General DoD Discussion

[Earl Bonovich]

A general thread where people can post their views and opinions about the DoD service

[dervari]

My view is that right now there's not much I care to see. I'm really hoping they'll get more series programming from both the Big 4 as well as cable networks. We just started watching Dog and would love to see some older episodes.

[mauijiminar]

When will we all get the update for the VOD? I cant wait!

[digitalfreak]

According to the FAQ, programs will be available for free or a small fee. Is this just for the beta, or will it be that way for release as well?

I really doubt I'll find much use for this, since I record what I want when it airs, but nice to have just the same.

[Earl Bonovich]

When will we all get the update for the VOD? I cant wait!

If you are on an HR20-700... then the staggered release has started today... so it can still be a few days. HR20-100... probably at least a few weeks away.

[Earl Bonovich]

According to the FAQ, programs will be available for free or a small fee. Is this just for the beta, or will it be that way for release as well?


It will be this way... as even though it is still in "beta" mode... it is released.

[Dr_J]

Do I have to stay connected to the Internet continuously until DirecTV activates my DoD account, or will I be good to go from the get-go and can just connect and use when I want to?

[Sailorman]

If you are on an HR20-700... then the staggered release has started today... so it can still be a few days. HR20-100... probably at least a few weeks away.W


When will it be available on the HR21-700?

[Earl Bonovich]

Do I have to stay connected to the Internet continuously until DirecTV activates my DoD account, or will I be good to go from the get-go and can just connect and use when I want to?

You should leave it connected... not sure what the results would be if you keep pulling/reconnecting the connection

[Earl Bonovich]

W


When will it be available on the HR21-700?

No ETA for the HR21-700

[woj027]

Is there any rhyme or reason to the roll out? Will it be by region (zip) or by random chance?

Also, Whats the word on VOD for the premiums that we subscribe? (HBO, Showtime)
Or even the Major Networks? Thats where all the shows that I want to watch are (or at least where my recording conflicts exist and I can't record a third show at the same time)

[woj027]

Oh, that makes me think. What if I am recording two shows at the same time, and want to watch VOD? Will that work? or will it be a recording confilct?

[Lord Vader]

VOD recordings are separate from other recordings, so you shouldn't have any such conflicts.

[Earl Bonovich]

Oh, that makes me think. What if I am recording two shows at the same time, and want to watch VOD? Will that work? or will it be a recording confilct?

The DoD stream... is a "THIRD" tuner.... so you won't have any conflicts.

[Earl Bonovich]

Is there any rhyme or reason to the roll out? Will it be by region (zip) or by random chance?

Also, Whats the word on VOD for the premiums that we subscribe? (HBO, Showtime)
Or even the Major Networks? Thats where all the shows that I want to watch are (or at least where my recording conflicts exist and I can't record a third show at the same time)

Yes there is rhyme and reason to the rollout, usually by region (zip)... usually goes WEST to EAST.

As for premiums (and content)....... as the service grows... yes there will be more options... and hopefully more from the other "traditional" Major Networks.

[msmith198025]

Yes there is rhyme and reason to the rollout, usually by region (zip)... usually goes WEST to EAST.

As for premiums (and content)....... as the service grows... yes there will be more options... and hopefully more from the other "traditional" Major Networks.

thanks for the info earl!

[dan8379]

You should leave it connected... not sure what the results would be if you keep pulling/reconnecting the connection

I had this same question as it's not practical with my setup to keep the network cable continously connected. Once the software download hits, will everyone be able to access the DOD menu, even if they don't have a network connection? Obviously they wouldn't be able to download anything, but will channel 1000 still show up?

[Earl Bonovich]

I had this same question as it's not practical with my setup to keep the network cable continously connected. Once the software download hits, will everyone be able to access the DOD menu, even if they don't have a network connection? Obviously they wouldn't be able to download anything, but will channel 1000 still show up?

Again... I don't know what will happen if you continuely disconnect and reconnect the connection.

Why isn't it practical?

Would a wireless connection be more practical?

[woj027]

Hey Earl, If it hasn't been said yet today; "You da Man!" Thanks for all the info, insight, comprehensive answers.

I can't imagine how hard it is sometimes to see everthing we post here, and know the answers to our questions or the complete story to a given situation where we are using the shot gun approach to try and give our best guess and you have to hold on to it until a National Roll Out occurs or D* gives a press release.

It's got to be up there with George W not being able to tell us when or where the most recent threat was prevented, nor the "methods" used to find that information out.

[skessel]

I had this same question as it's not practical with my setup to keep the network cable continously connected. Once the software download hits, will everyone be able to access the DOD menu, even if they don't have a network connection? Obviously they wouldn't be able to download anything, but will channel 1000 still show up?

For a variety of reasons, I had to disconnect my HR20-700 for the network for a whole week. Channel 1000 never went away and I was able to watch content that was completely downloaded.... Still not sure about stability of that feature when disconnected, but that's just my experience. :)

[Earl Bonovich]

Hey Earl, If it hasn't been said yet today; "You da Man!" Thanks for all the info, insight, comprehensive answers.

I can't imagine how hard it is sometimes to see everthing we post here, and know the answers to our questions or the complete story to a given situation where we are using the shot gun approach to try and give our best guess and you have to hold on to it until a National Roll Out occurs or D* gives a press release.

It's got to be up there with George W not being able to tell us when or where the most recent threat was prevented, nor the "methods" used to find that information out.

I don't think it is at that same level....


But thanks for the comments.

[jwebb1970]

Personally can't wait to get DoD (part of the -100 nation myself).

OnDemand was the one real good thing about Comcast. Looks like DoD shares some programming with them (concert.tv and many of the cable/sat channels).

As far as network stuff, Comcast in my area carried most CBS dramas, as well as Survivor, OnDemand (original CSI & JERICHO were also available HD/5.1). ABC offered 2-3 shows, also with an HD option. NBC ran their fall preview pilots in HD for about a month OnDemand.

Would imagine, given D*'s nationwide coverage and corporate pull, that all the nets will offer programming OnDemand to them at some point.

Now...just wondering if I should go wireless for internet connection to by HR20 or just run an ethernet cable...? Hard wired would be cheaper, I think, but wireless is so sexy ;)

As to that....would I need a wireless router and some sort of "receiver" to plug into the HR20? My internet service is DSL, if that matters.

[dan8379]

Again... I don't know what will happen if you continuely disconnect and reconnect the connection.

Why isn't it practical?

Would a wireless connection be more practical?

My router is across the room and I don't have a great way to run cable. I could do wireless, but honestly I'm not sure how much I'll even use this and I'd like to be able to play around with it before I decide to set that up.

Back to my other question, though, will someone with no network set up at all be able to even see channel 1000?

[Earl Bonovich]

Hard-Wired is always my preferred method....

Wireless should only be used:
1) If there is absolutley no way to do wired (Both cost and physical limitations)
2) The device is mobile.

[jwebb1970]

Hard-Wired is always my preferred method....

Wireless should only be used:
1) If there is absolutley no way to do wired (Both cost and physical limitations)
2) The device is mobile.

You just helped answer my wired/wireless question w/o realizing it, Earl!:D

In my case, hard wired isn't a problem - other than getting enough ethernet cabling to run from the closest phone line (DSL) to the living room.

[mfeinstein]

Hard-Wired is always my preferred method....

Wireless should only be used:
1) If there is absolutley no way to do wired (Both cost and physical limitations)
2) The device is mobile.

I have been using VOD for a week or so from the last CE. I only have wireless connections to both of my HR-20s and it works great. I agree that it is one more variable vs. a hard wired connection, but if you have a good wireless network it should work just fine.

[RAD]

Will DoD automatically be enabled with the national rollout or will folks need to go through the IWANTMYVOD search to enable it?

[Newshawk]

If your HR20 is connected to the Internet, it's automatic. If it isn't, then you'll have to do the IWANTMYVOD search.

[gully_foyle]

Any comment on future availability of network series? That's my basic need here -- would be far easier than torrents to get missed shows. Will FF be turned off for commercials?

[Earl Bonovich]

Any comment on future availability of network series? That's my basic need here -- would be far easier than torrents to get missed shows. Will FF be turned off for commercials?

As noted earlier (and in other threads).

DirecTV will be expanding their content.... will it be to NETWORK series..
Well... I am sure if DirecTV had access to them... they would offer them.

So the quesiton there is... is NBC/CBS/ABC/FOX ect... willing to offer the series to DirecTV's on Demand service.... (and I would suggestion anyone interested in that spect... to send some emails, letters, phone calls to those networks... to let them know you are intrested).

As for FF turned off for commercials.... most of the VOD content have a single commercial in the front, and no FF is not disabled for them.

[Tiebmbr]

DirecTV will be expanding their content.... will it be to NETWORK series..
Well... I am sure if DirecTV had access to them... they would offer them.


Premiums? HBO, Showtime etc? That's been a BIG draw for "Comcast On Demand"...

[Hey_Hey]

The FAQ says:

* The content is available 356/24/7.


Which 9.25 days is the content not available?

[jwebb1970]

As noted earlier (and in other threads).

DirecTV will be expanding their content.... will it be to NETWORK series..
Well... I am sure if DirecTV had access to them... they would offer them.

So the quesiton there is... is NBC/CBS/ABC/FOX ect... willing to offer the series to DirecTV's on Demand service.... (and I would suggestion anyone interested in that spect... to send some emails, letters, phone calls to those networks... to let them know you are interested).

As for FF turned off for commercials.... most of the VOD content have a single commercial in the front, and no FF is not disabled for them.

Comcast offered network stuff OnDemand, although it was usually market area dependant. I used to get CBS and ABC stuff, and NBC ran their big 4 fall pilots (BIONIC WOMAN, CHUCK, JOURNEYMAM, LIFE) OnDemand (and in HD/5.1).

CBS offered most of their dramas and Survivor (CSI & JERICHO were also HD/5.1)

ABC offered DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, DIRTY SEXY MONEY (also in HD/5.1).

There may be more available now, but since I dumped 'em for D* 2+ wks ago, I can't say for sure.

All shows were available 24 hrs after broadcast. Generally, they either had one commercial up front (ABC) or 2-3 quick ads during the show (CBS--always the same ad). Short enough that FF wasn't an issue, but was possible.

Considering D*'s national service availability and corporate pull, the nets will all likely jump on board at some point.

Much of what is currently available w/ DoD is stuff I saw when w/ Comcast. Content appears very similar. The NFL Network "Showcase" stuff that shows up on the DVR is the same NFL Net OnDemand stuff that I could get from Comcast (if I wanted to pay extra for NFL Net, that is!!:mad: )

[michaelancaster]

You should leave it connected... not sure what the results would be if you keep pulling/reconnecting the connection

I have been connecting and disconnecting my internet connection for several months now with no ill effects. I plug it in when I want to download and disconnect it when not used. I've no problem doing this since DoD started. The reason I do this is my network only allows four continuous connections and I have four computers and the HR20. So when I need to download a DoD, I plug it in and disconnect one of my computers. Works fine for me.

[Kunk]

Hard-Wired is always my preferred method....

Wireless should only be used:
1) If there is absolutley no way to do wired (Both cost and physical limitations)
2) The device is mobile.

Unfortunately, my set-up would be remarkably easier to implement with a wireless connection. That said, the network connection guide for the HR20 does not mention the use of USB wireless adapters. Is it possible to use them with the HR20? Or does the wireless adapter have to be connected via the ethernet jack?

I sort of remember discussions about the USB jack not being enabled. Is that still true?

[RAD]

Or does the wireless adapter have to be connected via the ethernet jack?Yes, it must use the ethernet and not USB port.

