# Shows in Segments



## hookbill (Dec 14, 2001)

Has anybody had any problem with recording a show and then it is shown in segments as opposed to one complete show?

For example you record House on Fox HD, and it appears in now playing like this:

House.....45 minutes
House.....14 minutes
House......01 minutes

I have a non Tivo HD DVR but I am hearing that this is an issue that seems to be related exclusively to FOX and other HD DVR's are having the same issue.


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## JayDog (Jul 15, 2004)

Never seen/heard of that before...


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## yogre (Feb 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by hookbill _
> *Has anybody had any problem with recording a show and then it is shown in segments as opposed to one complete show?
> 
> For example you record House on Fox HD, and it appears in now playing like this:
> ...


Well, if the TiVo reboots for some reason while recording, you might get:

House... 32 minutes
House... 21 minutes

There will be a chunk missing in the middle while the TiVo was rebooting and aquiring the Sat signal.

As for your example, I've never seen that happen.


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## leesweet (Mar 13, 2004)

Sure you're not having poor signal problems or power issues? Reboots will do this, of course, but you'd not get the total to be 60 minutes, as was said. It takes a minute or so for the unit to reboot!

Signal drops could cause it to end the recording and come badk with a new one. Anything between your antenna and the station? Or, if this was from the sat HD feeds, any bad weather, etc.?


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## videojanitor (Dec 21, 2001)

Hmmm, I record "House" every week on my HD TiVo, from an OTA signal, and never had that problem. It's one continuous 60 minute recording.


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## hookbill (Dec 14, 2001)

Not OTA....It's from Adelphia Cable. Not power problem, I have UPS back up.

I just wanted to check and see what you guys have heard. Maybe TiVo HD DVR's don't have this problem. As I said, I heard "other" DVR's besides mine had it.


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## rminsk (Jun 4, 2002)

So your saying this did not happen on the HR10-250 but on the cable DVR. Completely different products and who knows how stable the cable unit is.


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## leesweet (Mar 13, 2004)

Cable DVR?! If you are going to post in this forum that's for the HR10-250 about a totally different product, it helps to give details like that...


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## JayDog (Jul 15, 2004)

Chalk that one up to another reason TiVo is the best DVR out there...


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## alaskahill (Dec 21, 2001)

Have you looked at the segments yet? Maybe it is a sophisticated feature that is only available on your cable DVR, where the commericials are separated into the 14 minute segment, the show is in the 45 minute segemnt and next week's preview is in the 1 minute segment ? That would certainly give your cable DVR an advantage over the Tivo...


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## hookbill (Dec 14, 2001)

> _Originally posted by leesweet _
> *Cable DVR?! If you are going to post in this forum that's for the HR10-250 about a totally different product, it helps to give details like that...  *


I said in my opening post that this was a non TiVo DVR. The reason I posted here was just to see if you guys were having any problems.

Sorry for any confusion.


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## leesweet (Mar 13, 2004)

Whoops, my semi-bad!  I guess I read that as other satellite DVR or something.... but, giving the brand may have gotten a better answer since people may have both here. Asking the question in HD Hardware at AVS here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=25 would get you a much better answer.


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## JayDog (Jul 15, 2004)

Don't feel bad Lee, I didn't catch that in the OP either.... 

Recording in Sements... blah blah blah ... anyone seen this?


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## Runch Machine (Feb 7, 2002)

The problem is not with Fox, but with the DVR. Which model DVR is it?
I used the Time Warner SA8000HD on a free trial offer. It was so bad we sent it back before the free trial was up and spent the money for HD Tivo. It didn't make sense to spend all that money on an HDTV and connect a receiver to it that has less than the best PQ. It was more like DVD than HD.


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## pacbellguy (Jan 27, 2004)

I posted this in another thread referring to last Wednesday night referring to my D* HD Tivo. 

"I had something very similar happen to me last night, but with FOX West Americian IDOL Directv broadcast and Smallville on WB OTA.

Each show recorded about 26 minutes of the hour, then there was another Now Playing choice for the 2nd half. So my Now Playing list showed 2 American Idols and 2 Smallvilles. 
The first half of Americian Idol had bad picture quality. It seemed to skip in time and had picture break ups. When I went to the 2nd half, it was much better quality. Haven't watched Smalleville yet to see if it works out the same.
It's almost like the quality got so bad, the Tivo stopped recording both shows and then started again.
I receive my OTA from Sacramento (Walnut Grove)"

Since then, I watched Smallville and it had the same problem as AI. First segment of 26 minutes had breakups and actual time lapses. I didn't have any kind of power outage.


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## hookbill (Dec 14, 2001)

> _Originally posted by Runch Machine _
> *The problem is not with Fox, but with the DVR. Which model DVR is it?
> I used the Time Warner SA8000HD on a free trial offer. It was so bad we sent it back before the free trial was up and spent the money for HD Tivo. It didn't make sense to spend all that money on an HDTV and connect a receiver to it that has less than the best PQ. It was more like DVD than HD. *


I don't think its the DVR. It's the SA 8300 running SARA 1.85.17.3. What it looks like is like it looses the signal and then immediatley trys to record.....BUT....tonight I noticed some other problems on other recordings during last night as well. I double checked my connections and since I splice off into a VCR as well I did see a couple of those connections were a little loose. That may have had something to do with it. However I know a Beta tester in the AVS forum who is reporting to me that this may be something that FOX is doing to keep DVR users from recording the Super Bowl. That claim is just a rumor.

