Come Back to SageTV - Open Source in "Near" Future

[dinki]

Originally Posted by PiX64

Not sure if I am alone on this or not, but without the proper apps to work on popular STBs, I am less likely to move back.

You're definitely not alone on this. I switch between my HD200 and my Android based Matricom MX2 all the time. I use the HD200 for all Sage PVR stuff but use Kodi on the MX2 for just about everything else.

The best thing that could happen for me is that an Android verison of the Sage client would be created and I could easily launch that from within Kodi whenever I wanted. Another option is a Sage PVR client for Kodi but the work on the PVR frontend of Kodi would need to improve a bit before it would be a suitable replacement for the Sage extenders.

I guess what I'm saying is I'd prefer a more 'universal' Android app. This, of course, will be limited to the device's hardware capabilities. I'm not as picky as some of you guys when it comes to a/v quality and I'm really not looking at dropping another $200 when my $50 MX2 does just about everything I need. Just my two cents even though no one ask for it!

Jeff, one of the elephants in the room is the EPG guide data availability after releasing the code. I know you've commented on other things regarding the changes, can you speak on the EPG data or is this up in the air? Many thanks

[stanger89]

I was planning on setting it up in a VM under xen (once unRAID 6.0 goes final, or at least RC). And maybe I'll still do that, we'll see, I still need somewhere to run ShowAnalyzer, but I could push that back to my desktop I suppose. Though I guess I could look into Comskip again, looks like there's a linux port of that.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by dinki

Jeff, one of the elephants in the room is the EPG guide data availability after releasing the code. I know you've commented on other things regarding the changes, can you speak on the EPG data or is this up in the air? Many thanks

Well Jeff's said he'd give us fair warning of the EPG getting shut off, and he hasn't said anything yet, so I'm not too worried.

Besides there's already a plugin to use Schedules Direct anyway.

[wayner]

One other extender option, albeit an expensive one, would be an Xbox One assuming that someone adapts the SageTV client or Placeshifter to the Win 8.1/10 Metro UI. After that it is supposed to be pretty trivial to adapt it to the XB1, once MS blesses that process and allows the unified apps.

[valnar]

Originally Posted by PiX64

Not sure if I am alone on this or not, but without the proper apps to work on popular STBs, I am less likely to move back.

I have very capable streamers already that do everything I want. Introducing yet another stb of some sort that pretty well serves 1 function for me live tv and dvr (already replicated via TabloTV) its not likely to move back fulltime.

That being said, if sage have proper integration with everything else we use (Pandora, google Play Music, Amazon Instant, Netflix, SlingTV, etc.) then i personally would be more willing to jump back in with both feet.

I'll have to disagree. We already have several devices that do those other things. I cant count how many devices I have that can do Netflix, Pandora, Hulu, etc. I wouldn't want the devs spending time adding those distractions to a "Sage interface" when there is so much more to do on the core PVR functionality.

When Sage (the company) was working on Sage (the product), they had time to add music and photo integration into the client/extender, but at this point most of us have other ways of doing all that. Now when I look at the music, photo and weather apps in Sage and find them quaint. It's more "nice to have", but if those went away on a future client product I wouldn't be heartbroken. Remember, these were added 10 years ago. Nowadays, we can get weather on our smartphones.

It would be very difficult for anyone to compete with Roku if you're looking for an everything-and-the-kitchen-sink client.

[BobPhoenix]

Originally Posted by stanger89

I was planning on setting it up in a VM under xen (once unRAID 6.0 goes final, or at least RC). And maybe I'll still do that, we'll see, I still need somewhere to run ShowAnalyzer, but I could push that back to my desktop I suppose. Though I guess I could look into Comskip again, looks like there's a linux port of that.

Would ShowAnalyzer or Comskip run on Wine? If it does then I would setup another Docker for that on unRAID.

I suppose Wine would require a GUI so not an option for a docker on unRAID

[rlvogel322]

Originally Posted by stanger89

I was planning on setting it up in a VM under xen (once unRAID 6.0 goes final, or at least RC). And maybe I'll still do that, we'll see, I still need somewhere to run ShowAnalyzer, but I could push that back to my desktop I suppose. Though I guess I could look into Comskip again, looks like there's a linux port of that.

An unRAID docker would be pretty slick and shouldn't be too difficult. I'm just learning about those right now but do have a W7 VM running Sage with the latest unRAID beta. Very impressed with unRAID 6+ right now.

[steambuilder]

My Sage Server is still chuggin away. Glad to see that it might continue. Would be willing to pay for updated software to keep it going.

[Fuzzy]

Windows 10 might be another option, though I haven't had a chance to get through it and research what kind of Media API's it includes. I have seen a decent number of devices reporting working on win-10 capability, and MS put out a release saying that windows 10 would be free for the Raspberry Pi 2.

[KarylFStein]

First: great news!

Originally Posted by valnar

I'll have to disagree. We already have several devices that do those other things. I cant count how many devices I have that can do Netflix, Pandora, Hulu, etc. I wouldn't want the devs spending time adding those distractions to a "Sage interface" when there is so much more to do on the core PVR functionality.

I agree. I currently use SageTV for TV and apps/channels on other devices for everything else. There is nothing I’ve tried that matches SageTV for TV, though, which is why, (shortly before this open sourcing announcement), I bought another HD300. (That was probably good timing on my part as the used market for HD300s may get even smaller now .) I think it would be great if the future of SageTV was focused on TV and creating/expanding apps/channels to get that SageTV experience on other devices.