[oakwcj]

I don't think the "on demand" concept is going to work well for DirecTV with current broadband connection bandwidths. I understand that it's proved to be a popular service, and that DirecTV wants to get into the game, but this is one area where cable has a natural advantage. My DVR is my "on demand" device, and I'm happy with it for time-shifting. I've got a 3mbps DSL connection. It's far too slow to download HD content, assuming that DOD will have HD content in the future. I'm not all that interested in searching out SD content. For movies, Netflix is a better solution. In the future, if there are affordable, really fast, internet connections, the situation may change. If it does, that will have its own negative consequences for DBS. For now, I think DirecTV would be better off marketing its DVR's as "on demand" solutions.

[Sintori]

An interesting question:

If we are unable to get HD locals, will we have access (theoretically of course) to HD programming in DOD on national locals--ABC, NBC, CBS, and maybe even Fox?

[mrrydogg]

Stupid question....can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

[Earl Bonovich]

Stupid question....can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

Why is that a stupid question?

[mrrydogg]

Why is that a stupid question?

You never know how people will take things I guess.

I am ready to go buy the wireless bridge, but I don't even have the new software release yet on my DVR. I am thinking I may not be part of the release yet.

[Stuart Sweet]

The FAQ says:

* The content is available 356/24/7.


Which 9.25 days is the content not available?

typo corrected. Thanks.

[Stuart Sweet]

An interesting question:

If we are unable to get HD locals, will we have access (theoretically of course) to HD programming in DOD on national locals--ABC, NBC, CBS, and maybe even Fox?

I would imagine so, once that content becomes available.

[rjknyy]

Quick question.....Do I need to keep the phone line connected once I have the ethernet connected?

[Earl Bonovich]

Quick question.....Do I need to keep the phone line connected once I have the ethernet connected?

If you want any PPV or DoD content that costs $... yes.

[rjknyy]

If you want any PPV or DoD content that costs $... yes.


10-4...Thanks Earl

[Newshawk]

I have been connecting and disconnecting my internet connection for several months now with no ill effects. I plug it in when I want to download and disconnect it when not used. I've no problem doing this since DoD started. The reason I do this is my network only allows four continuous connections and I have four computers and the HR20. So when I need to download a DoD, I plug it in and disconnect one of my computers. Works fine for me.

If you have more than four devices you want to connect to your home network, just get a hub or switch. A simple one would allow you to add five more devices, at the expense of losing one of your router's connections, for a net gain of four extra connections.

[woj027]

OK my question now about the phone line. I don't have one, I have taken a firm grip on the 21st Century and only use a cell phone, what 21st Century solution does D* have planned for Cell phone only homes?

[Earl Bonovich]

OK my question now about the phone line. I don't have one, I have taken a firm grip on the 21st Century and only use a cell phone, what 21st Century solution does D* have planned for Cell phone only homes?

Nothing at this time...

You will have to purchase PPV via the web... or call DirecTV to order them.
As for DoD content that has a $$... not sure about that.

[woj027]

Earl, thanks again for all the answers.

Do you have any idea how much DoD is free vs. $$ ? 50/50? 20/80? 80/20?

I know i can do the PPV via web, I hope DoD works the same way eventually.

Since i'm getting so many great answers out of you, hook me up with the scoop on DLB :)

[djzack67]

When will the complete roll out happen? Just wondering when i should be looking for the content. How fast will the rollout West to East Happens, Days or weeks?Thanks.

[mrrydogg]

Posting again...

Can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

[djzack67]

Posting again...

Can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

I with ya on that.
Who got the service today on this rollout?

[JDB30]

How does one access the DoD? I live in LA but didn't get the new firmware yet. Hopefully soon and want to be ready! Is it a menu item or do I need to go to ACTIVE?

[Lord Vader]

Wait till you get the latest version of the software currently being released nationally. Hint: Turn off your receiver's blue, LED circle of lights. When you then notice them on again, you'll know your unit has rebooted after a download.

[stewp97]

Posting again...

Can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

I did receive the update this morning.

I did not have On Demand until I retested my network connection. Then On Demand appeared in the menu. It must take a while for it to load. It did not show any programs for 1/2 hour after I activated it. There is still not much there yet. When I get something worth downloading, I'll give it a shot.

I'll keep you updated!

peter

[scottz46]

I live in an MDU communications building that does not yet have a 5lnb dish. Will i still be able to recieve the software download if my box is connected to the INET?

[RAD]

I live in an MDU communications building that does not yet have a 5lnb dish. Will i still be able to recieve the software download if my box is connected to the INET?

IIRC, software download don't use transponders on the new Ka satellites so you should be OK. The internet has nothing to do with software downloads.

[Car1181]

Back to my other question, though, will someone with no network set up at all be able to even see channel 1000?

I activated DOD before I was wired to the internet and all the DOD features showed up, including being able to see channel 1000. I couldn't use it, of course, until I connected to the internet a few days later. Although there is not much content that I am interested in yet I have been playing around with it and it's working great. Have been able to start watching each show within a minute or so of the start of the download (connected via FiOS). No problems throughout any programs yet. Looking forward to network content. Great job D*.

[mrrydogg]

I did receive the update this morning.

I did not have On Demand until I retested my network connection. Then On Demand appeared in the menu. It must take a while for it to load. It did not show any programs for 1/2 hour after I activated it. There is still not much there yet. When I get something worth downloading, I'll give it a shot.

I'll keep you updated!

peter

Huh? Thats weird. Guess it is an unusual staggered release. Not exactly West to East!

Anyway, thanks for replying. I will definitely be looking forward to your posts.

[Greg Rosler]

Earl, I want to use the DOD service but don't have a normal phone line.

The phone line is a voice over IP line and can't handle a modem connection.

I have my internet service hooked up to my HR20-700.

I can't understand why if you have internet service connected to the HR20-700 they can't just use that path vice a phone line for this. Is D* considering this?

How can we get feedback to D* that there are users out there that really want to use this service but don't have a phone line available?



Thanks,
Greg

[Earl Bonovich]

Earl, I want to use the DOD service but don't have a normal phone line.

The phone line is a voice over IP line and can't handle a modem connection.

I have my internet service hooked up to my HR20-700.

I can't understand why if you have internet service connected to the HR20-700 they can't just use that path vice a phone line for this. Is D* considering this?

How can we get feedback to D* that there are users out there that really want to use this service but don't have a phone line available?



Thanks,
Greg

Phone line is only required if you want the content that has a cost associated with it... like PPV and DoD content with $ next to it.

Also... the HR20 works fine with most VoIP offerings...
As I have VoIP as well... and it works. (Vonage)

[Greg Rosler]

I tried the phone connection with my old HR10-250 (and it didn't work) but haven't tried it with my HR20-700.

I'll give it a shot.

How can I get some feedback to D* about this if it doesn't work?



Crossing my fingers,
Greg

[stewp97]

Huh? Thats weird. Guess it is an unusual staggered release. Not exactly West to East!

Anyway, thanks for replying. I will definitely be looking forward to your posts.

I did check it again this morning. There are a lot more programs on it now then there was last night. I still don't have any HD programing. I did start a download last night but I did not get a chance to watch it yet. It looks like it did download successfully though. I'll have to check it again tonight when I get home.

peter

[price3]

I agree that is seems silly to have both an ethernet and phone modem connected simultaneously. One of the reasons I upgraded from the TIVO model was to lose the phone line. Please let DirecTv know they are being redundant.

[sean67854]

I use this for my HR20 and my xbox 360. Works flawlessly. Probably a little slower than a wired connection, but without tearing open my drywall, this is my only solution.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833162168

[oakwcj]

I did check it again this morning. There are a lot more programs on it now then there was last night. I still don't have any HD programing. I did start a download last night but I did not get a chance to watch it yet. It looks like it did download successfully though. I'll have to check it again tonight when I get home.

peter

There's nothing in HD now. There were a couple of things of no interest to me, but they're gone now. And I mean a "couple" of things literally. As in two.

[Earl Bonovich]

I tried the phone connection with my old HR10-250 (and it didn't work) but haven't tried it with my HR20-700.

I'll give it a shot.

How can I get some feedback to D* about this if it doesn't work?

Crossing my fingers,
Greg

Should work...

But if not... post the details here in the forum about your VoIP service.

[Earl Bonovich]

I agree that is seems silly to have both an ethernet and phone modem connected simultaneously. One of the reasons I upgraded from the TIVO model was to lose the phone line. Please let DirecTv know they are being redundant.

Actually... they are not necessarily "redundent"...

DirecTV simply hasn't updated their system to allow PPV information to go out via the network connection.... given that the HR20/HR21 that have active Network ports (H21 port is not active yet).

So it is a very small percentage of their systems (given there are over 40,000,000 units out there).

The phone line is not 100% used for PPV either... it is in fact also used to validate the phone number the system is connected for (not often done, but can be if DirecTV goe through an "audit" phase).

Lastly...

What do you think would happen... if PPV information was going out over the network... and some industrious "hacker" sniffed the packets... figured out what type of response the system was looking for.... built a mini-webservice host... and then redirected the DNS/Port routing to that mini-webservice host...

Then posted that information on the internet....

[RoundRockJohn]

Actually... they are not necessarily "redundent"...

DirecTV simply hasn't updated their system to allow PPV information to go out via the network connection.... given that the HR20/HR21 that have active Network ports (H21 port is not active yet).

So it is a very small percentage of their systems (given there are over 40,000,000 units out there).

The phone line is not 100% used for PPV either... it is in fact also used to validate the phone number the system is connected for (not often done, but can be if DirecTV goe through an "audit" phase).

Lastly...

What do you think would happen... if PPV information was going out over the network... and some industrious "hacker" sniffed the packets... figured out what type of response the system was looking for.... built a mini-webservice host... and then redirected the DNS/Port routing to that mini-webservice host...

Then posted that information on the internet....

Two possibilities:

1) Hacker gets free PPV (the most likely reason for hacking)

2) Hacker runs up fraudulent chargers on the targets DTV bill

A phone line connection does not negate either of these possibilities, it just makes the window a little smaller.

However, without having looked at the traffic directly, I'm betting DTV has a pretty heavy encryption tunnel for the traffic, so sniffing it wouldn't do it.

[Earl Bonovich]

Two possibilities:

1) Hacker gets free PPV (the most likely reason for hacking)

2) Hacker runs up fraudulent chargers on the targets DTV bill

A phone line connection does not negate either of these possibilities, it just makes the window a little smaller.

However, without having looked at the traffic directly, I'm betting DTV has a pretty heavy encryption tunnel for the traffic, so sniffing it wouldn't do it.

Exactly....

And something DirecTV will probably most certainly eventually do...
As it has to be DRASTICALLY cheaper to allow that information to upload via the net connection, then having those boxes calling the 1-800 number (both the cost of the call and the equipment on the other end).

But like you said... it has something that has to be built, to make #1 an #2 (and others that we are missing), nearly impossible.

[Greg Rosler]

Should work...

But if not... post the details here in the forum about your VoIP service.


It worked!

I'm surprised since my old HR10-250 didn't work.

Looks like D* spent the extra time to make sure their modem would work with voice over IP. So, it works with viatalk (my voice over ip provider).

Kudo's to D* on this and to Earl for the feedback. :)



Greg

[woj027]

Hey there, I'm just ansy, but I live in Portland, OR (that would be West in my book) but no software update. How is everyone else doing? I have read that Colorado (go Rockies!!) has it, anyone else (non CE)?

[TheRatPatrol]

Wow, this is pretty cool. I downloaded something last night and it worked!

Anyone else notice that the program information is better then the regular guide? It actually gives you the episode number for some shows. Pretty cool.

[chris0]

Hey there, I'm just ansy, but I live in Portland, OR (that would be West in my book) but no software update. How is everyone else doing? I have read that Colorado (go Rockies!!) has it, anyone else (non CE)?

I'm in the SF Bay Area, CA and I don't have it yet.

[Capmeister]

It would be nice if things consistantly said if or if not they are closed captioned (and that info was correct).