I started with this actually in the AVS forum and since they told me some non SA DVR'S were also having this problem that is why I came here. Obviously you folks are not having this concern.


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## leesweet (Mar 13, 2004)

I love these FUD 'theories'. Why would Fox care if you recorded the SB, and what technology are they going to use? Dropping the signal strength so they get all viewers upset? And you still get it recorded, just in pieces.

In any case, I recorded the whole thing starting at 6:00 PM, and didn't have any problems.


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## twinches (Feb 11, 2005)

Actually I have the same problem. I'm using the explorer 8300HD through BrightHouse networks in Tampa FL. I have contacted them and they have told me that it is a Fox issue and that they are currently working with Fox to resolve the issue and will be crediting my account once it is resolved. It is a Fox issue through the cable system. I'm guessing that It may not happen with everyones cable provider. Though it is only a problem with FOX HD channel. The normal Fox non-HD channel records without this issue. All other HD channels like CBS, ABC etc record fine. Also with me, the segments only break durring a comerical. I think it has something to do with the way they go from a 4:3 aspect ratio to the 16:9 HD aspect ratio. As it seems to happen only durring a comercial. Or sometimes they will forget to flip the HD switch at the network and the show will start off in 4:3 then they switch it to HD and that will cause it to create the recording segment.


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## TyroneShoes (Sep 6, 2004)

pacbellguy said:


> ...Each show recorded about 26 minutes of the hour, then there was another Now Playing choice for the 2nd half. So my Now Playing list showed 2 American Idols and 2 Smallvilles.
> The first half of Americian Idol had bad picture quality. It seemed to skip in time and had picture break ups. When I went to the 2nd half, it was much better quality. Haven't watched Smalleville yet to see if it works out the same...


And there it is...the smoking gun.

It makes a lot more sense that something could have interrupted your reception for a time than that both sources had individual simultaneous problems. It sounds like signal fade, which even heavy cloud cover (with no rain) can do. The breakups seem to confirm this even more.


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## bugmeno (Mar 29, 2006)

It has nothing to do with the hardware according to level 2 support at Austin Timewarner Cable. It is broadcast flags that FOX puts in it's shows to make you watch the program. (I am not sure if they get ratings from shows that are DVR'd) 
He said they have been doing it for 2 years on Idol and now other shows. They have also received complaints from CBS shows recently. He said they have sent a formal complaint to FOX and have not recieved a response.
When I record American Idol and try to watch another program, my DVR changes channel back to AI to force me to watch (this caused the segements). 24 and Prison Break did the same thing 2 weeks ago when I tried to watch the NCAA Championship on CBS.


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## TyroneShoes (Sep 6, 2004)

bugmeno said:


> It has nothing to do with the hardware according to level 2 support at Austin Timewarner Cable. It is broadcast flags that FOX puts in it's shows to make you watch the program. (I am not sure if they get ratings from shows that are DVR'd)
> He said they have been doing it for 2 years on Idol and now other shows. They have also received complaints from CBS shows recently. He said they have sent a formal complaint to FOX and have not recieved a response.
> When I record American Idol and try to watch another program, my DVR changes channel back to AI to force me to watch...


Well, if "level 2 tech support at Austin" says so, I guess they must know, and it must be true.

Puh-leeze! Sounds like "level 2 tech support at Austin" hasn't put enough layers of tin foil in their hats. If you really stop to think about this, how could anyone place any kind of meta-data in a digital broadcast stream that could make a STB tune AWAY from the DIFFERENT channel it is tuned to (which does NOT have this meta-data)? And why would any broadcaster risk doing this and losing their license? If a particular STB has a problem with reception that no other STB seems to have an issue with, the problem is pretty much guaranteed to be in the STB.

There is meta-data now added to all programs by every major-market station at the broadcast level, but it is only to facilitate ratings info. IOW, it lets the boxes placed in Nielsen homes identify what is being watched more accurately. It also tracks live+1 day and live+7 day PVR playback ratings. For it to actively control your STB, your STB would have to have some mechanism designed directly into it to respond to the meta-data in a manner controlled by the STB vendor, and out of the control of the content vendor. Anything else is in the realm of science fiction.

As someone speaking from inside information, FOX has no such sinister plan, and probably couldn't mount one if they did. The reason "level 2 tech support at Austin" has not received a response is because the question "level 2 tech support at Austin" is asking them is beyond ridiculous.


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## gottabekd (Apr 26, 2007)

I have a non-tivo PVR and this happens to me all the time. I replaced my PVR before I realized that it was only happening on FOX HD. When I record 24, House, Prison Break, NASCAR, or anything else on FOX I get it in up to 10 segments instead of the whole show, and at each segment break I lose some of the show. This happens on none of the other channels.

It's very annoying. I think I'll boycott FOX.


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