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Firmware Version 09.15

45K views 103 replies 44 participants last post by  GaryE 
#1 ·
Starting on February 12 (for HDPVR 630 units) and February 18 (for HDDSR 600/605 units), Shaw Direct will be deploying software version 09.15. Once targeted (as seen on line I in OPTIONS 4-7), your receiver will automatically update at around 2:10AM local time. It is not possible to force the update if you have not been targeted.

The overall look and feel is unchanged with this download, with the exception of updating branding.

This release provides increased VOD speeds, significant PPV enhancements, updated Closed Captions decoding and improved stability. Prior to 09.15, the last software download was 08.26 in late October 2012.


09.15 Release Highlights



Overall Stability Improvements
•General updates related to stability/reliability to reduce the chances of the receiver becoming "frozen"
•If an issue is encountered that the unit is unable to resolve, a reboot may occur automatically to restore normal operation.


Shaw Direct On Demand (VOD) Dual Streaming & Usability Updates

•Network and streaming drivers have been rewritten to enhance network throughput and VOD streaming performance.
•A substantial increase in average speeds has been experienced with our Field Trial and Employee Trial groups.
•If you previously had unexpectedly low Speed Test results, or issues streaming during local peak usage, an improvement should be seen with this release.
•Unsubscribed content on VOD should display "grey" consistently, rather than sometimes giving a W4 error.

Shaw Direct On Demand (VOD) Adult Content
•Support has been added for Adult content. Adult content is found in a separate VOD menu, which is hidden by default. A variety of Parental Control options are available to further limit access to this content.
•To enable access to the Adult VOD store, Parental Controls must be enabled. Then, press D to access the VOD menu bar, scroll to "VOD Settings", and enter your password. Change "Adult VOD" to "Enabled". Exit the menu, and press D again. You'll see a new button in the middle of the menu bar labelled "Adult".
•All Parental Control options (including Purchase Limit) will also apply to Adult content.
•As with Adult PPV Content:◦There is no free preview period on Adult VOD content
◦Coupons do not apply to Adult VOD titles
◦Adult VOD content features discrete billing.

PPV Order Enhancements
•PPV programs now feature an "Order ID" in the Guide. You can use this number to quickly place your order via the automated phone system (1-866-782-7778).
•Once your receiver gets the order, the "!" alert icon will appear. Pressing ENTER will display the Purchase History screen, which will list details of the title you ordered. The "$" sign will also appear in the Guide on the title you purchased.
•You must still setup an auto-tune, recording, or remember to tune in when the PPV starts.
•If you didn't receive confirmation of the purchase and the title doesn't appear in Purchase History, use the "receiver refresh" option via the automated phone system or Self Serve to send the purchase through again.
•In alignment with industry and studio standards, PPV movies recorded on the HDPVR 630 will be available for unlimited viewing for 48 hours, after which the title will automatically expire.

External HDD Updates
•Once paired, eSATA hotplug is now supported. However, unplugging your external HDD while it is connected is still not recommended. (Note that on initial pairing, you must still reboot the receiver to initiate the connection).
•Units with a large number of recordings stored on an external drive should see improved performance after bootup, in the PVR List, and with the playback of recent recordings.

This release also updates the Shaw Direct logo to reflect the new brand launched in late Fall
 
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#34 ·
Not an IR problem, but I had strange things happening with my 630 until I cut my UHF antenna on the 630 down to about an inch. I think that my neighbors were using their remotes to change channels and turn ON/OFF their unit which caused my device to act accordingly. No problem since.
 
#30 ·
I had timers set for 1 am a couple of nights in order to tape the Westminster Dog Show... so as soon as my receiver was targeted, I forced the download so that it wouldn't happen at 1 am when I was recording.

Download went fine...proper update number appeared in the settings.

However the following day when I went to watch the opening night of the dog show, the entire first 30 - 45 minutes showed up in red on my recording. Hmmm.... about the same amount of time as the download might have taken that night if I had not forced it earlier? There was certainly no local weather issue... but the rest of the recording had intermittent pixilation.

I've since found a couple of recordings with intermittent audio dropouts... and Family Guy from Sunday night had some visual pixilation as well.
 