[Dkranz]

i am in virginia,no update

[Earl Bonovich]

Please... this is not a thread to track if you got the latest software version or not.

[woj027]

Where should we post to track if we got the update (DOD) or not?

Many of us are very grateful to you and the others who are CE Version users and troubleshoot the software prior to national release.

But the rest of us are little kids who can't sleep on Christmas Eve, problem is, we don't know what day is Christmas because we haven't found anyone, but the few in Colorado (MST), who have DOD. We hear rumors that it is released, that it is out there somewhere, and we are impaitently waiting for this next great addition to D*

[Drew2k]

So ... to help get this back on track ... :)

I have been using DoD since the first CE that enabled it, and I immensely dislike that DoD screens are presented as menus but don't behave like menus.

On every menu screen I can interact with, I can press CHANNEL/PAGE-DOWN and CHANNEL/PAGE-UP and move the selector to the bottom or top of the menu.

Sadly, DIRECTV chose to make CH-UP/DN move to the next or previous DoD menu. Nice idea, but horrible implementation. Why? When you launch DoD from the Quick Menu, you're taking to the DoD home page. If you spy that nice "More VOD" menu option at the bottom of the screen and try to get there with one CH-DN ... Woops! You're thrown out of DoD and taken to ... an XM station!

So you use a menu to get to another menu and ... get kicked out of the menus! :down:

Here's what DIRECTV should do: Make CH-UP and CH-DN be screen navigation keys, just like everywhere else in the GUI, and make the unused RED and GREEN keys be the PREV and NEXT VOD keys (adding these next to YELLOW and BLUE at the bottom of every VOD Menu).

Come on DIRECTV ... Do it!

[jash]

earl, i just thought of a great use of the functionality. how about getting requests for content from us into the powers that be. for example, i've never seen soylent green, the sci fi cult classic. i'd love to download it and watch it, even in sd, i don't care. it's really hard to find anywhere as well.

thoughts?

[Lord Vader]

Here's one thing that ticked me off last night...

I was scrolling through the movies-->all list. I get to the "R's," which took me a while, and the message pops up that says, "searching for programs...". That disappears and I'm suddenly back to the beginning and have to scroll all over again. :mad:

[iowaberg]

Question for any network gurus...My currently have my HR-20 hardwired to my router. However, in order to get any sort of network connection on my HR-20, it seems I always have to have my laptop on that's also connected wirelessley to the same network. I understand I have to have my laptop turned on to stream pictures and music.

What do I have to do so that I don't have to actually turn on my laptop everytime I want to download something via DoD? I normally always shutdown my laptop everynight, but don't always log in everyday. If I set up a wireless bridge to my router from the HR-20 will that change anything?

[Lord Vader]

Sounds like your network setup is out of whack. The HR20-700 has nothing to do with a PC or laptop being connected, nor should it. If your HR20-700 is connected directly to your router, your laptop can be connected to one of your router's other ports, which shouldn't affect your HR20-700 at all.

[iowaberg]

Sounds like your network setup is out of whack. The HR20-700 has nothing to do with a PC or laptop being connected, nor should it. If your HR20-700 is connected directly to your router, your laptop can be connected to one of your router's other ports, which shouldn't affect your HR20-700 at all.

The same thing occurs with my XBox 360. I can only connect to Live if I have my laptop turned on. How do I know what port my laptop, HR20, and 360 connected to?

[Lord Vader]

What kind of router do you have? It should have multiple ethernet ports, like "1," "2," "3," etc. You'd connect your laptop into one port via an ethernet cable, your HR20-700 via another, and your XBox to the other. Think of your router as an extension cord or power strip, so to speak.

I have my system setup hard-wired via Netgear XE103/104 powerline adapters, but that doesn't make a difference to you. It's the same basic principle.

[iowaberg]

What kind of router do you have? It should have multiple ethernet ports, like "1," "2," "3," etc. You'd connect your laptop into one port via an ethernet cable, your HR20-700 via another, and your XBox to the other. Think of your router as an extension cord or power strip, so to speak.

I have my system setup hard-wired via Netgear XE103/104 powerline adapters, but that doesn't make a difference to you. It's the same basic principle.

I have a Netgear router WGR614

http://www.netgear.com/Products/RoutersandGateways/GWirelessRouters/WGR614.aspx

, but my laptop is not physically connected to any port on the router; only the HR-20 and 360 are physically connected to the router. I should also mention that my HR-20 and 360 are not always connected to the router (because of physical limitations with ethernet wires laying across my floor). I only connect the two to the router when I want to connect to the internet.

[Lord Vader]

Well, it's got 4 ports. Here's what I would suggest, if you can spend a couple dollars to do it...

Get a Netgear XE103 powerline adapter and connect it to your Netgear router. The XE103 is plugged directly into a wall outlet. From there runs an ethernet cable to your router.

Now, for your other devices: use an XE103 or 104, depending on whether one or more devices would be connected to an XE. The XE104 has 4 ports; the XE103 has 1.

For example, your setup might be like this:

* XE103 --> your router

* Laptop--> XE103

* HR20-700 & XBox--> XE104

What the XE103/104s do is allow you to have your Internet connection work through your building's powerline to get you wired speeds. You just have to make sure they're on the same circuit. Having these is great, AND it eliminates all those cables strewn about. You just need short cables from each XE to the respective devices.

[Coffey77]

So ... to help get this back on track ... :)

I have been using DoD since the first CE that enabled it, and I immensely dislike that DoD screens are presented as menus but don't behave like menus.

On every menu screen I can interact with, I can press CHANNEL/PAGE-DOWN and CHANNEL/PAGE-UP and move the selector to the bottom or top of the menu.

Sadly, DIRECTV chose to make CH-UP/DN move to the next or previous DoD menu. Nice idea, but horrible implementation. Why? When you launch DoD from the Quick Menu, you're taking to the DoD home page. If you spy that nice "More VOD" menu option at the bottom of the screen and try to get there with one CH-DN ... Woops! You're thrown out of DoD and taken to ... an XM station!

So you use a menu to get to another menu and ... get kicked out of the menus! :down:

Here's what DIRECTV should do: Make CH-UP and CH-DN be screen navigation keys, just like everywhere else in the GUI, and make the unused RED and GREEN keys be the PREV and NEXT VOD keys (adding these next to YELLOW and BLUE at the bottom of every VOD Menu).

Come on DIRECTV ... Do it!

I very much so agree with you Drew. It's one of my MAIN annoyances with DoD MENU. I do like that they atleast put it within the "More VOD" list once you enter it. I'd rather it act the same everywhere - as you state. I always enter the DOD through the MENU "On Demand" or via entering 1000 and 9,999 times out of 10,000 I get kicked to that "nasty" XM channel - the VIRUS which the content is rude and quite crude.

[Draconis]

Just a thought.

Now that this has released nationally perhaps they should remove the word “beta” from the main screen.

[mikeny]

So ... to help get this back on track ... :)

I have been using DoD since the first CE that enabled it, and I immensely dislike that DoD screens are presented as menus but don't behave like menus.

On every menu screen I can interact with, I can press CHANNEL/PAGE-DOWN and CHANNEL/PAGE-UP and move the selector to the bottom or top of the menu.

Sadly, DIRECTV chose to make CH-UP/DN move to the next or previous DoD menu. Nice idea, but horrible implementation. Why? When you launch DoD from the Quick Menu, you're taking to the DoD home page. If you spy that nice "More VOD" menu option at the bottom of the screen and try to get there with one CH-DN ... Woops! You're thrown out of DoD and taken to ... an XM station!

So you use a menu to get to another menu and ... get kicked out of the menus! :down:

Here's what DIRECTV should do: Make CH-UP and CH-DN be screen navigation keys, just like everywhere else in the GUI, and make the unused RED and GREEN keys be the PREV and NEXT VOD keys (adding these next to YELLOW and BLUE at the bottom of every VOD Menu).

Come on DIRECTV ... Do it!
I ageree with this. The "on demand" screens are all menus and it's very annoying to be thrown out of the menu to the XM channel. The "Channel Down" is also the 'Page Down' and should work to get you to the bottom of the screen, especially when such a list format is presented. That's the way the other screens in the gui work. Green and Red can also function well in the way you described.

[Drew2k]

Thanks for the support gang! I started a new thread for DoD menu navigation and added a poll, so hopefully we can find a lot more support for a change!

Now that DoD is National ... How should DoD menu navigation work? (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=106873)

[mikeny]

Thanks for the support gang! I started a new thread for DoD menu navigation and added a poll, so hopefully we can find a lot more support for a change!

Now that DoD is National ... How should DoD menu navigation work? (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=106873) very good , ballot is cast.. choice A as you described above..

[Casey21]

How can I tell if I have a HR20-100 or 700?

[Michael D'Angelo]

How can I tell if I have a HR20-100 or 700?

Press the info button for 3 seconds and the info screen will pop up or look behind the access card door on the front of the unit.

[Casey21]

Press the info button for 3 seconds and the info screen will pop up or look behind the access card door on the front of the unit.

Thanks! Mfr. says 700 so I guess HR20-700. I'll need to do some more reading on this site to see when we'll have the DOD since I don't see it on our menu screen yet.

[Afergy]

Anyone is the Los Angeles market received the new software?

[Dokman]

Is there anyway of removing the big channel banners? Every since DOD has been enabled these have showed up. Would be nice to have a option to remove them.

[Drew2k]

They are much despised, but I doubt DIRECTV will do away with them. First, DIRECTV can take in some money from DoD providers for each "banner ad" they run in the guide, and second, DIRECTV can market their own DoD channels and services for essentially no cost.

I personally hate the banner ads, especially in a darkened room at night scrolling through the guide and a bright white banner ad shows up ... :down:

[STL FAN]

Any idea if content like WWE24/7 and Howard Sterns channel might be available? And is Dish Network far behind with this technology? It's the one thing Charter has here in St. Louis over the sat. companies.

[Koz]

I have a Netgear router WGR614

http://www.netgear.com/Products/RoutersandGateways/GWirelessRouters/WGR614.aspx

, but my laptop is not physically connected to any port on the router; only the HR-20 and 360 are physically connected to the router. I should also mention that my HR-20 and 360 are not always connected to the router (because of physical limitations with ethernet wires laying across my floor). I only connect the two to the router when I want to connect to the internet.


Sounds like you have DSL and need your laptop on to log into your internet provider before being granted internet access. Does that sound right? If so, most routers have the ability to do that automatically. You can put your DSL username and password into the router so that it's always connected.

[Wisegoat]

Anyone is the Los Angeles market received the new software?

Earl said in another thread that they haved stopped the rollout for the moment. Don't know why or when it will start up again.

I am in Newport Beach and do not have it yet.

[robdec]

I hope they start it again soon :(

[Afergy]

Earl said in another thread that they haved stopped the rollout for the moment. Don't know why or when it will start up again.

I am in Newport Beach and do not have it yet.

Thanks for the info, hopefully we'll get it soon.

[chris0]

Earl said in another thread that they haved stopped the rollout for the moment. Don't know why or when it will start up again.

I just checked 4 pages of Earl's last posts and couldn't find one where he said the rollout was stopped. Do you remember what thread it was in?

[meller]

Originally posted in the wrong thead. Sorry about that

I got my VOD working yesterday and I would like to relate my experience and see if anyone had a similar experience. First off I using a wireless connection between my broadband connection (SPRINT) and where the TV is (next room). The connection uses a wireless bridge (in this case a G game adapter from Linksys). The bridge was instantly reconized by my router. When I did a download from the VOD selection list (a 4 minute program from the discovery channel) it took more than 15 minutes to download. I thought this to be excessive and not practical for downloading 30 and 60 minute shows. Is this normal? Is anyone else experiencing this type of elongated download time? Now the rooms are right next to each other and I can easily drill a hole thru the wall and connect a RJ45 cable directly between the HR20 and my router. I am guessing this would improve the download time.
Another strange thing occurred when I attempted to download a show from the Food Network VOD. I received a message after hitting select on the 'ADD TO QUEUE' message. The message asked me if I wanted to add this premium (?????)
channel to my Directv subscription and to do that I should go to to Directv.com or call 1.800.directv. Huh??? I then hit continue and it brought me back to the 'ADD TO QUEUE' screen thus doing nothing. Weird. Anyway that my story. Anyone have any explanations?

