[Leaplist] Freevo, MythTV, Tivo hacking, modding

[patrick]

John Simpson wrote:
> On 2007-10-15, at 2122, patrick wrote:
>>
>> Anyone doing any modding or hacking of Tivo boxes?
>>
>> Anyone need a series 2 box?
> 
> if you have an extra, i am definitely interested... especially if it can
> be hacked to run linux, and even more especially if it has the ethernet
> port. (i'm not an expert with the hardware but i have a few friends who
> are, and i've seen what they've done with them.)
> 
> 407-257-5671
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> | John M. Simpson    ---   KG4ZOW   ---    Programmer At Large |
> | http://www.jms1.net/                         <jms1 at jms1.net> |
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> 
> 

Research I've done,on the Tivo Series 2DT, and Series 2 boxes, shows
that the USB port is power plus ethernet (due to drivers), it is not
even a real USB port for the purposes of non-Tivo components.
It also takes a $29.99 USB to RJ45X jack converter.
http://www.dvrupgrade.com/dvr/stores/1/accessory_nomodel.cfm?SID=1&Product_ID=341



The latest self-extracting Zip file of 8 MB to "build" your TIVO hard
drive if the proir one died without you having backed up the files, is:
    http://www.dvrupgrade.com/dvr/stores/1/lba48_4.04_license.cfm


There must not be UHCI/OHCI or etc. in the TIVO system. Howto for Linux
is here   http://www.linux-usb.org/USB-guide/c15.html#AEN18


Cracking the TIVO is tough, no source code. Alternative is FREEvo.
but, I haven't gotten that far, yet.  I found lots of folks question
whether anyone has done an install on a TIVO box of FREEVO, but, no
answers other than the opinion that "someone" must be doing so.

Subscription service from TIVO is $16.95 per month? Bright House is
$6.95 WITH a S2DT box/$9.95 month for the HD box?

There is another subscription service, just online, that is $20 per
year. And, it is Open Source!  http://www.mythtv.org/



 Great, also, if you own your PVR, Yahoo has a free TV and cable,
satellite, schedule, out this week!

Also, there is a TIVO $45.00 wifi thing with USB plug, so it can be wifi.

I suspect the wiring of the USB is normal, actually, but, the
proprietary TIVO kernel doesn't drive it for use as USB, except for
their proprietary wifi USB device.

I did find the version 1.3 Tivo boot disc, to build a new, larger, hard
drive with. Here is the hack for install of a big drive: Series 1
limited to 137Gb for each of two drives:
http://homepage.mac.com/steventamm/tivo.html
    http://www.dvrupgrade.com/dvr/stores/1/lba48_support.cfm


Tivo uses MFS tools, so I believe it formats drives with Mac partitions
(UFS+), but am not so sure.   I found the 1.3 boot floppy, on a Tivo
blog site.       http://tivo.stevejenkins.com/network_cd.html

But, at Walmart, there is a PVR/DVR/DVD recorder by Funai, the SV2000,
for $49.95, that appears to almost do much of what TIVO can do.

With the switch to HD TV, the Series 2 Dual Tuner Tivo box is selling
for $69 at Big Lots, and there is a $150 rebate from Tivo!  You collect
almost $80 profit!  Yes, Tivo has two quarters of losses on the books...

I just wonder at them letting third party sellers charge $19.95 for the
TIVO CDrom to build a drive, and not letting it be Open Source...
Perhaps that is killing them... Have one, free, here:
http://www.dvrupgrade.com/dvr/stores/1/lba48_support.cfm