# TV Apps: Webcams



## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

I periodically check to see if they add an NHL TV App, but none so far. In case anyone is interested, I happened to notice an "EiffelTower" Webcam App that must be new, because I was download #10.


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## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

They have now added several other live webcam feeds from Aruba to Yosemite.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

DIRECTV has enabled some new TV Apps with webcam views from around the world. Now is your opportunity to try them out.

So, what are Webcam TV Apps?

A collection of webcam views from various places around the world
There are 24 hours worth of images available and you can move forward and backward in time.
When behind real time, the playback can be faster than realtime (set via options)
The Webcam TV Apps can be full screen

To add them to your lineup, simply bring up the App Store in TV Apps
or, you can also go to http://tvapps.directv.com and login with your DIRECTV credentials.

They webcam apps should be under 'Just Added' and/or 'Cam Viewers'

Enjoy!


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## kw2957 (Apr 5, 2008)

This sounds awesome! The future of TV Apps sounds promising!


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## jeffshoaf (Jun 17, 2006)

Hmmm... I wonder if an app could be set up to show local traffic cams...


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## Steve615 (Feb 5, 2006)

Here is the current listing of webcams available from the App Store:

Yosemite Turtleback Dome

Yosemite National Park: Ahwahnee

Washington,D.C.

Venice,Italy

Egyptian Pyramids

St. Peter Square

Old Faithful

Mount St. Helens

Mount Rainier

Monte Carlo


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## tsduke (Mar 20, 2007)

Like to try it, but TVApps have never worked for me.


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## Greg Alsobrook (Apr 2, 2007)

tsduke said:


> Like to try it, but TVApps have never worked for me.


What happens when you press the right arrow on the remote?


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## tsduke (Mar 20, 2007)

Absolutely nothing. Edit: Power light on stb blinks.

The only time it ever worked it is when I tried it under CE way back before it was called TVapps.


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## uscboy (Sep 5, 2006)

tsduke said:


> Absolutely nothing. Edit: Power light on stb blinks.


Same here, HR20-700.


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## mfeinstein (Sep 1, 2007)

I can add these TV Apps to my receivers, but the three Webcam apps I tried (Eiffel Tower, Washington DC, and Old Faithful) don't come up when I select them in the dock. The indicator on the screen spins for a while and then it says Not Available.

Other TV Apps seem to be working OK.


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## SteveHas (Feb 7, 2007)

these are very cool
traffic viewers would be great!


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## cdizzy (Jul 29, 2007)

Add me to the list of people that have never seen the apps pop up on either box. I have one wired and the other wireless connected to the same router. That router a DLINK DIR-655.


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## jpx5 (Jul 24, 2007)

This is pretty cool, you can go into full screen mode as well.


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## HCN3 (Feb 16, 2008)

Add me to the list of people frustrated about trying to get these to work. One of the main problems is that there is contradictory information in the forums on what is required or not and the LACK of official documentation on it from DirecTV is not helping.

I have tried the manual settings, port forwarding etc to get "network services" to start but always get a 301 error on it. Then I find the postings that say you do NOT need this to work to get TV Apps to work. So, which is it? Does Network Services need to work for TV Apps to work? 

I have a wired connection to my receiver HR20-700 and can do any Video On Demand requests which work fine. The kids love getting Tom and Jerry when desired!

Anyway, I think there needs to be a spot on the DirecTV site which would have the official guide to the TV Apps and how to set it up. Their site doesn't have exactly what is needed to make this work.


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## sum_random_dork (Aug 21, 2008)

This is a really cool idea, traffic would be great just how do you figure out who's cams to add??? I'd like to see a cam in the Tahoe area added down the line, maybe the Squaw Valley Ubercam or something, but I would imagine you'd need to get approval for that. Maybe in the future we can add our own network cams???


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## GerryC (Aug 25, 2007)

HCN3 said:


> Add me to the list of people frustrated about trying to get these to work. One of the main problems is that there is contradictory information in the forums on what is required or not and the LACK of official documentation on it from DirecTV is not helping.
> 
> I have tried the manual settings, port forwarding etc to get "network services" to start but always get a 301 error on it. Then I find the postings that say you do NOT need this to work to get TV Apps to work. So, which is it? Does Network Services need to work for TV Apps to work?
> 
> ...


