[mythtv-users] Record only HD or prefer HD over SD

[Michael T. Dean]

On 02/03/2010 03:27 PM, Yeechang Lee wrote:
> Mike Dean says:
>   
>> The point is that when you set channel and input priorities, Myth
>> will /no longer/ always record the first showing--even if there are
>> available inputs (meaning it will leave inputs unused when shows you
>> want to record, but haven't yet recorded, air).  Therefore, you
>> /could/ have recorded the show when it first aired, but you didn't
>> because you set your channel priorities such that Myth said, "Simon
>> would rather record it on the other channel, so I won't record it
>> now."
>>     
> But neither I nor Christian want to always record the first showing of
> a program. Within the two-week period that a given SchedulesDirect
> feed covers, a movie might very well air on HBOHDP, HBOP, HBO, HB2P,
> HBO2, HBOSIG, and HBOSIGP, and the first airing is quite possibly not
> going to be on HBOHDP (guaranteed, actually, since HBO--the Eastern
> time-zone SD feed--will always air it three hours before
> HBOHDP/HBOP). Even making HBOP invisible (the right thing to do, given
> its exact redundancy with HBOHDP) doesn't change the situation.
>
> (This situation is replicated with The Movie Channel, CineMAX, Starz!,
> and Showtime.)
>
> Since I want the same thing Christian asked for--the scheduler
> choosing the HD version of a program if available--I thus give HBOHDP
> and other HD channels a higher priority than for others, and also bump
> up Recording Priorities|HDTV Recording Priority two notches. This has
> worked very nicely for my 4+ years using MythTV. If there is a better
> way of achieving my goal, I'd love to hear it.
>   

And as long as you realize you're saying, "I'd rather miss this show
than record the standard-definition version," that's fine (because
that's exactly what you've told MythTV).

> As noted above, I do mark redundant SD channels as not visible in the
> lineup; there is no point cluttering up the scheduler (or the EPG)
> with SD channels that are 100% duplicated by HD counterparts. "100%
> duplicated" means both content *and* time zones; I do not mark HBO
> invisible.
>   

Note, though, I responded only to his one comment.  Sure, it's easy to
say, "In the most-simplistic situation with one recording rule and and 2
showings of a program, it can't fail."  But you (as was I) are leaving
out a /lot/ of cases where it will cause failures (and potentially even
failures to record shows /other/ than the one that appears on both the
standard-definition and the high-definition channel).

Regardless, I give up.  Read the HOWTO (
http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-12.html ) or don't, whatever you
want.  Either way, live with the results, and please don't complain when
MythTV does exactly what you told it to do.

If you agree with all the potential consequences of your configuration,
then it's a good configuration for you--but, I would prefer that people
explain /all/ of those consequences before they recommend that
configuration to others.

If you're ignorant of all the potential consequences of your
configuration and you don't care, then it's probably a good enough
configuration for you--but maybe then you shouldn't be recommending that
configuration to others (without at least telling them there are
consequences and referring them to
http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-12.html ).

All I've ever been trying to say is that anyone should really read /and/
understand all of http://www.mythtv.org/docs/mythtv-HOWTO-12.html before
changing any input or channel priorities.

Mike