The fun continues with Roxio Toast. As many us have experienced, there’s been a persistent OS X TiVoToGo issue related to audio/video synchronization. Well, I finally had a few free minutes to install the update and it didn’t go so well (see above). After deleting portions of the prior Toast application install (v8.0.3), the new stuff wouldn’t copy into the application directory. Some folks on the Roxio forums reported manually copying and overwriting their originally installed contents resulted in a partially functional product. So, I blew away my existing application folder and initiated a fresh install (have your license key handy just in case) and everything launches. Though, I haven’t tried any TiVo downloads or conversions yet…
In other TiVo software news, Desktop 2.6.1 has been released for Windows. According to TiVo, this update more gracefully handles interupted file transfers and provides an updated Windows Certificate (needed for manually file transfers). My install was pretty painless this AM, other than a manual removal of the prior TiVo Desktop. I just need some help finding the best video podcasts to transfer on over… Suggestions?
Recommended:
http://revision3.com/diggnation/amsterdamnation2
http://tv.winelibrary.com
…and of course:
http://www.lugradio.org/episodes/52
featuring coverage of Defective by Design’s disruptive protests at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference.
I LOVE the Web Video feature. From the current pre-loaded list I’m subbed to:
Alt Text
AOTS: In Your Pants
AOTS: Women of the Web
Attack of the Show’s Daily Video Podcast
BEST of Animation
Discovery Channel Video Podcasts
Formula 1 Video: Sidepodcast TV
Gadget Pr0n
Geek Entertainment TV
Mahalo Daily
Mobuzz TV: Daily Buzz
NASA EDGE
NASACast
NASACast: Solar System
NASACast: Space Shuttle and Space Station
NOVA VodCast
TED Talks
The Big D: Disneyland and Walt Disney World
The Buzz Report from CNET
The GigaOm Show
The World of Lamborghini
WebbAlert
Is anyone else having problems with single episode (as opposed to Season Pass) Web Video downloads? I have a few Season Passes for Web Video podcasts which seem to work fine but I wanted to try a couple other podcasts that sounded interesting so I selected “Download this program” instead of “Get a Season Pass”. The episodes downloaded to my computer (I saw the files in C:Documents and SettingsUSERNAMELocal SettingsApplication DataTiVo DesktopDownloads) but they never transferred to the TiVo. Also I have noticed problems with video files not getting deleted properly by TiVo Desktop after they are transferred. I haven’t downloaded 2.6.1 yet. Hopefully it will fix these problems.
FYI MZ, Veronica Belmont is relocating from Mahalo Daily (weekly?) to Tekzilla on Revision3:
http://revision3.com/tekzilla/
Carroca, I haven’t tried downloading/transferring a single episode. As far as I know, TiVo Desktop does not delete any files from your PC – it will only transfer X selected, but won’t manage the files. iTunes or similar (if you so choose) does that.
I know – I already emailed Stephen Mack to get the ball rolling to get Tekzilla on the pre-listed selections. :-)
Dave, That makes sense for podcasts that you download via external RSS software (iTunes) but I don’t think it makes sense for podcasts you subscribe to through the TiVo interface. Users (like myself) don’t want to have to manually delete files from an obscure folder (I think C:Documents and SettingsUSERNAMELocal Settings is even hidden by default) on their computer once they have transferred and I sure don’t want them piling up and filling my hard drive. FWIW, I believe TiVo Desktop does delete the files after they are transferred but the behavior seems inconsistent.
Yes, it is supposed to delete the files it downloads itself once they transfer. The folder is in a hidden directory structure by default, and the file names are NOT at all human friendly either. The only way to know what one of the files is is to play it.
It normally does delete them, but sometimes it just seems to forget. So the directly slowly grows.
I just installed 2.6.1 last night, so we’ll see if it is any better.
Carroca, you’re right. I now remember when speaking with the PM (Amir), he mentioned if you subscribe via the TiVo interface that the video is transient. In the background the files should be downloaded, transcoded, and shipped off to the TiVo with the originals and converted removed. Not sure why it’s not being deleted and if this update resolves what you’ve experienced.
Update: Just verified I’ve got about 13 files sitting there. Not sure if they never transferred at all and thus weren’t deleted, or if they just weren’t deleted.
I still can’t use any “Publish video” features, including this new podcast transfer feature. The upgrade didn’t fix anything for me. I cannot find a solution to the same problem that was introduced when I upgraded to 2.6, TiVo hasn’t responded to a half-dozen emails requesting support, and quite frankly I’m sick of the whole mess. I wish I never paid them for this software.
*sigh* And companies wonder why people end up hacking machines, cracking software and using third-party stuff to get what they want done.
Great video podcasts? Well, as others have said, AOTS is great (when Kevin & Olivia are there anyway–they’re just so snarky!), though I think the show itself on G4 can be taped rather easily and is better than the sum of the podcasts, so I don’t see the point in the podcasts.
The CNet stuff is always reliable, though of course you can already get the Tivo program on your Tivo. But “The Buzz Report” seems to cover different stuff and is recommended. Supposedly BOL is going to start offering video podcasts of their friday episodes, so that might be cool.
I love love love Brigitte Dale, which you can see these days on http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=daisytree1. She used to do the TV Squad Daily show. Not sure what happened to that, so now its at best a once a week thing. Also available via podcast on iTunes anyway.
I’ll certainly be watching more Tekzilla once Veronica shows up. Never really got into that Mahalo Daily thing…
I installed 2.6.1 last night and successfully downloaded a single episode to the TiVo. The file was also automatically deleted from my computer so it seems that the fixes resolved the problems I was having.