IMO I don't think this works very well, it would be better if it was a more seamless approach making sure EyeTV was running in the background and switched EyeTV to the foreground, and also looked out and managed common problems like eyeTV loosing focus because of a software update notice, etc. TV could be a main menu item and you could browse and watch recorded shows in plex, be alerted to new recordings, etc. and if you select live tv you switched to the EyeTV interface.
I’ve done a little research and found this:
- It seems to be the Elgato HTTP Streaming Kit (EyeTV.app/Contents/Frameworks/ESStreamingKit.framework/Versions/A/Resources/Elgato HTTP Streaming Kit.app/) that does the on-the-fly conversion of MPEG2 video into a more network suitable stream (.m3u8 ?).
- In iPhone OS it is the Apple streaming player (?) the EyeTV app uses to pick up the streams through Bonjour.
- Code libraries used in the EyeTV web application are [jQuery](http://jquery.com/) and [jQTouch](http://jqtouch.com/).
- In [this](http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/archive/index.php/t-1183696.html) thread you’ll get this info:
Ports:
Discovery uses UDP 65001.
Control uses TCP 65001.
Actual streaming of video comes from source port 5002 or 5004; it will go to whatever port is specified by the application, usually random.
- [Here’s](http://forums.elgato.com/viewtopic.php?f=130&t=6211#p31124) a discussion on finding the streams’ addresses.
full ack!
Since I use OSX 10.5 (and not 10.6) I can’t test the EyeTV web streaming myself. But I don’t believe it should be so hard finding the necessary file, or…?
- Make sure you are running OSX 10.6 and Safari 4 or 5.
- Download the latest EyeTV version (3.4 build 6150).
- Activate web sharing in OSX settings and restart Safari and EyeTV (activating web sharing may not be necessary).
- Connect to the EyeTV streaming web interface: http://localhost:2170/eyetv/#home and start viewing the live tv by pressing the corresponding button.
- Hit cmd + f in in Finder. Set the searching criterias to “Include invisible files” and “Include system files”. Begin searching for a file containing the suffix m3u8 .
- If you find a m3u8 file in any EyeTV related folder, open it in a text editor and see what it contains.
- Maybe you’ll find some working stream addresses in it, which you can try out by copying and try them in QuickTime player or VLC.
At least this is worth trying
Hi,
I checked this out today. The m3u8 URL is a playlist format and it points to video segments of roughly 100ms in length in what they say is video/mp2t format. Playing back a stream would require continuous fetching and parsing of multiple m3u8 files and the ability to handle mp2t streams, which Plex currently can’t do I’m afraid.
Jonny
Good to know, thanks. MP2T is presumably an MPEG-2 transport stream. The new player certainly can...
I’m guessing so - just going by the reported mime type. When I asked Elan about it earlier to see if they were already supported he mentioned your new player will support it. Good stuff.
Jonny
EyeTV integration is most wished for
Regards Denmark
Apple’s position has long been that digital downloads and streaming are the future of TV and I’d be hard pressed to disagree with them. That said, I don’t live in the future. I live in an age where only a portion of the content I want can legally be had through streaming. Downloads are a bit more forgiving, however the high price of purchasing shows in iTunes thoroughly negates most of the advantages of ditching cable in the first place. Additionally, no matter what I do I’m never going to find much in the way of local programming online. In short, downloads and streaming are not currently a replacement for traditional cable and satellite TV, these methods of delivery merely compliment traditional television.
That Plex wants to focus primarily on the value added, complimentary segment of the market, confuses me. First off, it’s no secret that DVRs, set top boxes and even TVs are encroaching on the value added space. If you want Netflix along side your traditional programming you’ve got plenty of options that don’t involve hacking together a (costly) computer in your living room. No doubt Hulu plus is looking to become a player here as well. This makes the need for a solution like Plex, dubious at best. Want Netflix? Buy any number of set top boxes, BlueRay players, TVs or DVRs that support it and you’re good to go. Or drop $700 on a Mac Mini and install Plex.
Therefore I’d argue that the viability of a solution like Plex (at least in the current market) exists in fulfilling a need that’s not yet been met on the Mac platform: a slick combination of live TV, local programming, streaming and downloading all in box. Microsoft does this natively with Media Center. It plays local media, live TV, Netflix and with some work Hulu too. It’s a one stop solution for media consumption. As Apple is unlikely to go in this direction, this makes the case for Plex even more appealing. There’s virtually no competition in this space on the Mac.
