This post was accidentally deleted so I'm reposting it. Please add an additional view to Graphical EPG that allows 19-20 channels per page AND has a synopsis like this:
At the moment if you want more than 16 channels you do NOT get a synopsis shown. In the screenshot I simply enabled 10 rows and pressed button 7 while in the EPG to get 20 rows so every time you go back into the EPG 20 rows are shown. I also disabled Picture in Graphics then re-enabled it, took another screenshot, combined the 2 screenshots and re-arranged things. So basically I just used all the available space (I did NOT add extra space to fit everything). I also added black divider lines every 4 channels which makes things easier to read. Note that when the synopsis is wider like in the screenshot, it can take up 2 lines instead of 3.Code:postimg.org/image/5yvxjxr1n
I've attached all the screenshots I've mentioned in this post in a zip for easier offline viewing and comparison:
So I was wondering if members of staff could please tell me if you could add an option to a future version of Vix where you can have the Graphical EPG look like the screenshot at the top of this post? I would also like to suggest some other usability features below which are good features of Cool TV Guide which are not available in Graphical EPG:Code:bit.ly/1IMmafv
Differences between Graphical EPG and Cool TV Guide (16+ channels & 4 hour blocks per page)
Graphical EPG (16 channels) with Synopsis: postimg.org/image/svlwlizl9 . Text is too small compared to Cool TV Guide due to TV preview taking up half the screen.
Cool TV Guide (16 channels) in Cool Tiny Guide View:
Graphical EPG with 21 channels:Code:postimg.org/image/z8alp74vf
I just want to mention the major differences in my opinion. To get 16 channels in Cool TV Guide you just select the Cool Tiny Guide view.Code:postimg.org/image/6iit0jaul
If you want to view 16 channels or less per page then Cool Tiny Guide is better than Graphical EPG for the reasons explained below.
If you want to view up to 21 channels per page then Graphical EPG is the only option as Cool TV Guide only supports a max of 16 channels per page.
Both of them in Vix when you have the audio muted, have a mute button partially covering up the channel name/progamme name. Blackhole doesn’t have that problem. Why can't the mute button be a small icon in the corner or better yet, have it disappear a few seconds after you press mute (perhaps make that an option). Do you really need to have it stay on the screen blocking all the channel/progamme names, synopsis and menus?
Recording a Programme
Cool TV Guide: Can record programme by pressing OK button (after changing button settings in Cool TV Guide) and can zap to a channel by pressing Green button. I feel this is the quickest way and most natural way to record a show as you can do this without looking for the Record button on the remote. Alternatively you can press the Record button and it does the same thing. To delete a timer you just press the OK button again or the Record button again.
Graphical EPG: You need to press the record button on the remote. Then you need to select "Add Timer". Alternatively you can just select the programme then press the Green button to add a timer however instead of adding the timer it shows the Timer Entry screen. Both of these methods are not user friendly or as quick as the Cool TV Guide methods. To delete a timer you need to press the Record or Green button then select "Delete timer".
After Selecting a Programme
CoolTVGuide: Box is red. Text is Black.
Graphical EPG: As Cool TV Guide but it's also got a "R" pic with a circle round it on the end of the box to signify that the programme will be recorded. You can't see some of the letters of the programme name due to the pic. I don't understand why the pic is needed when it's obvious the programme will be recorded as the box is coloured red.
Also if you've set up your recording settings to add 100 minutes onto the end of the show for example then Graphical EPG will also colour in red the other shows up to 100 minutes after the programme you wanted to record. I don't like that feature. I know those shows will be recorded but I don't want them coloured in. Perhaps make that feature optional. What's worse is that if you want to record the programme on next then the box still looks the same so there's no way of knowing if you added a separate timer for that program or not because it colours in programmes on after the 1st programme.
Programme Name: Characters that Fit on Screen
Cool TV Guide: As much text as possible is visible in the box. Letters beyond the edge of the box are simply cut off.
For example "Boxing: Klitschko vs" can be seen in the box:
Graphical EPG: If a progamme name is too long to fit in the box then it's sometimes put in 2 rows as you can see by the yellow box. This is pointless as the 2nd row of text can't be seen. So you get this text: "Boxing:":Code:postimg.org/image/z8alp74vf
Why not do it the same way as Cool TV Guide so you can see as much text as possible?Code:postimg.org/image/6iit0jaul
Jump Forward/Back 24 Hours
Cool TV Guide: Arrow keys on bottom of Vu+ Duo2 remote. I feel this is more intuitive than the Graphical EPG way mentioned below.
Graphical EPG: Plus/Minus buttons of Vu+ Duo2 remote
On another subject, the text for the programme names in Cool TV Guide on Vix does NOT look as nice as the text for Cool TV Guide on Blackhole. Why is that when I thought the extension is the same on both images?
Graphical EPG Max Channels Per Page when Picture in Graphics Set to Yes
Graphical EPG Table WITH Picture in Graphics.png
You can set the numbers of rows in the menu options. Some examples are in the screenshot above. Note that 16 rows when Picture in Graphics is set to Yes gives text that's too small to read easily in my opinion. So at the moment Cool TV Guide is the best option for viewing 16 channels or less.
Graphical EPG Max Channels Per Page when Picture in Graphics Set to NO
Graphical EPG Table WITHOUT Picture in Graphics.png
Note that 21 rows gives smaller text and a more claustrophobic look than I'd like which is why I only have 20 rows in the screenshot at the top of this post.
All of the above isn't obvious. Why not just allow setting the minimum/max amount of rows to show which the user can toggle with button 7?. At the moment what if you just wanted 18 rows to show? You would have to by trial and error set the rows to different values until you found out that setting it to 9 gives 18 rows! You get my point.
Note that you can also reduce the rows 1 at a time by pressing button 7 on the remote control. However when you exit and re-enter the EPG that view isn't saved (making that feature pointless) as you can only get 2 views that are saved: Minimum and Max Rows as mentioned in the table above. Things would be more user friendly is you allowed setting the Minimum and Max rows in the EPG menu options.
The problem with setting Picture in Graphics to NO is that you do NOT get a synopsis displayed along with the progamme start/end time. You can only see the time block in the table (you can't see the exact time as that's in the synopsis which isn't shown). Can't you add a separate option for "View synopsis" for people who don't want to see the TV preview but DO want the synopsis to show?