I don't mind being a beta tester, but hey, 3 of the same thing is a bit much!
On a brighter note; I am now re-doing the azbox complete re-formatting and re-installing of the menu, channel and start up skins, and you-tube fix for version 0.9.5020 in under 20 minutes..
That includes my North Americanized satellite/channel list as well!
StarGaze,
This is kind of a "pep" talk and tutorial for other members in response to your comment regarding being a "beta tester".
Regarding the recent release of three versions of the latest firmware: I find this odd. I would think that they would have re-issued the firmware under a new "unique" number. They haven't, in the past, issued and then retracted a new firmware under the same number unless they have been able to do it FAST enough to avoid it from being downloaded by anyone. Usually, they retract it and make that version unavailable and then re-issue it under a new number with the alterations.
If the firmware released is not found to be detrimental to the operation of the box, I wish that they would just release the altered version under a new number and provide the usual notations of the diffference. Evidentally they just were a bit premature in their thinking on this one.
I may download the firmware to have for posterity, but everything is working ok for me with 0.9.5020 so I stick with that.
It is always difficult to judge what to do in these cases, but for those members here who do not classify themselves as "BETA TESTERS", I recommend that you stick with a version that you trust and wait until the bold ones who are accustomed to taking risks have tried the new stuff first and tried it long enough to prove that it is acceptable. You won't be out anything by waiting a little longer to hear the debriefing reports, but you may be out something if it hoses up your box by jumping immediately to loading it.
It is a good learning experience for anyone to find out that a firmware doesn't do what it was advertised or to have to recover a box that gets locked up. But, unless you understand what you are doing, why bother with it and put yourself in that position? The position to REQUIRE help. Some of us do this because we want to so that we can assist you and we have the background and equipment to recover if need be.
I am sure that you probably read Ice's trouble with the Sonic View 360 Premium recently. It was a lot of work for him to recover that box, but he did it. If you ae not willing to accept the challenge that Ice took on to recover that box, you should not experiment to that extent and you should wait for others to test the water before you jump in. People like Ice and I and a quite a few others have been around this game for quite a long time. We are used to adversities and we can usually figure out how to recover eventually. If you are green to this stuff, I recommend that you wait for the seasoned vets to test these things out before you just jump into the pit. We usually jump with a parachute.
In short, if your box is working, don't mess with it untill you have read from folks like us indicating that it is ok. If a new firmware is released, don't be the first on your block to load it up. Let one of us do it first. Every science project needs a guinea pig, let us be that for you. We certainly will save you a lot of trouble in the long run. We usually have the resources at hand or know where to find them. And since we have been around a little bit, we have some tricks up our sleeves and some backround in similar cases that help us look for the proper answers.
If we mess up, we have back-up equipment and contingency plans already in place. If you don't have these, you will be in the dark with FTA TV until you fix it. You have to go back to the other avenues like OTA or cable or your subscription service for satellite TV. We just set that unit aside and watch FTA on another box while we research what to do next. Please understand that we experiment in this way to assist you.
Take advantage of other's work if you are not too sure of the task, be a sandbagger. It will make you more happy in the long run.
RADAR