I have a DIR-655 router and 3 HR22-100s and 1 HR20-700 (all with the latest update). TV Apps works on one of the HR22s but not on any of the other receivers. I receive the 301 error in Network Services on all 4 receivers. I tried all of the tricks, port forwarding, etc with no luck. The router currently does not forward any ports. I can change the IP address of the HR22 that works and the apps still work. I swapped the receivers around and the one that works still continues to get the apps regardless of where I put it. None of the other receivers work when placed where the one that gets the apps was (even after assigning the IP address of the one that works). I am far from being an expert on networking but I am really starting to think that it is the receivers themselves and not the router or the way the network is setup.


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## HCN3 (Feb 16, 2008)

Well, I do know I have an extra layer of complication as I use Vonage and essentially have 2 router hops between the receiver and the Internet. However, I am pretty well versed in networking and configuring the devices so I am suprised that configuring the different pass through port requirements still does not seem to work. 

I am not asking DirecTV to support all setups, just provide some better information on the protocols and port requirements for the function to work. At least confirm for us if STB Services need to work or not to successfully use TV Apps. If STB Services are required, provide some better guidelines on general network setup needed, open ports, NAT issues, etc to help us that know networking what to do to get the functionality to work.


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## hasan (Sep 22, 2006)

HCN3 said:


> Add me to the list of people frustrated about trying to get these to work. One of the main problems is that there is contradictory information in the forums on what is required or not and the LACK of official documentation on it from DirecTV is not helping.
> 
> I have tried the manual settings, port forwarding etc to get "network services" to start but always get a 301 error on it. Then I find the postings that say you do NOT need this to work to get TV Apps to work. So, which is it? Does Network Services need to work for TV Apps to work?
> 
> ...


No, network services do not need to work. I have an HR20-700 and HR21-200 hardwired to my D-Link 825 eXtreme N router and TV Apps work as expected. I also have an HR20-100 at the other end of the house on a WET610N (N-Gaming Adapter), and just checked to see if TV Apps work there, and all is well.

Needed or not, I do have port forwarding set up on every HR box, and I have each of them assigned a Static IP, as well. All pass the normal network test, as well as the internet test. (Connected to Network, Connected to Internet)

I checked out the new Web-Cam apps and they work well here. They are an interesting novelty, but I'm not sure I see a functional use for them, unless they become more strategically located and widespread. I'm thinking of something like the Florida/Louisiana coast for hurricane season, a busy airport, etc. I'm sure there are many other "active" locations that could be sought out that are more interesting (to me), than watching grass grow or rocks sit, however pretty they might be.


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## R0am3r (Sep 20, 2008)

hasan said:


> Needed or not, I do have port forwarding set up on every HR box, and I have each of them assigned a Static IP, as well. All pass the normal network test, as well as the internet test. (Connected to Network, Connected to Internet)


What ports are you forwarding?


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## hasan (Sep 22, 2006)

R0am3r said:


> What ports are you forwarding?


A unique port number for TCP and UDP for each HR box.

That is 1 number for tcp, 1 number for udp, for each box, every port number is absolutely unique.

I have no idea whether this is necessary or not, but back when I set things up, this is the way we did it (many, many months ago). Everything short of Network Services (which is not used at all, and is on again/off again in terms of passing), has worked during this entire period. I haven't changed a thing, other than switching out a router for a better one (N Wireless D-Link), and in that case, I used the exact same setup numbers in that router that I had used in the prior G router.


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## sum_random_dork (Aug 21, 2008)

GerryC said:


> I have a DIR-655 router and 3 HR22-100s and 1 HR20-700 (all with the latest update). .


there have been numerous issues with the DIR-655 and Apps working. Play around with the settings and disable "DNS Relay" and see if that solves it.


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## Wisegoat (Aug 17, 2006)

These would be great if you could add your own cameras. 

I could add in my IP cams at the door and office and view my security from the DVR instead of having to launch a web browser.

I could add local traffic cams to check out before I venture in to the shark pool that is SoCal traffic.

Any chance we will be able to add our own in the future?


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## bikspk (Apr 17, 2007)

If I could only figure out how to write an app that would just put a black bar on the screen with an option as to how wide/tall it was and the location.