This is why it saddens me to hear that Plex has no interests in entering this market. I’m tired of waiting for someone on the Mac platform to look beyond digital. There’s plenty of people out there with a need for real TV and, I’m sorry to say, but the current Mac solutions just don’t cut it.
Fair enough, but a team of just a few dedicated guys that has a couple of man-years of backlog can only do so much. Focus must be on what is more pressing (as a good library and videoplayer). If you however come in contact with someone that has the skills to contribute to such a patch that is needed, I would be very surprised if Elan and the boys wouldn't welcome it. Until such a person comes along the developers will do what they self see fit and would benefit from. I think most of them have unsubscribed from their TV providers to be frank.
For me this is a priority over and above online content, online content is limited in Australia, and playback normally sucks.
The devs do a great job, but if you guys need some support in any way, put it to the community… im sure between all of us we can find a solution whether it be time, money, additional development support.
This is open source development, new developers that can submit patches are always more than welcome.
And I understand that for some this issue takes precedence over everything else. Not for all though. And also, the developers of Plex aren't choosing between developing EyeTV or Online Content nowadays. There is a completely different group of people doing online content plugins.
I have to say i felt little dumb at work today. I brought my MacBook pro to work couple of days ago to show some pictures to co-workers and while i was at it i showed them plex and eyeTV.
Then today one of the co-workers brought tweaked MC7 install to work and i was floored by how much MC has progressed since MCE XP days , last time i saw it in action. EyeTV is nowhere NEAR MC7 , not by a long shot.
Only reason i’ll keep EyeTV on my server is for iPhone/iPad app but i’m really thinking of installing W7 on my Mac mini in the living room just because in MC7 everything felt so fast & integrated. (LiveTV , EPG etc … )
Just saw the online demo...pretty impressive, and i am a microsoft hater...
same here... ( though i wouldnt call myself hater ). We've got 3 macs ( tower , mini and laptop ) and Hackintosh server. I felt really dumbfounded when i saw it and i'm still in denial but i already looked at where to find reasonably priced W7 copy....
Well, this has already sort of happened. I consider myself part of this community and, even though I never actually use my EyeTv, I dug my tuner out of the box it’s been sitting in for a year or so, plugged it all together and did some experimenting.
The results are posted above and bottom line is that it looks like the new, under development player will support the stream format currently used by EyeTV. Getting a browser etc. for live channels into a plugin for PMS was trivial, took me 5 mins. So, things are looking hopeful for a plugin in the future.
Jonny
Very good news indeed. Biggest problem IMO is the remote issue when moving back and forth between the two programs (using just a Harmony it's quite cumbersome). Being able to access the actual live TV stream (and hopefully a TV Guide like interface) from within Plex would be most welcome. Being able to access stored content (i.e., already recorded EyeTV shows) from within the same plug-in would be an added bonus.
There isn’t much information AFAIK but there is someone working on a XBMC plugin for eyetv, here’s a demo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRDbgAg9Gc8
topic:
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?t=31582&page=3
I bit the bullet last year and built a Windows 7 Media Center. It's a *wonderful* solution. It's well designed, easy to use, good looking and has all the features I'd love to have on any one of my Macs. Problem is, Apple refuses to service this market (there's far too much consumer choice involved, I guess) and the 3rd party Mac solutions are too focused on streaming / downloading to bother dealing with people who still watch and record live TV. I understand the mindset, since the goal is to cut the cable bill, but I don't have cable, just OTA HD, and I still record plenty of live TV. It's great for news, events and local programming that you can't otherwise get online.
Anyway, I realize Plex is a small outfit with limited resources and I respect that live TV and DVR isn't on their radar. I was just expressing my opinion the matter since I think Plex is otherwise a wonderful, well designed product.
Cable is not as big in other countries as it is in the US and downloads can be quite costly, therefore Free TV Broadcast still plays a major part in peoples media consumption.
I echo what Joey has said, I think what the dev’s have done an amazing job with Plex, I just hope as a community we can put our heads together to try and work out a feasible solution that works for everyone.
