[vdr] Re: Some questions about plugin-features of vdr-developer...

["Rene Bartsch" <vdr@bartschnet.de>]

> In the new year, Klaus Schmidinger wrote:
> > > oh yeah, and I am beginning to write a patch to vdr to allow the use
of
> > > service id instead of number.  In the case where my channels.conf gets
> > > rewritten every few hours, picking up real changes, the channels can
> > > easily become renumbered from under me.  Since I am familiar with the
> > > service id's, I see very little use for Channel->numver().  Therefore
I am
> > > carefully looking at each use of channel->number() and trying to
decide
> > > how to use the service id.  It is hoped eventually the number would go
> > > away.
> >
> > Do you really think this is a good idea? At least towards the user
channel numbers
> > are the natural way to go. I want to have my channels numbered 1, 2,
3,...
> > and not 20435, 10234, 12549,...
> >
> It would be nice, but users have the service id published.  People
> familiar with Dish Network, for example, probably want to use the Dish
> Network channels, not some new number to memorize.  I would like to be
> able to type 300 and HBO-E pops up, but because the desire exists for
> unique service id's, 10300 is a compremize.
>
> > > I understand that the only _UNIQUE_ identifier for a channel is its
> > > number, but since that is an internal vdr thing, I can see ways that
> > > renumbering the channels.conf could have desasterous effects on
automated
> > > tasks etc.
> >
> > Ok, that's true, since timers.conf and channels.conf are connected via
the
> > channel numbers. But removing the channel numbers alltogether IMHO is
not the
> > way to go. Towards the user they must always be numbered 1, 2, 3,...
> >
> Perhaps the option for both should exist.  After I'm finished writing the
> automated discovery, a user might find that channel 105 is no longer
> channel 105 because a channel was added or removed somewhere in the
> network.  As a user, I might become quite unnerved to find that channel
> 300, which was PBS Kids, is now SexTV because some transponders became
> unreachable or something.  It would mean a user couldn't jump around from
> channel to channel, guaranteeing he must look through the menu to find his
> favourite channel.
>
> I don't know about you, but there are almost 1200 channels in my
> channels.conf.  Can you imagine trying to get from USA Network (your
> channel 2) to BBC World, channel 20501? It's about a thousand channels
> _that way_ actually it's channel #939, if memory serves.  I know that I
> can remember 501, because that is a published number, and I know which
> provider it is on, so adding the 20 is easy to remember.

What about using two different IDs? VDR internally can use the combination
of
transponder and serviceID. This would ensure automated processes like timers
working well. For OSD-purposes VDR can use a numbering from 1 to n.
When restarting VDR any channels having no OSD-ID yet get numbered from 1 to
n
depending on the numbers being free. An if the user wants he can assign his
special OSD-IDs to the channels. This also would allow a simple management
of a favorite list, as there is a unique, static identifier for each
channel. So we'd only need
a additional field for the OSD-ID in channel.conf (or Klaus' new setup).

Rene