Using Channels DVR with Dish Anywhere as a source

dweber

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Jul 29, 2005
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Provide Channels with a source.

Channels is not a streaming provider. Channels works with existing sources of live TV. Use your antenna or cable with a TV tuner. Sign in with your cable or streaming provider. Or even add your own live streaming channels. Mix and match to get as many channels as you can.

I understand how the HDHomerun Flex 4K would work as a source for the Channels DVR. But I am intrigued with the idea of recording streaming content. Can Channels use Dish Anywhere as a source provider? What about using YouTube, Vudu, and other streaming sources? If it can do this it would open a lot of possibilities. At $80 per year it is affordable provided it can record these sources.


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I just figured out last night how to use .m3u files with my Channels server, and I now (so far) have set up 461 streaming channels alongside my antenna channels. ALL in the same guide, and the streaming channels have epg (with a few exceptions) AND are recordable. You click on "Add Source" and add them like you add a tuner. There's different choices in there for different things. I haven't even scratched the surface as of yet.

Channels.jpg
 
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dweber Here's what you get when you "Choose Source". I don't at present have any TVE logins I can try.

P.S. Found out Saturday night, I can use the TVE login for the FREE channels on SlingTv, and they scan into the Channels guide around channel number 6,000. 78 FREE channels.

choose source.jpg
 
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I think what we really want is an external device that connects to the Roku/Fire TV that would allow me to record not only LIVE streams like, say, Cheddar TV, as an example, but also Netflix, Hulu, etc. and even vMVPD's for local access.

In the case of the Netflix like services, I have OFTEN been the victim of working my way through a multi-season (multi-series for UK shows) over a few months to then find that the rights to that show have ended on Netflix BEFORE I can finish viewing all the remaining episodes. In one case I was only 4 episodes away from finishing the entire TV series.

There are LEGAL ways of achieving this, but it requires using a PC as the local source of the recordings, and I don't care to have my PC on 24/7, thank you. A device as I have suggested could be done legally as far as live streaming channels and even Netflix--despite their policy of "no archiving," it would be legal done the RIGHT way, but nobody wants to invest for fear of a preliminary injunction, but a judge with a view on Fair Use could see the streamers as even just a tad more likley to lose and, therefore, NOT issue a preliminary injunction, and that judgement could survive review by a Circuit Court, but a company to make such a device would see it as too much of a gamble with investing in such a device and would certainly not want to spend the money over 7 years even if the device maker prevails. Somebody small just has to be the first to do it and not have a preliminary injunction order, then the momentum would start small, but it could create a critical mass that could see Congress viewing streaming programming just like programming coming into our homes via radio frequency as OTA, Cable, and Satellite. If we pay for the programming or if it is offered free (legally obtained), and it is inteneded to be sent to our homes--by any means of technology--then once it is in our domiciles, it comes under FAIR USE, just as OTA, Cable, and Satellite are today. I do think in the future it would have to go to and be decided by SCOTUS.
 
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I think what we really want is an external device that connects to the Roku/Fire TV that would allow me to record not only LIVE streams like, say, Cheddar TV, as an example, but also Netflix, Hulu, etc. and even vMVPD's for local access.

In the case of the Netflix like services, I have OFTEN been the victim of working my way through a multi-season (multi-series for UK shows) over a few months to then find that the rights to that show have ended on Netflix BEFORE I can finish viewing all the remaining episodes. In one case I was only 4 episodes away from finishing the entire TV series.

There are LEGAL ways of achieving this, but it requires using a PC as the local source of the recordings, and I don't care to have my PC on 24/7, thank you. A device as I have suggested could be done legally as far as live streaming channels and even Netflix--despite their policy of "no archiving," it would be legal done the RIGHT way, but nobody wants to invest for fear of a preliminary injunction, but a judge with a view on Fair Use could see the streamers as even just a tad more likley to lose and, therefore, NOT issue a preliminary injunction, and that judgement could survive review by a Circuit Court, but a company to make such a device would see it as too much of a gamble with investing in such a device and would certainly not want to spend the money over 7 years even if the device maker prevails. Somebody small just has to be the first to do it and not have a preliminary injunction order, then the momentum would start small, but it could create a critical mass that could see Congress viewing streaming programming just like programming coming into our homes via radio frequency as OTA, Cable, and Satellite. If we pay for the programming or if it is offered free (legally obtained), and it is inteneded to be sent to our homes--by any means of technology--then once it is in our domiciles, it comes under FAIR USE, just as OTA, Cable, and Satellite are today. I do think in the future it would have to go to and be decided by SCOTUS.
You want Playon. I've had a Playon lifetime sub since 2010, but I don't know if they still offer Lifetime service. PlayOn

They now also have something called "Playon Cloud", BUT, I've never used that.
 
