# Comcast Emergency Message Interruption



## alleybj (Dec 6, 2000)

I've lost a few minutes of a number of recordings due to these emergency messages. Is there a setting that would allow the recordings to proceed without interruption (and without recording the emergency message rather than the tv show)? thanks


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

alleybj said:


> I've lost a few minutes of a number of recordings due to these emergency messages. Is there a setting that would allow the recordings to proceed without interruption (and without recording the emergency message rather than the tv show)? thanks


unfortunately no. These messages in my area force all turners to tune to the weather channel which I am sure they use to broadcast the message. There is no way to record your show as the channel is not available during the broadcasted message.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

alleybj said:


> I've lost a few minutes of a number of recordings due to these emergency messages. Is there a setting that would allow the recordings to proceed without interruption (and without recording the emergency message rather than the tv show)? thanks


In your case it may not be an option, but if the TiVo is in Standby the EAS tests are blocked. Same for the Mini. Mine are regular in the early afternoon on Monday or Tuesday.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

JoeKustra said:


> In your case it may not be an option, but if the TiVo is in Standby the EAS tests are blocked. Same for the Mini. Mine are regular in the early afternoon on Monday or Tuesday.


Are you saying if it's recording in standby mode that the eas does not effect recordings?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

joewom said:


> Are you saying if it's recording in standby mode that the eas does not effect recordings?


That is my understanding. I have never had an opportunity to test it.


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## NorthAlabama (Apr 19, 2012)

my biggest gripe? eas interruptions are rarely emergencies, mostly tests.

thunderstorms are not emergencies when i'm watching tv at home, floods and tornados are. most tests can be conducted at any hour of the day, and can be coordinated so each agency doesn't need to issue individual weekly and monthly tests that create unnecessary repeats throughout the day.

eas alerts are so common, and so rarely useful, i generally ignore them, and i don't think that's the goal of the eas system.

you can share your thoughts with the fcc:

https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=35840


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

JoeKustra said:


> That is my understanding. I have never had an opportunity to test it.


I would be curious if that is the case. My understanding of eas broadcasts is they take over all channels therefore the TiVo has nothing else to record but the eas recording.


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## GoodSpike (Dec 17, 2001)

joewom said:


> Are you saying if it's recording in standby mode that the eas does not effect recordings?





JoeKustra said:


> That is my understanding. I have never had an opportunity to test it.


It would be sort of like testing the proverbial tree falling in the woods without anyone there.

The message also shows up if you're watching a stream, and probably a recording. Next time that happens when something is recording I'll hit standby real fast and see if there is an impact.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

NorthAlabama said:


> my biggest gripe? eas interruptions are rarely emergencies, mostly tests.
> 
> thunderstorms are not emergencies when i'm watching tv at home, floods and tornados are. most tests can be conducted at any hour of the day, and can be coordinated so each agency doesn't need to issue individual weekly and monthly tests that create unnecessary repeats throughout the day.
> 
> ...


I only see weekly test and it is not for you. It's for the officials to make sure the system is functional. Most of mine are real more in the summer for thunderstorms.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

GoodSpike said:


> It would be sort of like testing the proverbial tree falling in the woods without anyone there.
> 
> The message also shows up if you're watching a stream, and probably a recording. Next time that happens when something is recording I'll hit standby real fast and see if there is an impact.


Yes if I'm watching a recording it stops and I have to restart it.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

This has been asked/answered multiple times....


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## NorthAlabama (Apr 19, 2012)

joewom said:


> I only see weekly test and it is not for you. It's for the officials to make sure the system is functional.


of course tests are not for the public, how did i suggest otherwise?



> Most of mine are real more in the summer for thunderstorms.


i call these rain alerts, and one night they interrupted an hour-long show 4-5 times over a 40 minute period, as the warning was repeatedly extended.

what helpful action were you able to take at home following a thunderstorm warning?


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

NorthAlabama said:


> of course tests are not for the public, how did i suggest otherwise?
> 
> i call these rain alerts, and one night they interrupted an hour-long show 4-5 times over a 40 minute period, as the warning was repeatedly extended.
> 
> what helpful action were you able to take at home following a thunderstorm warning?


Bring the kids inside? Pets? I dunno. I see your point. There not as helpful as others but have their purpose. Problem is when your area of notifications is large. Mine encompasses many counties and sometimes I get warnings when not even close or will effect me.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

Bierboy said:


> This has been asked/answered multiple times....


Add one more time. What does it hurt?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

joewom said:


> Yes if I'm watching a recording it stops and I have to restart it.


Same here. Also, I have had one real alert in four years. A tornado warning. It missed me by two miles.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

JoeKustra said:


> Same here. Also, I have had one real alert in four years. A tornado warning. It missed me by two miles.


Wow that is way to close for me!!!


