# Movies Now



## Hdhead (Jul 30, 2007)

What is this all about? Just noticed on my HR21 that there are 4 movies that apparently were downloaded through the internet just waiting for me to select and pay 5 bucks each for. This is BS, if I want to purchase a movie through "on demand" I will do it without D* inticement by sticking it in my face. 

This must also mean that it is using space on the hard drive and depriving me of my own choices. And there is no way to delete them until they expire in a couple months. Can this even be legal?:nono2:


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## Crow159 (May 23, 2007)

Those movies are recorded on to the reserved space on the hard drive. It does not reduce your amount of space you have for your own recordings.


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## Blurayfan (Nov 16, 2005)

Also the movies are not downloaded through your net connection. They were recorded off a Satellite broadcast so if you wish you can watch them without the wait or worry of ISP charges.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Crow159 said:


> Those movies are recorded on to the reserved space on the hard drive. It does not reduce your amount of space you have for your own recordings.


I have 6 movies on my hard drive. That is WASTED reserved space I could use if I were allowed to access it.


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## w6fxj (Aug 10, 2005)

DirecTV thinks it is a very GOOD use of space! Meets cable claims of LOTS of PPV movies available.


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## JLucPicard (Apr 27, 2004)

FlBillsfan said:


> I have 6 movies on my hard drive. That is WASTED reserved space I could use if I were allowed to access it.


To the best of my knowledge, DirecTV DVRs have always had a chunk of drive space reserved for their own use, and there's no way they're going to open up that space for the user.

I just figure, let 'em do whatever they want with their own space - I'm certainly not going to get my nose all out of joint thinking they're screwing me out of something I could be using myself, because that just isn't the case.


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## Hdhead (Jul 30, 2007)

Crow159 said:


> Those movies are recorded on to the reserved space on the hard drive. It does not reduce your amount of space you have for your own recordings.


If that is the case then it is a whole lot of space I can't use. There are 4 HD movies that have downloaded. That must be about 24GB or 10% of the hard drive capacity. And to address another comment, it certainly is downloaded off the internet because when I go into the on-demand menus these movies are checked off as having been downloaded to my DVR.


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## jlancaster (Feb 10, 2006)

These are pushed via sat not downloaded.


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## Blurayfan (Nov 16, 2005)

Hdhead said:


> If that is the case then it is a whole lot of space I can't use. There are 4 HD movies that have downloaded. That must be about 24GB or 10% of the hard drive capacity. And to address another comment, it certainly is downloaded off the internet because when I go into the on-demand menus these movies are checked off as having been downloaded to my DVR.


The recordings have program ids encoded in them so the DVR can associate it with the On Demand system. It doesn't matter how it was received. I can say with certainty they are not downloaded because two of my DVRs are not networked and they have the recordings.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

JLucPicard said:


> To the best of my knowledge, DirecTV DVRs have always had a chunk of drive space reserved for their own use, and there's no way they're going to open up that space for the user.
> 
> I just figure, let 'em do whatever they want with their own space - I'm certainly not going to get my nose all out of joint thinking they're screwing me out of something I could be using myself, because that just isn't the case.


I knew Direct TV had reserved space, however 6 HD movies on my hard drive is CRAZY. I would like to access that space & put it to better use, like recording something I would like to watch when I get a chance, NOT a PPV 24 Hr rental I WILL NEVER PAY FOR & WATCH.


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## lance30276 (Mar 19, 2007)

Hdhead said:


> And to address another comment, it certainly is downloaded off the internet because when I go into the on-demand menus these movies are checked off as having been downloaded to my DVR.


As said before they are pushed via sat, I watched "Charlie Wilson's War"
at our cabin, no 'net connection....


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> I knew Direct TV had reserved space, however 6 HD movies on my hard drive is CRAZY. I would like to access that space & put it to better use, like recording something I would like to watch when I get a chance, NOT a PPV 24 Hr rental I WILL NEVER PAY FOR & WATCH.


You can't access that space, it belongs to DirecTV and they'll use it as they see fit.

In no way are "Movies Now" affecting your ability to record other shows/movies.


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## JLucPicard (Apr 27, 2004)

FlBillsfan said:


> I knew Direct TV had reserved space, however 6 HD movies on my hard drive is CRAZY. I would like to access that space & put it to better use, like recording something I would like to watch when I get a chance, NOT a PPV 24 Hr rental I WILL NEVER PAY FOR & WATCH.


Scream at me - there's nothing I can do about it. Scream at DirecTV, that won't get you anything but less oxygen. But if it makes you feel better to scream, then by all means, let loose. :nono2:


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

1. reserved space is ok but thats waaaaay too much reserved space.
2. guess i found another item to add to the wish list.
3. i wouldnt pay for those movies just for Spite !!.....how bout then apples.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

Hdhead said:


> What is this all about? Just noticed on my HR21 that there are 4 movies that apparently were downloaded through the internet just waiting for me to select and pay 5 bucks each for. This is BS, if I want to purchase a movie through "on demand" I will do it without D* inticement by sticking it in my face.
> 
> This must also mean that it is using space on the hard drive and depriving me of my own choices. And there is no way to delete them until they expire in a couple months. Can this even be legal?:nono2:


None of your recording space is being used. The following applies to Showcases and Movies. According to DIRECTV*:



> *Will Showcases programs affect space or schedulings of my recordings?*
> 
> No, programs in the Showcase tab will NOT impact your available playlist recording space.
> 
> ...


Outside of the bad grammar (schedulings?), the intention is that Showcases never should interfere with a scheduled recording and it won't take up your space.

**Source:* Channel 114 > Customer Support Interactive Tool (wait for it to load) > Answer Center > Programming > DIRECTV Plus DVR > Page 2


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## Crow159 (May 23, 2007)

Hdhead said:


> If that is the case then it is a whole lot of space I can't use. There are 4 HD movies that have downloaded. That must be about 24GB or 10% of the hard drive capacity. And to address another comment, it certainly is downloaded off the internet because when I go into the on-demand menus these movies are checked off as having been downloaded to my DVR.


My HR21-700 is not networked. It has no Internet connection. I have 9 HD PPV movies in my Movies Now tab. These movies are pushed onto the Hard drive from the Sat.

The Directv reserved space is not accessible to you. It will never be accessible to you. If you need more recording space I would suggest an ESATA hard drive larger than what is in your DVR. If you do get a larger hard drive, the Directv reserved space stays the same size as it is now. It is a set amount of space, not a percentage of the drive size.

I look forward to the possibilities that the Movies Now tab will offer. As stated, I am not capable at this time for On Demand. If Directv does start to push some of the most popular content down to the DVRs, it would give me access to things I can't get right now.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> 1. reserved space is ok but thats waaaaay too much reserved space.
> 2. guess i found another item to add to the wish list.
> 3. i wouldnt pay for those movies just for Spite !!.....how bout then apples.


Thank you, this is what I am saying. How about repartitioning the hard drive Direct TV? Direct TV really does not NEED that much room on my hard drive. I also feel it would be much more useful if they had trailers of the movies they want you to watch on showcases rather than the movie itself. If a movie looks good from a trailer, I can go to the PPV channel & download it myself. (Not that I ever will with the 24 Hr rental)


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> 1. reserved space is ok but thats waaaaay too much reserved space.
> 2. guess i found another item to add to the wish list.
> 3. i wouldnt pay for those movies just for Spite !!.....how bout then apples.


Thank you, this is what I am saying. How about repartitioning the hard drive Direct TV? Direct TV really does not NEED that much room on my hard drive. I also feel it would be much more useful if they had trailers of the movies they want you to watch on showcases rather than the movie itself. If a movie looks good from a trailer, I can go to the PPV channel & download it myself. (Not that I ever will with the 24 Hr rental)


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> How about repartitioning the hard drive Direct TV?


You're paying for a DVR with a specified recording capacity, and you're getting exactly that. They even allow you to add an external hard drive if you need more room. It's not like DirecTV just decided to take away the space, you've never had it. Your complaint is baseless.


