Fire ComcastTV

Looking into alternatives for Windows Media Center to record OTA TV.

It turns out that HDHomeRun works with several different DVR packages.  Here's the score:

• Windows Media Center - Won't record to NAS.  Uses proprietary format.
• DVB-C - n/a.  Looks like a satellite recorder.
• BeyondTV - Looks interesting but $99!
• SageTV - Bought by Google.  Doesn't seem to be live anymore.
• MediaPortal - Free.  Quick investigation suggest it's a possible.  See here http://wiki.team-mediaportal.com/ and here http://www.team-mediaportal.com/.
• TotalMedia - $80 but not as good looking as BeyondTV
• MythTV - Linux only never mind what Wiki says.

Looks like MediaPortal and MythTV are worth a look.

Install HDHomeRun on TV Laptop (Asus)

• Installed from mini CD.  Went well and quick play worked.
• Configured MediaPortal as default viewer so hopefully it will configure

NOTE: While looking around I found this (http://www.4therecord.eu/) which appears to be a stand along video recorder.  Might be worth a look if nothing else works out.

MediaPortal

Might work on TV Laptop (XP supported but hardware may be a bit marginal).  Quick review of features seems OK.  Lets give it a try.

• Downloaded and installed Media Portal.
• The configuration is VERY sophisticated.  Went through it.
• Can't connect to TV tuner.  Seems to be an issue with the firewall.
• Turned out both the firewall and the defaulted TV server needed work.  This stuff is NOT for the feint of heart.
• Can't see the TV schedule.  Check online.  Looks like need some extensions.  
• Bit of mucking about trying to get tvguide to work without much luck.
• Note along the way that there is no support for hulu, netflix, or pandora.
• While it's interesting in its way it's not for our needs.
• Surrender.
• Uninstall MediaPortal.

MythTV

MythTV runs on Linux.  It's got two parts a back end responsible for recording TV and managing data and a front end that provides a viewer.  The two parts can be installed on separate machines or both on one machine.  In my case I've got an old machine with Ubuntu 10.4 in my office.  There's not much on it right now so it's a possible candidate for MythTV installation. MythTV has a web interface, MythWeb, that can potentially used as the control interface on the TV Laptop running XP.  Once things are recorded it should be possible to use XBMC to view them running form the TV Laptop.  So there's the general approach.

• Checkout Compaq Presario.  Works OK.
• Install mythbuntu 11.04
• Go through configuration nightmare.  
• Documentation and software are only loosely connected.  
• After MUCH mucking about checking multiple how to and guides seemed close to configured.  
• Frontend wanted to upgrade.  Upgrade broke mythTV!  
• On one hand I'm sure it can be made to work.  On the other it's going to take considerable fooling about.
• Shutdown.
• Install Ubuntu 10.04.  It's older and hopefully stable with a WORKING mythTV that more closely resembles the docs.  Note, that mythbuntu 11.04 has been released (prematurely in my view) in the last few days.  NOT READY FOR PRIME TIME.
• Mount live ubuntu 10.04 CD and reboot.
• It takes considerable time for things to load and get started.
• Get message
• (initramfs) Unable to find a medium containing a live file system
• This happens inconsistently.  Not sure of the cause.  Reboots seem to help.  The machine has two eide 160 GB disk and plenty of memory for a liveCD install as it's been done twice previously.
• Reboot.  Same issue.
• Power off for a bit.  Power on. 
• Ubuntu shows it's loading
• Wait for several minutes
• All is well this time
• Install
• 10.04.02
• East coast time
• USA keyboard
• Choose erase and use entire disk (1 of 2 160 GB IDEs).  This should insure a completely fresh install of a hopefully stable base OS.
• Set name, login id, password, Machine name (Amazon), login automatically (OK since will be used as a mythtv backend.
• Review configuration and install
• New ext4 FS created on sda... and installed.
• Called for reboot.
• CD ejected
• Got bunch of I/O errors and eventually a "grub>" prompt
• Not good.
• Power down and force reboot
• Things apparently went badly.  have "grub>" prompt and no boot
• Power down.  Perhaps I've got some DK problems.
• Try one last time. 
• Tried booting from a thumb drive.  No go.  Won't boot from USB.
• Mount 10.04 cd and go through another install.
• initramfs error again
• Cycle power in hopes of one last try.
• No go.  Clearly some hardware issues have developed.
• Formatted a pen drive and installed in Amazon.  Will try to use it to support ubuntu install
• Reboot CD with pen drive in USB port
• Pen drive is being frequently accessed.  Is there a memory issue with Amazon.  That would be consistent with the error message.
• CD 2 ejected!!!  Earlier I was suspicious that it was broken.  Perhaps it is and should be disconnected.
• Error comes up again.
• Disconnect cd 2 and try again.
• pulled the power and data cable from CD 2.
• reboot
• Install comes up ok.  Looks like the 2nd CD may actually be bad.
• Set USA, time zone, english, erase and use entire disk, Richard Bell, rbell01824, pw, Amazon, automatic login, approve and install
• Seemed to go well.  Screen wanted a restart.  Said yes.  CD ejected.  Closed tray.  Message "4132.77xxxx end_request: I/O error, dev sr0, sector 524496", Hit enter, Msg: will now restart, COMPAQ logo, grub, booted 
• Ubuntu booted OK
• Don't you just love intermittent hwd errors!  Fairly sure it's CD 2.
• Setup remote desktop preferences to expose Amazon desktop
• Update manager had 138 updates.  Installed them.
• Download, install, restart
• Success
• Install mythtv components
• selected: 
• mytharchive
• mythvideo
• mythweb
• mythnetvision
• mythweather
• mythmusic
• mythnettv
• mythnettv-gui
• mythgallery
• mythnews
• mythplugins
• mythtv-backend
• mythtv-frontend
• mythtv-doc
• mythtv-database
• mythtv
• mythtv-status
• mythtv-backend-master
• libhdhomerun1
• hdhomerun-config
• hdhomerun-config-gui
• installed 184 packages!!
• Configuring mysql-server-5.1
• password: usual
• password MythWeb: not checked
• use webserver exclusively with mythweb: checked
• Other computers run mythtv: checked
• Packages continue to install.  All seems well.

Now what?

Need to see how to finish install and configuration.