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## NorthAlabama (Apr 19, 2012)

joewom said:


> Bring the kids inside? Pets? I dunno. I see your point.


the thunder itself usually warns me long before the rain starts, or the eas system is activated, the warning is built in.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

NorthAlabama said:


> the thunder itself usually warns me long before the rain starts, or the eas system is activated, the warning is built in.


By the time you hear thunder it usually is already close enough to strike. I know this mostly because when I was stationed at Parris island the siren of lighting withen 5 miles would sound allot of times without the sound of one thunder clap. And if you do hear thunder it's could be too late also.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

joewom said:


> Are you saying if it's recording in standby mode that the eas does not effect recordings?


Definitely yes.

I have weekly tests at Friday and/or Saturday morning at 1AM (I can't provide proof, but I'd say I'm 99% positive which day it is has varied, though usually it's Friday).. So I TRY to remember to put my Tivos in standby so my recordings don't get ruined (Nightline & late night talk shows).. often I forget.... and it's annoying enough that if I could get a mini _very_ cheaply, I'd probably buy one and leave my Tivos in standby the vast majority of the time.

The OTHER problem is that FF is wrecked in these recordings, since after a little ways in, it suddenly jumps to the EAS section.. So I have to 30 second skip through any recording (if I'm not actively watching it that is) that was ruined by the EAS test..

Yeah, I should make an FCC complaint like I've said in the past I'd do. I know that EVERY time of day would have some people mad.. But 6am or something seems LESS likely to affect people than 1AM. (7AM would cut into the Today show, so I could see that as annoying some.)


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

mattack said:


> Definitely yes.
> 
> I have weekly tests at Friday and/or Saturday morning at 1AM (I can't provide proof, but I'd say I'm 99% positive which day it is has varied, though usually it's Friday).. So I TRY to remember to put my Tivos in standby so my recordings don't get ruined (Nightline & late night talk shows).. often I forget.... and it's annoying enough that if I could get a mini _very_ cheaply, I'd probably buy one and leave my Tivos in standby the vast majority of the time.
> 
> ...


That's interesting. I'll have to do some more research on how TiVo overrides what the cable company is broadcasting.


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## leswar (Apr 14, 2005)

In the old days TiVo just ran the text scroll across the top and you still got video without
the program's audio(Using cc solved that). So what happened?

If I get a EAS test and switch over to my Roamio OTA none of the broadcast stations are transmitting the EAS. Why does it only show on my Roamio+ cabletv unit?

We never get EAS about thunderstorms here in the lightning capital of the USA
(or tornadoes for that matter). And if we did, I have long ago disconnected my home electronics from the power grid and cable sources for those bad lightning ones.

Yes tests are for the officials not us. Why not monthly ones at this time and date. Another big bad federal agency probably justifying its existence and budget. In the 21Century shouldn't this all work well- no system bugs. IRS. USPS, AHC all work well,
er right?? Why not EAS?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

mattack said:


> So I TRY to remember to put my Tivos in standby so my recordings don't get ruined (Nightline & late night talk shows).. often I forget.... and it's annoying enough that if I could get a mini _very_ cheaply, I'd probably buy one and leave my Tivos in standby the vast majority of the time.


Problem with host in Standby is there is quite a long delay when getting a tuner. We talked about it here:http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=536869
If you stay on one channel it's ok, but moving around is really slow.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

leswar said:


> In the old days TiVo just ran the text scroll across the top and you still got video without
> the program's audio(Using cc solved that). So what happened?
> 
> If I get a EAS test and switch over to my Roamio OTA none of the broadcast stations are transmitting the EAS. Why does it only show on my Roamio+ cabletv unit?
> ...


The cable Co is broadcasting the alert not the networks. They do have their own. Here they just use a huge area in the top left corner of the TV picture with watches and warnings and a map with the highlighted counties.

Also not saying it is but if you don't get EAS for thunderstorm warnings it may be that its the same reason the north doesn't get freeze warnings even though they are in the teens and here in south GA we get one if the temp is going to be 33 or below. And if it was in the low 20s or lower we get a hard freeze warning. Because it does not happen allot here and its like that for months in the north. We do get allot of storms in the summer but nothing like you get.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

joewom said:


> That's interesting. I'll have to do some more research on how TiVo overrides what the cable company is broadcasting.


I guess you mean how it can continue to record scheduled recordings?

Isn't the "switch to another channel for the emergency message" all software? I sure think it is.. So if it's "just" software, it's easy enough to not do it if it's in standby.

(I wish we could do it when NOT in standby, but apparently that's a cable labs requirement.. though vaguely analogously, I can turn off amber alerts on my phone...)


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

mattack said:


> I guess you mean how it can continue to record scheduled recordings?
> 
> Isn't the "switch to another channel for the emergency message" all software? I sure think it is.. So if it's "just" software, it's easy enough to not do it if it's in standby.
> 
> (I wish we could do it when NOT in standby, but apparently that's a cable labs requirement.. though vaguely analogously, I can turn off amber alerts on my phone...)


