Channel groups instead of channels

[uglyned]

Hi,

 

Something that might be really difficult but would be really cool...

 

At the moment I have 2 satellite and 2 terrestrial tuners on an HTPC in the UK. In the UK we have freesat for satellite and freeview for terrestrial and with a few exceptions they both broadcast the same channels.

 

I have my tuners and channels set up to try an optimise the number of tuners I have and reduce the risk of PVR clashes and all tuners being occupied as much as possible. For example, for BBC1 I use the following:

 

First priority - Freesat BBC1 Yorkshire. That's my local one.

Second priority - Freesat BBC1 London. Not where I'm from, but mostly broadcasts the same programmes. Bonus with this one is it's on the same transponder as BBC2 England, BBC Three, BBC Four and Five so when recording from this channel there's less chance of a clash.

Third priority - Freeview BBC1 - my local BBC1, can't clash with satellite tuners, but not as reliable as satellite.

 

This is a manual system and I have similar ones for other channels. So I look ahead at what the recording service is recording this week and sometimes I manually change recordings to ensure nothing clashes.

 

But what if DVBViewer could do that for me? What if, instead of a lower level 'channel list' I used a higher level 'channel group list'. I'd have to set these groups up manually because DVBViewer would never be able to guess what I want and what my priorities were, but instead of having a 'channel' BBC1 I have a 'group' BBC1 which is actually a prioritised list of anything from 2 to 5 different satellite and terrestrial channels.

 

If I then only use groups and not channels and the recording service uses these groups, it can manage my tuners for me. Right now, if all my satellite tuners are busy and I select a Freesat channel, I get redirected to a channel on the same satellite transponder that DVBViewer is recording from. If I used groups, DVBViewer would know that if no tuners are available it could use BBC1 London if, for instance, BBC Four is recording or if that's not available switch to terrestrial BBC1 instead.

 

Just an idea. Albeit a long one...