with commercial skip built in. You'll find that comskip is more accurate even though it takes a bit of work to get it installed.

what about hulu.com & netflix? are those doable over the extender?

Hulu is coming soon for SageTV including extenders. You can purchase PlayOn to get Hulu on the HD200 right now if you can't wait...

[SomeWhatLost]

I used comskip (at least I think that's what it was, was a long time ago, like v4.1 time frame) for awhile with BTV there was a plugin/setup/something, it was worse than smartskip, has that changed?

I just ordered a cheapo usb HDTV tuner, I think I will leave my BTV setup running for now, and spend some time playing with sage on my desktop...

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

I used comskip (at least I think that's what it was, was a long time ago, like v4.1 time frame) for awhile with BTV there was a plugin/setup/something, it was worse than smartskip, has that changed?

definitely. Its pretty easy to set up, is more accurate and can process while the show is airing. It's a step up from smartskip imo.

I just ordered a cheapo usb HDTV tuner, I think I will leave my BTV setup running for now, and spend some time playing with sage on my desktop...

That's how I did it. I used BTV and played with SageTV getting it set up just so before switching completely.

[shadeblue.com]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

whats a STV Package and how does that compare with a STVi Import? do I need either one?

A STV file represents the whole user interface. Primarily you will use the "stock" STV or the SageMC STV. SageMC is a version of the GUI created and maintained by the user community, not by the company. Many users prefer SageMC as it provides a more graphically rich experience and a highly customizable GUI much like those found in some of the other competing products. The "stock" STV, the GUI that comes with SageTV out of the box is a pretty basic and simple design. I actually use the stock STV so it is a matter of personal preference.

A STVi file is an import file that can import a plug-in or additional features and capabilities into your existing STV user interface.

So you will start with your STV of choice to get the basic look and feel and then you can add STVi imports for additional features or extensions that you may want.

Here is a listing for all the STVs and STVi plug-ins for SageTV (just stay in the version 6 sections):
http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7953

[SomeWhatLost]

thanx shadeblue, that link was very helpful, and it even helped me crash my sage not sure what I did, but it probably was my fault....

is there a step by step set up for comskip? I tried doing a search, but I got a million hits, and at least the first couple hundred didn't seem to apply...

also is there anyway to auto scan my dvd's and get the imdb info for them? I tried doing it manually one at a time, but I lost interest after just 3 movies...

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

is there a step by step set up for comskip? I tried doing a search, but I got a million hits, and at least the first couple hundred didn't seem to apply...

It's not as hard as it first sounds. Check out this post on setting up commercial detection I did a while back.

also is there anyway to auto scan my dvd's and get the imdb info for them? I tried doing it manually one at a time, but I lost interest after just 3 movies...

You might try this one or this one

[SomeWhatLost]

ok, so my tuner that was suppose to show up Monday, showed up today! of course to balance that out, UPS now says my HD200 that was suppose to show up today, will instead be showing up monday and they changed the estimated arrival to to be Monday, so it still says 'on time'...

well, now I have my first stupid question, well probably more stupid than some of my previous questions at least...

is the sage EPG data really that bad??? I only get data for a couple of PBS stations... all the real stations so up as "No Data", whats up with that???

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

is the sage EPG data really that bad??? I only get data for a couple of PBS stations... all the real stations so up as "No Data", whats up with that???

No it's not that bad. Possible that the guide data hasn't updated yet perhaps?

It shouldn't take too awful long though. To make sure you get what you're supposed to, go to zap2it.com and type in your zip code and provider. That's is the same source of the guide data via SageTV. If there's is a difference you either did something wrong or it just hasn't all downloaded into your HTPC box yet.

[SomeWhatLost]

yea everything is cool at zap2it... but my guide is still empty, been about an hour, and my dsl isn't blinking...I don't think its trying...

when I set up the guide data thing, there were 3 choices, but none of them where zap2it... is the zap2it choice labeled something else?

[SomeWhatLost]

just though of something... I haven't 'licensed' my sage TV yet, I am still in trial mode, does that matter?

should I license sage while I am still playing with it on my desktop? or should I wait until I move it to its final resting place on my server?

[Opus4]

The trial is fully usable, so EPG data is available.

Where are you located? I see your location is listed as 'earth', but isn't really detailed enough. SageTV includes EPG data for the US and Canada.

What tuner are you using? If it is QAM, or maybe even OTA digital, you will need to do some station remapping to get the guide data connected to your channels. I recently posted about that in the EPG forum a few times (one has REMAP in the topic title). It sounds like you need to remap since you said only a couple channels have data; that could be coming from the broadcast stream.

- Andy

[SomeWhatLost]

yea, earth is kinda vague... usually I put "a small blue/green planet thingy" but I got lazy....
technically, its Illinois... Chicago area... where we have the best government money can buy... (and anyone who thinks it's just the Gov. is fooling themselves... he just got careless and got caught)

I am just doing OTA, I got tired of paying to get channels filled with commercials... just seems wrong somehow...

