Getting S3 protected files onto a PC to convert and burn

Hi all,

I was hoping some of the more advanced Tivo experts in this room might
be able to offer some advise.

I have a Tivo Series3 that is on my computer network and I am running
Tivo Desktop Plus on my computer. When accessing the S3 through Tivo
Desktop Plus certain recordings show as copy protected and do not
allow transfer to my PC? Is there any other way to get them onto my PC
and if so, How can I convert Tivo files to DVD once they are on my PC?
Thanks in Advance!!!
Regards,

Steve B.

Steve B. shaped the electrons to say:
allow transfer to my PC? Is there any other way to get them onto my PC
and if so, How can I convert Tivo files to DVD once they are on my PC?

Well, you can get an A/V capture card for the PC and connect the A/V
out from the TiVo to the card, then play the program on the TiVo and
re-record it on the PC with the card.

From where it depends on the capture software. You may be able to
capture right into DVD-compatible MPEG-2 to save time and not need to
transcode.

-MZ
--
megazone-at-megazone.org http://www.MegaZone.org/ Gweep, Geek, Human, me.
http://www.TiVoLovers.com/ http://www.Eyrie-Productions.com/ -- Hail Eris
"A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men" 508-852-2171

Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present themselves.

The new TiVo Software on the S3 allows for an extrenal eSATA drive for
additional storage. Any idea if moving a recorded program off the main
TiVo hard drive and onto the external drive would allow me to transfer
it that way? If I then hooked up the eSATA drive to my PC's external
eSATA port, could I then transfer it to the PC, convert it and strip
the DRM?


On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 16:00:58 +0000 (UTC),
(MegaZone) wrote:

Steve B. shaped the electrons to say:
allow transfer to my PC? Is there any other way to get them onto my PC
and if so, How can I convert Tivo files to DVD once they are on my PC?

Well, you can get an A/V capture card for the PC and connect the A/V
out from the TiVo to the card, then play the program on the TiVo and
re-record it on the PC with the card.

From where it depends on the capture software. You may be able to
capture right into DVD-compatible MPEG-2 to save time and not need to
transcode.

-MZ

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 16:14:17 -0400, Steve B wrote:
Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present themselves.

The new TiVo Software on the S3 allows for an extrenal eSATA drive for
additional storage. Any idea if moving a recorded program off the main
TiVo hard drive and onto the external drive would allow me to transfer
it that way? If I then hooked up the eSATA drive to my PC's external
eSATA port, could I then transfer it to the PC, convert it and strip
the DRM?

Try it, if you like. My money is on that your computer won't see anything
it recognizes, and 3 will get you 1 that the drive won't work with your
tivo anymore if you try it.

--
85. I will not use any plan in which the final step is horribly complicated,
e.g. "Align the 12 Stones of Power on the sacred altar then activate the
medallion at the moment of total eclipse." Instead it will be more along
the lines of "Push the button." --Peter Anspach's Evil Overlord List

Steve B. writes:
Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present themselves.

The new TiVo Software on the S3 allows for an extrenal eSATA drive for
additional storage. Any idea if moving a recorded program off the main
TiVo hard drive and onto the external drive would allow me to transfer
it that way? If I then hooked up the eSATA drive to my PC's external
eSATA port, could I then transfer it to the PC, convert it and strip
the DRM?


You don't control what the external drive holds. In fact, it most
likely will have parts of all shows on it, while the main drive will
have part of all shows on it as well.

Ie. its a plugin permamently thing and forget about ever touching it
again, with zero management of the content on it.

TiVo has a huge interest in making the content providers happy with
reguards to DRM and preventing people from doing what you want.
They've done a pretty good job.

If you want to record copy protected shows, it could very well be
easier to get whatever feed you want hooked up close to your PC so
that you can use video-capture and PVR software on your PC rather than
to try to force it off the TiVo somehow.

Steve B. shaped the electrons to say:
The new TiVo Software on the S3 allows for an extrenal eSATA drive for
additional storage. Any idea if moving a recorded program off the main
TiVo hard drive and onto the external drive would allow me to transfer
it that way? If I then hooked up the eSATA drive to my PC's external
eSATA port, could I then transfer it to the PC, convert it and strip
the DRM?

Won't work. Content is deliberately spread across the internal and
external drive - as in one recording will have blocks on both drives -
to prevent this. *And* the recordings are encrypted on the drive,
even if you could. Plus the file system isn't recognized by standard
OSes - though the latter could be worked around.

