Now you can record and playback DTV movies* (HD and SD) using the PC you already own. No need for expensive specialized recording equipment.

If you own a DTV with an integrated tuner and IEEE 1394 interface, you can use your Windows XP based PC or laptop as an inexpensive and flexible solution for the storage and playback of HD and SD digital movies*.


* Unencrypted movies/content only
DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentioned are trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their representative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.

• Record MPEG-2 (HD & SD) content* from your DTV or DSTB to your PC over IEEE 1394 interface
• Record and play individual movies from the PC
• Self-configuring software identifies your PC as a storage device to the DTV.
• The PC can be configured to act as a Digital VCR or AVHDD upon startup.
• DTV recorder operates in the background and frees up the PC for simultaneous use. Less than 5% of the CPU is consumed when the PC is simultaneously recording and playing.
• Compressed video is captured from the DTV and stored to your PC. No need for expensive decoders or encoders on the PC.
• By using the DTV remote control, recorded movies (MPEG-2) on the PC can be played back to DTV with ability to stop, pause, fast-forward and fast rewind video on most DTVs with integrated tuners.
• Time Shift Viewing allows movies to be viewed from the beginning while recording is still in progress.
• Movies recorded on the PC can be burnt onto a DVD or CD.

DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentioned are trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their representative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.

Minimum Hardware/OS requirements for FireBus? DTV Recorder software:

PC Configuration:

• Intel Pentium-class 233 MHz (or faster) processor.
• 256 MB RAM
• 20 - 40 GB free hard disk space (1 minute of HD Data recorded takes up about 140 MB of disk space)
• Windows XP Operating System (Home or Professional Editions) with Service Pack 2 installed.
  

Any of the following 1394 cards:

• OHCI card using VIA chipset
• OHCI card using TI chipset.
• PCMCIA card using VIA chipset
• PCMCIA card using TI chipset

NOTE: Currently, we support only one 1394 card in the PC.

DTVs currently supported:
FireBus? DTV Recorder have been tested against the following DTVs:

1. Mitsubishi DTVs
2. Thomson Scenium DTVs
3. Philips DTVs
4. Samsung DTVs
5. Hitachi DTVs

DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentionedare trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their reprersntative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.

Concurrent Streams
      Playback: One isochronous stream over IEEE 1394 supported by one output plug control register.
      Record: One isochronous stream over IEEE 1394 supported by one input plug control register.
Features simultaneous playback and record.

Supported Stream Formats
MPEG-2 TS

IEEE 1394/FireWire transfer rate
IEEE 1394a speeds of 100, 200 & 400 MBPS

Supported Trick Play Modes
The software currently supports Play, Stop and Record, Fast Forward, and Fast Reverse, Pause and time shift viewing. Other play modes like Skip and Replay will be added in the subsequent releases.

Encryption and Decryption
Does not record content protected streams. Can record unencrypted content only.

AVC Commands Supports IEEE 1394 TA AVC Command Set for AVHDD and DVHS.

DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentionedare trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their reprersntative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.

PRODUCT FEATURES
Q. Where do I get the features and specifications of the software?
A. Click on features and specifications for their respective pages.

Q. I was searching for information on the product on your website, but haven't seen any information. Where can I get more information?
A. Click here to get more information.

Q. How do I report problems/bugs?
A. Support for DTV recorder is available only thorough email. Please email us at support@vividlogic.com to report bugs and issues.

Q. Where can I find the User Guide?
A. The User Guide giving the step by step installation and usage information are available here for download.

HARDWARE/OS REQUIREMENTS
Q. What are the Hardware/software requirements to use the software?
A. The minimum hardware and software requirements are available here. You can also refer to the section "Optimal PC configuration" in the user guide for information on the optimal performance of the software.

Q. Does the software work on a Windows 2000 PC?
A. No.

Q. Can I use this software as a PVR/DVR/Time Shift viewing?
A. Yes. The software allows the PC to be used as a DVR . Time shift viewing is also supported.

Q. I have a Mitsubishi TV with Promise Module. Will I be able to use the software?
A. Yes.

Q. The DTV I have is not listed in the hardware requirements. Will this software work with my DTV?
A. If your DTV recognizes AV/C protocol, you may be able to use the software with your DTV. We have tested it only against the DTVs listed in the hardware requirements. You are welcome to use it against any other make/model of the DTV with IEEE1394 support. Please let us know of your success/failures if you are using the software with any other DTV/STB.

Q. I have STBs with FireWire support. Will the software allow me to use the PC with my STB?
A. Yes. The software will work with the STB. However, the STB needs to provide a user interface to control the PC software.

Q. My FireWire (IEEE1394) card does not meet the requirements specified. Will I be still able to use the software?
A. The cards listed are the ones we were able to test. The software may work against other makes of OHCI cards also. You are welcome to test the software against any other card. We will be glad to address any new issues you may have.

Q. My TV supports only recording with a DVHS. Is it possible to configure your software to make the PC appear as a DVHS?
A. Yes. The software can be configured to make the PC emulate an AVDisc or a DVHS.

Q. Does the driver kill other utilities on the PC such as USB devices - can you write to USB flash after installing VividLogic's FireWire drivers?
A. We are not interfering with any other drivers.

Q. Do you know of any other device drivers that are affected by VividLogic's driver?
A. FireBus?DTV Recorder software replaces the Microsoft's IEEE1394 driver with VividLogic's own IEEE1394 driver. As a result, the Microsoft driver functionality that deals with the DV camcorders functionality is affected. You may have to switch back to Microsoft's driver to be able to use your Camcorders. The software has provision, which allows the user to switch back and forth between Microsoft and VividLogic's IEEE1394 drivers.