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## CCarncross (Jul 19, 2005)

+1 Jeremy, grow up guys....


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## Draconis (Mar 16, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> You're paying for a DVR with a specified recording capacity, and you're getting exactly that. They even allow you to add an external hard drive if you need more room. It's not like DirecTV just decided to take away the space, you've never had it. Your complaint is baseless.


Yep.

HR20/21 owners are not the only ones getting these. They have been downloading to my R15's as well.

So yes, this is something that is getting pushed through the satellites and is not being downloaded through the Internet connection. (R15's do not have a one.)


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## Jeff5614 (Apr 14, 2008)

Geez, some of you folks need to get outside more often.


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## braven (Apr 9, 2007)

Hdhead said:


> If that is the case then it is a whole lot of space I can't use. There are 4 HD movies that have downloaded. That must be about 24GB or 10% of the hard drive capacity. And to address another comment, it certainly is downloaded off the internet because when I go into the on-demand menus these movies are checked off as having been downloaded to my DVR.


Nope. I don't have my HR20 connected online, and guess what? I have movies available in the "Movies Now" folder.

Me thinks a bigger deal is being made out of this than necessary.


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## cnmsales (Jan 9, 2007)

I agree, grow up already. You realize you sound like your about 5 yrs old griping about this? I like the feature and it will make me that more apt to use PPV system. Thats always been my complaint that when I want to watch something the channel the movie is on is in the middle and i have to wait.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

Jeff5614 said:


> Geez, some of you folks need to get outside more often.


if your wife can call u at work to tell u there is no sound on american idol then maybe she needs to get outside more often. :lol:


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## TBoneit (Jul 27, 2006)

it isn't like it is your hard drive, the HRxx is leased. If you added external drive the box is still leased. Win some, Lose some.

Or you could go to E*, Oh wait they do it too. If they aren't doing it the Cable companies and Fios will be doing it too.

It actually helps save PPV bandwidth if done properly. Right now it won't save bandwidth until non DVRs are a thing of the past. IOWs at some point all receivers will be DVR capable with hard drives. DVR or not DVR will depend on if you pay for DVR functions.

Instant DVR upgrade, just call and subscribe to DVR capability.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

TBoneit said:


> If they aren't doing it the Cable companies and Fios will be doing it too.


They really won't ever need to, since they can offer instant VOD to everyone.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

TBoneit said:


> it isn't like it is your hard drive, the HRxx is leased. If you added external drive the box is still leased. Win some, Lose some.
> 
> Or you could go to E*, Oh wait they do it too. If they aren't doing it the Cable companies and Fios will be doing it too.
> 
> ...


I OWN the HR20-700 that has 6 HD PPV movies on it (it was a replacement under the protection plan of an HD TIVO) it is NOT a lease, so yes it is my hard drive.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

This concern is a non-starter for me as well. First off, as has been mentioned, DIRECTV markets a given capacity and delivers. 

Second, the few extra hours I'd get by trying to claim the reserved space just isn't enough extra to get exited about. I immediately think about 750gb drives and 1TB. Not a paltry 50gb more. 

Thirdly, as also has been mentioned, DIRECTV makes it very easy to add as much full speed disk space as you want. (Other STB providers don't really yet, but they do have other features.)

Lastly, there are features that DIRECTV provides that I don't use. Yet I very much appreciate those features for people who do. I can see how other lifestyles can enjoy features that I might not; and by providing those features, DIRECTV gets more customers--who basically share the overall costs for all of us.  (I also like creative solutions to interesting problems.) 

Cheers,
Tom


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

FlBillsfan said:


> I OWN the HR20-700 that has 6 HD PPV movies on it (it was a replacement under the protection plan of an HD TIVO) it is NOT a lease, so yes it is my hard drive.


OK, spend $70 to buy a 500gb drive and double "your" part of the disk. Less energy than complaining about 50gb that is "yours" but you can't use it.


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## Jeff5614 (Apr 14, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> if your wife can call u at work to tell u there is no sound on american idol then maybe she needs to get outside more often. :lol:


Brilliant!   Actually that is pretty much all of the TV she watches. Of course, if you didn't appreciate my comment you could have directed your comments to me.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> I OWN the HR20-700 that has 6 HD PPV movies on it (it was a replacement under the protection plan of an HD TIVO) it is NOT a lease, so yes it is my hard drive.


OK, so take the hard drive out of the box that DirecTV controls, format it, and use the space however you wish.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

Jeremy W said:


> OK, so take the hard drive out of the box that DirecTV controls, format it, and use the space however you wish.


I did that.  and put a 750gb drive in to replace it.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Tom Robertson said:


> OK, spend $70 to buy a 500gb drive and double "your" part of the disk. Less energy than complaining about 50gb that is "yours" but you can't use it.


I would have changed the hard drive to a larger one long ago, but I am pretty sure that would void my replacement plan warranty. Am I wrong about this?


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> I would have changed the hard drive to a larger one long ago, but I am pretty sure that would void my replacement plan warranty. Am I wrong about this?


On leased unit if you open it up you will void your lease agreement and could be charged the full amount for the unit.

Tom was able to do it because it owns some of his units.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

FlBillsfan, since you own your own unit, you can do the same--tho I have ensured that I can return the DIRECTV drive very quickly if needed to send the unit back. Mine is now a handy backup drive.

Now, let me be clear. I do not know what this does to the Protection Plan. While it may be nothing, it also is possible that you void that as well. 

The recommended route is an eSATA drive.

Cheers,
Tom


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Tom Robertson said:


> This concern is a non-starter for me as well. First off, as has been mentioned, DIRECTV markets a given capacity and delivers.
> 
> Second, the few extra hours I'd get by trying to claim the reserved space just isn't enough extra to get exited about. I immediately think about 750gb drives and 1TB. Not a paltry 50gb more.
> 
> ...


Aside from the real estate Direct TV is wasting on my hard drive, my major concern is the fact PPV which costs extra is sitting there easily accessible. I live on the Gulf Coast of Fla, & get MANY visitors. ( My brother inlaw & his family are coming for 2 weeks in August.) I have the PPV channels blocked so I didn't have to worry about incurring extra charges from PPV before from company visiting. I guess my only option will be to set the purchase limit to $00.00. I wish Direct TV would allow the sub to delete from showcases. Another thing that gets me is aside from NFL highlights from Sunday Ticket my showcases sat empty until now. It would be nice if they used SHOWCASES for "showcases".


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> Aside from the real estate Direct TV is wasting on my hard drive, my major concern is the fact PPV which costs extra is sitting there easily accessible. I live on the Gulf Coast of Fla, & get MANY visitors. ( My brother inlaw & his family are coming for 2 weeks in August.) I have the PPV channels blocked so I didn't have to worry about incurring extra charges from PPV before from company visiting. I guess my only option will be to set the purchase limit to $00.00. I wish Direct TV would allow the sub to delete from showcases. Another thing that gets me is aside from NFL highlights from Sunday Ticket my showcases sat empty until now. It would be nice if they used SHOWCASES for "showcases".


The spending limits (and parental controls) will serve you well to put you at ease that there will be no unauthorized purchases. You can also call DIRECTV and request that remote controlled ordering of PPV be disabled on specific DVRs for an extra layer of comfort.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Tom Robertson said:


> FlBillsfan, since you own your own unit, you can do the same--tho I have ensured that I can return the DIRECTV drive very quickly if needed to send the unit back. Mine is now a handy backup drive.
> 
> Now, let me be clear. I do not know what this does to the Protection Plan. While it may be nothing, it also is possible that you void that as well.
> 
> ...


I am not really familiar with how to go about setting up an eSATA drive, is there a thread you could point me to? Also, what brand hard drive would you recommend ? Thanks.


