WeatherPlus on WFLA 8.2

[Shawnhark]

I don't know if its on full time officially yet, but when I went to watch Conan Friday night (Sat AM), WeatherPlus was live on 8.2 and 8.3 was in black.

[FTBoomerIII]

It's also on BHN 607 this morning.

[Floyd]

On my hdTivo 8-3 looks like a copy of 8-1, but maybe it's an SD bandwidth hog.
The familiar storm team8 weather radar image has been replaced with the "new" Weather Plus channel, which is a twin for the weather channel, including comercials, live video and canned elevator music for the brief regional radar shots.
I guess they are getting some income from the commercials, but I'd much rather have the 24-hr radar image, so I can see where the rain is NOW. I don't need another weather channel, with all the news stories, not to mention that this new service is probably hogging up more bandwidth than the old semi-static radar image.
I'm not sure where the info in my channel banner at the top of the screen comes from, but it's still displaying the old info(8-2/3 reversed).

[teampozer]

Anyone wanna guess how it'll be before we see information/programming from TBO.com and Tampa Tribune on that sub-channel? Those guys have got to be itching to get on there. I'd bet money you'll see some kind of additional information/news programming from this operation in the near future.

[Floyd]

Well, it's been 4 months. I've gone on vacation twice, and overseas once, got a new HDtivo, and ch-8 still has the channel info on 8-2 and 8-3 reversed. What's thier problem? Are there so few people watching digital off-air that they don't even bother to update their psip data, or what?

Is anyone with an off-air receiver getting the channel info for WFLADT2/8-2/weather plus correctly displayed?

I sent this memo to Storm Team 8. Maybe someone will listen.

"Did you know that your Weather Plus channel(8-2) is being broadcast on the digital carrier(VHF-7)with the channel descriptor data as channel 8-3, and the Standard Definition channel 8-3 has the weather plus data that should be on 8-2? I sent a separate memo about this data problem, which by the way, has been wrong for the last 4 months.
I'd like to comment on your weather plus radar images. The beauty of a radar image is its ability to show you several things at once. For example, if you are able to study a radar image loop you can determine a storms path, its speed, your location on the image map, and determine if and when the storm will hit your neighborhood.
--The neighborhood radar images that you provide on the weather plus channel in most cases are zoomed in so much that you can't determine storm directions.
--the loop image interval is too great, making any prediction about storm duration or direction impossible. All you see is flashes of blue in sporadic locations when there is weather present. You need to increase the number of images per loop, and slow down/extend the loop repeat interval.
---The neighborhood loops are shown so quickly that you barely have time to mentally locate the area on screen and relate it to your home or office location. I would vote for fewer zoomed in areas, and spend more time on a wider map that can allow for study. As it is, the neighborhood images are just so much video fluff between advertisements.
---The announcement says "here's the latest radar information" but without the radar loop images having a time-stamp the storm information is not reliable for prediction. The regional satellite pictures do have a time stamp, which is good, but the loop is too fast.

I know that increasing the loop times will cut into the remaining video time, but it would make the local radar info so much more useful. Perhaps you could cut down the time alloted to national weather, which is allready available on the weather channel anyhow, or, god forbid, reduce the advertising time.
Thanks. I'll be watching, and BTW, I just recently installed your Weather Plus channel on the 400-bed TV system at University Community Hospital in north Tampa, so they'll be watching also."

[Bschneider]

Floyd,

I have an off air receiver and I don't receive 8.3. I haven't in the last few months. Are you receiving this through a DirecTV receiver? I'll check mine when I get home. But if the DirecTV is getting 8.3 then you cannot blame WFLA. You have to blame Zap2it which supplies the guide.

[Floyd]

OK, you don't receive 8-3, which I get ch-8 digital SD on, but do you get 8-2? and does the channel banner say "Weather Radar"(which hasn't been on for 4 months on my set), or does it say "whatever the WFLA show is". Maybe you need to do a digital scan for new channels? I understand that Zap2it only passes along the guide data supplied to them. If that is the case then WFLA needs to get their listing data reversed.

