# Discovery Bar must die. Please TiVo, let me turn it off.



## Sam Lowry (Oct 17, 2002)

I could see wanting to see the Discovery Bar all the time if you haven't watched TV or movies in years, but I have absolutely no need. I am an adult, I can decide what I want to watch.

Please TiVo, let me turn it off. 

I have switched to the SD menu for now, as the HD menus aren't stable, but if they add the option to turn off the DB, I will switch back to the HD menus. Hopefully if the bar is gone, the font size for the listings could also be bigger and fill more screen space.


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## rainwater (Sep 21, 2004)

I highly doubt that will ever be possible. TiVo needs to discovery bar for revenue.


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## greensky (Mar 3, 2010)

I agree. I really didn't care for the discovery bar at all. I'd love an option to turn it off.


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## bkdtv (Jan 9, 2003)

_Discussed before, but..._

Once TiVo made the decision to incorporate the video window (can be turned off), it had to find a way to use the adjacent space along the top of the screen. Many DVR screens don't mix well with a video window. The discovery bar was TiVo's solution to use that space. Without the discovery bar, most of the space would be left unused on many screens.

I do think TiVo went overboard in its use of the the discovery bar. There are many screens where it makes sense, since TiVo couldn't effectively use the space adjacent the video window without such a feature. But there are probably a few HD screens that could take advantage of the extra space. On those screens, the discovery bar occupies space unnecessarily.

The main complaint voiced about the discovery bar--aside from its effect on UI performance--is that it offers nothing for those that don't need or want suggestions. That is a limitation of the current software; TiVo could certainly make the discovery bar useful for non-suggestions at some point. Potential enhancements include a visual To Do List that shows upcoming programs, or a visual conflict list that shows any programs that won't record due to conflict. TiVo could also add Flash-based widgets to show the current weather or stock quotes; it could show status squares for twitter, facebook, Google Voice voicemail, or text messages, similar to that seen on *Windows Phone 7*.


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## MickeS (Dec 26, 2002)

bkdtv said:


> _Discussed before, but..._
> 
> Once TiVo made the decision to incorporate the video window (can be turned off), it had to find a way to use the adjacent space along the top of the screen. Many DVR screens don't mix well with a video window. The discovery bar was TiVo's solution to use that space. Without the discovery bar, most of the space would be left unused on many screens.
> 
> ...


Agreed with every word. Except it's "Windows Phone 7 Series". 

While I enjoy the Discovery Bar in TiVo Search, it does seem much more suited to a SEARCH screen than to a "Now Playing" screen. For "Now Playing", how about using that space to show screenshots/shortcuts to the 5 latest recordings? That way, even with folders enabled or alphabetic ordering, you'd be only 1 screen away from watching the latest recordings. So many things that the Discovery bar can be used for besides purely suggestions.


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## dmiddle (Apr 7, 2010)

my issue with the discovery bar was that it was very unresponsive when the internet connect in my house was being used. the slow downs in connectivity would lock up the HD UI.

I switched back to the older UI after a frustrating weekend.


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## Hcour (Dec 24, 2007)

It's not a "Discovery Bar", it's an Ad Bar. On a device that I've paid for, in my list of my current recordings on my hard drive. Now, this may very well be the way of the future, and so be it, but let's call a spade a spade.

When someone writes, "Yeah, I also see ads on every website I go to as I bounce about the internets" and uses that as a justification for the Tivo Ad Bar, well, there's a big difference. On the web, I'm on someone else's site and they have every right to do whatever they want with it and show whatever they want to show. I choose to use their site. But when I'm in my home looking at my computer, my file manager, or my Word document, or my spreadsheet, or my desktop, that is mine, I own it. I don't want to open up Notepad to jot something down and see a small ad for a Burger King Double-Cheeseburger flashing at me from an Ad Bar. I mean, the menu bar.

What's next? I turn on my HT Yamaha amplifier and before it starts up I hear a pitch for Yamaha's latest and greatest? I turn on my Samsung HDTV and as it boots up it shows an ad for Wal-Mart?

This thing is intrusive. It goes beyond the pale of current advertising, which can be avoided for the most part, and forces it into places it hasn't been before, where it can't be avoided because it's part of the interface itself. The irony is that one of the great advantages of Tivo has always been the ability to get rid of the ads, but now the ads are part of Tivo.