Speaking of apps: while probably not feasible due to the supporting infrastructure required, I think it would be neat to have a “plugin store”. Want comskip UI? There’s a 99 cent “plugin” for that. I’m not a JAVA developer so really can’t support the future of SageTV by contributing code, but I have no problems contributing financially, (and have in the past). Maybe something like the license server Slugger made could be created for general use. Developers who want to charge for apps can set up their own payment method, (e.g. PayPal), and send out some code that I could enter in the plugin setup screen.

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

The greatest thing, is that if we get enough momentum behind this, the 'network encoder' interface, which is really incredible simple, could be actually moved into the tuners themselves. SiliconDust could very easily add the interface system directly into an HDHomeRun for instance, so it would basically just auto-discover for the server. If we write up a proper network API document for it, then it could actually be something they (the hardware manufacturers) just write for, and we no longer have to even deal with it.

I'm not sure what this means, but would it be a big step toward something like a server appliance? I mean, say you had some device with USB ports and a network interface, and a Linux+SageTV distro you can flash to it or boot from an SD card or network. Could you then just plug in storage and capture devices, (OTA, cable card, etc.), and just have them auto-configure inside SageTV without dealing with drivers? Then connect with some app/client on another device to configure?

[valnar]

Originally Posted by KarylFStein

I agree. I currently use SageTV for TV and apps/channels on other devices for everything else. There is nothing I’ve tried that matches SageTV for TV, though, which is why, (shortly before this open sourcing announcement), I bought another HD300.

Even with Plex, XBMC, WD Live, Roku and other boxes out there, whatever logic Sage put in place with their Sage Client and HDx00 extenders is head & shoulders above everyone else. I still prefer using Sage for watching local MKV/MP4 content because the FF/RW experience is smoother than any alternative - just like live & recorded TV. To me, that is the golden ticket on playback experience.

[pjpjpjpj]

The thing that has always been obvious to long-time readers of this forum, and to anyone who has read every post in this thread () is that everyone wants something different. One of the "trending topics" early in this thread was how in the world are we going to organize this development once it's open source?

Example from valnar's post above, I do want a better music interface (I use it a lot, playing tunes for my young kids), I do want maintenance (if not upgrade) of the weather, because we find ourselves referencing it a lot (unlike most, we don't keep our smartphones with us 24/7). I completely understand that others may not care. Everyone has different uses.

The other thing I want, and always have, is integration of everything within Sage. I don't own a universal remote (nor do I plan on buying one) so it's a bother to switch between my Sage HD300 input and any other inputs I might happen to purchase. I just got a new TV for our most-watched spot (family room) and it has all the "smart" features, including netflix, hulu, pandora, etc., and I didn't even bother setting all of that up, because I can access them (rather clunkily) within the Sage PlayOn plugin. In other words, I'd rather have a clunky interface and not always HD content (through Sage/PlayOn) than have to find the TV remote, switch input to the native apps (or to, say, a Roku or whatever), and then use the remote for that in order to navigate to something I want to watch. Not to mention the PlayOn content is downloadable/saveable on my server.

I know I'm in the minority because most here HAVE to have HD and full DTS surround for like everything they watch, and most here own a universal remote that switches between (and controls) devices seamlessly. But I just want everything within Sage. Just my preference.

[matt91]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Though I guess I could look into Comskip again, looks like there's a linux port of that.

Comskip runs fine on my Ubuntu server.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

The other thing I want, and always have, is integration of everything within Sage.

Unfortunately I think you can give up on that. I'm not aware of a single open source product/project that offers Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc.

[PLUCKYHD]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Unfortunately I think you can give up on that. I'm not aware of a single open source product/project that offers Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc.

Ya this is were a windows 8 plugin would come in handy. Then you would have all of that accessible from the main windows "start" tile screen. Make a Sage UI that flows/matches plex/netflix and the such and it would integrate pretty well.

[SHS]

Originally Posted by stanger89

Unfortunately I think you can give up on that. I'm not aware of a single open source product/project that offers Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc.

That right there none out there and some just have old API that have been hack up which may not work, but they did at one time had a Public Developers API but they end up closing it down.

[wayner]

Originally Posted by valnar

Even with Plex, XBMC, WD Live, Roku and other boxes out there, whatever logic Sage put in place with their Sage Client and HDx00 extenders is head & shoulders above everyone else. I still prefer using Sage for watching local MKV/MP4 content because the FF/RW experience is smoother than any alternative - just like live & recorded TV. To me, that is the golden ticket on playback experience.

I totally agree with this. I have tried Plex, Kodi, etc but they aren't really better than Sage and they don't have TV shows. So I prefer one interface for all of my video content. I would also prefer having Netflix, Amazon, etc on the same device, but I can live without it and use other devices - like the $30 LG BluRay players that I bought a few months ago. I do have Harmony smart remotes at every one of the 9 TVs in the house so that makes this easier.

[cncb]

I don't suppose there is any feasible way to extend the trial until the Open Source version is available? I sold my server license a few years ago.

[jreichen]

Originally Posted by PLUCKYHD

Ya this is were a windows 8 plugin would come in handy. Then you would have all of that accessible from the main windows "start" tile screen. Make a Sage UI that flows/matches plex/netflix and the such and it would integrate pretty well.

I'm hoping we'll have a SageTV placeshifter for Android, and use FireTV to have SageTV, Plex, Netflix, etc apps all running from there.

[tmiranda]

Originally Posted by BobPhoenix

Would ShowAnalyzer or Comskip run on Wine? If it does then I would setup another Docker for that on unRAID.(

Both do. I use wine in CommercialDetector for linux.