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## BoxLunchAtTheY (Jul 19, 2008)

I like this feature.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

In the Information, Tips, and Resources forum are several good threads:
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=92029
http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=66201 (VERY LONG thread...)

and a short thread with a good solution: http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=66201

I've heard some reports the seagate free agent pro's have issues, but I do not know first hand. Might be overheating from constant use.

Good cases with quiet fans are better than fanless units, in my opinion.

Good luck!
Tom


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Tom Robertson said:


> In the Information, Tips, and Resources forum are several good threads:
> http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=92029
> http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=66201 (VERY LONG thread...)
> 
> ...


Thanks again. I love this board.


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

RunnerFL said:


> You can't access that space, it belongs to DirecTV and they'll use it as they see fit.
> 
> In no way are "Movies Now" affecting your ability to record other shows/movies.


Perhaps on the HD DVR's perhaps not. LOTS of DirecTV customers with SD DVR's are complaining that these movie downloads are taking up THEIR HDD space, and some are even reporting "disk full-delete some programs" messages even though the "disk space meter" says there is plenty of space left. Some even reported that their recordings were deleted so that a showcase movie could be downloaded! Some report that the showcase movies are blocking their use of both tuners.

Check out the Plus DVR forum, or the DVR forums on DirecTV.com for more.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

ThomasM said:


> Perhaps on the HD DVR's perhaps not. LOTS of DirecTV customers with SD DVR's are complaining that these movie downloads are taking up THEIR HDD space, and some are even reporting "disk full-delete some programs" messages even though the "disk space meter" says there is plenty of space left. Some even reported that their recordings were deleted so that a showcase movie could be downloaded! Some report that the showcase movies are blocking their use of both tuners.
> 
> Check out the Plus DVR forum, or the DVR forums on DirecTV.com for more.


These would be defects, not planned events.


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## PANCHITO (Apr 8, 2006)

So what's the different between this movies and the PPV,  missing something.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

PANCHITO said:


> So what's the different between this movies and the PPV,  missing something.


Movies Now lets you start the movie from your DVR at any moment you want. You don't have to wait for the next time it to start on PPV. If you record a PPV to your DVR but don't watch until later, they become the same thing--aside from the fact Movies Now don't take up your space and recorded PPVs do.

They should cost the same, they should have the same expiration timing (normally 24hours after you start watching), etc.

Cheers,
Tom


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## paulman182 (Aug 4, 2006)

Although I haven't watched any of the "pushed" PPVs, I like the feature.


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## jcwest (May 3, 2006)

Since it does not change the storage area available to me I like the availability of new movies.
I can always ignore it if I choose and I have rented a couple of movies.

J C


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## weaver6 (Nov 3, 2005)

I don't much care about the feature one way or the other, but notice that on my HR21-100, which is networked but does not have a phone line connected, that I have no "pushed" movies. I haven't checked my HR20-100 yet.


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## syphix (Jun 23, 2004)

If DirecTV is reading this, I like the fact that the Showcases tabs now shows "Movies Now!"...but can we make a THIRD tab to put all the VOD titles we download? It's bad enough that the VOD titles won't group up into like titled folders, but I'd LOVE it there was a tab for VOD's I download...so they don't clutter up the Playlist tab...


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## PlanetBill (May 8, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> Direct TV really does not NEED that much room on my hard drive.


It's their hard drive.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

paulman182 said:


> Although I haven't watched any of the "pushed" PPVs, I like the feature.


why ?


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## Curtis0620 (Apr 22, 2002)

dcowboy7 said:


> why ?


They may be able to reduce the number of PPV channels.


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## TBoneit (Jul 27, 2006)

I wouldn't count on PPV channel counts being reduced in the near future. When All subs have DVRs or DVR capable units that this feature can be used with then they can reduce the PPV channels and save bandwidth since one channel pushing PPVs one after the other is all that would be needed vs a channel for each PPV.

PPV must make money or all the providers would not be doing it.


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

TBoneit said:


> PPV must make money or all the providers would not be doing it.


They make at least five bucks off me every month - we used the new Movies Now feature last week; it was great to watch a movie on a whim and not have to wait til it started on a PPV channel or wait for the download.


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## jimb726 (Jan 9, 2007)

FlBillsfan said:


> I am not really familiar with how to go about setting up an eSATA drive, is there a thread you could point me to? Also, what brand hard drive would you recommend ? Thanks.


It is actually so easy it is laughable. Buy your external SATA drive and cable. Power off the unit, plug siad drive into the unit, power unit back on, the unit will automatically format and install new software. presto. Done. The one thing to keep in mind is that the new external REPLACES the internal. It is an either or setup right now. You can always access the content on the internal one simply by powering off, unplugging the external and repowering up. Finally and lastly, the external is mated to the machine, which means you cannot hook it up to another HR machine, or, if the machine ever has to be replaced, you would have to reformat and lose the content. The one drawback in my opinion.


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## jimb726 (Jan 9, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> why ?


Because the concept is really neat. Pick a couple of desireable, PPV offerings, and have them there on demand. They change the offerings every week or so. Since this is space I have no access to regardless, I like that they are doing something with it.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

jimb726 said:


> Because the concept is really neat. Pick a couple of desireable, PPV offerings, and have them there on demand. They change the offerings every week or so. Since this is space I have no access to regardless, I like that they are doing something with it.


but like that "welcome home roscoe" movie i have there is on ppv like every half hour anyways.


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> but like that "welcome home roscoe" movie i have there is on ppv like every half hour anyways.


Except that all of their offerings aren't "really" every half hour so it's nice to have.

If you don't like it, why complain about it? Just don't use it.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> but like that "welcome home roscoe" movie i have there is on ppv like every half hour anyways.





tcusta00 said:


> Except that all of their offerings aren't "really" every half hour so it's nice to have.
> 
> If you don't like it, why complain about it? Just don't use it.


yes but that particular movie is.


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> yes but that particular movie is.


It may be right now but I guarantee it isn't like that all week - they run these things in cycles. That's the whole point of Movies Now - you can watch it when you want to, not what it happens to be on.

If you don't like it or don't agree with how they're running it, move along and enjoy the rest of your service - why complain about it... I don't understand.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

PlanetBill said:


> It's their hard drive.


Had you read the entire thread, you would have known it is MY hard drive. I own the HR20-700


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

tcusta00 said:


> It may be right now but I guarantee it isn't like that all week - they run these things in cycles. That's the whole point of Movies Now - you can watch it when you want to, not what it happens to be on.
> 
> If you don't like it or don't agree with how they're running it, move along and enjoy the rest of your service - why complain about it... I don't understand.


The way to make changes in this world is to complain about things you are not happy with. Why are you complaining about people complaining?........I don't understand.


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## jimb726 (Jan 9, 2007)

FlBillsfan said:


> Had you read the entire thread, you would have known it is MY hard drive. I own the HR20-700


Whether its your hard drive or not, its their code and their software and it is known that they reserve a portion of the drive for themselves. Since you own it, you can take it out of the unit and install it in your computer and use the full amount of the drive. Otherwise they own the programming and the means of reception


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## jimb726 (Jan 9, 2007)

FlBillsfan said:


> The way to make changes in this world is to complain about things you are not happy with. Why are you complaining about people complaining?........I don't understand.


That generally applies when you are trying to change something that you have no other option, opression, poverty, war, etc. If you dont like how DirecTv does business, change providers. Quite simple and I believe that is the point tcusta is trying to make. By the way custa, nice to sdee the soup nazi back.


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

FlBillsfan said:


> The way to make changes in this world is to complain about things you are not happy with. Why are you complaining about people complaining?........I don't understand.


:nono2: ... multiple people have said in this thread that they like it and use it... and obviously DirecTV, a multi-billion dollar per year corporation, put a little time and effort into researching the viability of such a service... and I'm pretty sure they had the wherewithall to put some kind of tracking technology into the service where they'll know how often it's getting used...