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## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

Hcour said:


> It's not a "Discovery Bar", it's an Ad Bar. On a device that I've paid for, in my list of my current recordings on my hard drive. Now, this may very well be the way of the future, and so be it, but let's call a spade a spade.
> 
> When someone writes, "Yeah, I also see ads on every website I go to as I bounce about the internets" and uses that as a justification for the Tivo Ad Bar, well, there's a big difference. On the web, I'm on someone else's site and they have every right to do whatever they want with it and show whatever they want to show. I choose to use their site. But when I'm in my home looking at my computer, my file manager, or my Word document, or my spreadsheet, or my desktop, that is mine, I own it. I don't want to open up Notepad to jot something down and see a small ad for a Burger King Double-Cheeseburger flashing at me from an Ad Bar. I mean, the menu bar.
> 
> ...


Stop using the TiVo Service and you'll stop seeing what you call the "Ad Bar". Simple as that.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

The only thing I would be interested in seeing on the discovery bar is new instant watch content on Netflix assuming I have Netflix checked and Amazon $1 VOD specials, assuming you have Amazon checked, like District 9 recently. I would only want to see those on My Shows screen though. In 10 years I have never used suggestions so the discovery bar does me no good.


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## steve614 (May 1, 2006)

bkdtv said:


> Once TiVo made the decision to incorporate the video window (can be turned off), it had to find a way to use the adjacent space along the top of the screen. Many DVR screens don't mix well with a video window. The discovery bar was TiVo's solution to use that space. Without the discovery bar, most of the space would be left unused on many screens.


Yup.

Some people just HAD to have a live TV window in menus.
I hope now they regret making that request.


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

I like the Discovery bar, and surprisingly, the TV window too.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

Have you found it to show things you weren't aware of? I know this is why I never use suggestions. My TiVos have never listed anything I wanted to record.

I did think of another use for the discovery bar though of course TiVo would need to implement it. In the search window, it should show new premieres that just entered the guide within the last # of days with that number being able to set it as an option.


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## TexasGrillChef (Sep 15, 2006)

Hcour said:


> It's not a "Discovery Bar", it's an Ad Bar. On a device that I've paid for, in my list of my current recordings on my hard drive. Now, this may very well be the way of the future, and so be it, but let's call a spade a spade.
> .


Well keep in mind.. that IF you want to call it an "Ad" bar because it generates revenue for TiVo. Then DON'T forget that the item you paid for, would have been MORE expensive WITHOUT the "Ad" bar.

ie....

When you look at media... its not Black or white issue. There are gray areas...

ie....

No adds... you pay highest price...

Some adds....(limited adds) You pay a lower price...

More adds... You get free.

Think of Newspapers and Magazines. You *STILL* have to *BUY* them. Yet they are *STILL* full of advertisements. Without the ads, the *COST* of your magazine or newspaper would be higher.

Now look at the "*FREE*" newspapers & magazines. You will find in those that the advertisements make up about 50% of the entire newspaper/magazine if not even more.

Same thing applies to your TiVo

TGC


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

innocentfreak said:


> Have you found it to show things you weren't aware of? I know this is why I never use suggestions. My TiVos have never listed anything I wanted to record.
> 
> I did think of another use for the discovery bar though of course TiVo would need to implement it. In the search window, it should show new premieres that just entered the guide within the last # of days with that number being able to set it as an option.


For the box I have suggestions turned on, over 90% of the recordings are something I would watch. But my problem is that many of them are in SD instead of HD.

On the Discovery bar there are also many shows listed that I'm interested in. I don't look at them very often though and the Discovery bar is unobtrusive to me since I'm usually looking at the lower part of the screen.


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## Atomic Buffalo (Nov 21, 2002)

The Discovery bar is there to distract you from how slow the menus are. "Look up here, we're doing stuff!"


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## Phantom Gremlin (Jun 20, 2002)

MickeS said:


> Agreed with every word. Except it's "Windows Phone 7 Series".


If you're going to be pedantic, you need to keep up. It's now Windows Phone 7.