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You want Playon. I've had a Playon lifetime sub since 2010, but I don't know if they still offer Lifetime service. PlayOn

They now also have something called "Playon Cloud", BUT, I've never used that.
Playon is being replaced with Playon Desktop. $39.99 per year. Lifetime has not been updated since October. I converted my lifetime to the new system and got 3 months for free. It sucks, but they said they needed to go in this direction because they couldn't afford to spend time and money without a more consistent cash flow. Playon Cloud can record in 1080p as an option (Desktop only does 720p), but you have to use three credits per recording.

With Playon, you really don't need a OTA dvr for the main networks (Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS and The CW), since you can record the last few episodes of a show without the need of a provider login.
 
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You want Playon. I've had a Playon lifetime sub since 2010, but I don't know if they still offer Lifetime service. PlayOn

They now also have something called "Playon Cloud", BUT, I've never used that.
OK, I did consider and then played with PlayOn sometime ago, and it did not work well. In fact, it was a mess, but that was a long time ago. Also, I do know of a few who eventually abandoned PlayOn for similar reasons, so it has been years since I last considered it. Is it really robust today? However, PlayOn would not be the separate device NOT using a PC (I presume PlayOn still depends upon a PC?).

Again, there are legal ways (despite Terms of Use) other software not in violation of the law, to achieve what I want to do as far as streaming services are concerned, but they require a PC, as well. Also, those legal options provide a more robust experience than I got with Playon and do not require subscriptions, which I understand PlayOn now does.

Again, I would love an external device for this, so it can sit in sleep mode when not in use, but still be accessible from throughout the home network. I just don't want my PC on 24/7.
 
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OK, I did consider and then played with PlayOn sometime ago, and it did not work well. In fact, it was a mess, but that was a long time ago. Also, I do know of a few who eventually abandoned PlayOn for similar reasons, so it has been years since I last considered it. Is it really robust today? However, PlayOn would not be the separate device NOT using a PC (I presume PlayOn still depends upon a PC?).

Again, there are legal ways (despite Terms of Use) other software not in violation of the law, to achieve what I want to do as far as streaming services are concerned, but they require a PC, as well. Also, those legal options provide a more robust experience than I got with Playon and do not require subscriptions, which I understand PlayOn now does.

Again, I would love an external device for this, so it can sit in sleep mode when not in use, but still be accessible from throughout the home network. I just don't want my PC on 24/7.
Like mentioned earlier there is Playon Cloud. Video is recorded onto the Playon Servers. You have 7 days to download it to a pc or mobile device, or you can rent cloud space from Playon and stream to another device like a phone, tablet or android tv stb. I know with Playon Desktop you can schedule recordings. I don't know if this is possible with Playon Cloud.

I don't know if a stand alone streaming dvr even exists.
 
Like mentioned earlier there is Playon Cloud. Video is recorded onto the Playon Servers. You have 7 days to download it to a pc or mobile device, or you can rent cloud space from Playon and stream to another device like a phone, tablet or android tv stb. I know with Playon Desktop you can schedule recordings. I don't know if this is possible with Playon Cloud.

I don't know if a stand alone streaming dvr even exists.
OK, good to know. I gotta say that with me, I would easily forget or just not get around to downloading it in that short of period--that is ME, not as fast and swift on these matters as I used to be. I would have to opt for a local connected device or the download as recoreded type of service.
 
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OK, good to know. I gotta say that with me, I would easily forget or just not get around to downloading it in that short of period--that is ME, not as fast and swift on these matters as I used to be. I would have to opt for a local connected device or the download as recoreded type of service.
You will get an e-mail when the Playon Cloud recording is finished and you'll get another one about a day before it is deleted from the cloud server.
 