Thanks,

Mark

[RAD]

Someone when through this same problem over at http://www.satelliteguys.us/directv-forum/112109-dod-very-slow.html . He ended up just running a cable and saw an immediate improvement.

[scottz46]

I posted in another thread that i had the same problem as Meller this morning. I received the software download last night. I was unable to download a food network program. I downloaded a comedy central program though.. I have a wired setup

[jackm]

Ok - I have the new software updated for my HR20-700, but my question is how does one now activate the DOD once you have the software - and can someone please recommend a good wireless router, for the time being that would be my easiest way to go. And once you hook the connection to your computer and the receiver - is there anything special one has to do. Thanks for any and all help.

[bozzaj]

I use this for my HR20 and my xbox 360. Works flawlessly. Probably a little slower than a wired connection, but without tearing open my drywall, this is my only solution.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833162168

Another solution is the PowerLine products. While they were originally crap, the latest ones can work quite well in certain situations. There are a couple of competing technologies though and one tech may work better for you where the other one works for someone else. I've had excellent luck with the Linksys PLE200. I have my HR20, Xbox360, and a PS3 all connected with an Ethernet switch attached to one of these. Another unit is attached to my router and a third is used in another part of the house.

While testing bandwidth, I was able to have my PS3 downloading a 1.5+ GB demo, my Xbox360 playing a video through my computer (Media Center Extender) and the HR20 download DoD videos, all with no noticable slowdown. The Xbox360 was (obviously) using most of the bandwidth since it wasn't using the Internet.

Using the PLE200 utility, it was showing 120+Mbps for the connection between the two PLE200's. I've never had a slowdown transferring any sort of data through this connection. I tried Netgear's version first and had no luck whatsoever. Dlink also makes a Powerline product that's based on a different chipset (haven't had a chance to test) that supposedly works as well or better.

I would have used some sort of wireless bridge, but I wanted multiple devices without the need to buy multiple bridges. I also wanted a 802.11n bridge, which isn't made yet. Dlink has one that I can use in the same setup (multiple devices, one bridge) which I may try at some point, but my current setup is working so well I don't want to mess with it.

I highly recommend trying out the latest Powerline (200Mb or higher models) products if you are in a situation where you need to connect multiple devices and can't pull wire. Pick a store that will allow returns though, since they don't work for everyone. Do *not* get the older 85Mb or 100Mb versions as they barely have enough bandwidth to handle SD content.

[m4p]

I have a wireless bridge connected to my HR20 (the Buffalo WLI-TX4-G54HP) and my router connected to my PC is the Buffalo WHR-HP-G54. I also have DSL with a download speed of 2.5 to 3.0 mb. My wireless status shows 69% or 110 mps. I started downloading a movie and it took about 30 minutes to download 25% of the movie. I guess that's not too bad. I was able to start watching it after a few minutes.

[muddywaters123]

Earl said in another thread that they haved stopped the rollout for the moment. Don't know why or when it will start up again.

I am in Newport Beach and do not have it yet.

I'm in Ontario, CA. Today I hit the menu button and long behold On Demand was there right underneath My Playlist. Don't know if they stop the rollout or just restarted it but DoD is up and running and I'm downloading and watching Sarah Silverman as I'm typing this.

[rjknyy]

I received the software update this morning but nothing happens when I click "On Demand" in the menu. Channel 1000 is also still coming up as not available. My HR20-700 is connected to the internet and the test for connection was fine. Any ideas?


Scratch this...I now have access to the menu and shows are being added now

[henryld]

Received the update this AM and checked it out a little while ago; everything is working as it should. My download speeds, as some others have posted, is terribly slow. Guess I will have to upgrade my DSL service if and when there is some compeling (HD) content. At least this is one more small step for D* in the right direction for a more advanced service offering. Now if we could only get DLB's.:eek2:

[uncrules]

I received the update this morning (4:49am ET) and my HR20-700 is connected to the Internet. When I run the system test it shows I'm connected to both the network and Internet. I have my HR20-700 wired directly to my Linksys router.

However when I go to the On Demand menu option, there is nothing under the top picks section. When I try any of the groups like movies or Kids & Family I get a message saying "There are no matching programs at this time." I can tune to channel 1000. I can see all of the individual on demand channels in the program guide. However, if I tune to one of the individual channels like Comedy Central on channel 1249, I get a message that says "1249 (COMEDYC) is currently not available."

I've tried resetting my HR20 but that didn't help.

[dserensits]

I got the software download at 4am this morning and have on demand in my menu, but none of the channels are available. I have everything hooke up (except a phone line) Any idea what I need to do? Just wait or should I have the channels with content?

[BillyBob_jcv]

Another solution is the PowerLine products. While they were originally crap, the latest ones can work quite well in certain situations. There are a couple of competing technologies though and one tech may work better for you where the other one works for someone else. I've had excellent luck with the Linksys PLE200. I have my HR20, Xbox360, and a PS3 all connected with an Ethernet switch attached to one of these. Another unit is attached to my router and a third is used in another part of the house.

While testing bandwidth, I was able to have my PS3 downloading a 1.5+ GB demo, my Xbox360 playing a video through my computer (Media Center Extender) and the HR20 download DoD videos, all with no noticable slowdown. The Xbox360 was (obviously) using most of the bandwidth since it wasn't using the Internet.

Using the PLE200 utility, it was showing 120+Mbps for the connection between the two PLE200's. I've never had a slowdown transferring any sort of data through this connection. I tried Netgear's version first and had no luck whatsoever. Dlink also makes a Powerline product that's based on a different chipset (haven't had a chance to test) that supposedly works as well or better.

I would have used some sort of wireless bridge, but I wanted multiple devices without the need to buy multiple bridges. I also wanted a 802.11n bridge, which isn't made yet. Dlink has one that I can use in the same setup (multiple devices, one bridge) which I may try at some point, but my current setup is working so well I don't want to mess with it.

I highly recommend trying out the latest Powerline (200Mb or higher models) products if you are in a situation where you need to connect multiple devices and can't pull wire. Pick a store that will allow returns though, since they don't work for everyone. Do *not* get the older 85Mb or 100Mb versions as they barely have enough bandwidth to handle SD content.

+1 :)

I just installed a pair of Linksys PLE200 adapters at a friends 2 story house where even wireless-N was giving really spotty performance upstairs. The PLE200 work great, and I also highly recommend them, although they aren't cheap at ~$135-$150 for the pair in the PLK200 kit. BIG difference from the old 14Mb Netgear units.

[uncrules]

Well, my on demand stuff finally showed up tonight. Now I'll get to play around and see what's up.

[Lord Vader]

I just installed a pair of Linksys PLE200 adapters at a friends 2 story house where even wireless-N was giving really spotty performance upstairs. The PLE200 work great, and I also highly recommend them, although they aren't cheap at ~$135-$150 for the pair in the PLK200 kit. BIG difference from the old 14Mb Netgear units.

I'd get those in a heartbeat, but their biggest drawback by far: they only have one port each. I currently use Netgear XE104s, which have 4 ports. I've got an HR20-700, HR10-250, and HDVR2 connected to one XE104. Can't do that with the PLE200 or even Netgear's 200mpbs ones.

[DanHo]

I set up my wireless connection over the weekend using WGA54g and it works like a charm. :D I did not get the national download until today. And was not able to test it until this evening. I selected Monster House from the menu and took my son to soccer practice. When we got home about an hour later it was done downloading.

Not a bad selection of titles, but as many have said before me, where is the HD content? :sure:

[TermiNader]

Not a bad selection of titles, but as many have said before me, where is the HD content? :sure:


HD content is expected to be available by the end of November.

[briansin]

Hi all,
My network connection is fine (test says so), but when I go to Video on Demand, nothing happens. I also cannot go to channel 1000. What's going on? How do I fix this?
Thanks,
Brian

[Drew2k]

Just a reminder - after you've used DoD a little bit, please visit the poll below to cast your vote and post a comment on how menu navigation should work.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=106873

Is it up to snuff for you? Do you miss not being able to hit CH-DN and CH-UP to jump to the bottom and top of the menus? If so, here's where you can make a difference by telling DIRECTV!

[larcar]

When I go through the list of DOD programs available and I choose a program on one of the premium channels but no $ sign, a box pops up and asks me if I want to subscribe to this premium service? Can I still download this or do I have to already have this premium channel?
I don't wish to subscribe to any premium channels.
Thanks to anyone who may have the answer to this.

[mxd]

Finally got VOD and am not at all impressed with it. No HD available to download, at least as of 9:30 last night. It took fifteen minutes to download a music video and the quality was not that great. A big letdown after all the hype, at least for me.

[bozzaj]

I'd get those in a heartbeat, but their biggest drawback by far: they only have one port each. I currently use Netgear XE104s, which have 4 ports. I've got an HR20-700, HR10-250, and HDVR2 connected to one XE104. Can't do that with the PLE200 or even Netgear's 200mpbs ones.

Why not? Just because they only have 1 port doesn't mean you can't plug an Ethernet switch into it. Looking around online I found a Dynex 5-port switch for $6.00 (plug S&H I'm sure). If you're already close to the 4 usable ports (1 port to attach to the bridge), get an 8 port.

I currently have 3 devices connected to one of my PLE200's with most likely more to come. I don't think there's really a reachable maximum number of devices you can connect to any single PLE200. They're really just simple bridges, so they don't care what the traffic is.

[DrZ]

Finally got VOD and am not at all impressed with it. No HD available to download, at least as of 9:30 last night. It took fifteen minutes to download a music video and the quality was not that great. A big letdown after all the hype, at least for me.

I wasn't terribly impressed with the quality of the video either. It look a tad bit worse than what a regular SD channel looks on my set. With my limited DSL I can't imagine how long it would take to download an HD show.:(

[DanHo]

HD content is expected to be available by the end of November.

Thanks, hadn't heard that. :grin:

[Dan B]

I wasn't terribly impressed with the quality of the video either. It look a tad bit worse than what a regular SD channel looks on my set. With my limited DSL I can't imagine how long it would take to download an HD show.:(

The stuff I've downloaded has been slightly better than the regular DirecTV SD. It must vary from channel to channel somewhat.

The downloads seem to take me about 1 minute for each 1 minute of video (probably should be faster with my 5Mb connection?), but you can start watching right away, so I haven't really had to wait for anything. I haven't noticed many commercials so far, either, just a couple of station promos.

I liked what I saw on concert tv.

[bakers12]

Several querstions have come up lately that haven't quickly been answered. Let me take a shot at some of this.

Download speeds are mostly being limited by your broadband connection, not your wireless gear. Your broadband might be up to 6Mbps while the wireless equipment can usually handle at least 54Mbps. Replacing this with a cat 6 cable won't increase the downloads which are hung up at the broadband modem.

Once you get VOD on your menu, there could still be a problem getting VOD channels, including channel 1000. This is because the guide data has to download off the satellite before all the channels show up. It could take another day or so for this. Also, D* won't start their part of the setup until your HR20 checks in with them through the Internet. This could take days, so leave your HR20 connected to the Internet all the time.

There will hopefully be more programming available for download soon. The last I looked (on channel 1000 but I could be wrong now) VOD was showing as a beta product.

You can't download from a channel you don't normally subscribe to, like Starz, for example. If you normally get Food, you should be able to get their downloads.