#36 ·
It's not necessary to cut the RF antenna. Just remove it and change the address on the receiver and remote. Then replace the antenna. I always change the address to something other than the default. That way, a new or reset receiver (ours or others') doesn't interfere with an existing one.
 
#37 ·
Can not stop recording

Recording 2 programs at same time. Tried to stop one as I wanted to watch something else. Lets me select stop, but it keeps on recording and can not change to the channel that I want to watch. This is the first time this has happened to me.Also getting a lot more spontaneous re-boots since 9.15. Is it just me or are there others having these problems ?
 
#38 ·
To stop a recording in progress you have to pull up the PVR List and select the program you want to stop recording... press Enter and then select "Stop this recording". Pressing the Stop button will not stop a recording while it's recording. It's used with playback though.
 
#39 ·
My father reported that his 630 also would not stop recording, even after going in to PVR window and trying to stop the recording, as ralphf reported, but that was with 6.23. Only way to stop it was reboot the unit.
 
#43 ·
So it appears this update hasn't removed those unwanted features of recordings freezing during playback and increased spontaneous reboots that they introduced in firmware 8.26. Was really hoping this update would address that and put my receiver back to the mostly stable state it was prior to that 8.26 update. Guess I will have to wait and hope for that in 10.xx
 
#44 ·
Why do you remove the antenna to change the address?
To stop interference from other RF remotes. If there is no interference at the time then it's not necessary. It's also a good idea to make sure that other receivers in the house are off. That avoids accidentally changing their address. It's possible to change the neighbour's receiver address as well. That will cause them problems if they don't know what happened. If you are on good terms, it might be a good idea to make sure their receivers are off.
 
#46 ·
I noticed a problem during the Oscars last night. We were watching while recording. It was a scheduled recording event. When we fast forward during the commercials, when it reached the end without pressing play, it would revert to the Recording menu screen. But when I selected the recording again, it restarted from the beginning rather than the last viewed segment.

I expected it to revert to the live feed while continuing recording (like the 530). Definitely not expected behaviour...
 
#47 ·
We were watching an on-demand movie on the weekend, and about half an hour into it we got a flash of green screen followed by a black screen and finally a message on the tv screen saying it couldn't support the resolution. Audio kept playing but the video was gone. Had to reboot and try to find the same spot to keep watching the movie. I'm not sure if that was an internet issue or satellite.

Walking Dead recorded since the update was pixilated as well. No joy there.
 
#49 ·
Bell PVRs were the same way for 3 or 4 years. At least they finally got most of the bugs out. So far, Shaw Direct was late to market and hasn't supported a PVR long enough to get the bugs out. We can only hope that the 630 will be different. Provided they stop adding new features, it might happen in the next year or two.
 
#51 ·
I do this all the time with auto racing. I started watching the Daytona 500 at 3:30 pm and caught up just as the post race show was ending. 500 miles in 2:45 h.
But I use jump forward as opposed to FW. "3 + skip" on my Harmony remote will usually pass the commercial break. Not had any issues with 9.15 so far.
 
#52 ·
No issues thus far with 9.15 for me either.

I do the same thing with hockey games. I always watch them recorded now. Start about 1.5hrs into a game and catch up by the end. 2.5-3hr games turns into a 1-1.1hr game. A thing of beauty really.What do you do with the extra 1.5hrs of your life that used to be wasted on commercials, intermissions and b/w whistles (yes i skip b/w the whistles as well - set the skip button to 20secs). :D
 
#53 ·
I noticed late last night that I was getting no sat found messages on some channels, and not subscribed on other channels. We were in the middle of a snow storm so I just figured it was snow on the dish and just switched to watching recorded programs.
This morning I see a new message waiting icon on the screen, read the message, and it said that I needed to recreate all my recording events. I checked the firmware, it is 0915. The messages last night about some channels not being subscribed leads me to think it got the update last night. Why would it erase all my recording events? I generally have over a hundred events set up. Given that there is a storage device within the receiver, why don't they backup the recording events onto the hard drive, and restore it after clearing the events off with the update? Even if they are altering the structure of the record events, they could just convert the existing data to the new format. The amount of data is very small in relation to a recorded half hour show. It would take a programmer less time to create a simple applet to do this than it takes for me to have recreate the list of record events.

I hope this update fixes the daily lockups I have been getting.
 
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