I've had my ShowStopper for a couple of weeks now, and it's great! This forum is also a great resource. The only problem I've had is trying to figure out what the unit will do in various situations. I've called both Panasonic and ReplayTV support several times, and found that while they're reasonably adept at providing installation support (which I didn't need), the reps know close to nothing about how the unit operates. (3 out of 4 told me that a show-based channel will record all episodes airing on that channel in a given day, which is simply not true.)
Thus I've had to figure most everything out by myself, and in the hopes of making things easier for the next inquisitive person, I thought I'd share what (I think) I know about the more esoteric operation of the Replay unit. (I am not including the obvious stuff that's spelled out clearly in the manual.) Please note that while I'm quite sure about much of what follows, some of it is still conjecture. I'd love to get feedback from people (especially you Replay folks) about all of this. It would also be great to have people add other not-so-straightforward information to this list that they believe to be relevant.
I won't get into the wish-list things like VCR-type controls or play lists... That's best left to another thread. I'm more concerned here with how to best utilize the device as it exists today.
Also, sorry about the length of this post. I'm rather new to these forums, and I hope I'm not breaking any rules of decorum by posting something of this size. Anyway... Here we go:
Q: If you have plenty of recording space available on the disk, is there any difference between guaranteed and non-guaranteed channels?
A: I've found two basic differences. First, guaranteed shows cannot conflict with each other, so you can't set up two guaranteed recordings in the same time slot. This means that a show like Big Brother is probably not a good candidate to be set up as guaranteed because it's on so often and will restrict you from recording lots of other shows (even if you're only interested in the Wednesday episode). The other difference seems to be in the amount of time you can pause (or rewind) a live show. Space for guaranteed shows is pre-allocated, and although that space still seems to be usable for non-guaranteed shows (if the space is available), it doesn't seem to be available for pausing. (I'm not sure on this point, but that is the way it appears.) Since live television is always recorded in the highest quality, this can effect things even if there's a fair amount of disk space left.
Q: Can I watch a show while the unit is recording?
A: The manual is pretty clear about how to use a splitter to watch one show while recording another, but it doesn't really go into detail about the fact that you can begin watching a recorded show before it has finished recording. I finish putting my kids to bed around 8:30, and would normally have to wait until 9:00 to begin watching an hour-long show taped from 8:00-9:00. But with the Replay unit, I can begin watching whenever I want.
Q: How often do show-based channels record shows, and what happens if the show is extended or pushed forward/backward in the schedule?
A: When you set up a show-based channel, the unit will attempt to record that show on that channel at that time every day. Regardless of how many times the show is on during the day, it will only be recorded once. If the show is not listed in the channel guide at the given time, then the PVR will look 1 hour in each direction (I don't know which direction has priority in the case of a tie), and if the show is on within that timeframe it will be recorded. If not, then the show will not be recorded for that day. Thus if "Friends" is pushed back from its normal 8:00 slot to 8:30 or 9:00, then it will still be recorded. If it is pushed back to 9:30 then it will not be recorded. If your NBC affiliate shows a Friends rerun at 7:00 every day, then that episode will be recorded each day that it's not on at 8:00. This behavior explains why the show-based channel records the occasional 9:00 episode airing on Tuesday, or all the Big Brother episodes. I've suggested that it might be better to tie the "on-or-about" recording feature to timespans such as prime-time, late-night, etc., rather than simply looking 1 hour in each direction. This would allow the unit to be smart enough to omit the 7:00 Friends rerun because it's not in prime-time. It would also allow a 9:30 or 10:00 episode to be recorded because it IS in prime-time. (I know, it's a bit complicated by the fact that prime time is 7:00-10:00 in areas like Chicago, but the unit could still figure that out.) Regarding extended episodes (special 1- or 2-hour versions), as long as the program guide knows it's a single episode (versus 2 different episodes playing back-to-back), it will be recorded in its entirety (space permitting). One last thing about show-based channels... These channels will record multiple occurances of the same episode. For example, Nickelodeon airs the same episode of the kids show "Blue's Clues" 5 days a week, and then runs a new episode the following week. A show-based channel for this show will record 5 separate instances of the same episode.
Q: A network sometimes airs multiple episodes of a show (like Friends or Frasier) on the same night. Is there a way to record all "current" (prime-time) episodes of a show?
A: Effectively... No. You can set up a theme-based channel, but then you get all the reruns, etc.
Q: What is the difference between the 2 different types of theme-based channels?
A: I found that you can set up a theme-based channel using a keyword search, OR by using the "Find all shows" option. When using a keyword, you can go back to the channel and modify the search criteria at any time. Theme-based channels set up using the "find all shows" method does not allow the search criteria (the title of the show) to be modified. Other than that, I have noticed no difference. One MAJOR benefit I have noticed in theme-based channels is that they don't seem to record multiple instances of the same episode. For example, when I set up Blue's Clues (mentioned earlier in the show-based section) as a theme-based channel, I noticed that it did not record duplicate episodes. This observation is contrary to what EVERYONE has told me the unit should be doing, but it appears to be working this way nonetheless.
Q: How do I Record a show that's not yet in the channel guide?
A: If you have a favorite movie that you want to record when it's on but it isn't in the channel guide yet, create a theme-based channel with the title of the movie. BE WARNED though, that because it's not in the channel guide, the PVR doesn't know how long it is and can't give an intelligent default regarding the size of the channel. Thus it defaults to half an hour. If you accept the default, then the movie will not be recorded. Make sure to always think about this number when setting up theme-based channels and reserve enough space for the show(s) you want to record.
Q: I've been watching a live program from the beginning, and 40 minutes into it I decide I want to record it. Can I?
A: No and yes. If you have a VCR attached and haven't changed channels on the Replay unit since the show began, then you can rewind the show back to the beginning, play it from there, and record to tape. The tape quality should be very good since live TV is recorded at the best resolution.
Q: My remote doesn't control all aspects of my TV/VCR/Cable/etc properly. What can I do about it?
A: The remote that comes with the ShowStopper is based on the same technology as the OneForAll and Radio Shack universal remotes, and has the same capabilities. (I don't know about the ReplayTV remote, which I'm told is different but may be based on the same technology.) If your device can be set up using one of the device codes in the book, but some of the functionality is wrong or missing, it's very likely that the problem can be remedied using "Advanced Codes." Advanced codes are 3-digit codes that can be accessed by tapping the Code Set button (don't hold it down until it flashes twice) and keying in the 3-digit code. After pressing the third digit, the remote will send the IR sequence associated with that code to the device. Once you have identified the code you need, you can permanently assign it to just about any key on the remote. If you already own a OneForAll or Radio Shack remote, then you can call their technical support lines and request that they send you (via fax, email, or usps) a list of advanced codes for your device. I recommend referring to
http://www.hifi-remote.com/ofa/manua....shtml?15-1994 for in-depth instructions on how to (re-)program your remote once you have the advanced codes.