[RAD]

On wireless, keep in mind that even if you have a signal the wireless adapter can downgrade the speed of the connection in order to keep it up.

And since we're on the public internet there is no guarentee of speed to any site on the internet, all the ISP's are selling you is the speed of the connection from your home to their network. There are many variables that can effect the speed of the end to end connection. How many networks/providers must a session trasverse, is there congestion at the peering points between these networks, how many hops are between you and the content provider, all which can effect throughput. I'd also guess that D*'s using a hosting service with distributed servers so some folks will be running fine and others could have issues because of any of the above reasons.

Yesterday afternoon while some folks were saying they had horrible download speeds for a particular movie from Encore DoD I tried the same movie and it downloaded in less then 2 hours with no problems.

What would be helpful is if D* would put an application into the HR20 that would give some type of speed test to the hosting site that would be serving your HR20 to help determine performance issues.

[Lord Vader]

I've got a friend of mine who just got 01B4 via national release. He connected an ethernet cable directly from his router to his HR20-700. He verified all his network settings (gateway, DNS, etc.), but just cannot connect at all to the Internet. D* tech support tells him they can't help him. I admit I'm at a loss as to where to begin troubleshooting his problem.

[bakers12]

Maybe you can find something useful at Step-by-Step Router/Bridge/HR20 Network Configuration Doc (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=99327)

[jtn]

I've got a friend of mine who just got 01B4 via national release. He connected an ethernet cable directly from his router to his HR20-700. He verified all his network settings (gateway, DNS, etc.), but just cannot connect at all to the Internet. D* tech support tells him they can't help him. I admit I'm at a loss as to where to begin troubleshooting his problem.

I am having the same issue. So I'm looking to see what other methods forum users are using. What type of routers are working etc.

Maybe you can find something useful at Step-by-Step Router/Bridge/HR20 Network Configuration Doc (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=99327)

I can't find the info I need at that spot on the site.

[HeadHodge]

Hi,
Just found out my DVR was updated to a new version with VOD features.

Played with it today and would like to give you my feedback:

* Very exicted to have it and overall a tremendous additional feature with great potential.

* My main use for it will be to use the pay per movie feature (so I can get rid of NetFlix). But I will not pay to use it untill I can get it in DVD quality or better. Meaning that it looks and sounds good on my home theatre system just like a NetFlix or Blockbuster rented movie.

* Don't care how long it takes to download, it will still be faster than NetFlix via snail mail. BTW I find the streaming video feature from NetFlix to my PC "worthless".

* As is, it's ok for watching SD video, like Adult Swim and other SD cable programming. The fact that some of its in Dolby 2.0 is "great". It's also a great way to get lots of episodes of the same program without waiting weeks for it to come around the cable channel.

* Really like that the VOD version of cable programs are commercial free. Don't have to keep using the skip forward button every five minutes

* After downloading a VOD program and watching it and then deleting it, it would really be nice in the VOD guide to indicate that I had previously downloaded and watched the program (i.e. an icon for previously downloaded). This would help me remember which episodes I've already downloaded so I don't accidentally download it again just to find out I've already seen it. Currently it seems the guide only shows that it is the Queue or has been downloaded ready to view.

* I've tried to play back recorded VOD only to get a blank screen. It's like it doesn't recognize the format or can't find it on the drive. After using the DVR for other things for a while I went back and tried again and most of them then played fine.

* Downloaded an episode of Ghost in the Shell and only 1 minute of recording showed up. That 1 minute played ok but am worried about paying for a movie that doesn't get fully downloaded and then having to pay for it again or fighting with customer support for a refund.

* A few times a message came up that there were network errors and I had to respond to a message that ask me if I wanted to ignore the error or try to fix the connection. When I ignored the error, it permanately put my VOD queue on pause. When I told it to fix it, it fixed ok and continued to download. I'm worried about this because if I'm downloading a lot of stuff and I can't sit in front of my TV all day to make sure it downloads ok. I have DSL and it does go up and down. So I would recommend a better network recovery secnario.

Anyways I'm really happy you're providing the service and hope some of my feedback helps.

Best Regards
Bob

[DishDog]

Finally got VOD and am not at all impressed with it. No HD available to download, at least as of 9:30 last night. It took fifteen minutes to download a music video and the quality was not that great. A big letdown after all the hype, at least for me.
HD should be here in a month or so, and you don't have to wait for the download to complete to begin watching the show.

[TermiNader]

It would be nice to have a way to search VOD by date. For instance, I would like to know all VOD stored/added in the last day or week.

[roconnell]

VOD Future

I think the VOD/DOD is great. Is it D*'s intension to eventually offer a large (as in 1000's or at least 100's) of PPV download movies through the sytem?

[RAD]

VOD Future

I think the VOD/DOD is great. Is it D*'s intension to eventually offer a large (as in 1000's or at least 100's) of PPV download movies through the sytem?
From what I've seen, that's part of the plan, a mixture of free and chargable content.

[AFH]

I tried DOD/VOD for the first time on Tuesday night. Personally, I was disappointed in the amount of content that was available on the MTV channel, which is the only one I'm interested in as of now. For example, that channel only 4 or 5 of the most recent episodes of "The Hills". Why not provide me with last season episodes as well as this season? Secondly, it took 35 minutes for me to download a show that had a 25 minute time frame. I am on the 3.0mbps version of Verizon DSL.

[gregchak]

It would be nice to have a way to search VOD by date. For instance, I would like to know all VOD stored/added in the last day or week.
Even better, to be able to sort by the original air date.

[n-spring]

Actually... they are not necessarily "redundent"...
What do you think would happen... if PPV information was going out over the network... and some industrious "hacker" sniffed the packets... figured out what type of response the system was looking for.... built a mini-webservice host... and then redirected the DNS/Port routing to that mini-webservice host...

Then posted that information on the internet....

Ever heard of SSL?

[Earl Bonovich]

Ever heard of SSL?

Umm.. Yes.. I have heard of SSL...

Have you heard of people re-direction network traffic to a false host?

[Drew2k]

Don't forget to visit the poll on how DoD navigation should work (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=106873)!

It's just segued into a discussion of whether or not the DoD home page is a channel or a menu ...

[n-spring]

Umm.. Yes.. I have heard of SSL...

Have you heard of people re-direction network traffic to a false host?

OK, sorry I brought it up. This is way off topic, and I'll drop it if you will.

[Earl Bonovich]

OK, sorry I brought it up. This is way off topic, and I'll drop it if you will.

It's up to you....

I have had the conversation numerous times up here in the forums.... on why they don't use the network connection for PPV aspects they use the phone line for.

[n-spring]

I've had the VOD for a little over a week now, and I was wondering why the guide has the blue DirecTV On Demand banner between channels 245 and 246, and the red concert.tv banner between channels 339 and 350. Seems like a menu selection and the standard 1000-range channels would be sufficient without screaming in the guide.

[Earl Bonovich]

I've had the VOD for a little over a week now, and I was wondering why the guide has the blue DirecTV On Demand banner between channels 245 and 246, and the red concert.tv banner between channels 339 and 350. Seems like a menu selection and the standard 1000-range channels would be sufficient without screaming in the guide.

Lengthy discussion about in the CE forum.

But it is something they have added to the guide once DoD is activated.

[Drew2k]

I've had the VOD for a little over a week now, and I was wondering why the guide has the blue DirecTV On Demand banner between channels 245 and 246, and the red concert.tv banner between channels 339 and 350. Seems like a menu selection and the standard 1000-range channels would be sufficient without screaming in the guide.
Lengthy discussion about in the CE forum.

But it is something they have added to the guide once DoD is activated.Yup - see this thread: HR20-700 VOD Banner Ads in the Guide - Opinions? (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=97465)

If you love 'em or hate 'em, make sure you vote and add a post in the thread to let DIRECTV know your feelings. Currently, 65.37% of the poll respondents disapprove of the banner ads.

[smcpike]

I just had my DOD first experience after it being activated.... initial thoughts:

- the speed is great for me on my 6MB DSL. I can start a movie downloading and within 5 min start watching it (which i am doing right now) and not ever catch up to the download (i.e. pause). Pleasantly surprised.
- anxious (like everyone else) to see what performance of HD On Demand items is like, as the likelihood I'll download SD content is limited to cartoon network/adult swim. But i understand it's early - i can be (anxiously) patient. :-)
- in pulling up movies, shows, etc (esp. movies) - i'd like to see the Year/Date of the movie, and actors in it. i don't care about watching a movie called 'zombies' (fictional example) from '94 but maybe i do if it's an '07 movie with Angelina Jolie ;-)
- would love the ability to delete my history. My wife doesn't need to know i watched that Backstreet Boys concert.
- finally (and either it exists and i haven't seen it yet, or it's probably on the drawing board) a search by date, genre, keyword, actor of On Demand. Either separate to itself or combined with overall Search.

overall... very pleased with what i see for an initial release. Guess you CE'ers do a pretty good job of helping catch stuff. Thanks!

[MikeR]

- would love the ability to delete my history. My wife doesn't need to know i watched that movie on Starz AfterDark.


Fixed your post.:D

[djzack67]

I'm liking everything so far, just hoping for some HD content and maybe some expanded movie overings from TNT and Tcm.

The Discovery Health offerings are great.

[Drew2k]

Don't forget to vote on DoD menu navigation!

POLL: Now that DoD is National ... How should DoD menu navigation work? (http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=106873)

Do you like the way it is or want it to change? Cast your vote and add a comment to tell DIRECTV to keep it or change it!

[DogLover]

- in pulling up movies, shows, etc (esp. movies) - i'd like to see the Year/Date of the movie, and actors in it. i don't care about watching a movie called 'zombies' (fictional example) from '94 but maybe i do if it's an '07 movie with Angelina Jolie ;-)

- finally (and either it exists and i haven't seen it yet, or it's probably on the drawing board) a search by date, genre, keyword, actor of On Demand. Either separate to itself or combined with overall Search.



The regular search will find DoD shows as well. However, since the description information is different, results will vary. I also hope that the content providers realize that it will be in their best interest to make the descriptions more complete.

[Hutchinshouse]

Well, I had my first real DOD benefit. Up until this point I only used DOD to "test and play" with it. I have a six year old daughter. She asked that I record iCarly on Nickelodeon so she can watch it after school. As you can guess I forgot to record it. When she found out I forgot to record it her bottom lip came out. I then had an idea to search on DOD. Jackpot, I found two shows for her! A minute later both shows were in the queue and she was already watching the first episode. I went from zero to hero. My six year old gives DOD two thumbs up!!

Now if we can only get some DOD HD to watch.

[mluntz]

I've got a friend of mine who just got 01B4 via national release. He connected an ethernet cable directly from his router to his HR20-700. He verified all his network settings (gateway, DNS, etc.), but just cannot connect at all to the Internet. D* tech support tells him they can't help him. I admit I'm at a loss as to where to begin troubleshooting his problem.

I hardwired mine yesterday. All I did was reset the modem and restart the HR20 recorder. Worked fine for me.

[Lord Vader]

Never mind my friend; he's an idiot. Bad cat 5e cable.

[herkulease]

I like the on demand, but I think it the whole interface can be designed much better. I realize it still a "beta"

right now it seems so clunky and slow. There needs to be a better way to sort things out.

Also if possible have all the on demand channels listed so I can download only stuff from a specific channel, I kidna sucks having to scroll through listings you won't watch.

for example I notice soem anime listed for channel 18xx ANIME or soething clsoe to that. But when I look up content via channel its not listed. Only the major channels are listed.

Which kinda leads me to I think there should be a "What's New" screen. Unless I missed this.

[Azdeadwood]

Stupid question....can anyone that was not already part of the CE confirm that the DOD is actually up and running?

Any first impressions from the new users of the service??