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

jimb726 said:


> By the way custa, nice to sdee the soup nazi back.


thanks, and here I was thinking about retiring it again.... maybe I'll keep him. I just can't think of a suitable alternative that's just as original.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

jimb726 said:


> Whether its your hard drive or not, its their code and their software and it is known that they reserve a portion of the drive for themselves. Since you own it, you can take it out of the unit and install it in your computer and use the full amount of the drive. Otherwise they own the programming and the means of reception


I understand Direct TV owns the software. I never disputed that. I am paying direct TV a good amount of money for the use of their software & system.I just responded to a post that incorrectly stated it was not my hard drive.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

jimb726 said:


> That generally applies when you are trying to change something that you have no other option, opression, poverty, war, etc. If you dont like how DirecTv does business, change providers. Quite simple and I believe that is the point tcusta is trying to make. By the way custa, nice to sdee the soup nazi back.


It applies to all things in life. I am overall very happy with Direct TV & have been for about 9 years. That does not mean I agree with everything they do, & I reserve my right to complain about anything I am not happy with.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

on the hr21-700 is the breakout something like this then:

320gb total -

40gb dvr operating usage.
230gb user usable = 50 hrs hd.
50gb directv showcase reserved = wouldnt that be about 12 hrs of hd ?


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

FlBillsFan,

And I defend your right to complain, rant, vent politely in the forums. 

Likewise, I thank you and the other members for being polite. 

Cheers,
Tom


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## newsposter (Nov 13, 2003)

i'm confused, if you arent hooked up to the web, and arent plugged in the phone, how do they know you watched the PPV


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

newsposter said:


> i'm confused, if you arent hooked up to the web, and arent plugged in the phone, how do they know you watched the PPV


if it shows as IPPV it means it was ordered on a card using a remote. and if you return a rcvr, they process the card and a ppv can show months or years after the order. otherwise they are OPPV and a record is created when it is ordered


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

newsposter said:


> i'm confused, if you arent hooked up to the web, and arent plugged in the phone, how do they know you watched the PPV


With no phone line and no network line, any purchase of a PPV via remote control is "charged" to the Access Card in the receiver. After a certain number of charges made to the card, the Access Card will refuse to accept additional purchases and a call to DIRECTV is required. I've never been quite clear on what DIRECTV does at this point, whether they require the card back (but ship a new one first to replace it) so they can bill for the purchases, or average the number of "charges" the card can hold and bill an average price per movie, but for sure after a certain point no additional PPV events can be "purchases" without clearing it with DIRECTV ...


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

curt8403 said:


> if it shows as IPPV it means it was ordered on a card using a remote. and if you return a rcvr, they process the card and a ppv can show months or years after the order. otherwise they are OPPV and a record is created when it is ordered


wow u totally lost me with that explantion.


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> wow u totally lost me with that explantion.


I was referring to info on the bill for the PPV

Taking it one step further (Movies Now) if you are not connected at all. and select to watch one of the movies. it would count as a IPPV. and directv would not know until they got the card back (at disconnect or replacement). PPVs will have to be paid for one way or the other.


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

newsposter said:


> i'm confused, if you arent hooked up to the web, and arent plugged in the phone, how do they know you watched the PPV


They don't. But the fact that you watched the movie is stored on your access card. It can store about 50 PPV listings before it starts blocking viewing new PPV purchases. If DirecTV doesn't see your box calling in for a few months, it disables IPPV (impulse Pay Per View) even before the access card is full.

Sooner or later that access card will communicate with DirecTV-either by your plugging in a phone line or when you return it-and then watch out for the bill you are going to get when they decode all the shows you've watched that haven't been previously reported/billed!!

Like the instruction manual says, disconnecting the phone line does NOT block ordering PPV programming as many unhappy subscribers discovered (they thought they could unplug the phone line when they went away and then the kids couldn't order a PPV movie-WRONG)

However, you CAN call DirecTV and have IPPV on your account DISABLED (like I did) even though you have the phone line connected so you can use the on-screen caller ID service.


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## davring (Jan 13, 2007)

ThomasM said:


> They don't. But the fact that you watched the movie is stored on your access card. It can store about 50 PPV listings before it starts blocking viewing new PPV purchases. If DirecTV doesn't see your box calling in for a few months, it disables IPPV (impulse Pay Per View) even before the access card is full.
> 
> Sooner or later that access card will communicate with DirecTV-either by your plugging in a phone line or when you return it-and then watch out for the bill you are going to get when they decode all the shows you've watched that haven't been previously reported/billed!!
> 
> ...


Without phone service the card will stop accepting PPV at three movies. I get this all the time with the unit in my RV, I have to call them and promiss to hook it to a phone when I get home


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

davring said:


> Without phone service the card will stop accepting PPV at three movies. I get this all the time with the unit in my RV, I have to call them and promiss to hook it to a phone when I get home


You are probably correct! In the "old days", apparently subscribers were trusted a lot more as the box would only call in once a month to report PPV purchases. I knew which day it was because that was the date any PPV purchases were listed on the statement. Now that I recall, the last time I ordered a PPV the box called in as soon as it realized that a PPV movie was purchased. I know because I was on the phone at the time. 

So the card actually CAN store 50 PPV events but now they only trust you with 3 before they begin blocking. Nice. What a wonderful world!


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## curt8403 (Dec 27, 2007)

ThomasM said:


> You are probably correct! In the "old days", apparently subscribers were trusted a lot more as the box would only call in once a month to report PPV purchases. I knew which day it was because that was the date any PPV purchases were listed on the statement. Now that I recall, the last time I ordered a PPV the box called in as soon as it realized that a PPV movie was purchased. I know because I was on the phone at the time.
> 
> So the card actually CAN store 50 PPV events but now they only trust you with 3 before they begin blocking. Nice. What a wonderful world!


add another factor... Purchase limits. a card can be set to a limit of 49$ and even with a phone line, and being empty could not order a PPV with a price of 59.95


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

jimb726 said:


> It is actually so easy it is laughable. Buy your external SATA drive and cable. Power off the unit, plug siad drive into the unit, power unit back on, the unit will automatically format and install new software. presto. Done. The one thing to keep in mind is that the new external REPLACES the internal. It is an either or setup right now. You can always access the content on the internal one simply by powering off, unplugging the external and repowering up. Finally and lastly, the external is mated to the machine, which means you cannot hook it up to another HR machine, or, if the machine ever has to be replaced, you would have to reformat and lose the content. The one drawback in my opinion.


Thanks for the info. I will get this done ASAP. I agree about the drawback of losing content if the receiver has to be replaced. It would be nice to have content saved if the receiver died.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> Thanks for the info. I will get this done ASAP. I agree about the drawback of losing content if the receiver has to be replaced. It would be nice to have content saved if the receiver died.


This drawback exists even (especially) when using the internal drive.


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

Jeremy W said:


> This drawback exists even (especially) when using the internal drive.


Very true. Living here in Fla, the smartest thing I ever did was sign up for the protection plan. I can't tell you how many receivers Direct TV has replaced for me over the years but I have a box full of remotes (mostly TIVO) in a closet. Losing what I had recorded has been the biggest downside.


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## newsposter (Nov 13, 2003)

ThomasM said:


> So the card actually CAN store 50 PPV events but now they only trust you with 3 before they begin blocking. Nice. What a wonderful world!


thats the info i was looking for..how much will they be out before shutting you down..

also it would be no biggie to spend 20 for a card if you had 200 in PPV on it


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

newsposter said:


> also it would be no biggie to spend 20 for a card if you had 200 in PPV on it


Except that you have to send back the card with $200 in PPV on it, and subsequently get billed for it.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

Jeremy W said:


> Except that you have to send back the card with $200 in PPV on it, and subsequently get billed for it.


And before anyone thinks of trying to "lose the card in the mail" so DIRECTV never gets it back, the card is owned by DIRECTV and failure to return it could result in costs to the user for "failure to return equipment". Any guess what that cost would be? I don't actually know, but my guess is it's probably more than or close to the actual charges for the PPV movies ...


