# Is HME and Tivo dev in general still valid?



## JeffreyBurger (Aug 5, 2010)

I've been considering developing a Tivo app. Information seems to be fleeting. So any intel on the following would be greatly appreciated!

Is Tivo actually serious about empowering developers to create apps?
The last HME I find (1.4, I think) is several years old. Is it still the way to go? Does it support their current HD offerings including Tivo Premiere hardware?
Apparently the new Tivo UI is Flash. Am I correct in understanding, however, that apps still have to be developed in HME and don't support Flash?

Thanks so much!


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## wmcbrine (Aug 2, 2003)

JeffreyBurger said:


> Is Tivo actually serious about empowering developers to create apps?


Apparently not. I think they were, at one time. But as you note -- no updates.

They _have_ kept working on it -- since the last release of the SDK, they've added video streaming via HME, as well as high-definition -- but they've kept these changes pretty much to themselves. IIRC, the resolution switching is (barely) documented in the HME protocol spec, but it's not supported in the SDK nor covered in its docs. Video streaming isn't documented at all.



> _The last HME I find (1.4, I think) is several years old. Is it still the way to go? Does it support their current HD offerings including Tivo Premiere hardware?_


HME still works on the latest units, yes.

Of course I prefer HME for Python over the Java SDK. 



> _Apparently the new Tivo UI is Flash. Am I correct in understanding, however, that apps still have to be developed in HME and don't support Flash?_


If there's a way to develop in Flash, they haven't released it to the public. They still use HME pretty heavily themselves. There was a lot of speculation, when we first heard about the Flash thing, that they were going to take it as an opportunity to try to restart third-party development. So far, that hasn't happened, and I'm not holding my breath.

There is one interesting thing: on recent versions of the Premiere's software, it sends something like "active-ui-mode = flash" in one of the HME startup events. I'm not sure what the HME app is supposed to do with that, though.


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