You will get an e-mail when the Playon Cloud recording is finished and you'll get another one about a day before it is deleted from the cloud server.
OK, I go DAYS, and I mean even a week without checking my primary email accounts, and I won't have my gmail account further data-mined. A one day notice before deletion for me is about as useless as when Netflix suddenly loses rights--and that has happened multiple times to me :). It was the my Dish DVR that had the final few episodes to finish the series.

I value being "disconnected" when possible, and there is a growing movement of people getting sick of being "connected" too often and obsessed with social media who have quit Meta (Facebook) and other such sites and actually put the phone away for some hours.

Look, I have 3 PC's, multiple phones for different uses (one as an SMS 2FA "burner" phone for stupid, but necessary, services that ONLY offer such insecure authentication, a number of tablets, and I use Yubikey on all important accounts, and I have local music server type device, a router that cost me over $300 when it first came out (a killer home network with Gigabit speeds), and TiVo's connected to the network for viewing in different rooms, the whole home wired with CAT cable (Ethernet), I also access content remotely via Slingbox, Dish Anywhere, TiVo Steam, and download content from those devices, and I have an automatic pill dispenser that connected to the internet for useful and important features that has saved me great aggravation, and on and on . . . The point being I LOVE technology, and embrace it--WHEN IT SERVES MY NEEDS AND DESIRES or makes for greater efficiency and lower costs (and eliminates or allows skipping commercials), but if it does not meet my desires or how I consumer media content or is insecure, I have no desire for such technology, and I certainly have no desire to always be connected to such technology all the time. I love that there are days when I never use a PC or tablet (multiple days at times), and not even use my smartphone that is often turned OFF or put away (My primary phone is a VoIP and all my IMPORTANT calls from businesses and loved ones come through there--with auto notification and a copy of any voice message sent to my smartphone when I am out of the house), but I love to turn MOST of the technology OFF or have it inaccessible with the Dish system being the only piece of tech that I use most often, but I have had days when I didn't even access Dish tech, either.

Let me know when you get a connected device to a streaming connected device with local storage of the content that was recorded as a linear stream (to be within Fair Use) that permits my storing that content for a really long time before I find time to view it and can never be deleted until I do so, and then we have what I am looking for. Thanks. :)
 
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OK, I go DAYS, and I mean even a week without checking my primary email accounts, and I won't have my gmail account further data-mined. A one day notice before deletion for me is about as useless as when Netflix suddenly loses rights--and that has happened multiple times to me :). It was the my Dish DVR that had the final few episodes to finish the series. I value being "disconnected" when possible, and there is a growing movement of people getting sick of being "connected" too often and obsessed with social media who have quit Meta (Facebook) and other such sites and actually put the phone away for some hours. Look, I have 3 PC's, multiple phones for different uses (one as an SMS 2FA "burner" phone for stupid, but necessary, services that ONLY offer such insecure authentication, a number of tablets, and I use Yubikey on all important accounts, and I have local music server type device, a router that cost me over $300 when it first came out (a killer home network with Gigabit speeds), and TiVo's connected to the network for viewing in different rooms, the whole home wired with CAT cable (Ethernet), I also access content remotely via Slingbox, Dish Anywhere, TiVo Steam, and download content from those devices, and I have an automatic pill dispenser that connected to the internet for useful and important features that has saved me great aggravation, and on and on . . . The point being I LOVE technology, and embrace it--WHEN IT SERVES MY NEEDS AND DESIRES or makes for greater efficiency and lower costs (and eliminates or allows skipping commercials), but if it does not meet my desires or how I consumer media content or is insecure, I have no desire for such technology, and I certainly have no desire to always be connected to such technology all the time. I love that there are days when I never use a PC or tablet (multiple days at times), and not even use my smartphone that is often turned OFF or put away (My primary phone is a VoIP and all my IMPORTANT calls from businesses and loved ones come through there--with auto notification and a copy of any voice message sent to my smartphone when I am out of the house), but I love to turn MOST of the technology OFF or have it inaccessible with the Dish system being the only piece of tech that I use most often, but I have had days when I didn't even access Dish tech, either. Let me know when you get a connected device to a streaming connected device with local storage of the content that was recorded as a linear stream (to be within Fair Use) that permits my storing that content for a really long time before I find time to view it and can never be deleted until I do so, and then we have what I am looking for. Thanks. :)
That's fine. To each their own. I was just passing along information.
 
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