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## Azalo (Oct 24, 2006)

When a friend of mine had DirecTv hooked up the installer told him to just microwave his access card to avoid PPV charges. I know he didn't try it but I wonder what D* charges if they can't get any info off the card and its obviously been tampered with.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

Azalo said:


> When a friend of mine had DirecTv hooked up the installer told him to just microwave his access card to avoid PPV charges. I know he didn't try it but I wonder what D* charges if they can't get any info off the card and its obviously been tampered with.


See my previous post - I bet they charge for lost or damaged equipment. I'm sure it's in the contract somewhere ...


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## newsposter (Nov 13, 2003)

all the talk is irrelevant if PPV gets locked out after 3ppv and no connection


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## somekevinguy (Jan 7, 2008)

I remodeled my TV room a few months ago and it took me a couple weeks to getting around to hooking the network and phone line back up to my HR21-700 and it wouldn't even let me order a single pay per view. It came up with a message saying that my internet and phone line were not working and to call customer service to order the movie. I wasn't actually planning on ordering it, I was just watching the preview. I will never pay anybody $5.99 for a 24 hour PPV. I wish everybody else would do the same. I think PPV is a great thing for convenience but IMO $5.99 is a rip off and 24 hours is ridiculous too. If they want to limit it at least give us a week or something. Many times I feel like watching a movie and the wife is asleep then she would have to hurry up and watch it the next day before it got erased. If they were $2.99 and gave me a week I would consider it but anything short of that and I am sticking with going to the grocery store across the street and renting it for $1 or using Netflix or Blockbuster by mail. I would think that if they lowered the price to $2.99 way more people would order them and they would actually make more money. As far as not sending back your access card things may have changed but I know in the past D* didn't do anything if you didn't send your card back with your box. I think it is pretty anal to talk about it being their property. It is just an access card. I have credit cards that are smart cards. When they expire do I need take the time to mail them back too. Whenever D* has replaced my access cards the old ones have gone in the trash. Found my two year chewing on one from an SD DVR that I deactivated a few months ago. Haven't seen any charges from that one yet. There is also one sitting in my RV that has been deactivated for about 9 months. Once again D* didn't seem to care about that one either.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

somekevinguy said:


> Found my two year chewing on one from an SD DVR that I deactivated a few months ago. Haven't seen any charges from that one yet either. There is also one sitting in my RV that has been deactivated for about 9 months once again D* didn't seem to care about that one either.


The reason they don't care is because they know the maximum you would be able to spend without transmitting. They will lose a few bucks for the sake of customer service ("My phone is busy when I wanted to buy the movie but I don't think it should stop me from that right now.") but will not let it go on too long.


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## somekevinguy (Jan 7, 2008)

I have paid for every pay per view I have ever ordered which is only maybe 5 in the 11 years I have had D* and is not the reason I have never sent back access cards but like I said at least in my case recently my HR21-700 wouldn't let me order one when my network and phone were disconnected for a couple of weeks and I didn't have a single one on my card. Actually it was a movies now title I was watching just to preview the movie. I don't know if that makes a difference compared to a standard PPV.


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## mx6bfast (Nov 8, 2006)

So is there a way to delete these programs? More specifically ones that have already expired?


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

mx6bfast said:


> So is there a way to delete these programs? More specifically ones that have already expired?


No, but they aren't taking any space from your recordings. They only reside in the reserved space.

(Actually you can delete them if you reformat the disk drive--losing everything. Not recommended, obviously.)

Cheers,
Tom


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## Blurayfan (Nov 16, 2005)

mx6bfast said:


> So is there a way to delete these programs? More specifically ones that have already expired?


No, only DirecTV can delete them. Usually they delete the day after the expiration date.


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## sprocto2 (Jul 26, 2007)

Tried it for the first time last night. Quality of the HD version was marginal, decent DVD quality to my eyes. Worst than that though, it stopped 11 minutes before the end. Sucked!!


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

sprocto2 said:


> Worst than that though, it stopped 11 minutes before the end. Sucked!!


Did you call customer care and get your money back?


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## sprocto2 (Jul 26, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> Did you call customer care and get your money back?


I sent an e-mail requesting a refund. I will give that a few days first.


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

We used it for the second time to watch _Charlie Wilson's War_ last night and were very pleased with the convenience and quality.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

i have 5 movies now....about how many can fit in their reserved gb space ?


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## Christopher Gould (Jan 14, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> i have 5 movies now....about how many can fit in their reserved gb space ?


I have 9 now, but i think i have up to 10 before.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

Christopher Gould said:


> I have 9 now, but i think i have up to 10 before.


Wow! Out of curiosity can you list the 9. The most I've seen is seven:
Scratch that! I just found on one of my DVRs:
Jumper
The Other Boleyn Girl
Charlie Wilson's War
Definitely, Maybe
Juno
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins
Rambo
27 Dresses
The Eye
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets

Cheers,
Tom


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

Tom Robertson said:


> No, but they aren't taking any space from your recordings. They only reside in the reserved space.
> 
> (Actually you can delete them if you reformat the disk drive--losing everything. Not recommended, obviously.)
> 
> ...


I would seriously like to "un-reserve" the space for 10 full length HD movies.


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## Steve615 (Feb 5, 2006)

There are 8 currently listed for us:
Jumper
The Other Boleyn Girl
Definitely,Maybe
27 Dresses
The Eye
Juno
Rambo
National Treasure 2 : Book of Secrets



dcowboy7 said:


> i have 5 movies now....about how many can fit in their reserved gb space ?


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

K4SMX said:


> I would seriously like to "un-reserve" the space for 10 full length HD movies.


Ah, but a 500gb external drive is so inexpensive, you'd get double your space and still have movies now.

And 750gb drives have some nice sales too from time to time.

Cheers,
Tom


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## VeniceDre (Aug 16, 2006)

I've got ten in the Office & Master Bedroom:

Jumper
Other Bow-Legged Boleyn Girl
Definitely, Maybe
Charlie Wilson's War
The Eye
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins
Rambo
National Treasure 2
Juno
27 Dresses

Only six of them in the Living room though, funny, that one has the 750 GB FAP.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

I'm pretty certain a lot depends on opportunity to download the pushes. The unit that has the most windows of a tuner available has the 10 movies. The ones with lots of recordings have only 4 or 5 right now.

Cheers,
Tom


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## VeniceDre (Aug 16, 2006)

Tom Robertson said:


> I'm pretty certain a lot depends on opportunity to download the pushes. The unit that has the most windows of a tuner available has the 10 movies. The ones with lots of recordings have only 4 or 5 right now.
> 
> Cheers,
> Tom


I figured that, the Living room is almost always recording something. I've got like 15% available space on a 750GB drive!

The only time it's not recording is in the middle of the night.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

VeniceDre said:


> I figured that, the Living room is almost always recording something. I've got like 15% available space on a 750GB drive!
> 
> The only time it's not recording is in the middle of the night.


I've had my 750gb that low several times. with summer re-runs it's back up to about 40-50% available


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## VeniceDre (Aug 16, 2006)

Tom Robertson said:


> I've had my 750gb that low several times. with summer re-runs it's back up to about 40-50% available


I've had it down to 2% at one point. My girlfriend likes to record Project Runway, That Tyra model show, Eureka, and all the UFC & extreme fighting stuff she can find... Pretty diverse huh?


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

VeniceDre said:


> I've had it down to 2% at one point. My girlfriend likes to record Project Runway, That Tyra model show, Eureka, and all the UFC & extreme fighting stuff she can find... Pretty diverse huh?


Yeah... that has my beat for diversity.

My 750 is many movies (all 6 _Star Wars_) plus normal weekly OTA (all the CSIs, NCIS, etc.), plus lots of kids stuff for the grandkids. 

Cheers,
Tom


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

Tom Robertson said:


> Ah, but a 500gb external drive is so inexpensive, you'd get double your space and still have movies now.
> 
> And 750gb drives have some nice sales too from time to time.
> 
> ...


