Very basic PVR script for use with the HDHomeRun Plus

This is an example of a very basic PVR script to schedule recordings on the HDHomeRun Plus (HDTC-2US). Scheduling is accomplished via a cron job which calls the script to record the HDHomeRun stream to a NAS where my Plex server will pick it up (to be Chromecasted at a later time.)

The below example shows an entry in /etc/crontab which calls the script and passes the Program name, channel and legth:

00 16  * * 1-5 root    /home/marc/scripts/tv 43 60 The.Dr.Oz.Show

Next the script runs with the given variables:

#!/bin/bash

channel=$1
length=$(($2*60))
programname=$3

curl -m $length -o /u/video/Recordings/$programname/$programname-$(date +%Y-%m-%d).mp4 http://192.168.10.247:5004/auto/v$channel?transcode=mobile

For the past 5 years I’ve been using PC Mobile for my cell phone service. PC Mobile is an MVNO using Bell Mobility’s network. I was on the anytime plan with 500MB of data for $20/month (5¢/MB overage). With the anytime plan talk time and texting is pay as you go… 20¢/minute talk time and 15¢/text. I however use Hangouts (data) for texting and VoIP for the seldom voice calls I would make. So on average I would spend about $25/month with PC mobile. My wife was also with PC Mobile on the anytime plan with the 100MB addon for $5/month.

Recently my wife was finding the need to show friends Youtube videos while out for coffee with friends… As you can imagine this would very quickly use up the allotted 100MB then use up the remaining credit on her account with 15¢/MB overage on this plan.

I started looking at Wind Mobile. For the past 2 years I have had a Wind Mobile USB stick with 1GB/month for $10 that I’ve been using through work. I was able to put the SIM card in my old Nexus 4 phone and test the network around the city. After a couple weeks I was sufficiently satisfied that I had good coverage everywhere we needed it.

I settted on the $40/month plan which gives unlimited Canada calling and texting along with 5GB/month of full speed data. As I was bringing my own device I also get $5/month in credits which I mostly use against roaming charges incurred when outside the City (Wind coverage area). As I have 3 lines asctivated (myself, my wife and the USB data stick) I also get $5/line discount/month.

Unlike some people on the forums I don’t have an issue with the Wind network speed. In most areas I get between 2 and 12 Mb/s HSPA+ which is sufficient for my VoIP application and most network functions. I don’t need my wireless network to be faster than my home ISP connection.

Pros:

Unlimited data (doesn’t get cut off after the full speed allotment)
Decent price albeit slightly more than what I was paying on Pay-as-you-go
Unlimited calling and texting
reasonable roaming fees when in the US

Cons:

Wind coverage only in certain cities
Lose Wind network and start roaming in many buildings like malls and Ikea

Stuff

Linux, Fortinet, Life

Very basic PVR script for use with the HDHomeRun Plus

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