I have the national release of DOD on my hr20-700 for about three days now. It works as advertised. I've downloaded mostly interesting science and history shows and several "shorts" of 5 to 10 minutes as well.

It really is not much different than the regular recording function and it shows up on the playlist. As noted elsewhere it takes a while to get the longer programs so you can't just sit down and start watching. I have DSL at 3MB download speed but it takes about 15 minutes to get enough of the download to start watching a 1 hour show. All in All I like it and know that I will use it regularly.

Only real con: NO HD content!

I got the CE for my HR20-100 last night and same as above - no problems and did not need any special codes to make it work.

[GatorDeb]

I got activated a few days ago and I LOVE IT. I found about 10 movies right off the bat that I wanted to see, including a favorite of mine that I saw in high school about 12 years ago and wanted to watch again. I canceled my Blockbuster subscription and went for Premier :D

I was glad to see it was mostly free with just a few things that cost money. Do you think this will be the trend or it will be mostly paid with a few freebies?

So the reason I have all those movies available (i.e. Encore on Demand) is because I subscribe to those channels, right? I.e. someone who doesn't have the premium movie channels will have less channels on the On Demand list?

By the way does anyone know how to turn of HR-20 notifications? (i.e. your internet connection failed, etc.).

Is the programming refreshed on a regular basis? And how do I submit a review like I agreed to in order to be part of the beta?

Happy so far! :)

[meller]

Hi,

Is anyone else having this problem with downloading Food Network shows via DOD? I get a message saying that if I want to view this show I need to call D* and subsribe to this premium channel. Very confusing..............

Thanks,

Mark

[GatorDeb]

Do you pay for the Food channel? You can only download DOD for channels that you already get.

[RAD]

Hi,

Is anyone else having this problem with downloading Food Network shows via DOD? I get a message saying that if I want to view this show I need to call D* and subsribe to this premium channel. Very confusing..............

Thanks,

Mark

Let me guess, you found a show that you wanted to download via search. That appears to be an issue with the DoD feature, search is coming up with shows for channels that aren't on DoD yet, like Food Network. Remember this is still beta so sh*t happens.

[meller]

Do you pay for the Food channel? You can only download DOD for channels that you already get.

I have a premium subscription. I get the Food Network fine from the sat. I get the same message when I to download anything from FIY and HGTV. Those two and Food are all operated by the same company. I don't know if there is something wrong in my account but as I said I get all those channels fine when I view them directly from the sat. Problem is there isn't anyone at D* I can talk to about this since this is CE stuff.

Thanks,

mark

[RAD]

Problem is there isn't anyone at D* I can talk to about this since this is CE stuff.

Thanks,

mark

That's right, that's how the CE program works. You'd logged your issue here, as other have for this same issue in other threads. Now you just need to wait for it to be resolved.

[meller]

Let me guess, you found a show that you wanted to download via search. That appears to be an issue with the DoD feature, search is coming up with shows for channels that aren't on DoD yet, like Food Network. Remember this is still beta so sh*t happens.

I wish that was the case as then it would make sense as to why it was happening, but no, I am selecting shows freom those networks off of the DOD delection menu.
Thanks for your help.

Mark

[RAD]

I wish that was the case as then it would make sense as to why it was happening, but no, I am selecting shows freom those networks off of the DOD delection menu.
Thanks for your help.

Mark

So you're saying that you see channels 1229 (HGTV) and 1230 (Food) in your DoD channels listing, strange since those channels have never shown up as channels on my HR20's.

[meller]

So you're saying that you see channels 1229 (HGTV) and 1230 (Food) in your DoD channels listing, strange since those channels have never shown up as channels on my HR20's.

I'm sorry I misunderstood your post. Yes you are correct. When I select a program to download from the DOD generic list (TV Shows> Food) I get the message after I hit select on a title. I just checked the channel lineup by selecting More DOD and indeed 1231 is not there. So it appears that D* has not set up some channels yet for DOD. Makes sense.
Thanks for your assistance.

Mark

[RAD]

I'm sorry I misunderstood your post. Yes you are correct. When I select a program to download from the DOD generic list (TV Shows> Food) I get the message after I hit select on a title. I just checked the channel lineup by selecting More DOD and indeed 1231 is not there. So it appears that D* has not set up some channels yet for DOD. Makes sense.
Thanks for your assistance.

Mark

NP, glad we could figure out your issue.

[cdmerrill]

will I ever be able to use dod and vod with out being hooked to the internet?

[RAD]

will I ever be able to use dod and vod with out being hooked to the internet?

For all practical purposes, no you need the internet connection. It's rumored that D* will push some of that they feel is the most popular DoD content to the "showcases" partition on the DVR but that's not going to be much.

[Lord Vader]

will I ever be able to use dod and vod with out being hooked to the internet?

Hooking up to the Internet is often easier than connecting a phone line, so give it a shot.

[finaldiet]

Question. I have ON DEMAND , but almost all shows are PPV. Doesn't show a lot of anything that can be down-loaded. Shows almost all movie subscription channels. Am I missing something?

[Earl Bonovich]

Question. I have ON DEMAND , but almost all shows are PPV. Doesn't show a lot of anything that can be down-loaded. Shows almost all movie subscription channels. Am I missing something?

What categories are you looking in.... as there are over 2000 titles up there... and the vast majority are not PPV...

[cb4]

I wasn't terribly impressed with the quality of the video either. It look a tad bit worse than what a regular SD channel looks on my set. With my limited DSL I can't imagine how long it would take to download an HD show.:(

Don't worry no HD content to be seen :(

[sammib]

Much ado about nothing. What a joke. This whole thing with DOD is a fiasco. All of this nonsense for what? Way to complicated for the average stiff, as I am, to comprehend. How many subscribers to D* are actually going to do all the crap that is required to get DOD. Of course most of the guys on this site are technogeeks and will. But my guess that maybe 50 thou will do it out of 20 million subscribers. That's 1/2 of 1 per cent. All of this hoopla for the very few. Why wasn't it made easier for the masses? Using the internet, how bogus.

[RAD]

How many subscribers to D* are actually going to do all the crap that is required to get DOD.

All demends, all I had to do was plug in a cat 5 cable to my internal network, that took 10 seconds. Yep that was really hard:sure:

Seriously, yep there will be a good number of people that haven't the knowledge or means to get it network connected. If they want it bad enough they'll get someone to do it for them else they're not loosing any functionality if they don't connect it.

[BkwSoft]

In all seriousness though, now that they are rolling this out, why not have the installers run a Cat5 line when they are running the coax. It doesn't exactly take a rocket scientist to crimp a couple of RJ45 connects to a wire. If you have a hard wired connection to the router you eliminate 90+% of all the issues in getting VOD up and running.

[Sintori]

My DOD happy epiphany:

My stepson is an early riser and always wants to watch his "boy" cartoons that no one else in the house wants to watch. And of course the shows he likes are never on. Since he's not there full time I don't like to waste the hard drive space on stuff he may or may not watch. Now I will be able to show him how to download his stuff off on demand whenever he wants. This also will work good for kids shows that take up space because they are never watched. And I love the music videos too! I'm leery about how slow the dwlds will be for HD content though :( I have a 3 M speed connection, but still!! It takes about 10 min. to download 30 min of content now in SD.

[kmill14]

The navigation style is awful (yes, I voted to change it).

In the first 15 tries of navigating the !@!# thing, I hit the channel button every single time. Thats just how it should be because that is how the guide is. Love the consistency.

I have not actually watched anything yet, because the library looks pretty weak so far. However, I will give it a couple months to see how it changes before I pass judgement on the content.

But the navigation style has to go.

[kmill14]

One more thing....

is there a way to make it "kid-safe"?

[jburroughs]

One more thing....

is there a way to make it "kid-safe"?

General Parental Locks for Ratings will cause listing to come up as "blocked title" and prevent viewing. I have blocks for TV-MA and R ratings set on mine.

[Drew2k]

The navigation style is awful (yes, I voted to change it).

...

But the navigation style has to go.Way to go kmill14! For anyone else pleased or displeased with DOD navigation, be sure to visit the poll in my signature!

[Sintori]

One more thing....

is there a way to make it "kid-safe"?

Also you can set your purchasing locks so that the kids won't be able to access the ppv content as well. I have mine set.

[kevin1844]

I did a search and didn't notice anyone asking this but... Now that its live I've gone through all the titles. Is there any way to know when NEW programs are added to DOD? It would be nice if you could search by date-added or have a section for "new programs" or something...

[mkstretch]

So far this DOD is nice, been downloading like crazy. Just want to see HD content.
But real nice so far.

[ggaar]

We just stumbled onto the new On Demand feature on the HR20. I am in Columbia, SC. There is a ton of material available. Music videos, movies, tv series, and more. I have the HR20 hard-wired to my broad band cable connection which I have turbo charged and get great download speeds. It starts with selecting On Demand from the menu. You then get the selection categories:

Movies
Kids & Family
Music
TV Series
High Def
Sports
Interests
More VOD

The channels for material include: style, golf, TLC, A&E, TCM, Cartoon Network, Nick, Speed, Comedy Central, M2, CNN, fuse, encore, E, BET, Hiswtory, Animal Planet, VH1, encore, starz, showtime, tbs, MTV, TNT, and more.

Once you select a program, it shows on the list with a meter showing the download progress. You can search the content with Title, actor, etc.

Most of the material is free. But, there are pay shows as well like PPV.

The Guide now has all the VOD channels that start with 1000 which is the introductory video channel for VOD. Then the channels that follow are 1202 CNN VOD, 1220 Big Ten, 1235 Style, 1236 E!, 1245 TNT, etc.

By selecting the channel a menu is displayed with the featured VOD programs. The menu looks similair to the Media Share menu. On the left are categories and on the right are pictures of the shows with descriptions.

[jdspencer]

The biggest problem I see with VOD is that you won't have enough time to watch all you download before it expires. :)
So, you'll need to see how long each show is available and then plan your downloads.

[jtn]

The biggest problem I see with VOD is that you won't have enough time to watch all you download before it expires. :)
So, you'll need to see how long each show is available and then plan your downloads.

perhaps that could change to no expiration with suggestions to DirecTV, not by calling, but by email suggestions.

[gcisko]

I have been reading alot about this lately. Is there any schedule or anything about when new channels will be added to the DoD? Or how long it is expected to be beta? Apologies if I missed it.

[Earl Bonovich]

I have been reading alot about this lately. Is there any schedule or anything about when new channels will be added to the DoD? Or how long it is expected to be beta? Apologies if I missed it.

No timelines for either.
Channels will be added (And dropped) during this beta process.

[jdspencer]

Changing the direction a little, I've read a couple of threads where people would like USB keyboard support added. That seems like a good idea. I also have read that remote booking is or will be available through DirecTV's website. That got me thinking. Why not allow keyboard support directly via the network. Since most will have their receivers connected on the network anyway, that may be the better way to go.

[HDTVFreak07]

ABC, CBS, CW, Fox, NBC. It would be nice for those who missed a program or forgot to record their favorite shows and DoD will be a nice alternate!

[dons]

I was really looking forward to VOD but unfortunately the implementation is not quite there,

1) The way the snippets are named and broken up make it difficult to find content you are interested it. Collapsing 'subshows and snippets" under a collapsed heading might help...like you see in MY List of recordings.

2) No HD is kind of a step backwards.

3) In general, the content currently there is not too interesting..maybe it will get better when they go live.

4) It would be good to be able to go DIRECTLY FROM THE GUIDE to see a list of historical shows for regular series etc. e.g. if I wanted to see historical HEROES that I might have missed, I should be able to hit a key while I am either on the HEROES entry in the guide or viewing HEROES.

SO, In summary...EXCITED about the concept but D* should look at other implementations for ideas....COMCAST, DISH ETC.