Er-ah, see my sig. I just don't have eSATA drives on every single HR!


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

K4SMX said:


> Er-ah, see my sig. I just don't have eSATA drives on every single HR!


Slacker! 

Oh wait, I only have one DVR with larger than installed hard drive :lol:

Cheers,
Tom


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

The most inexpensive solution, like you said is "\/" + "REC". :lol:


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> on the hr21-700 is the breakout something like this then:
> 
> 320gb total -
> 
> ...


i had posted this from #s i got from another post....this breakout cant be correct though....if the 230gb user usable = 50 hrs hd then the showcase reserved must be more than 50gb....if some poeple have 10 movies thats 20 hours minimum....it doesnt add up.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> i had posted this from #s i got from another post....this breakout cant be correct though....if the 230gb user usable = 50 hrs hd then the showcase reserved must be more than 50gb....if some poeple have 10 movies thats 20 hours minimum....it doesnt add up.


Movies are very often less than 2 hours in length.


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

I'm wondering if all this stuff they've "showcased" is causing me to get "*!*" warnings on unprotected recordings when I have <20% remaining HD space. I could be wrong, but I don't recall getting those at <20% in the past. Somebody chime in about the 20%, so I can "sit corrected." Is there a possibility that these are taking up user-reserved HD space, but the available space indicator just doesn't show it?


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

dcowboy7 said:


> i had posted this from #s i got from another post....this breakout cant be correct though....if the 230gb user usable = 50 hrs hd then the showcase reserved must be more than 50gb....if some poeple have 10 movies thats 20 hours minimum....it doesnt add up.





gregjones said:


> Movies are very often less than 2 hours in length.


ok but still even if each movie avgs 1 hr 40 mins thats 16+ hrs and there still is other stuff in there too....the #s still dont jive.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

K4SMX said:


> I'm wondering if all this stuff they've "showcased" is causing me to get "*!*" warnings on unprotected recordings when I have <20% remaining HD space. I could be wrong, but I don't recall getting those at <20% in the past. Somebody chime in about the 20%, so I can "sit corrected." Is there a possibility that these are taking up user-reserved HD space, but the available space indicator just doesn't show it?


Is there a possibility? I suppose, but I think slim.

I have also noticed similar behavior on 20% before the Movies Now started downloading. But nothing seems to be being deleted early. And I still get down to 5-10% with usage as I expect. (I typically catch things before they get any lower.)

Cheers,
Tom


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## John4924 (Mar 19, 2007)

K4SMX said:


> I'm wondering if all this stuff they've "showcased" is causing me to get "*!*" warnings on unprotected recordings when I have <20% remaining HD space. I could be wrong, but I don't recall getting those at <20% in the past. Somebody chime in about the 20%, so I can "sit corrected." Is there a possibility that these are taking up user-reserved HD space, but the available space indicator just doesn't show it?


Yes, I have had the ! warnings before the movie showcase thingy. This would always show up on the oldest recordings when we would get below 20%.

Also, if I remember correctly, Directv reserves 100 GB of your hard drive for their use.

I have a 750 GB sata, so we have plenty of room normally 

Cheers,
John


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

dcowboy7 said:


> ok but still even if each movie avgs 1 hr 40 mins thats 16+ hrs and there still is other stuff in there too....the #s still dont jive.


Keep in mind that all of the Movies Now HD offerings are MPEG4. There is no mix of MPEG2/MPEG4 content like we find on the user-available portion.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

John4924 said:


> Also, if I remember correctly, Directv reserves 100 GB of your hard drive for their use.


It's 50GB, regardless of the size of the hard drive.


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

Tom Robertson said:


> Is there a possibility? I suppose, but I think slim.
> 
> I have also noticed similar behavior on 20% before the Movies Now started downloading. But nothing seems to be being deleted early. And I still get down to 5-10% with usage as I expect. (I typically catch things before they get any lower.)
> 
> ...


It's not as slim as you think, Tom. Perhaps not on a HD DVR, but the R15 SD users are sure complaining about "HDD FULL" messages and their recordings being deleted by "movies now" even with the "disk space meter" showing 20% available and more. Just check out the DVR forum on the DirecTV web site to see a big bunch of unhappy campers!


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## inkahauts (Nov 13, 2006)

I'm glad they are finally putting that 100gb of reserved space to use.. And at some point, I will probably buy a movie... I mean I buy at least once a year.. Yeah, I know that may not be often  but I really only do it on a true spur of the moment.. and having these movies ready to go accomplishes that quite nicely for me...


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

I just noticed that since my slightly out-of-date CE on one HR was automatically replaced by 0x254 NR, I am no longer able to view the time and date of the Movies Now download in the Info for the item. It had previously appeared in a light blue font, versus white. "This showing was recorded at....." I had previously gone through all 9 of them, noting that many of them were at ~4 am. Now I have 10 items, but the d/l info is _gone_. However, the date & time info is _still available_ for the infomercial items in the Movies Now/Showcases tab. Very clever, DirecTV!

Separately, I wonder how much revenue DirecTV is getting from the studios for this "product placement"?


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

Jeremy W said:


> It's 50GB, regardless of the size of the hard drive.


but how can 50gb hold 10 movies as some people say they have ?


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

dcowboy7 said:


> but how can 50gb hold 10 movies as some people say they have ?


My guess, and that's all it is, is that they're actually using part of the user space to store recordings as well. But they don't show it in the UI, and the recordings will be deleted if the room is needed for actual user content.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

jcwest said:


> Since it does not change the storage area available to me I like the availability of new movies.
> I can always ignore it if I choose and I have rented a couple of movies.
> 
> J C





Jeremy W said:


> My guess, and that's all it is, is that they're actually using part of the user space to store recordings as well. But they don't show it in the UI, and the recordings will be deleted if the room is needed for actual user content.


1. others dont think so as posted above.
2. but maybe thats why some people are having "full" issues even at 20% space still available.
3. i think this is 1 reason why people complained about this in the 1st place....if its bleeding into "my space" on the dvr that should be a no-no on directvs part.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

dcowboy7 said:


> 1. others dont think so as posted above.


OK?


dcowboy7 said:


> 2. but maybe thats why some people are having "full" issues even at 20% space still available.


Could be.


dcowboy7 said:


> 3. i think this is 1 reason why people complained about this in the 1st place....if its bleeding into "my space" on the dvr that should be a no-no on directvs part.


If it's transparent, meaning there are no "full" issues when it's not full with your stuff, what's the big deal? If the space is *really* empty or just filled with content that can be deleted, what difference does it make to you? As long as the DVR handles it transparently, there is no difference in functionality.


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## Brian Hanasky (Feb 22, 2008)

The other strange thing that I noticed about the Movie Now is the expiration date. At least 2 of the movies have expiration dates in November. Some are in October and a couple are in August. I thought that was a bit too long.


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

For those of us who don't use PPV, it is wasted space. It looks like a trick to get you to purchase a PPV movie, without realizing it. That area has always been used to previews and information, now PPV movies are showing up there.


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

Jeremy W said:


> OK?
> 
> If it's transparent, meaning there are no "full" issues when it's not full with your stuff, what's the big deal? If the space is *really* empty or just filled with content that can be deleted, what difference does it make to you? As long as the DVR handles it transparently, there is no difference in functionality.


If it were transparent, with no difference in functionality, it really wouldn't make a difference.

The problem is it isn't transparent (on the R15, at least). I have seen recording conflicts and others have reported conflicts and lost recordings.

Now maybe this is just a bug with how Movies Now was implemented on the R15, and it will get fixed.

But considering that this bug has already existed (and knowing DirecTV's tendency to introduce new bugs in software updates), there should be a way for the user to turn off "Movies Now", just in case there are conflicts.

Some users may relish the ability to use "Movies Now" to have instant access to popular releases. Other users will NEVER use it.

