[mythtv-users] Commercial Flagging - whats it all about

[Nick Rout]

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 18:15:30 -0500
Jay R. Ashworth wrote:

> > >From the website:
> > Basic 'live-tv' functionality. Pause/Fast Forward/Rewind "live" TV
> > 
> > However, how can one FF live TV without altering space and time? =)
> > 
> > Seriously, what am I missing here. AFAIK the only way to FF or skip
> > commercials is with recordings.
> 
> Yup; you're correct: once you've rewound live TV, there's no way to
> catch up again.

Well in myth "live tv" IS recorded, to a large buffer file, and
simultaneiously played back to your TV. If you pause or rewind then you
will never catch up unless you skip something - but "something" might be ads.

A more concrete example: most hour long shows tend to be between 40-45
minutes plus ads. If you start the "Live TV" function at 9.00 pm, then
hit pause, then go make a cup of coffee/open a beer/tuck the children
in/go to the bathroom/open another beer it'll be 9.15 pm. Unpause it and watch from the beginning, skipping thru all the ads, and you will have
about caught up with real time by the end of the show. (I find that the
ad breaks in NZ tend to be 4 minutes, so 4 pushes of the "forward one
minute" button followed by a "back 5 seconds" tends to skip quite nicely
thanks.)

Alternatively if you may want to watch the show much later (when it may
have spun off the end of the recording buffer) you can simply use the
record button to record it, then watch it from the "recorded shows"
screen - even while it is still recording - and once again skip thru the
ads.

-- 
Nick Rout <nick at rout.co.nz>