Protect recordings and limiting frequency

[coilte]

I just switched from a D* Tivo to a 1h/3j system. With the Tivo you could choose to record a specific number of episodes of a show then set it to keep "until I delete". The end result was that once the episode limit was reached it would not record any new shows until the # of episodes was under the limit. Then it would record enough shows to fulfill the limit but not beyond. This meant that for a series that was on alot...like a kids program that airs 60 times a week, if you set it to keep 5 recordings once it reached 5 it would not record anymore until you deleted some. The hopper doesn't seem to support this. I was hoping you could protect a recording and it would replicate this but when you select protect it changes the # of episodes to "All". If I set it to record say "Fraiser" and keep 5 recordings it will keep recording new shows and drop the oldest using a tuner much more than I want. I just want to be able to have a few episodes stored for when I feel like watching it. This mainly effects syndicated shows that are on multiple times a week. The wife set a timer for the Big Bang Theory and since it is on multiple channels all showing different episodes it was using a tuner just for that about 4 hours some nights. Mostly at the same time as PTAT so you can see the issue.

Is there any way to change this? or replicate the tivo functions? The protect feature should have this logic in it I think.

 

[n0qcu]

The logic DISH is using is to always have the most recently aired showings saved.
Your only options are either delete your timer after x number of recordings, or us a timer of something other than all, maybe just a weekly timer so you would only record one showing a week.

 

[Tampa8]

Maybe pick a certain day and time that show is on to record it, so you get one a week or two a week..... or record more than one or two, but at times when you most likely won't be recording or trying to watch live. Then you could even bulk move them to EHD if you want.

 

[coilte]

Maybe pick a certain day and time that show is on to record it, so you get one a week or two a week..... or record more than one or two, but at times when you most likely won't be recording or trying to watch live. Then you could even bulk move them to EHD if you want.

I have been using that method...choosing mon-fri for some daily for others. What good is the protect feature...it is so limited in it's scope. I may want to protect a timers recording but I sure don't want dozens of episodes at the same time.

 

[kwindrem]

When a timer is set to keep a limited number of episodes, it keeps the most recent.

Protect only guard against deleting a recording if the DVR needs more space. You can still delete the recording without unprotecting it.

Your concern about tying up a tuner for recording these shows is valid but there's a way around it: Set these timers to the lowest priority. That way if there's a timer conflict everything else will win.

To avoid clutter, you could create a folder for these programs.

There is plenty of hard disk space on Hopper especially with the bump to 1 TB of user space with S209 saving DVR space may not be an issue. Plus there's always an external drive if you do fill up the internal.

 

[Tron2012]

On a similar note, with the new Hopper system is there a way to totally protect specific recordings, including the viewing of the description. Example, I have young kids so if I record a show like Art Mann Presents (and Art Mann fans know the show descriptions can get a bit 'interesting'!) and want to keep even the description from curious eyes, does the Hopper have an upgrade from the 722k lock by rating/channel feature. Want to lock the recorded episode from even having the description viewed unless you enter the pass code.

Or, a "locked" folder you can create where you could move recordings into and in order to even get into that folder you need the pass code. Would eliminate the need to lock individually as described above.

I know all about the general locking of shows by rating or by channel, but this is a pain at times. Even some PG-13 shows people record may have show description content or even a title that parents don't want their kids to see. Setting locks by a channel/rating gets to be a nuisance when you have to enter a pass code all the time. I know the guide will show the descriptions anyway, but another nice feature would be to lock by certain keywords in the descriptions, too. And NOT just the few ratings 'categories' assigned to shows.

Always been a frustration that Dish didn't add a simple function like allowing a lock (not just a protect from delete) on specific recordings and not based only on rating or channel.

 

[coilte]

When a timer is set to keep a limited number of episodes, it keeps the most recent.

Protect only guard against deleting a recording if the DVR needs more space. You can still delete the recording without unprotecting it.

Your concern about tying up a tuner for recording these shows is valid but there's a way around it: Set these timers to the lowest priority. That way if there's a timer conflict everything else will win.

To avoid clutter, you could create a folder for these programs.

There is plenty of hard disk space on Hopper especially with the bump to 1 TB of user space with S209 saving DVR space may not be an issue. Plus there's always an external drive if you do fill up the internal.

This is all good information but the real issue isn't a conflict with timers. With a limited number of tuners for 3 people it would be great to have a bit more granular control. If I have a timer set for a show in syndication and it airs every evening from 8-10 I dont want to dedicate a tuner to record 4 episodes daily when in reality I just want a few episodes to watch from time to time. I could set the recordings manually but then when I delete a show I have to go to the guide and look for another to replace it.

It severly limits available tuners for live tv with 3 people setting timers and everything. We had no issue scheduling recordings with our old 2 tuner tivo that had this functionality.