For the "never" category, there is no benefit to taking the risk of "Movies Now" conflicting with user recordings. If the user knows they will never use "Movies Now", why not let the user turn it off. (I am in the "never" category. In 10 years as a DirecTV customer, I only watched one PPV movie, and that was just to try out the service about 8 years ago. In the next 10 years, I don't see myself ever purchasing a PPV or "Movies Now" movie, no matter how many movies they force-download to my DVR.)


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## rhambling (Dec 19, 2007)

i had all of my movies exp date change to 7/30. on the the other hand, i have watched to movies (10000 bc and rambo) and both of them had audio and video problems. 10000bc audio was off about .5secs and rambo had a video problem and it skipped probably 2 mins of the movie. on both of movies it didnt matter if i rewind or ff it was recorded into the movie when it was downloaded.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

loudo said:


> For those of us who don't use PPV, it is wasted space. It looks like a trick to get you to purchase a PPV movie, without realizing it. That area has always been used to previews and information, now PPV movies are showing up there.


It still asks you if you want to buy it. That should be a giveaway that it's a PPV movie.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

Upstream said:


> If it were transparent, with no difference in functionality, it really wouldn't make a difference.
> 
> The problem is it isn't transparent (on the R15, at least). I have seen recording conflicts and others have reported conflicts and lost recordings.
> 
> ...


From what I have seen discussed, the conflicts and other issues are specific to the R15 code. I have not seen anyone post issues regarding an HR2x for Movies Now.


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## TBoneit (Jul 27, 2006)

gregjones said:


> It still asks you if you want to buy it. That should be a giveaway that it's a PPV movie.


I could see kids saying, what's a PPV or being from the instant gratification generation agreeing to it.

My guess is that it is targeted at those people that when they decide on something, they want it now with no delay.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

TBoneit said:


> I could see kids saying, what's a PPV or being from the instant gratification generation agreeing to it.
> 
> My guess is that it is targeted at those people that when they decide on something, they want it now with no delay.


That is why you can use parental controls for spending limits...


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## turbrodude (Sep 18, 2006)

I have had my HR20-100 nearly full (10% or less remaining) for many many months. Movies Now showed up and somehow magically fit 8 or so HD movies. It didn't affect my space available. But if it all gets put on a 50 GB hidden partition, I can't understand how they squeeze them in. If they are highly compressed, has anyone commented on the picture quality???


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

gregjones said:


> From what I have seen discussed, the conflicts and other issues are specific to the R15 code. I have not seen anyone post issues regarding an HR2x for Movies Now.


With this software release, the bug may be with the R15. Who knows what the next release for any reciever will bring? Since Movies Now has the proven potential to interfere with user recordings, I still think it makes sense to give the user a way to turn it off if he/she doesn't want it.


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## dcowboy7 (May 23, 2008)

Jeremy W said:


> If it's transparent, meaning there are no "full" issues when it's not full with your stuff, what's the big deal? If the space is *really* empty or just filled with content that can be deleted, what difference does it make to you? As long as the DVR handles it transparently, there is no difference in functionality.


but thats changing the deal of the contract for when i got the dvr or my 5.99 i pay each month for the dvr....its like me saying this month im only paying 2.99 instead of 5.99....im sure that wouldnt sit well with them just like this doesnt sit well with me.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

Upstream said:


> With this software release, the bug may be with the R15. Who knows what the next release for any reciever will bring? Since Movies Now has the proven potential to interfere with user recordings, I still think it makes sense to give the user a way to turn it off if he/she doesn't want it.


It impacted the R15 because of a bug. Any new software has the potential to impact user recordings. Though I think fixing the bug should be an extremely high priority because of user impact, I believe it would be difficult to sell DirecTV on the idea of giving users the option of turning the feature off.

I would argue that, instead, they should not push the movies to the R15 until the bug is resolved.


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

gregjones said:


> It impacted the R15 because of a bug. Any new software has the potential to impact user recordings. Though I think fixing the bug should be an extremely high priority because of user impact, I believe it would be difficult to sell DirecTV on the idea of giving users the option of turning the feature off.
> 
> I would argue that, instead, they should not push the movies to the R15 until the bug is resolved.


The R15 still has bugs which existed when I first got one over 2 years ago. And some bugs which had been fixed at one point were reintroduced later.

And I agree that DirecTV is probably reluctant to give users the ability to turn off Movies Now. I would imagine they are afraid that most users would turn it off (even if there was no difference in DVR performance with it turned on or off). Users who have Movies Now turned off can't order and pay for instant movies. Users who have it turned on still have the potential of ordering a movie.

But from a true customer-centric perspective, they really should offer the ability to turn it off.

If Movies Now conficts with user recordings, then there is a customer benefit to turning it off, and a customer dissatisfier to forcing it on.

If Movies Now never conflicts and is really completely transparent, then there is no reason for a user to turn it off. If most customers turn it off anyway, that speaks volumes to DirecTV regarding customer perceived value of the feature. Why force your customers to have something they don't want?


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

Upstream said:


> The R15 still has bugs which existed when I first got one over 2 years ago. And some bugs which had been fixed at one point were reintroduced later.
> 
> And I agree that DirecTV is probably reluctant to give users the ability to turn off Movies Now. I would imagine they are afraid that most users would turn it off (even if there was no difference in DVR performance with it turned on or off). Users who have Movies Now turned off can't order and pay for instant movies. Users who have it turned on still have the potential of ordering a movie.
> 
> ...


They should be able to remove authorization for these push channels on the R15s only and then fix the bug while no new movies are added. I think this would be a win-win solution. Unless the R15 does not have two partitions (like the HR2x) series, this should be a very simple fix.


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

gregjones said:


> That is why you can use parental controls for spending limits...


Or better still, call DirecTV and have IPPV (impulse pay-per-view) DISABLED on your account like I did. Now, there is NO WAY I can EVER accidentally purchase a "movies now" selection, even though my phone line is connected so I can enjoy the on-screen caller ID feature. If by some fluke there happens to be a PPV event I actually want to purchase, I can always order it on the web site and enjoy it on ALL my receivers instead of just one.


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

gregjones said:


> It impacted the R15 because of a bug. Any new software has the potential to impact user recordings. Though I think fixing the bug should be an extremely high priority because of user impact, I believe it would be difficult to sell DirecTV on the idea of giving users the option of turning the feature off.


Why? I don't include the PPV channels in my FAVORITES lists. They don't FORCE you to keep them in your program guide. Why do they FORCE you to let your DVR record PPV movies that you'll never buy? I think a few customers will like it but from what I've read the majority don't like it at all, just like they don't like unwanted emails or pop-up ads on their computer.


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

TBoneit said:


> I could see kids saying, what's a PPV or being from the instant gratification generation agreeing to it.
> 
> My guess is that it is targeted at those people that when they decide on something, they want it now with no delay.


You can block out the PPV channels so the kids won't see them, but you can't block out the Movies Now, from them.


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

loudo said:


> You can block out the PPV channels so the kids won't see them, but you can't block out the Movies Now, from them.


So the parental ratings limits don't apply? If true, that's a major issue for many subscribers.


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

K4SMX said:


> So the parental ratings limits don't apply? If true, that's a major issue for many subscribers.


I am not sure about parental ratings, I was just stating that "Movies Now" can't be blocked like other channels can.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

Part of the parental ratings are a section on PPV. You "should" be able to turn Movies Now off via parental ratings control.

Cheers,
Tom


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

Just tested, by setting PPV to $0, I wasn't able to access a Movies Now except for the short preview.

(and parental controls worked too on ratings; didn't even see the preview.)

Cheers,
Tom


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

Tom Robertson said:


> Just tested, by setting PPV to $0, I wasn't able to access a Movies Now except for the short preview.
> 
> (and parental controls worked too on ratings; didn't even see the preview.)
> 
> ...


