[Mike Lang]

For TiVo http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/biggrin.gif ... http://www.avsforum.com/ubbtivo/Forum6/HTML/001996.html


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Mike Lang

TiVo Tips & Tricks,

TiVo User Survey Moderator

 

[jleavens]

Yeah, I don't quite get what it's used for?


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Remember, it's just television...

 

[DrStrange]

There probably isn't a use yet, why/how would someone develop hacks that required ethernet before there were any ethernet equipped Tivos to support them?


Even so I think it's been discovered that there is already support in the Tivo software to use ethernet if it's there for things like guide data because that's how the boxes are loaded and tested. Some people are already getting guide data from a PPP connection on the DSS serial port so I imagine doing it over ethernet can't be much different. Other things like networking Tivos together to share suggestion and recording data would be nice in the future but obviously require working ethernet first.

 

[FreezeFrame]



Why not gateway the IDE via ethernet?

 

[Samsara]

People have been using the serial port to make the daily calls, run a web server, and remotely input/output information (ala MyReplayTV) for a while. Ethernet (support for which is already built in for debugging purposes) will provide a faster connection for these things and free up the DSS port. A really fast connection will also let people transfer shows between TiVos or onto their computers.


No reprogramming is necessary. As I understand it, most changes are made with environment variables and scripts. Linux is doing all of the work in these hacks, not the TiVo software.


Samsara

 

[Richard Finegold]

Not only does it free up the DSS port, but on the other side it frees up a serial port (assuming you already have a network port available). Admittedly not as important these days with USB so widespread.

 

[karog]

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Lang: For TiVo http://www.avsforum.com/ubb/biggrin.gif ... http://www.avsforum.com/ubbtivo/Forum6/HTML/001996.html

Hey Mike, that's so spank. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[holycrap]

How could it be useful?

How about possibly:

1. Allowing you to offload recorded materials from your internal harddrive to a HD on another system - - - and allowing you to share your programming with others other via your lan or the internet.

2. Allowing you to put data ONTO your Tivo HD - perhaps copying (yes, in violation of TOS and perhaps copyright) such as pulling the program data from one (subscribed) box to another (unsubscribed) box.

 

[toots]

Certainly, the major benefit to me would be to be able to do the nightly updates via my cablemodem. I mean, I regularly get 1.75mb downloads off that thing, so it makes me feel a little crazy to see that Replay dialing in at 33.6. That, and that the cablemodem's connection seems a bit more reliable than a 33.6 PPP dialup connection.


From what I've read on the TiVo board, updates via ethernet is actually built into the TiVo software already, which is probably a major enabling and motivating force for this project.

 

[cc]

Quote:

Originally posted by seanriddle: Unless someone has source code, they had to hack the system to discover ethernet hooks in the code. That's what I was asking.

Not at all. We know the Tivo supports ethernet because 1. The Linux kernel source on www.tivo.com/linux/ has a ethernet driver configured in and 2. You can see it looking for an ethernet adapter in the boot logs. We also know it supports doing it's daily call via ethernet because the daily call scripts are just that - scripts that can be looked at. We also know Tivo's servers that it authenticates to and gets guide data from are available on the public internet.


Admittedly, Tridge's ISA adapter and network card are going to require their own drivers to be loaded (easy enough). But if someone were to (theoretically speaking) sneak into Tivo HQ and get one of their official in-house Ethernet adapters, it would plug into the Tivo and just plain work.


As far as making them talk to each other for scheduling purposes, that's not as tough as you might think. Tivo's database/file system (MFS) is very slick and makes this all very possible. I think 2.0 will make this even neater - write a simple client so that when a conflict occurs, the lower priority show gets deleted off of the main Tivo and rescheduled on another Tivo with an open time slot. All you need to do is fiddle with a few db entries. Simple!

 

[cc]

Quote:

Originally posted by FreezeFrame: Why not gateway the IDE via ethernet?

Speed. If network traffic spikes, you don't want your live buffer to start stuttering.

 

[RandyL712]

Tivo is going to add some sort of safeguard in the software, I suppose.