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## TrueTurbo (Feb 19, 2008)

innocentfreak said:


> Have you found it to show things you weren't aware of? I know this is why I never use suggestions. My TiVos have never listed anything I wanted to record.


TiVo Suggestions are only as good as the ratings you give the shows you like and dislike. If you spend time actually giving :up: to shows you like to watch and :down: to those you don't, over time, shows start appearing in 'Suggestions' that make sense!


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## MichaelJHuman (Aug 3, 2005)

TexasGrillChef said:


> Well keep in mind.. that IF you want to call it an "Ad" bar because it generates revenue for TiVo. Then DON'T forget that the item you paid for, would have been MORE expensive WITHOUT the "Ad" bar.


You can't prove that. Tivo has not gotten any cheaper from my perspective and they added ads.

Not sure why anyone would defend Tivo putting ads on a service I already pay for. As someone else said, it's an annoying trend.

When I was a kid, movies had ads only for the movie theater such as snack bar. Now they have regular TV style ads while you wait to watch the movie.

Restrooms now have ads while you do your business.

Where will it end?


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## TrueTurbo (Feb 19, 2008)

MichaelJHuman said:


> You can't prove that. Tivo has not gotten any cheaper from my perspective and they added ads.
> 
> Not sure why anyone would defend Tivo putting ads on a service I already pay for. As someone else said, it's an annoying trend.
> 
> ...


It has been well publicized that TiVo has been losing money for quite some time. Adding unobtrusive adds will not make the TiVo cheaper to you, but it might help TiVo raise a little more money and stay alive a little longer! I'm all for any measure that TiVo can do to stay in business without passing those costs on to me!


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

TrueTurbo said:


> TiVo Suggestions are only as good as the ratings you give the shows you like and dislike. If you spend time actually giving :up: to shows you like to watch and :down: to those you don't, over time, shows start appearing in 'Suggestions' that make sense!


This would be true if I wasn't already recording everything I wanted to record. Currently on the Premiere I check the suggestions just to make sure there is nothing I missed since I didn't bother copying my season passes down.

When you have about 150+ season passes per TiVo with many more thumbs up, suggestions seems to fail and get confused or at least the suggestions don't help. I have also had where every suggestion is something I have already given a thumbs up in the past.


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

MichaelJHuman said:


> You can't prove that. Tivo has not gotten any cheaper from my perspective and they added ads.
> 
> Not sure why anyone would defend Tivo putting ads on a service I already pay for. As someone else said, it's an annoying trend.
> 
> ...


This is the 21st century not the 20th century. Things change. Advertising in the 21st century is not like it was in the 20th century.


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## RoyK (Oct 22, 2004)

aaronwt said:


> This is the 21st century not the 20th century. Things change. Advertising in the 21st century is not like it was in the 20th century.


You're right, of course. Ads now are pretty much everywhere including all over TiVo.

What's your point? That it is a good thing? You'll get a lot of debate on that.

==========
The above commentary courtesy of Bojangles'. "gotta wanna needa getta hava Bojangles'"


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

RoyK said:


> You're right, of course. Ads now are pretty much everywhere including all over TiVo.
> 
> What's your point? That it is a good thing? You'll get a lot of debate on that.
> 
> ...


I guess the point is they are everywhere now. I have no problem with them as long as they are not in your face. And the ads on tiVo are not obtrusive to me.


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## Innerloop (Sep 10, 2000)

I also like the Discovery bar. Now that things are moving to HD, there is plenty of real-estate and I've definitely discovered shows that I would not have recorded without it. 

It really takes the place of the old "Showcases" which started out (waaaay back when) as new shows or things you maybe WANTED to know about, but gradually became nothing but paid ads. 

As long as the Discovery bar remains skewed mostly toward things I might want with the occasional paid ad (or best yet, stuff I want that Tivo also gets paid for), I think its a much better approach than the old Showcasese that no one went to. 

Just make it fast, relevant, and non-repetetive. 

I think it also makes the UI screens a lot more modern-looking and colorful. In a good way.


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## nrc (Nov 17, 1999)

One very promising application for the Discovery Bar that TiVoPony mentioned was that it could eventually become a dock for some of your other favorite places in the TiVo interface. You could, for example, put a control up there to show you new movies, top picks, etc.