I actually haven't looked in the EPG forum, didn't realize there was one... up until this point, I wouldn't of understood the need for one... isn't the EPG something that should just work? I can understand some of the other areas where sage has so many more options than BTV, but EPG??? what does the sage EPG do that is so special???? what exactly are sage's special EPG features???

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

isn't the EPG something that should just work? I can understand some of the other areas where sage has so many more options than BTV, but EPG??? what does the sage EPG do that is so special???? what exactly are sage's special EPG features???

The EPG "just works" for most of us. I think you really need to give us a little more information to be able to help you out here... There's nothing special about the EPG in SageTV vs. BTV so if it's not working for you I'm guessing something didn't get set up right from the get go.

[SomeWhatLost]

Originally Posted by Brent

The EPG "just works" for most of us. I think you really need to give us a little more information to be able to help you out here... There's nothing special about the EPG in SageTV vs. BTV so if it's not working for you I'm guessing something didn't get set up right from the get go.

what more info is needed? I will be happy to provide it... I really want sage to work, as they are the only ones who appear to understand what is wanted/needed in an extender...(but I do not understand why sage is the only ones to understand this???)

I am doing OTA HD ATSC only right now, area code 60193, the guide data on zap2it works great... on sage, not so well...
my EPG lineup = Chicago - Digital Broadcast

I don't see any posts with remap in the topic title in the EPG forum even after searching for "REMAP"
putzing around sage I do not even see the option to remap (not that I would know what to remap too, as the guide channel info is correct, just no data availble for the show info)
'

[pjpjpjpj]

If you are doing OTA and not getting all of the EPG data that Zap2It shows on their website for your ZIP code, then it's probably some compatibility thing between the channels found on your tuner and the Sage channel setup. In other words, the channel names that the tuner is assigning to channels must not be matching up with the names that Sage expects them to be, or something like that.

You said you ordered a "cheapo USB HDTV tuner"... is it one that is listed as compatible with Sage on the software systems requirements page? http://www.sagetv.com/requirements.html?sageSub=tv

If your tuner has a "channel scan" function, try doing it again, and then rescanning your channels in Sage. Also, turn a channel off, then back on again (in Sage channel setup - the green dots), which should force an EPG update.

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by SomeWhatLost

I don't see any posts with remap in the topic title in the EPG forum even after searching for "REMAP"
putzing around sage I do not even see the option to remap (not that I would know what to remap too, as the guide channel info is correct, just no data availble for the show info)'

I don't know what EPG forum you were looking at, but the top non-sticky topic in the EPG forum last night & this morning has "REMAP" in the title. A search for "remap" on that forum returns that topic as the first result. My first reply there covers what you need.

- Andy

[SomeWhatLost]

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

If you are doing OTA and not getting all of the EPG data that Zap2It shows on their website for your ZIP code, then it's probably some compatibility thing between the channels found on your tuner and the Sage channel setup. In other words, the channel names that the tuner is assigning to channels must not be matching up with the names that Sage expects them to be, or something like that.

You said you ordered a "cheapo USB HDTV tuner"... is it one that is listed as compatible with Sage on the software systems requirements page? http://www.sagetv.com/requirements.html?sageSub=tv

If your tuner has a "channel scan" function, try doing it again, and then rescanning your channels in Sage. Also, turn a channel off, then back on again (in Sage channel setup - the green dots), which should force an EPG update.

I don't think the tuner can be assigning channel names, its just a crappy little USB dongle, it's not at all like my HDHR on my main setup...
anyway, I got it to work, just not sure why its working now.... and that bothers me a bit... since without reliable EPG data, even the best PVR device in the world is worthless...

all I did was remap channel 5 from 5-1 to 5.1 and sage went out and updated all the channels, I than remapped channel 5 back to 5-1 and everything was still good????
note, I did try just enabling and disabling a channel to try and force an epg update, but that didn't work.

there is still one issue left, channel 26-4, it is listed in sage as 26-4THIS, it should be 26-4WCIUDT4, also it gets data for most of the shows, but it has a bunch of No Data's here and there... not sure I care too much as its one of those "lets play bad re-runs from the 70's" type stations, but still its odd...

how often does the epg update on its own? every week or so?

Originally Posted by Opus4

I don't know what EPG forum you were looking at, but the top non-sticky topic in the EPG forum last night & this morning has "REMAP" in the title. A search for "remap" on that forum returns that topic as the first result. My first reply there covers what you need.

- Andy

well, in my defense, there may have been a slight amount of alcohol involved at that point last night a kegorator is a wonderful trouble shooting tool... it really helps...

that brings up my next sage complaint, while playing with sage this morning, sage seems to be giving me a bit of a hangover... I really wish sage would stop doing that... its making my brain hurt...