No it's not software unless what I read is wrong. It comes from the head end of the cable co. It overrides all channels and broadcast just the eas message.


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## tomhorsley (Jul 22, 2010)

As near as I can tell, there are actually something like 2,741 different EAS "standards" , and which one is in use in your area depends on what equipment cable companies and governments bought and when they bought it. So what the TiVo can or cannot do depends on what kind of EAS it is getting.

My favorite EAS broadcasts are the ones that start with screaming loud siren tones, then drop down to someone with a mouth full of gravel mumbling into one end of a 100 foot long culvert with a 1940's vintage carbon microphone at the other end . Absolutely no one on the planet can understand a word being said.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

My favorite is the monthly test that says page 1 of 2. Of course there's no way to see what's on page 2.


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## UCLABB (May 29, 2012)

tomhorsley said:


> As near as I can tell, there are actually something like 2,741 different EAS "standards" , and which one is in use in your area depends on what equipment cable companies and governments bought and when they bought it. So what the TiVo can or cannot do depends on what kind of EAS it is getting.
> 
> My favorite EAS broadcasts are the ones that start with screaming loud siren tones, then drop down to someone with a mouth full of gravel mumbling into one end of a 100 foot long culvert with a 1940's vintage carbon microphone at the other end . Absolutely no one on the planet can understand a word being said.


Thanks for explaining that. I couldn't figure out what the OP was talking about. The EAS in my area does NOT take over all the tuners. It does NOT interrupt any ongoing recording. It DOES switch you to a live tuner when you are watching one of your recordings- a pain but far less worse that stopping one of your recordings.


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## joewom (Dec 10, 2013)

UCLABB said:


> Thanks for explaining that. I couldn't figure out what the OP was talking about. The EAS in my area does NOT take over all the tuners. It does NOT interrupt any ongoing recording. It DOES switch you to a live tuner when you are watching one of your recordings- a pain but far less worse that stopping one of your recordings.


Yeah mine will stop playback of a recording. If recording during a eas it will record the eas. That sucks. I thought it was for now and it was recorded from days ago.


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## lessd (Jan 23, 2005)

UCLABB said:


> Thanks for explaining that. I couldn't figure out what the OP was talking about. The EAS in my area does NOT take over all the tuners. It does NOT interrupt any ongoing recording. It DOES switch you to a live tuner when you are watching one of your recordings- a pain but far less worse that stopping one of your recordings.


Exactly the same for me on Comcast Hartford CT


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

UCLABB said:


> Thanks for explaining that. I couldn't figure out what the OP was talking about. The EAS in my area does NOT take over all the tuners. It does NOT interrupt any ongoing recording. It DOES switch you to a live tuner when you are watching one of your recordings- a pain but far less worse that stopping one of your recordings.


What the heck?!?

OK, just to ask the complete obvious..

You're saying that if you're recording from lets say noon-2pm, and an EAS happens at 1pm, your RECORDING at 1pm will NOT be wrecked?

(and if you say YES, then my next question is what happens if ALL TUNERS are recording? Then I would suspect at LEAST one tuner's recording is wrecked, because by definition it has to use a tuner to SHOW you the EAS..)

I'm 100% positive that on my Premiere 4 and Roamio Pro, the recordings are wrecked (i.e. the EAS is in all recordings AND the FF is messed up as I mentioned earlier) AND I am pulled to live TV if I'm watching at that time... UNLESS the Tivo is in Standby, then the recordings aren't wrecked at all...


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## CoxInPHX (Jan 14, 2011)

mattack said:


> What the heck?!?
> 
> OK, just to ask the complete obvious..
> 
> You're saying that if you're recording from lets say noon-2pm, and an EAS happens at 1pm, your RECORDING at 1pm will NOT be wrecked?


Just as *UCLABB* stated is the way my EAS messages work.

The EAS does not affect anything recording, it is just an overlay on LiveTV. If the tuner happens to be recording, the tuner is not switched to another tuner, and the overlay is not recorded. If you are behind in the buffer, the position of the playback is not even affected. Also, mine do not have any Audio, so you still hear the program.

Cisco handles EAS messages much more gracefully than Motorola does.

Cisco even has a "Hub specific EAS suppression" which means you do not get every EAS message sent by the headend, just the ones that affect your local HUB ID.


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## slowbiscuit (Sep 19, 2006)

EAS on Comcast varies from area to area - in the better ones it's a simple scroll overlay and recordings aren't affected, in the archaic ones like mine it force tunes a channel with hideous white letters on black backgrounds, ruining all recordings. The worst are the random Amber Alerts which are basically useless for anyone watching TV in their homes.

Putting the box into standby mode (and I think power save) is the only way to avoid the recording trash.


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