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## lessd (Jan 23, 2005)

nrc said:


> One very promising application for the Discovery Bar that TiVoPony mentioned was that it could eventually become a dock for some of your other favorite places in the TiVo interface. You could, for example, put a control up there to show you new movies, top picks, etc.


As an option that will be great for some people but the user should control this bar as to on or off, if as, example, i want more room for my now playing list that should my option.


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## ZeoTiVo (Jan 2, 2004)

MichaelJHuman said:


> Restrooms now have ads while you do your business.
> 
> Where will it end?


minority report -

imagine the embarrassment when ads can recognize your identity and start to sell you on enlargement pills in the restroom


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## TexasGrillChef (Sep 15, 2006)

ZeoTiVo said:


> minority report -
> 
> imagine the embarrassment when ads can recognize your identity and start to sell you on enlargement pills in the restroom


Hmmmm... so the add will recognize that you need the enlargement pills? LOL!

That wouldnt' be so bad. The public bathrooms would be nice and quiet for me then! 

TGC


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## ZeoTiVo (Jan 2, 2004)

TexasGrillChef said:


> Hmmmm... so the add will recognize that you need the enlargement pills? LOL!
> 
> That wouldnt' be so bad. The public bathrooms would be nice and quiet for me then!
> 
> TGC


Yeah - I just wish they would warm the water


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## tootal2 (Oct 14, 2005)

You could just unplug your internet from tivo and the discovery bar wont work.



Sam Lowry said:


> I could see wanting to see the Discovery Bar all the time if you haven't watched TV or movies in years, but I have absolutely no need. I am an adult, I can decide what I want to watch.
> 
> Please TiVo, let me turn it off.
> 
> I have switched to the SD menu for now, as the HD menus aren't stable, but if they add the option to turn off the DB, I will switch back to the HD menus. Hopefully if the bar is gone, the font size for the listings could also be bigger and fill more screen space.


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## RichB (Apr 2, 2003)

lessd said:


> As an option that will be great for some people but the user should control this bar as to on or off, if as, example, i want more room for my now playing list that should my option.


+1.

The main window could start higher with no overlap.

- Rich


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## joblo (Jun 5, 2002)

bkdtv said:


> The main complaint voiced about the discovery bar--aside from its effect on UI performance--is that it offers nothing for those that don't need or want suggestions. That is a limitation of the current software; TiVo could certainly make the discovery bar useful for non-suggestions at some point. Potential enhancements include a visual To Do List that shows upcoming programs, or a visual conflict list that shows any programs that won't record due to conflict. TiVo could also add Flash-based widgets to show the current weather or stock quotes; it could show status squares for twitter, facebook, Google Voice voicemail, or text messages,


And yet, 5 years later, TiVo has done none of this. Because:



Hcour said:


> It's not a "Discovery Bar", it's an Ad Bar.


Exactly.

Which is why the HD UI will probably never be finished, or already is finished, depending on how you look at it. Most of the little trafficked settings screens will probably retain the Classic  TiVos word for the old UI in the Premiere System Information screen  look, because TiVo cant get positive ROI from putting ads on those screens.



aaronwt said:


> I guess the point is [ads] are everywhere now. I have no problem with them *as long as they are not in your face.* And the ads on tiVo are not obtrusive to me.


But thats precisely my problem with the ad bar. I consider the ads and the unwanted recommendations very much in my face. In fact, the ads  when properly labeled as such  dont offend me nearly as much the so-called recommendations, which are really also ads, in the form of targeted product placement.

The whole HD UI, with 5 years hindsight, can now be seen as essentially a long con, to disguise, albeit thinly, TiVos takeover of screen real estate for ads and product placement.

The $64K question today is, *is OnePass another such con?*


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

To me it's a discovery bar. Because I have discovered a bunch of programs over the years that I otherwise would not have watched. And I only too a loom at them because they showed up on the Discovery Bar.


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## b_scott (Nov 27, 2006)

my beef with the discovery bar is after I delete a program it shouldn't still say "watch X, it's in My Shows"


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## opus472 (Jul 4, 2007)

Unchecking all the boxes in Settings > Customize Discovery Bar seems to have no effect. Any idea what that's actually supposed to accomplish?


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

Those boxes just fine tune what shows in the discovery bar.


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