OK, that worked, but would be better if it could be blocked from view, like other channels can be. Kind of the "Out of site, out of mind" theory, if they don't see it, they don't wonder about it.


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## Tom Robertson (Nov 15, 2005)

loudo said:


> OK, that worked, but would be better if it could be blocked from view, like other channels can be. Kind of the "Out of site, out of mind" theory, if they don't see it, they don't wonder about it.


I definitely think any adult "titles" should be blocked from view (couldn't test that with the current crop of Movies Now). Can you further describe how much help it would be blocking movies now from being seen? (Honest attempt to understand.)

Do you see blocking movies now as different from the fact people will see commercials for PPV titles on various channels for instance? Or from DVD commercials?

Mind you, I'm a great grandparent who skipped the little kid stage, so I'm trying to understand some of the issues of having little kids. That might be part of what I'm missing. 

Cheers,
Tom


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

dcowboy7 said:


> but thats changing the deal of the contract for when i got the dvr


It's not changing anything.


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

Tom Robertson said:


> I definitely think any adult "titles" should be blocked from view (couldn't test that with the current crop of Movies Now). Can you further describe how much help it would be blocking movies now from being seen? (Honest attempt to understand.)
> 
> Do you see blocking movies now as different from the fact people will see commercials for PPV titles on various channels for instance? Or from DVD commercials?
> 
> ...


Tom, it may just be my desire to not have it seen it at all. Guess I am just to picky, I would like to be able to go to the Parental Control area, and block it from view like I can with all other regular and DOD channels.

I see that the problem is that "Movies Now" is not a regular channel with an assigned channel number, but more of virtual channel, internally in the DVR. Therefore it can't be removed from view like the other regular and DOD channels.


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## cartrivision (Jul 25, 2007)

Just noticed that my Movies Now folder (and the 5 or so movies that were in it) is gone. Fortunately the MN & Showcases tab still has the 2007 NFL Blitz Week #7, 13, 17, & 19 programs in it. :grin:


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

Tom -- I can understand some people wanting to block the titles and descriptions (just like you can on objectionable channels, which get blocked from the guide). 

I can also understand people wanting to block the "Movies Now" listings completely, just to avoid temptation for kids and teenagers (even if the parents don't object to the specific movies per se). If kids see the movie listings, then they hound the parents with pleas to purchase the movies. If they don't see them, then they don't miss them.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

cartrivision said:


> Just noticed that my Movies Now folder (and the 5 or so movies that were in it) is gone. Fortunately the MN & Showcases tab still has the 2007 NFL Blitz Week #7, 13, 17, & 19 programs in it. :grin:


Yes, the folder is gone here as well.


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## dennisj00 (Sep 27, 2007)

gregjones said:


> Yes, the folder is gone here as well.


Just found mine are gone. Did this happen with x25B?


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## groove93 (Jun 10, 2008)

It's coincidental that the Movies are missing in the "Movies Now" folder and the Mpeg4 transition happened this morning. I wonder if those movies are going to be distributed through the new Satellite. The movies were available last night.


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## Hdhead (Jul 30, 2007)

Yep, yesterday I noticed the expiration dates had changed on the 10 movies in the Movies Now folder, all to 7/30. Today they are all gone including the folder. Perhaps D* is re-thinking this whole idea?


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## TBoneit (Jul 27, 2006)

gregjones said:


> That is why you can use parental controls for spending limits...


yup, unfortunately if the titles can still be seen by kids they'll badger the parents. Not even being seen would be better.

However I do feel that they intended target is the impatient with any delay type of person. Just another hose attached to the money vacuum.

That reminds me, I need to go set the parental controls to lock out Mom.


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## kw2957 (Apr 5, 2008)

Hdhead said:


> Yep, yesterday I noticed the expiration dates had changed on the 10 movies in the Movies Now folder, all to 7/30. Today they are all gone including the folder. Perhaps D* is re-thinking this whole idea?


I really hope so. I've never been a big fan of the Movies Now concept. Even though I know that the movies are stored on D*'s partition of the hard drive, I have always felt that it is taking up my space.


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## maliboo_girl (Aug 5, 2008)

RunnerFL said:


> You can't access that space, it belongs to DirecTV and they'll use it as they see fit.
> 
> In no way are "Movies Now" affecting your ability to record other shows/movies.


Hi,
It sure seems like Movies Now is taking my disk space. Just a few days ago, shows I had recently recorded started to be erased even though there was plenty of space left on my hard drive, according to the % and to how much I know it's held in the past. I thought it was a glitch. But it kept erasing shows until I was down to more than 50% "available", and as I was recording last night, it asked to delete that show. So I looked at Showcases and saw that I have 11 Movies Now. This is new for us, we've had maybe one before, and just a few other previews, etc. I'm sure the Movies Now popped up at the same time the problem started.

I called DirectTV and they were totally useless. They didn't tell me that Showcases didn't use my disk space, so either they are clueless or maybe policy has changed or ?? I know there is no way to delete Showcases but they didn't seem to understand that until they spent a long time looking it up.

Also, going by the 100 hours (which seemed to be correct), the percentage I should have available is a correct number, but the disk is close to full according to the dvr's actions of deleting.

So, any ideas? If the disk were having a problem, would it still be correct in the % used?

The biggest problem is that I have no idea how much space I have available to record and my recording is mostly work related.

Thanks for your help.


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## loudo (Mar 24, 2005)

maliboo_girl said:


> Hi,
> It sure seems like Movies Now is taking my disk space. Just a few days ago, shows I had recently recorded started to be erased even though there was plenty of space left on my hard drive, according to the % and to how much I know it's held in the past. I thought it was a glitch. But it kept erasing shows until I was down to more than 50% "available", and as I was recording last night, it asked to delete that show. So I looked at Showcases and saw that I have 11 Movies Now. This is new for us, we've had maybe one before, and just a few other previews, etc. I'm sure the Movies Now popped up at the same time the problem started.
> 
> I called DirectTV and they were totally useless. They didn't tell me that Showcases didn't use my disk space, so either they are clueless or maybe policy has changed or ?? I know there is no way to delete Showcases but they didn't seem to understand that until they spent a long time looking it up.
> ...


First of all, I don't think Movies Now is using very little space on your drives. All that I have in mine is a few short previews and DirecTV intro & help videos. No movies like we previously did.

If you want to find out how much space you have left on your drive, on a HR20, just go to the "List" screen and you will see it in the lower left hand corner of the screen.

Welcome, and hope this helps.


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## maliboo_girl (Aug 5, 2008)

loudo said:


> First of all, I don't think Movies Now is using very little space on your drives. All that I have in mine is a few short previews and DirecTV intro & help videos. No movies like we previously did.
> 
> If you want to find out how much space you have left on your drive, on a HR20, just go to the "List" screen and you will see it in the lower left hand corner of the screen.
> 
> Welcome, and hope this helps.


Hi, Thanks for your help.

I have an R15. I just found out that apparently this is some kind of software glitch (or maybe done on purpose?) that a lot of others are having with a new software update and the same R15 hardware that I have.

The 11 Movies Now are apparently full movies on the hard drive, for instant access, according to Direct TV. I wouldn't mind, if they weren't taking over my space.

Yep, on list it shows how much space I supposedly have, but actually about half of my disk space, as compared to a week ago, is not usable - by me. When I first got the unit I recorded it full to test the space, because I need to know for work, so I'm real sure on how much of my space has *disappeared*.

Too bad, because I was so happy with DirectTV, compared to my old cable service. I hope they fix this soon.

Thanks again!


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## FlBillsfan (Apr 23, 2008)

I am happy to say, I have no movies now. I set the purchase limit to $00.00 I don't know if this has any effect on it, but I hope to never see a PPV on my DVR again.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

FlBillsfan said:


> I am happy to say, I have no movies now. I set the purchase limit to $00.00 I don't know if this has any effect on it, but I hope to never see a PPV on my DVR again.


The purchase limit has nothing to do with it, and you will see more Movies Now in the future.


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