FAQ

This article is a translation of an article in the German TV-Browser wiki that needs completing. This article has only been partially translated from the original German article FAQ. Capable speakers of both German and English are invited to help in finishing this translation.

Some topics are out of date ..like 3.10 TV Browser doesn't show pictures.. I could use some help translating the parts about Windows, since I'm using OS X

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General

What is TV-Browser?

TV-Browser is a digital TV guide. It enables you to load the current TV program from the internet and view it offline with a great visual style. There is no need for a continuous online connection.

Which operating systems are supported by TV-Browser?

TV-Browser will run on all systems for which a Java Runtime Environment is available. Normally this is the case for all desktop systems. The Sun Java Runtime Environment must be installed prior to installing TV-Browser.

Java installation instructions can be found here.

Why is TV-Browser for free?

The TV program data is put at our disposal free of charge. The servers from which TV-Browser loads the data are provided by users who support us. Besides that we just like working on this project.

What differentiates TV-Browser from similar, but non-free/commercial services?

Paid services use professional editorial staff that prepare the program data or buy prepared data from another service. This is accordingly cost intensive.

Our data is prepared automatically. Therefore we only need to maintain and improve the software that prepares the data.

Provided channels

Which channels are provided by TV-Browser?

A list of all currently offered channels can be found here.

Does TV-Browser support radio stations?

We are currently providing a few programs of radio stations. Possibly more will follow.

I'm missing the channel $FAVORITECHANNEL - can you provide this channel?

As for all channels, we first need the authorization to publicize the data. Then the data has to be edited so that TV-Browser can use them. This can be done automatically, but must be prepared and maintained.

We currently provide over 50 channels. The more channels we provide the more effort is needed to maintain them, so we can't provide as many channels as desired.

But TV-Browser offers the possibility to use channels not provided by us directly.

Which possibilities do I have to import my own TV-data into TV-Browser?

TV-Browser offers a Plugin-Interface for Data-Import. This allows TV-Data to be imported into TV-Browser. Information on importing data can be found in the Developers-Section.

Meanwhile offering personal TV-Data has been made easy with our TV-Data-Starterkit.

Solving problems

TV-Browser doesn't load new Program-Data

A internet connection is necessary to update Program-Data. Check if TV-Browser can access the internet.

See also How to fix update problems.

Check if the clock of your operating system is configured correctly. This step is necessary for TV-Browser to update the right Program-Data for the different TV Channels. Otherwise it can occur that TV-Browser doesn't load the required Data because it expects the Data to be obsolete.

Everything is grey! Help! All my windows are grey! What can I do?

Update the drivers of your graphics card or start TVBrowser using TVBrowser_noDD.exe. This avoids that java uses DirectX to display the windows.

How can I start TV-Browser?

On Windows systems you must doubleclick the file "tvbrowser.exe". From the console you can start TV-Browser with

java -jar tvbrowser.jar

First you have to change to the appropriate directory. Alternatively you can use the "tvbrowser.sh" shell script.

Do I have the right Java-Version installed?

If you enter

java -version

at the console (Windows: DOS-Box, Mac OS X: Terminal), the output should look something like this:

java version "1.4.1_01"
Java(TM) 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build 1.4.1_01-b01)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 1.4.1_01-b01, mixed mode)

If you see a lower version number than 1.4 or an error message appears, then you must install Java. Download Java

When starting TV-Browser I receive the error message "Could not find Main class"

You must start TV-Browser with

java -jar tvbrowser.jar

MS-Windows: Im Explorer, Menü Extras - Ordneroptionen --> Dateitypen JAR auf erweitert klicken. Dem Vorgang open (auf bearbeiten klicken) sollte ungefähr das hier zugeordnet sein: "C:\Programme\Java\j2re1.4.0\bin\javaw.exe" -jar "%1"

TV-Browser comes with the message: No mirror server found

If this message appears when you first start TV-Browser, then this is usually because of the fact that TV-Browser can't connect to the Internet. Therefore, you should check the configuration of your network connection. See also here.

If you have registered a mirror server manually in the preferences, please check your input there.

When starting TV Browser my archiving program opens

With the installation of Java, .jar files are assigned to the Java VM. If tvbrowser.jar does not open by doubleclicking it (ms Windows), the archiving program probably overwrote this allocation. See When starting TV-Browser I receive the error message "Could not find Main class"

When I start TV-Browser I receive the message "Please start TV-Browser in the TV-Browser folder". What does that mean?

You must start TV-Browser with

java -jar tvbrowser.jar

You cannot specify a path to tvbrowser.jar, so you have to use the 'cd' command to change to the folder where tvbrowser.jar resides first.

The start times of the programs are one hour off. What's the matter?

TV-Browser takes into consideration the location (timezone) of both the television station and the user. In this way TV-Browser can correctly display the times of programs from stations in another timezone.Please make sure your system clock is to the right timezone.

Tips

I've installed two Operating Systems and I want to use the same preferences for both. Can that be done?

Yes. TV-Browser stores the preferences in the Home directory of the system. When you start TV-Browser like this (command is case-sensitive):

java -Duser.home=/EINSTELLUNGEN -jar tvbrowser.jar

then it will store and/or use the preferences in the indicated folder. In this way two TV-Browser installations on different systems can share the same preferences.

I would like to make a shortcut to TV-Browser on my Linux Desktop. How can that be done?

Start TV-Browser with the help of the shell Script.

Can I change the language used for TV-Browser?

You can change the language in the Preferences window under General settings--> Locale.

I have multiple computers and would like to share the TV-data, so that I only have to download the data once.

You can set the folder where the TV-Data is stored in the Preferences window under Technical settings--> Directories. If all computers use the same folder, they'll also have the same TV-data available.

Plugins

What are Plugins?

Plugins are program modules which extend the basic functionality of TV-Browser.

How do I install a Plugin?

Installing, activating and configuring Plugins is explained here.

How do I develop my own Plugin?

You can find that info on the Developer part of the WIKI.

How do I let other people know about my Plugin?

You can create an account at our website which you can use to upload your Plugin. Just complete the login form.

Offering webspace

I read that you need more servers to host the TV data. What do you need exactly?

We store the TV program data in the form of files on Web servers (HTTP).

How is the data uploaded to my server?

The upload is done by using FTP. rsync is also possible.

What is the expected bandwidth use?

Please tell us your bandwidth limit, we will set up the server accordingly. We do not intend to supervise and/or limit the bandwidth use of a particular server in any way. We are always looking to add further servers in order keep the load of a particular server as small as possible.

How much webspace do I need?

20-50 MB

Was muß ich als "Server-Spender" beachten?

Aus lizenzrechtlichen Gründen muß der Server in Deutschland, Österreich oder der Schweiz stehen. Manche Provider schließen in ihren AGB "Downloadangebote" o.ä. explizit aus (das sind im allgemeinen jene Provider, die unbegrenzten Traffic anbieten). Bitte im Zweifelsfall in den AGB lesen.

I still have another question about "Offering webspace"

email

I'd like to offer you some webspace. To whom do I turn?

email