It would work well to cover up sports tickers when I don't want to see the same crap from ESPN over, and over, and over, and over, and over ... sorry.

Is there a development avenue (I can write OO programming)?


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## tas3986 (Feb 6, 2008)

I got apps to work by simply activating the passing (not blocking) of multicast messages on my dlink router.


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## GerryC (Aug 25, 2007)

sum_random_dork said:


> there have been numerous issues with the DIR-655 and Apps working. Play around with the settings and disable "DNS Relay" and see if that solves it.


I have done all of that. With default router settings apps work on one receiver but not the other 3. Without DNS Relay I can not connect to the Internet.


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## Larry_Rymal (Jan 15, 2006)

I had to disable NAT filtering with my main router. I sure didn't know what I was doing, though. I just went into the firewall setting and kept deselecting options until I got results. Selecting/deselecting NAT affects APP LOAD every time for my setup.

Well, my take on this? Ah.... well, OK. For first generation stuff, I would think. I'd like to see the ability to have an application remain on the screen after the dock disappears. I'm thinking of the DIGITAL CLOCK, for example.

But, as it is, I think it works quite well---once the firewall stuff in the router is nailed down.


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## p010ne (Aug 19, 2006)

Larry_Rymal said:


> Well, my take on this? Ah.... well, OK. For first generation stuff, I would think. I'd like to see the ability to have an application remain on the screen after the dock disappears. I'm thinking of the DIGITAL CLOCK, for example..


What options did you specify for the Digital Clock?
It stays on the screen & updates for me when the dock disappears!!!


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## Larry_Rymal (Jan 15, 2006)

It honestly disappears when the dock window slides away. I'll go through the options menu again. Obviously, I missed something.

EDIT: If I don't touch the right arrow after going through options, the clock will stay on the screen, for about five minutes, then disappears. Dunno---can't find any settings for time duration.


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## jeffshoaf (Jun 17, 2006)

I was going to replace the clock on my VCR with the digital clock app, but I couldn't figure out how to get the app to flash "00:00"...


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## p010ne (Aug 19, 2006)

Larry_Rymal said:


> It honestly disappears when the dock window slides away. I'll go through the options menu again. Obviously, I missed something.
> 
> EDIT: If I don't touch the right arrow after going through options, the clock will stay on the screen, for about five minutes, then disappears. Dunno---can't find any settings for time duration.


My digital clock stays on - no time limit!
Can you send in a cutting edge trouble report?


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## Larry_Rymal (Jan 15, 2006)

Before I send in a trouble report, we gotta make sure I'm not doing anything wrong. But, I can't figure out how to do anything wrong! You just go through the "recipe" on setting the clock up, i.e., font, opacity, position, etc. I don't see anything in there to define screen display duration limits.

Am using an HR22/100... 

And yeah, I'd like it to display a flashing 12:00... ;>)


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## p010ne (Aug 19, 2006)

Larry_Rymal said:


> And yeah, I'd like it to display a flashing 12:00... ;>)


:hurah:Looks like you are out of luck!:hurah:


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## VaJim (Jul 27, 2006)

No wonder I can't change channels. This receiver is becoming more and more bloated. Stop this madness now!!:eek2:


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## mfeinstein (Sep 1, 2007)

I had trouble initially with the webcams in that they wouldn't load (while other TVApps worked fine). I tried again last night and found them to work fine. They are cool and interesting, but mostly window dressing.


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## HDTVFreak07 (Sep 12, 2007)

Are they working on adding some more web cams from more locations? I'd like to see Central Park and especially during the holidays, Rockefeller Center.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

bikspk said:


> Is there a development avenue (I can write OO programming)?


For now, end users are limited to developing TV "Apps" that display a static PNG image of a defined size in the bottom right corner of the screen. It is unknown if DirecTV will ever open up the full capabilities of TV Apps to the public.


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## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

HDTVFreak07 said:


> Are they working on adding some more web cams from more locations? I'd like to see Central Park and especially during the holidays, Rockefeller Center.


They don't have a TV App for Rockefeller Center, but you can always check it out on your PC [Link]. Seems like it would be easy to add it, since there is a webcam for it.


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