GENERAL
Q. How much hard disk space is needed to store a HD content?
A. One minute of HD data recorded takes up approximately 140 MB of disk space. If you are recording 30 minutes of HD content, it will take approximately 4 GB of hard disk space.

Q. Will I be able to record copy-protected content?
A. No. You will be able to record only unencrypted movies or content ("in the clear" content).

Q. Will I be able to record DV content?
A. No. You will be able to record only MPEG-2 content.

Q. What kind of support will be provided for the software?
A. Support is given for the software only through emails. You may email us with your problems at support@vividlogic.com

PRODUCT ACTIVATION
Q. I purchased version 1.0 of the software and activated it. Later I upgraded the software to the latest version. Is the activation keys of version 1.0 still valid? Do I need to purchase the software again?
A. The activation keys for Version 1.0 of PC-DTVR can be used for Version 3.02 also. You need not purchase the software again.

Q. I uninstalled and re-installed FireBus DTV recorder on my PC. Is my activation key still valid?
A. The DTVR may be installed on the same computer multiple times. The DTVR may also be activated on the same computer multiple times using the same activation key. In case the activation key is lost it can be retrieved from the VividLogic website using the order-id / installation-id combination.

Q. Is the activation still valid if I replace the IEEE1394/Firewire card on my PC?
A. The activation key becomes invalid in case the 1394/Firewire card is replaced.

Q. How do I find the installation Id for my FireBus DTVR installation?
A. The installation-id can be found as follows:

Click on "Start" -> "(All) Programs" -> "VividLogic" -> "Firebus(TM) DTV Recorder" -> "Firebus(TM) DTV Recorder Settings" In the application that appears, select the "Product Activation" Tab. This tab displays the installation Id for your installation. Click on the "Copy" button to retrieve the ID for pasting in the Activation Center page.

The installation-id can also be found using the following procedure:
Click on "Start" -> "Settings" -> "Control Panel" -> "Firebus DTV Recorder". In the application that appears, select the "Product Activation" Tab. This tab displays the installation Id for your installation. Click on the "Copy" button to retrieve the ID for pasting in the Activation Center page.

For more details, please refer to the section "Product Activation" under Chapter 3, "FireBus DTVR Settings" of the UserGuide.

DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentionedare trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their reprersntative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.

• The software can record and playback digital video programs that are encoded in the MPEG_2 transport stream format and conforms to the ATSC standard and has a bit-rate of about 19.39 mbps. It does not support DV.
• SKIP is currently not implemented. Trying to use these on the transport menu of DTV may result in unpredictable behavior.
• FireBus?DTV Recorder requires VividLogic's custom built 1394 driver to work. Installation of the FireBus DTV recorder software replaces the default Microsoft IEEE1394 driver with VividLogic's driver. VividLogic drivers currently do not provide the support for DV camcorders. In case the user wishes to switch back to Microsoft's IEEE1394 driver, he can do so by using the "FireBus DTVR settings" Control Panel application. See user guide for more information.
• If the folder specified the Media path is not accessible, recording would fail.
• If the drive specified for the Media path has no disk space, recording would fail.
• In a FAT32 partition maximum recording size would be limited to 4 GB (about 30 minutes of data). If you want larger recordings, choose an NTFS partition.
• While using against Mitsubishi DTV, if you are changing form AVDisc mode to VCR mode, or vice versa, disconnect the PC from the 1394 network, delete DTV Recorder from the Mitsubishi TV configuration and then connect the PC in the new configuration. Otherwise the DTV recorder will continue to appear in the earlier configuration.
• Playing a track using the content manager applet before the PC is selected on the TV may cause the DTV connection to the PC fail.
• When the PC is being shutdown adding or removing devices on the 1394 network may cause the PC to reboot.
• OHCI cards of certain manufacturers are found to have some problems, limiting the software usage to record and playback to and from a single device. In such cases, please try replacing the card.
• The software has been tested against the following DTVs/STBs:
  1. Mitsubishi DTVs
  2. Thomson Scenium DTVs
  3. Philips DTVs
  4. Samsung DTVs
  5. Hitachi DTVs
• Some antivirus software cause problems in the use of FireBus DTV Recorder. We are investigating this issue and will provide a work around soon. Please disable or uninstall any anitivirus software, if you face problems.
• Fast forward, fast rewind, and pause work only for certain types recordings.
• The record-duration and playback-counter displayed in the Content Manager as well as on TV menus are only an estimate. They are likely to have incorrect values if the recording was started during advertisements, or if the program being recorded changed.
• This version incorporates buffered streaming. The status of buffering is indicated in the Content Manager. Difficulty in buffering will cause the buffering status indicator to show a low value. This indicates that software is not able to keep up with the demand for data during playback due to CPU and/or disk access delays as well as due to prolonged fast forward or fast rewind operation. Under these conditions the video will start to break up. Once the the video starts to break up the only option for recovery is to stop and restart the playback operation.
• Various visible and hidden programs and/or services may use too much of CPU and cause problems with the record or playback operations.
• Various visible and hidden programs and/or services may utilize the hard-disk arbitrarily and cause problems with the record or playback operations.
• Certain PC systems may have hardware defects that may interfere with the record and playback operations.

DTV Recorder is a trademark of Vividlogic Inc. All other names mentionedare trademarks, registered trademarks or servicemarks of their reprersntative companies. Specifications subject to change without notice.