Since the latest STB software push (00.05.5C) some of us have experienced an increased number of lockups. At this point I cannot say for sure whether the increase is caused by the new software itself, or simply by the fact that we are "clicking" much more frequently after the update while exploring the new features of the software. In any case, it seems the lockup pattern has changed (for me, anyway), and it might be worth documenting. I hope this detailed description will help engineers at VOOM and Motorola.
Since I received the software update yesterday morning, I had 8 lockups. All of them happened when I was pressing buttons on the remote (and yes, I was pressing them a lot!) So, this doesn't look like a hardware-type lockup of a dying box, but rather like a software bug. The number of lockups is unusually high. In the past, I would see only 1-2 lockups a week on average.
Symptoms
At least half of my recent lockups resulted in a black screen with a small window in the upper-right corner showing the latest tuned channel. This is the same window that you see when you press the VOOM button, except that the rest of the screen is black. And as far as I remember, in all these cases this problem was caused by me pressing either the VOOM button or the Help button. Both of these buttons are indeed supposed to bring a small window in the corner, but then they are supposed to show the menu. It looks like the program dies just before showing that menu.
In some other cases the lockup happened when I was navigating with the Surf Bar. In these cases, I didn't get the small window, instead, the current channel simply stayed on.
Once the STB is locked, buttons stop responding (buttons on the remote and buttons on the STB too). If I press any button, I can see the amber dot on the STB blink as usual (single blink for some buttons, double-blink for others), though nothing changes on the screen. With one exception. If I press the power button on my remote - the screen goes black, as if the STB goes standby, but the green icon stays on. If I press the power button again - the picture re-appears (the same small window in the corner), while the icon turns red (!). If I press again the screen turns black and the icon turns green (!) And so on. I was able to repeat this cycle several times.
The symptoms seem to be slightly different from those I experienced in the past with the old software. For example, I don't remember seeing this small window in the corner (but then again, I didn't use the VOOM button too often in the past). Also, I don't remember being able to turn off the screen by pressing the power button after a lockup. Lockups in the past would freeze my STB completely, so that only a 6-second front-button reset or a power cycle would make any effect.
I might be wrong, but it seems to me the more often I use the remote (PG, Surf Bar, etc.) the more often I get the lockups. This morning VOOM was on for 3 hours or so, but I didn't play with the PG too much, and I didn't have any lockups. It's hard for me to establish any pattern at this point, but intensive channel-surfing might have preceded every lockup. Another factor that may or may not have any importance here: I have turned off the screen saver yesterday, and didn't have any lockups since then. It is probably a coincidence, but you never know...
If you are experiencing similar lockups since the software update, please post your observations. Also it would be interesting to know if someone has experienced the exact same symptoms as I described above (including the small window in the corner and the STB responding to the Power button on the remote) in the older versions of the software.
So, what should you do if your STB has locked up?
Either press and hold the power button on the front panel of the STB for 6 seconds, or unplug the STB for a few seconds.
Since I received the software update yesterday morning, I had 8 lockups. All of them happened when I was pressing buttons on the remote (and yes, I was pressing them a lot!) So, this doesn't look like a hardware-type lockup of a dying box, but rather like a software bug. The number of lockups is unusually high. In the past, I would see only 1-2 lockups a week on average.
Symptoms
At least half of my recent lockups resulted in a black screen with a small window in the upper-right corner showing the latest tuned channel. This is the same window that you see when you press the VOOM button, except that the rest of the screen is black. And as far as I remember, in all these cases this problem was caused by me pressing either the VOOM button or the Help button. Both of these buttons are indeed supposed to bring a small window in the corner, but then they are supposed to show the menu. It looks like the program dies just before showing that menu.
In some other cases the lockup happened when I was navigating with the Surf Bar. In these cases, I didn't get the small window, instead, the current channel simply stayed on.
Once the STB is locked, buttons stop responding (buttons on the remote and buttons on the STB too). If I press any button, I can see the amber dot on the STB blink as usual (single blink for some buttons, double-blink for others), though nothing changes on the screen. With one exception. If I press the power button on my remote - the screen goes black, as if the STB goes standby, but the green icon stays on. If I press the power button again - the picture re-appears (the same small window in the corner), while the icon turns red (!). If I press again the screen turns black and the icon turns green (!) And so on. I was able to repeat this cycle several times.
The symptoms seem to be slightly different from those I experienced in the past with the old software. For example, I don't remember seeing this small window in the corner (but then again, I didn't use the VOOM button too often in the past). Also, I don't remember being able to turn off the screen by pressing the power button after a lockup. Lockups in the past would freeze my STB completely, so that only a 6-second front-button reset or a power cycle would make any effect.
I might be wrong, but it seems to me the more often I use the remote (PG, Surf Bar, etc.) the more often I get the lockups. This morning VOOM was on for 3 hours or so, but I didn't play with the PG too much, and I didn't have any lockups. It's hard for me to establish any pattern at this point, but intensive channel-surfing might have preceded every lockup. Another factor that may or may not have any importance here: I have turned off the screen saver yesterday, and didn't have any lockups since then. It is probably a coincidence, but you never know...
If you are experiencing similar lockups since the software update, please post your observations. Also it would be interesting to know if someone has experienced the exact same symptoms as I described above (including the small window in the corner and the STB responding to the Power button on the remote) in the older versions of the software.
So, what should you do if your STB has locked up?
Either press and hold the power button on the front panel of the STB for 6 seconds, or unplug the STB for a few seconds.