On another note, REALLY want to get Multi Room Viewing!!! That is what I REALLY am needing since my DVR is in an upstairs room but I want easy access downstairs.

[jmahone]

I am away from my HR20 at the moment, but I did an admittedly quick search here and did not find the following:

Is it (or will it be) possible to use the autorecord feature on VOD so that if a VOD program appears in the VOD list which matches an autorecord request based on your criteria (title, actor, keyword, etc.), the matching VOD program will automatically be queued? And if so, can you filter it such that it will not queue a pay-only program?

TIA,
Jerry

[meller]

Hi,
I have a 8MB Comcast Internet connection running thru a Linksys WRT54G router. My downloads with DOD are painfully slow (around 7.5 minutes to download a 6 minute music video). Should'nt I be seeing much better D/L times? Is the Linksys router the problem? When I do speed tests on my Internet connection it zooms with measured cspeeds in excess of 12 MB per second. I'm clueless. Anyone have any ideas???

Thanks,
Mark

[jdspencer]

I just noticed that the regular guide had a couple of entries for On Demand. Just under ch 245 and 339. I didn't notice this yesterday.

[Drew2k]

Just a reminder: Whether you're new to DIRECTV On Demand or have been using it for awhile, be sure to visit the poll in the first link in my signature to tell DIRECTV how you want DoD navigation to work.

Right now over 71% of the poll respondents are asking for a change to menu navigation ...

[WashDCHR20]

OK, I hooked my HR20 up to the internet (directly connected to by wired connection on one of the four ports on my Linksys router - which also has wireless capability). Anyway, it verified that it can talk to the internet.

I also now see the On Demand setting under My Playlist in the Menu. But, when I click on it, nothing happens! Also, when I try to go to channel 1000 - it says Channel Not Available.

What am I doing wrong?? :(

Thanks for any help in advance!! Other than that, I've been very pleased with my HR20 - have had it for more than a year now and it has been nearly flawless - except for Closed Captions which are still problematic on some local Washington DC HD channels!

[WashDCHR20]

Never mind - I restarted the HR20 and it is working now! Chalk it up to old age and stupidity... So now everything is working fine!

OK, I hooked my HR20 up to the internet (directly connected to by wired connection on one of the four ports on my Linksys router - which also has wireless capability). Anyway, it verified that it can talk to the internet.

I also now see the On Demand setting under My Playlist in the Menu. But, when I click on it, nothing happens! Also, when I try to go to channel 1000 - it says Channel Not Available.

What am I doing wrong?? :(

Thanks for any help in advance!! Other than that, I've been very pleased with my HR20 - have had it for more than a year now and it has been nearly flawless - except for Closed Captions which are still problematic on some local Washington DC HD channels!

[NewsTechie]

First, profuse apologies if this question is answered or explained umpteen other places. I have looked, but haven't found a clear answer. So here's the question: I have 2 HR20-700s...the one in the living room has both sat inputs connected, and regularly records 2 programs at once with no problems. The HR20 in the bedroom has only 1 sat input connected, so always records the higher priority program when 2 shows conflict. Until now. Starting this week, the HR20 in the bedroom has somehow recorded BOTH shows that were on at the same time - several nights this week it has done this. Is it somehow using DoD to download the show that was lower in the Prioritizer? If not, how in the world is it that my DVR is now apparently recording 2 shows that are on at the same time, when it only has one sat input connected? I'm not complaining, just scratching my head and wondering how this could be happening. Thanks in advance.

[Drew2k]

First, profuse apologies if this question is answered or explained umpteen other places. I have looked, but haven't found a clear answer. So here's the question: I have 2 HR20-700s...the one in the living room has both sat inputs connected, and regularly records 2 programs at once with no problems. The HR20 in the bedroom has only 1 sat input connected, so always records the higher priority program when 2 shows conflict. Until now. Starting this week, the HR20 in the bedroom has somehow recorded BOTH shows that were on at the same time - several nights this week it has done this. Is it somehow using DoD to download the show that was lower in the Prioritizer? If not, how in the world is it that my DVR is now apparently recording 2 shows that are on at the same time, when it only has one sat input connected? I'm not complaining, just scratching my head and wondering how this could be happening. Thanks in advance.If the conflicting shows were on at the same time on different channels and you have only one tuner available, what you describe should not be happening. Can you please post specifics: what two programs were in conflict but ended up being recorded; what were the start and end times; did you pad to start early or end late; what channels were the shows on.

[LarryS]

Any chance OTA is connected?

[jcaldwell]

Is there a timeline for offering any HD content?

[NewsTechie]

If the conflicting shows were on at the same time on different channels and you have only one tuner available, what you describe should not be happening. Can you please post specifics: what two programs were in conflict but ended up being recorded; what were the start and end times; did you pad to start early or end late; what channels were the shows on.

Thanks for your reply. Last week, and again tonight (Tuesday), it recorded both NCIS (local CBS affiliate) and Bones (local Fox affiliate), which were broadcast 8p-9p (I did not pad start or end times). Last Wednesday, it recorded Criminal Minds (local CBS affiliate) and Private Practice (local ABC affiliate), both of which were broadcast from 9p-10p (again, no padding on the start or end). OTA is not connected, and there is only one sat input connected. I agree, this should not be happening, yet somehow it appears to be. What's also interesting is that previously, when 2 shows were scheduled at the same time, in the To Do List the lower priority show would have the Record icon with an X through it. Now the To Do List shows both shows with normal Record icons...indicating the machine knows it can record both shows at that time.

The reason I thought maybe there was a DoD feature that would download the lower priority show automatically is that my Internet connection has gotten almost unbearably slow right around the same time that this started occurring. Both this bedroom DVR and the living room DVR (which does have both tuners connected and records all of these shows) are connected to my home network.

Anybody have any ideas??

Thanks,
Brian

[Drew2k]

Thanks for your reply. Last week, and again tonight (Tuesday), it recorded both NCIS (local CBS affiliate) and Bones (local Fox affiliate), which were broadcast 8p-9p (I did not pad start or end times). Last Wednesday, it recorded Criminal Minds (local CBS affiliate) and Private Practice (local ABC affiliate), both of which were broadcast from 9p-10p (again, no padding on the start or end). OTA is not connected, and there is only one sat input connected. I agree, this should not be happening, yet somehow it appears to be. What's also interesting is that previously, when 2 shows were scheduled at the same time, in the To Do List the lower priority show would have the Record icon with an X through it. Now the To Do List shows both shows with normal Record icons...indicating the machine knows it can record both shows at that time.

The reason I thought maybe there was a DoD feature that would download the lower priority show automatically is that my Internet connection has gotten almost unbearably slow right around the same time that this started occurring. Both this bedroom DVR and the living room DVR (which does have both tuners connected and records all of these shows) are connected to my home network.

Anybody have any ideas??

Thanks,
BrianBrian - Was your bedroom HR20 recently installed, or did you have it a while? The reason I ask is that there is a new multiswitch called the "SWM", for Single Wire Multiswitcch, that provides dual-tuner functionality on the HR20 with only a single satellite line.

You can tell if you have the SWM from your satellite signal strength screens. Go to MENU > Help & Settings > Setup > Sat & Ant > View Signal Strength. You'll start on the 101° satellite, so move to the "-" (Minus) and press SELECT to go back one screen. If you don't have SWM on the bedroo receiver, you'll see the 103°(b) signals, otherwise you'll see "SWM" where you saw 101° on the previous screen.

Let us know what you find ...

By the way, have you ever tried to manually record two shows at the same time? Try this: Go to the guide, select a program on now and press (RECORD). Go to a different channel and select a different program on now, and press (RECORD). It already sounds like you have dual tuner functionality, but this will confirm it!

[NewsTechie]

Brian - Was your bedroom HR20 recently installed, or did you have it a while?

...

By the way, have you ever tried to manually record two shows at the same time? Try this: Go to the guide, select a program on now and press (RECORD). Go to a different channel and select a different program on now, and press (RECORD). It already sounds like you have dual tuner functionality, but this will confirm it!

Both of my HR20s and the multiswitch were installed in September 2006. I will do the tests you suggest over the holiday and report back. Thanks again for your help!

Brian

[NewsTechie]

You can tell if you have the SWM from your satellite signal strength screens. Go to MENU > Help & Settings > Setup > Sat & Ant > View Signal Strength. You'll start on the 101° satellite, so move to the "-" (Minus) and press SELECT to go back one screen. If you don't have SWM on the bedroo receiver, you'll see the 103°(b) signals, otherwise you'll see "SWM" where you saw 101° on the previous screen.

Let us know what you find ...

By the way, have you ever tried to manually record two shows at the same time? Try this: Go to the guide, select a program on now and press (RECORD). Go to a different channel and select a different program on now, and press (RECORD). It already sounds like you have dual tuner functionality, but this will confirm it!

Hi Drew-

OK, based on the tests you suggested, I determined that I do not have an SWM. However Tuner 2, which has no connection attached to it, is picking up some transponders from some satellites. The signal strength is considerably lower and fewer than half of the transponders that are active on Tuner 1 show any sign of life on Tuner 2. Nevertheless, many are there. And I can manually record 2 programs from local stations at once.

Here's my newest theory: The bedroom HR20 sits in a small entertainment center against the wall. On the other side of that wall is a mud room where the coax cables from the dish come in, and where the multiswitch is located. Discounting the sheetrock, the multiswitch is physically located about 3 feet, maybe less, from the bedroom HR20. I suspect the multiswitch is leaking some RF somewhere which Tuner 2 is picking up. Sound like a plausible explanation?

Curious to hear your thoughts...

Brian

[Doug Brott]

Hi Drew-

OK, based on the tests you suggested, I determined that I do not have an SWM. However Tuner 2, which has no connection attached to it, is picking up some transponders from some satellites. The signal strength is considerably lower and fewer than half of the transponders that are active on Tuner 1 show any sign of life on Tuner 2. Nevertheless, many are there. And I can manually record 2 programs from local stations at once.

Here's my newest theory: The bedroom HR20 sits in a small entertainment center against the wall. On the other side of that wall is a mud room where the coax cables from the dish come in, and where the multiswitch is located. Discounting the sheetrock, the multiswitch is physically located about 3 feet, maybe less, from the bedroom HR20. I suspect the multiswitch is leaking some RF somewhere which Tuner 2 is picking up. Sound like a plausible explanation?

Curious to hear your thoughts...

Brian


Brian,

Do you have an antenna connected to your HR20? Is it possible that one of the shows has been recorded via OTA and the other either OTA or SAT? If you have an antenna connected to your HR20, then you really have three tuners that are active instead of one.

[Drew2k]

Great question Doug - I never would have thought of the OTA tuner!

EDIT: D'oh! Looking back, LarryS asked if OTA was connected, and Brian responded later that it was NOT connected ...

The mystery deepens!

[carl6]

I am going to venture a guess, and that is all that it is - a guess.

The HR20 has circuitry which allows it to use SWM, which provides dual tuner functionality with a single coax input. That means there is some kind of signal path within the HR20 to provide the SWM channel/signal to the second tuner.

Somehow, your HR20 is using that internal path under some limited situations when both channels involved are on the same satellite and polarity, and just enough signal is "leaking through" that internal path to allow it to work.

If this is what is happening, then what you are experiencing is actually a problem, not a feature, as it really shouldn't be doing that.

I can think of nothing else that would cause this to happen, other than OTA which has already been ruled out.

Carl

[NewsTechie]

I am going to venture a guess, and that is all that it is - a guess.

The HR20 has circuitry which allows it to use SWM, which provides dual tuner functionality with a single coax input. That means there is some kind of signal path within the HR20 to provide the SWM channel/signal to the second tuner.

Somehow, your HR20 is using that internal path under some limited situations when both channels involved are on the same satellite and polarity, and just enough signal is "leaking through" that internal path to allow it to work.

