All posts by MikeB
Below are all of MikeB's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
MikeP: And to add that since Iplayer is at 720p and HD broadcast is at 1080i, if you take into account the sets own upscaling, there shouldn't be a vast amount of difference between the two, at least after a minute or two.
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Trevorjharris: I'd be surprised if that was that much bad language in Call The Midwife, since its broadcast at 8pm, which is pre watershed. I must admit my wife likes it, and I seldom watch it, but I havn't noticed that much bad language, or at least no more than I'd expect for a drama series set in East London!
New Tricks has ended its run of original programmes on the BBC, was always post watershed, and the occasional F word should hardly have been a shock, considering the programme.
Iplayer does have parental controls, and does have warnings of content, and will ask if the viewer is over 18.
Its logical for Sky/Virgin to want to control EPG's - its commercially valuable. But Sky is a platform and therefore a gatekeeper. Remember, you dont have the choice you think you do when someone else is already making choices for you, and showing what it wants to you have. Its not just the BBC that wants PSB content to be prominate, ITV, C4 and C5 all want the same. And I have no idea what 'The BBC is hardly neutral in the programmes it promotes' even means - if its the standard 'Bolshevik Broadcasting Corporation' stuff, I sepnt days asking people for actual examples, and got zip.
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Nick Anderson: If you'd read the article, it points out that its not just the BBC - ITV, C4 and C5 all want the same thing. PSB broadcasters want a decent billing, and nothing more.
And the reality is that it is Sky etc get to dictate which programmes are featured on its streaming service, you'll only ever find the ones that Sky want you to have (having often been paid to). And looking at the content that Sky makes itself, its unlikely that quality will have much to do with its prominence. Thats largely why Sky channels are so valuable to channels on this - the higher up the EPG, the more likely someone is to find it, and thats commercial sensitive and valuable. And it feeds right into the idea of net neutrality - if an ISP can advantage someone in return for extra cash, then they will attempt to.
Put it this way - if a Sky customer on their streaming service see's only what Sky wants them to see, or push, and makes it as difficult as possible to view more content, is that fair? To you, to the broadcaster? If Sky (or any other 'gatekeeper') wants to push Hawaii 50 or some superhero show (perhaps one their parent studio made), by burying 'Line of Duty', are they doing you a service?
Just looking at the Freeview EPG isn't easy if you just want to watch 'something'. There is a lot of choice. With Sky, there is vastly more, even when you can break the EPG down by genre, etc. And with something like Amazon Prime or Netflix, there are a huge number of films available, a great many you've never even heard of. There is too much choice, and so something like a 'recommended' can be a help. But the danger is that 'recommended' isn't there to help you, its there to restrict your choice to what someone else wants you to consume.
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GeordieLad: 'Clearly one should first look for the obvious or most usual' - and if it turns out to be an unusual problem, then a local professional can sort it out.
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Christine: If your not getting all the channels mentioned above, then perhaps you not tuned into the transmitter you think you are.
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J. Forteith: Need a postcode, signal strength and when and on what muxes the problem occurs.
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David Green: Sandy Heath has Com 7, so if your not getting it, are you actually tuned to a transmitter that carries it?
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Nick Anderson: C5 is better than it was, but its still mostly filler, and certainly nowhere close to any BBC channel.
Highlights would be GP's:Behind Closed Doors, Inside the Tube, Kings Cross and Yorkshire, a Year in the Wild. Perfectly decent PSB, with the GP one being something of a gem. You get the occasional programme like 'Worlds Scariest Landings', which isn't bad. And anodyne off the self docs about Royals, etc.
Lots of NCIS, Police Interceptors, Helicopter Rescue, Traffic Cops, etc - not awful, but packed full of additives.
And then you have stuff about dodgy landlords, balliffs, etc. Trashy TV. All channels have some of it, but C5 does seem to have cornered the market. Better than when Desmond owned it, but not exactly ground breaking, or consistently meeting its educational remit. Sometimes watchable, but overall not all that great.
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Friday 24 March 2017 9:51PM
GeordieLad: Or you could start off with the most likely problem - which is that the lead has come out of the back of the TV, or that there is a fault between the split and tthat TV.
Occams Razor...