I have a DirecTV HD tivo. When I change to a channel, there is a banner accross the top of the screen that gives the channel info, and on my two receivers the info for 8-2 and 8-3 is reversed.

[Bschneider]

I'll check again and get back to you.

[Bschneider]

Ok.. I just did a rescan.. I have 8.1 showing up as WFLA-HD.. I have 8.2 showing up as WFLA-WX.. Nothing else.

Ahh.. it just occured to me what the problem is.. as I had the similar issue. You need to change your zip code in your DirecTV receivers to something else, say 90210.. Once that is loaded then change back to your home zip code.. Trust me this will work.. It will download the correct channel listing from D* and Zap2it. Basically you just need to clear out the current channel listings and that does the trick.

[Bschneider]

I did another check and you are absolutely right.. the guide from zap2it is wrong. Like I said earlier this is not WFLA's fault. I'll email zap2it and request that they change it.

[Floyd]

Ok.. I just did a rescan.. I have 8.1 showing up as WFLA-HD.. I have 8.2 showing up as WFLA-WX.. Nothing else.

Ahh.. it just occured to me what the problem is.. as I had the similar issue. You need to change your zip code in your DirecTV receivers to something else, say 90210.. Once that is loaded then change back to your home zip code.. Trust me this will work.. It will download the correct channel listing from D* and Zap2it. Basically you just need to clear out the current channel listings and that does the trick.

I did a guided setup and used the 90210 zip and it did load all the LA stations into the channel guide, but none of them worked except for 28-1 and 28-2. 13-1 didn't work.
Then, I did another guided setup and put back in my Tampa 33618 zip and waited for it to go through the 5-10 minute rescan procedure. After the new scan it still shows the channel banner and guide info for 8-2 and 8-3 as reversed. I didn't believe this would work(even though you said "trust me", since this was a "new" receiver that I had recently set up, and I assume that you have a different model of receiver, but I tried it anyhow. The receiver locked up at the end of the second setup, but a repower seems to have set it straight. I await the zap2it or ch-8 fix. Thanks for the feedback.

[Bschneider]

Yeah.. sorry about that. I said trust me because it worked a few months ago.. Zap2It must have change it back for some reason. I'll email Zap2It and request that they fix it. But I know WFLA has nothing to do with it. I guess they could request it also.

[Bschneider]

I just sent an email to Zap2it. If I don't hear back from them, I'll call them.

[Floyd]

I got a reply from Storm Team 8, regarding my comments on the format of the weather radar images on 8-2/Weather Plus:
_____________________________________________
Floyd,

I'll address the channel issues with our engineering department and let
them know about the label.

I have been struggling to make the radar imagery look good. We offer
more than other weather channels, but I would still like it to look
better, Unfortunately, I am limited with what I can do with the close-up
shots, due to computer issues. I would try to explain, but it would
probably bore you and would take forever for me to type in an e-mail.
Please feel free to call me and we can chat and I can try to explain.

Mace Michaels
Storm Team 8 Meteorologist
_________________________________________________

Maybe its just wishful thinking, but I looked at the local radar-loop images on 8-2, and it does seem like there are a few extra seconds added to the individual loops.

[Bschneider]

I haven't forgotten about this. I just emailed the GM for Zap2it's EPG, his name is John Kelleher (800-523-8923).

[Floyd]

Good, since my info is still reversed for 8-2 and 8-3 on the channel banner and guide of the HD Tivo receiver.

[bdraw]

Floyd,
My HD-Tivo is also reversed.
It is also reversed on my new Series3 HD TiVo.

[Bschneider]

It's finally fixed.

[Bschneider]

Well.. I had them remove channel 8-3 (case number 5734193 on Friday the 15th) and when they did removed it within 4 hours they screwed up 8-2 again. I just put in another request. Hopefully they will fix it tonight.

[Floyd]

Well, after having it screwed up for most of the last 10 months, they have fixed it(again?). At least on my HR10-250 Tivo.
I don't know who fixed it, but thanks.