If this is what is happening, then what you are experiencing is actually a problem, not a feature, as it really shouldn't be doing that.

I can think of nothing else that would cause this to happen, other than OTA which has already been ruled out.

Carl

I agree, OTA would account for everything, but it is definitely not connected. Somehow the Tuner2 input picking up some stray RF from my multiswitch is the only theory that makes any sense to me. I suppose I could do some testing and see if various scenarios improve or degrade the "reception" on Tuner 2, but I'm inclined to just enjoy this odd good fortune...until it no doubt goes away as mysteriously as it arrived. <g>

Actually, there is one somewhat annoying side effect of this phenomenon, and it is this: because Tuner2 only picks up a few transponders, channel surfing becomes an exercise in frustration. Every time the HR20 tries to switch to Tuner2 for a channel on a transponder that it can't receive, I have to manually re-enter the channel # in order to get the HR20 to switch back to Tuner1. Tuner2 does pick up the transponder that carries my locals in HD, but doesn't pick up the one with HBO, for example. :-/

Thanks all for your input. I'll continue monitoring the thread in case anyone has any revelations to offer on this...

Brian

[Drew2k]

Actually, there is one somewhat annoying side effect of this phenomenon, and it is this: because Tuner2 only picks up a few transponders, channel surfing becomes an exercise in frustration. Every time the HR20 tries to switch to Tuner2 for a channel on a transponder that it can't receive, I have to manually re-enter the channel # in order to get the HR20 to switch back to Tuner1. Tuner2 does pick up the transponder that carries my locals in HD, but doesn't pick up the one with HBO, for example. :-/
Brian - I think this points to what Carl mentioned in his response:

"your HR20 is using that internal path under some limited situations when both channels involved are on the same satellite and polarity"

[Tom Robertson]

I have tested and shown that if one tricks the HR20 into thinking a second satellite input is connected, that both tuners will in fact tune off a single satellite input--but they both have to looking for the same stack of transponders or one will fail. Unlike earlier DVRs, the satellite inputs on the HR20 are not tied directly to individual satellite tuners.

And, unlike the HR10-250, the HR20 can dual tune OTA even if the HR20 knows that it only has one satellite input connected.

As was pointed out, part of this circuitry is likely to support the SWM, and it also supports the third satellite tuner which receives guide data (and perhaps other information) without interfering with the dual recordings.

Happy Holidays!
Tom

[NewsTechie]

Brian - I think this points to what Carl mentioned in his response:

"your HR20 is using that internal path under some limited situations when both channels involved are on the same satellite and polarity"

Sounds reasonable.

Now all this has me thinking maybe I should switch to an SWM. Realizing this may not be the proper thread to discuss it, but how much does it cost? Can I order it from D*? Any downsides to using SWM over a traditional multiswitch (in my living room, my HR20 has both tuners connected using the traditional 2-wire method).

Thx,
Brian

[Michael D'Angelo]

Sounds reasonable.

Now all this has me thinking maybe I should switch to an SWM. Realizing this may not be the proper thread to discuss it, but how much does it cost? Can I order it from D*? Any downsides to using SWM over a traditional multiswitch (in my living room, my HR20 has both tuners connected using the traditional 2-wire method).

Thx,
Brian

Right now the SWM's are only available in a few test markets and I am not sure what ones they are.

DirecTV has not said how much they will cost when you are able to purchase them.

There is no downside to using one. I have been using one for almost 6 months now and have not had one problem.

[JACKIEGAGA]

Dont know where to post this if it a 0x1d4 issue or DOD. Mods move if necessary. Here is my problem I tried to DL SAW 2 from TMC and it said Would you like to add this channel. I have HBO,STARZ,SHO, TMC.

[drx792]

Dont know where to post this if it a 0x1d4 issue or DOD. Mods move if necessary. Here is my problem I tried to DL SAW 2 from TMC and it said Would you like to add this channel. I have HBO,STARZ,SHO, TMC.

I have the same problem. It seems like the channel hasnt been "fully" activated yet.

[Casey21]

Networked my HR20-700 this afternoon. Everything went fine. My menu shows the On Demand option. When I click it, nothing happens. Nothing on channel 1000 yet either. Any idea how long this takes before I can see anything? Obviously, D* has to "switch" it on from their end. Just looking for a consensus on how long it takes. Thanks.

[Lord Vader]

It could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few weeks. Be patient.

[Casey21]

It could take anywhere from a few minutes to a few weeks. Be patient.

Thanks for the information, Lord Vader! I'm very patient - just curious of the timeframe.

[davring]

Networked my HR20-700 this afternoon. Everything went fine. My menu shows the On Demand option. When I click it, nothing happens. Nothing on channel 1000 yet either. Any idea how long this takes before I can see anything? Obviously, D* has to "switch" it on from their end. Just looking for a consensus on how long it takes. Thanks.

I have hooked up three HR20's, to VOD,and it took a only a few minutes to show up in the menu and a couple of hours for the channels to be listed and it was overnight before the content was fairly well populated.

[Casey21]

I have hooked up three HR20's, to VOD,and it took a only a few minutes to show up in the menu and a couple of hours for the channels to be listed and it was overnight before the content was fairly well populated.

Thanks, Davring! The set up and networking went super smooth so, hopefully, this next piece will be just as easy :-)

[davring]

Thanks, Davring! The set up and networking went super smooth so, hopefully, this next piece will be just as easy :-)

Have fun, enjoy, Happy Holidays:)

[Casey21]

Have fun, enjoy, Happy Holidays:)

Happy Holidays to you as well!!!:sure:

[sailermon]

This basic question may have been answered before, and if so, my apologies.

Why in the heck would I want DoD??? I have most of the channels, they are in HD, and I can record and watch when I want. Am I missing something?

[Tom Robertson]

Sailmon,

DoD has a couple of places in the viewing experience: 1) you missed an episode of a favorite show because of (insert any problem here); 2) you don't want to venture out into the nasty weather of your climatic region to get that movie from Blockbuster (and can't wait for the next netflix delivery); 3) you find an item in the library of DoD that will eventually show up again on your favorite cable channel, but who knows when :); 4) your 2 year old wants to watch *it* NOW! :D

I'm sure there are other uses for DoD, and it might not be for everyone until the library of available content gets that item that works for you and your family.

Happy Holidays!
Tom

[faust0068]

I think so far the service is pretty good. Granted I'd like more shows, or at least full seasons instead of hit or miss episodes. But over all I am happy with it, and look forward to a full roll out.

[rfrogers1]

anybody else having problems? signed up on site to add a2nd high def rec..dtv called 3 times today to verify.but could not get message.just a mumble and a hang up.then after 3rd call left a message with a number to call.got a message when i called it and then they hung up.ive had nightmares with the website ,it just went down by the way.and now this.whats up with there service.been a customer for 14 years

[ICM2000]

Anyone else not able to tune 1000 - all other DOD seems to work?

[RAD]

Anyone else not able to tune 1000 - all other DOD seems to work?
Works OK for me.

[ICM2000]

Thanks for the reply. Just checked my other HR20 works there. Time for a reset

[garydhunter]

Sailmon,

DoD has a couple of places in the viewing experience: 1) you missed an episode of a favorite show because of (insert any problem here); 2) you don't want to venture out into the nasty weather of your climatic region to get that movie from Blockbuster (and can't wait for the next netflix delivery); 3) you find an item in the library of DoD that will eventually show up again on your favorite cable channel, but who knows when :); 4) your 2 year old wants to watch *it* NOW! :D

I'm sure there are other uses for DoD, and it might not be for everyone until the library of available content gets that item that works for you and your family.

Happy Holidays!
Tom

I am with Tom, we have 4 grandchildren and we don't make a habit of recording Hanna Montana or the other Disney Stuff so the DOD comes in real handy for their last minute sleep overs!

[buggs1a]

What the heck is this requiring you to have a fast connection to the net to use On Demand? That should be via the sat, not yer own internet. Will this mean no HD OnDemand?

I love Comcasts On Demand, so hopefully DTV will have it as good as Comcast.

[spartanstew]

Will this mean no HD OnDemand?


Since there already is HD DOD, I'd say it doesn't mean that at all.

[TheRatPatrol]

Anyone else notice that there are 3 PPV HD movies available now for download?

"Evan Almighty"
"The Hoax"
"Mr Brooks"

[RAD]

Yep, they've been there for a couple of weeks.

[spartanstew]

Anyone else notice that there are 3 PPV HD movies available now for download?

"Evan Almighty"
"The Hoax"
"Mr Brooks"

Anyone else notice that todo was never removed?

[TheRatPatrol]

Anyone else notice that todo was never removed?
Really? :rolleyes:

[wexler42]

I am having problems with DoD downloading shows. I have queued multiple shows but all of the shows show "Paused" in them. If I "unpause" the download, I get a 0% "downloading" bar and then it goes back to Paused. From my firewall I see that the device is trying to use port 80, which should be fine, but for some reason I can't download anything. Is there some other port that needs to be opened? Has anyone else had this problem?

Thanks for your help,

Marty

[davemayo]

Anyone else not able to tune 1000 - all other DOD seems to work?

I get a message Ch. 1000 not available, but I can tune to the other channels.

[davemayo]

I get a message Ch. 1000 not available, but I can tune to the other channels.

Menu resent did not solve the problem. Still have Ch. 1000 not available.

[puffnstuff]

Menu resent did not solve the problem. Still have Ch. 1000 not available.

I have the same problem . But alot of the other DOD channels are there . I know this is Beta , but can't they just keep it straight from one week to another .

[davemayo]

I have the same problem . But alot of the other DOD channels are there . I know this is Beta , but can't they just keep it straight from one week to another .

One of my HR20-100s has full DoD and the other one does not.

[difficultrun]

ICM2000 - I also lost channel 1000 during the CE. Haven't gotten it back yet. Thought maybe the spontaneous reboot earlier today might have fixed it but no luck!

[jarredduq]

ICM2000 - I also lost channel 1000 during the CE. Haven't gotten it back yet. Thought maybe the spontaneous reboot earlier today might have fixed it but no luck!

I have 3 hr20-700's running the new CE from 1/18/08, and 2 of them have lost 1000. I've rebooted both of them to no avail, so there must be other issues going on....

[JClore1950]

A general thread where people can post their views and opinions about the DoD service

I have used DirecTV's DOD service without a problem, until a few nights ago when I downloaded several programs from the Discovery Health Channel. When I attempted to play one of them I heard a loud bang and then my Onkyo TX-SR674 receiver went out. I restarted everything and tried it again with the exact same results. I tried it once more on a different recorded Discovery Health Channel program with the same results.

Has anyone else seen this happen? It was definitely not a power surge because no other electrical appliance was affected.

I have an HR20-700.

[mkstretch]

I was wondering does anyone think that the VOD downloads should be grouped with the same exact show you record. On demand is pretty good so far just looking for more HD content. Thanks.

[Drew2k]

I would like to see some sort of grouping for DoD programs, if nothing else, in their own folder in the Playlist, simply named "On Demand".

I downloaded all of the "Weeds GMA" programs ("Good Morning Agrestic!"), and they are littering my Playlist. It would be great if these could be grouped under "Weeds", "Weeds GMA", or simply "On Demand", with any other on-demand programming I downloaded.

[Sackett]

I have used DirecTV's DOD service without a problem, until a few nights ago when I downloaded several programs from the Discovery Health Channel. When I attempted to play one of them I heard a loud bang and then my Onkyo TX-SR674 receiver went out. I restarted everything and tried it again with the exact same results. I tried it once more on a different recorded Discovery Health Channel program with the same results.

Has anyone else seen this happen? It was definitely not a power surge because no other electrical appliance was affected.

I have an HR20-700.

Yes it has happened to me. It is only at the very begining and the very end. Is your system connected HDMI from D* Box to Onkyo to TV?