Topfield PVR

From XMLTVDoc
Jump to: navigation, search

Simple Install Guide For MyStuff_Extended_Info And XMLTV GUI Grabber Using Microsoft Windows

This guide was written entirely by Rhys Williams, compiled from information gathered from the Toppy.org.uk forums. MyStuff_Extended_Info is written by Bawbagg, and XMLTV GUI Grabber by Alan Birtles. This guide is written for version 0.46 of MyStuff_Extended_Info, and version 3.02.01 of XMLTV GUI.

1. Download both pieces of software

MyStuff_Extended_Info can be downloaded from Bawbagg’s homepage, and XMLTV GUI Grabber from Alan Birtles’s website.

You can download these files to wherever you want, however MyStuff_Extended_Info will need extracting from the ZIP. Please note that if this is the first time you are installing or if you are upgrading from a MEI version previous to V0.4x, you will need to pick the full download package.

2. Installing XMLTV GUI

The first step in the process is to install the listings grabber. To do this, run the xmltvgui_3.02.01W.exe that you downloaded. Simply follow the wizard, installing the grabber into the default location.

Once completed, you will have a new icon on your desktop, and a new folder in your start menu.

3. Configuring XMLTV GUI

1. Open XMLTV GUI from shortcut on you desktop or in the start menu. This will present you with the following window:

Mei image002.jpg

2. Go to Tools > Settings, and select the Grabbers tab:

Mei image004.jpg

3. Next, select the UK_RT grabber by ticking the box next to it:

Mei image005.jpg

4. Then click Channels at the bottom of the above window. This causes a new window to appear.

5. You will need to select the channels you receive by finding them on the left hand side of the window, clicking on them, and then clicking the >> button to move it to the right hand side (you will have to do this one by one for each channel). Nb – make sure you select the correct region for BBC1, BBC2, and ITV1.

6. You will end up with something along the lines of this:

Mei image006.png

7. Click ok to close this window.

8. Then click ok again.

9. You will now be returned to the first screen that we saw:

Mei image002.jpg

10. Simply close this window by clicking the red X in the top right hand corner of it.

4. Installing MyStuff_Extended_Info

Next, we must install MEI. To do this, extract the contents of the downloaded .zip folder, and run setup.exe. Again, follow the wizard.

If you are updating from an earlier version of MEI, you simply need to navigate to C:\Program Files\MyStuff_Extended_Info, and delete the MEI.ini configuration file. Then, copy the new MyStuff_Extended_Info.exe file from the download, into C:\Program Files\MyStuff_Extended_Info. Overwrite the old file.

5. Configuring MyStuff_Extended_Info

This is the final step of the process.

1. Open the MEI from start menu. You will be presented with this window:

Mei image009.png

2. Go to options, and select the first option.

3. A new window pops up:

Mei Img1.JPG

4. Select the second option, and then find the location of XmltvConsole.exe by clicking on the … button. The path should be as shown in the above screenshot.

5. The Startup parameters box defines how many days’ listings you want to grab. You can either leave this box blank to grab the default 14 days, or if you would prefer to grab fewer listings to keep the file size low, enter /dn, where n is the number of days listings to be grabbed. So for example, /d8 would grab 8 days listings. Please note that the maximum is 14 days.

6. Click OK

7. You will now be back to the first window. Here, you will need to enter the location of the XMLTV configuration file in the first text box. Click on the … button, and browse to C:\Program Files\XMLTV GUI\data.xml

8. Finally, enter where you want to export the listings data to. It must be called “MyStuff.mei”, but otherwise can be placed wherever you want. This will be the file you upload to your Toppy. The window will now look like this:

Mei Img2.JPG

9. Click exit.

6. Grabbing Listings

That is nearly all you need to do to be able to simply download listings from the Radio Times website, and convert them into a format that MyStuff on your Toppy can read. You can configure XMLTV GUI further, see the next section for ways to do this. To grab listings, open MyStuff_Extended_Info from the start menu, and click the go button.

Mei Img2.JPG


A command window will then open, and run the grabbing process automatically: Mei Img3.JPG

When this is complete, the command line will close, and MEI will come back into action.

The first time you grab listings through MEI, you will need to map the grabbed channels to the correct channel number on your Toppy. A new window will pop up: Mei Img4.JPG

All you need to do is enter the correct channel number for the channel name, via the drop down box highlighted. You can find a list of channel numbers and names here: http://www.unsatisfactorysoftware.co.uk/dtt/dtt.cgi . When all channels have been mapped, MyStuff_Extended_Info will convert the XML data into MEI data:

Mei image018.png

Once the green bar is all the way across the screen, the entire process is complete, and you can click exit. All you have to do now is upload the MyStuff.mei file to your Toppy.

In the future, to grab listings:

  1. Open MyStuff_Extended_Info from the start menu,
  2. Click go,
  3. Let the process run,
  4. When the green bar in MEI is all the way across the screen, click exit,
  5. Upload the MyStuff.mei file to the Program Files folder on your Toppy, via

Altair.

7. Advanced XMLTV GUI Options

The most common advanced settings in XMLTV GUI Grabber that you are likely to encounter are Postprocessors. These options are used to process your listings after they have been gathered, and can be accessed from the settings menu. Below you will find a brief description of them.

  • UK_RT_Alt_RT: sets the channel ids to the radio times ones.
  • UK_RT_Alt_Text: allows you to use the altchids.txt file from a previous version of XMLTV Grabber.
  • UK_RT_Free_Limit: limits Freeview channels that only broadcast for part of the day (e.g. abc1).
  • PrgDets: alters the program details, e.g. adding film: to the title of films.
  • UK_RT_Alt_XMLTV: converts channel ids to XMLTV ones.
  • UK_RT_Plus_One: generates listings for +1 channels like more4+1 (not necessary at the moment as Radio Times now provide more4+1 listings).

Simply select the options you want, and press OK to save your preferences.

External links