Enter/Last button vs. Down Arrow
 

Just got my DirecTivo with a dual tuner last week and I cannot figure out
exactly how the buffers work with the Enter/Last button vs. the Down Arrow
on the remote while watching live TV. I know that the down arrow switches
tuners - however I see weird behavior when either manually entering
channels, using Enter/Last, or the Tivo Guide. How is it supposed to work? I
figure that whenever I change channels (regardless of the method used) the
buffer would always follow along keeping the last 2 channels that I had last
tuned to. That does not seem to be the case. If someone can explain the way
Tivo expects things to work then I can change how I change channels if need
be.

Thanks!

Tom Wright wrote:
Just got my DirecTivo with a dual tuner last week and I cannot figure
out exactly how the buffers work with the Enter/Last button vs. the
Down Arrow on the remote while watching live TV. I know that the down
arrow switches tuners - however I see weird behavior when either
manually entering channels, using Enter/Last, or the Tivo Guide. How
is it supposed to work? I figure that whenever I change channels
(regardless of the method used) the buffer would always follow along
keeping the last 2 channels that I had last tuned to. That does not
seem to be the case. If someone can explain the way Tivo expects
things to work then I can change how I change channels if need be.

Thanks!

Using the channel up/down buttons, going to the guide and selecting a
channel, or dialing in a channel directly from the keypad does not
change tuners. You will lose the current buffer and move to the selected
station. If you want to preserve buffers in order to facilitate watching
two programs at once (which I find very helpful with sports and news),
you need to use a key or key combination that will switch tuners. I use
the down arrow on the navigation keypad. I think you can also press the
Live TV button to switch tuners.

I think the Last button just moves between the last two programs on a
single tuner. I only use that key when I'm not looking to preserve the
buffer, and consequently don't have a lot of information about it.
Someone may be able to clarify. I always use the navigation down key to
move between tuners. You can also press the Info button and select the
other tuner, but that involves extra keystrokes.

If you move frequently between tuners, you'll notice that Tivo will
prompt you 1 minute before it has to record something on the tuner you
are not currently watching. Assuming you agree to this, you can still
switch tuners before the minute is up and Tivo will just use the other
tuner to record. If you stick with one tuner, you'll likely not see this
message unless Tivo needs to record two programs at the same time.

I admit two tuners operation is a little confusing. While I think my dad
could learn to operate a standard DirecTV receiver, I don't think there
would be any way he could learn to use both tuners on a DirecTivo for
watching live tv.

--
David G.

David G. ) wrote in alt.video.ptv.tivo:
Using the channel up/down buttons, going to the guide and selecting a
channel, or dialing in a channel directly from the keypad does not
change tuners.

Sometimes it does.

DirecTiVos do the smart thing and just changes to the other tuner if it is
currently on the channel you select via the up/down, numbers, or guide.

--
Jeff Rife | "She just dropped by to remind me that my life
301-916-8131 | is an endless purgatory, interrupted by profound
| moments of misery."
| -- Richard Karinsky, "Caroline in the City"

Jeff Rife wrote:
David G. ) wrote in
alt.video.ptv.tivo:
Using the channel up/down buttons, going to the guide and selecting a
channel, or dialing in a channel directly from the keypad does not
change tuners.

Sometimes it does.

DirecTiVos do the smart thing and just changes to the other tuner if
it is currently on the channel you select via the up/down, numbers,
or guide.

That's true, if you've already tuned the other tuner to the channel you
are about to tune to... blah... mouthful...

--
David G.