There is no internal/external when you attach the drive - there is one
flat storage database that spans both drives.

-MZ
--
megazone-at-megazone.org http://www.MegaZone.org/ Gweep, Geek, Human, me.
http://www.TiVoLovers.com/ http://www.Eyrie-Productions.com/ -- Hail Eris
"A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men" 508-852-2171

shaped the electrons to say:
If you have a TivoHD S3 connected to a Network, you can use Tivo
Desktop 2.5 to transfer the TIVO file to a computer. Then there are at

The original question was due to the copy protected recordings that
CANNOT be transferred to a PC using TiVoToGo.

So none of what you posted applies. And it really wasn't necessary to
post all that - a link to the forum post would've sufficed.

-MZ
--
megazone-at-megazone.org http://www.MegaZone.org/ Gweep, Geek, Human, me.
http://www.TiVoLovers.com/ http://www.Eyrie-Productions.com/ -- Hail Eris
"A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men" 508-852-2171

Steve B. wrote:
Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present themselves.


Got a vcr or dvd burner? I ran into the same sort of thing (new tivo
software release last fall and stuff like HBO stopped transferring due to
being "copy protected" ((i could sill xfer stuff recorded last summer from
hbo but not in the fall (after the update), I used to xfer stuff to my PC
via Tivo2go and burn it to dvd, I picked up a dvd burner at walmart for
$48works like a vcr but uses disks instead of tapes ).. Don't have to move
stuff and creates dvd's I can watch on my pc or that my friends can watch on
their dvd players...

Is there external DVD burner a USB drive? Do you attached the
standalone DVD burner to the S3 TiVo directly? If so, what steps from
within the TiVo do you take to get a show to burn to the DVD drive?

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:10:06 -0400, "Peter Pan"
wrote:

Steve B. wrote:
Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present themselves.


Got a vcr or dvd burner? I ran into the same sort of thing (new tivo
software release last fall and stuff like HBO stopped transferring due to
being "copy protected" ((i could sill xfer stuff recorded last summer from
hbo but not in the fall (after the update), I used to xfer stuff to my PC
via Tivo2go and burn it to dvd, I picked up a dvd burner at walmart for
$48works like a vcr but uses disks instead of tapes ).. Don't have to move
stuff and creates dvd's I can watch on my pc or that my friends can watch on
their dvd players...

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:10:06 -0400, "Peter Pan"
wrote:

Steve B. wrote:
Yeah, I was trying to avoid having to disconnect my entire TiVo and
move it into my office. I do have a TV Capture Card and I suuipose
that this can be a last resort if no other options present
themselves.


Got a vcr or dvd burner? I ran into the same sort of thing (new tivo
software release last fall and stuff like HBO stopped transferring
due to being "copy protected" ((i could sill xfer stuff recorded
last summer from hbo but not in the fall (after the update), I used
to xfer stuff to my PC via Tivo2go and burn it to dvd, I picked up a
dvd burner at walmart for $48works like a vcr but uses disks
instead of tapes ).. Don't have to move stuff and creates dvd's I
can watch on my pc or that my friends can watch on their dvd
players...

Steve B. wrote:
Is there external DVD burner a USB drive? Do you attached the
standalone DVD burner to the S3 TiVo directly? If so, what steps from
within the TiVo do you take to get a show to burn to the DVD drive?

Don't know, it's a stand-alone box like this (this is $99 and does both DVD
and VCR, the one I got only had the DVD part- not the tape also)

Here's a link for the better one (website doesn't have the cheaper one)
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=8195410
Magnavox DVD Recorder/VCR Combo, BZV420MW8
Item Description

Key Features:

* DVD +R/RW and -R/RW Recording (requires external source with tuner)
* Records up to 6 hours (SLP mode)
* Compatible with up to 16x disc speed
* One touch two-way dubbing
* Plays DVD-R/RW, +R/RW, MP-3,VCD, CD-DA
* Progressive scan playback, component Video Output, Rear A/V Output,
Front S-Video Input, Rear S-Video Output, Front A/V Input,
* VCR: 4 head HIFI Playback and recording
* No tuner
* Requires external source for in-line recording


==================================================
Note it doesn't have a tuner, but you can jack it to the c-outputs from the
tivo - then play the show and record it whle playing (on my s2dt have a vcr
output, so I can tell it to save to vcr rather than play it, and watch
something else, but my s3 doesn't have those, so I just use the c output
(c=component or composite, different units have different outputs) or the s
video out.