TV Guide

[wile_e_coyote]

I agree with georgecostanza  and Katherine ignored most of his complaint. The TV guide is worthless. Most of the time there is a generic description of the show. Example: Show: HOW DO I LOOK Description: "Finola Hughes helps to improve the fashion of people and places." That tells me nothing about the episode, and the show does not deal with improving places. Show: FORENSIC FILES. Descrption: "Various techniques are used as experts put the pieces of the puzzle together in an effort to solve a crime." Then there's tons of shows with "No program description."  And when you do have a desccription, who writes them? The grammar and spelling are atrocious. Yes, this is one area that Comcast wins hands down. So,Katherine, if you are reading these, what plans does Verizon have for improving this?

[wile_e_coyote]

Sorry - it's Kathleen the Administrator, not Katherine.

[brw9100]

The guide is often inaccurate, frequently provides a vague and useless program description, generally doesn't provide information about actors/stars of movies and lacks the dynamic  capability associated with a "live" and "interactive" guide.  I can go to TV  Guide online and get more accurate programming information for free. 

The guide is slow and lacks user feedback.  For instance, when I want to browse the on-demand menu to find a program from one of the networks like ABC.  I select browse, press OK, then select Broadcast Primetime.  It usually takes from 2 to 4 seconds for the menu to expand to show ABC/NBC/CBS.  During that time there is absolutely no indication (like a Windows hourlass) as to whether or not the menu program is working to retireve the next menu branch or my command was not received by the DVR (aside from the momentary flash of the yellow led next to the time on the DVR which I am not usually looking at).  This lack of response is even more evident as you drill down to the individual program level.

[NewFiosLover271]

If one would opt out of the general equipment from Verizon and purchase Tivo series 3, would that improve on-screen guide content?

Message Edited by NewFiosLover27 on 10-04-2008 06:25 PM

[Kathleen]

Hello wile_e_coyote,

No worries about the name.  In terms of the Guide, let me ask icewater if there are any plans about the Guide.

Regards,

Kathleen

Verizon Forums Team Administrator

[armstrda]

Kathleen -

Since you seem to be open to suggestions on the guide, do you have information on if VZ plans to change to a new guide provider at the end of this year?  I am thoroughly disgusted with the misinformation that exists on your guide.  On top of that, customer service seems to think there is no problem.  When I call and talk to someone, their solution is to reset my box.  I haven't had that fix anything in the last 6 months that I've been complaining about the guide.  I've read multiple posts on this forum with people talking about the lack of sports info, tv show info, and guide information.  I have kept my mouth shut on most of this, but I've finally reached a point where I need to post here because the customer support over the phone doesn't seem to help.  I have compiled a list of inaccuracies that I have seen lately:

Sept 25 - USC vs Ohio State at Ohio Stadium.  First of all, they weren't playing Ohio State, they were playing Oregon State at Reser Stadium.

Oct 5 - Dexter not flagged as new (in fact Oct 12 and Oct 19 Dexters are not marked as new.  I thought maybe this might be because I wanted to record them in HD, but even on the normal E and W Showtime channels they are missing the new tag)

Oct 5 - Califormication not flagged as new - same other details as Dexter.

Mythbusters - ah my favorite.  Sometimes this is listed as Mythbusters, other times as Myth Busters, again as mythbusters, and yet again as MythBusters, and a last time as myth busters.  Say I set up a record all episodes for Mythbusters, any time the show is listed as one of the other spellings, I don't get that recorded.

Friday Oct 3 - How it's Made - again, they list this many different ways, but there are new episodes on every Friday at 9PM on the science channel - unfortunately VZ doesn't mark any of these as new, even though about a month ago, every episode was marked as new... pretty sad.

Those are the only examples I have with me at work right now, but I can get more tonight.

Now I'm not saying that DishNetwork is the end all Guide, but just as a suggestion - browse over here and look at what is available for every show on the guide:

http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/whats_on_dish/programming_guides/index.shtml

Select Everything 250 or whatever package, enter your zipcode, and click on a few shows.  Notice the details?  Here's an example of a Seinfeld episode:

Seinfeld The Tape

Tue, Oct 7, 11:30 PM Run Time: 30 min.

KRCW - 32

Genre: Sitcom

First Aired: Nov 13, 1991

• CC
• TV-PG
• STEREO

Elaine puts an erotic message on Jerry's tape recorder; George gets excited.

Notice the first aired date?  That was by far the most useful piece of information on the guide.  At least that way, if the new flag was missing (which is never was on dish) you could tell if it was new or not.  Also, unfortunately they don't list it on the online guide, but they also list the episode information, like episode: 1013 for the 13th episode from season 10.  Here's the details for a How do they do it?

How Do They Do It?

Wed, Oct 8, 2:30 AM Run Time: 30 min.

SCIENCE - 193

Genre: Documentary

First Aired: Sep 29, 2008

• CC
• TV-G

Recycling; plasma TV; fireworks.

 Please look into yoru guide information, and see if there is more that can be added.

[armstrda]

I forgot one of the main reasons that I ended up posting here (along with the no help from calling customer service).  I tried the online customer service email support, and here is the thread that ensued...

My initial question:

What's the point of setting up a series recording if your guide information doesn't have the correct data if it's a new episode or not?  We really need a better guide with more information on each show!!!!!

First response:

Verizon E-mail Help

Original Problem
Subject: Receivers-Troubleshooting
Description: I set up a series recording but it didn't record   Please use the information below to examine in detail the possible solutions to your issue.


I set up a series recording but it didn't record - Guide Features
There can be several reasons why a series recording didn't record an episode of a program: The series recording is set to record "first-run" episodes only, and the episode to be recorded was a re-run.

I set up a series recording but it didn't record - Equipment
There can be several reasons why a series recording didn't record an episode of a program: The series recording is set to record "first-run" episodes only, and the episode to be recorded was a re-run.

How to set up a series recording - TV Programming
Your DVR lets you set up a recording that will record the episodes of a TV series. This saves you from having to set up individual recordings for a TV program that you want to regularly record.

How to set up a manual recording - TV Programming
Press the Menu button on your remote control. Select DVR from the onscreen menu.

Common DVR recording issues - Top Questions
If I record more than 80 hours of programming, the DVR automatically deletes my saved shows? Once the recording space becomes full, the DVR automatically deletes the oldest shows to make space for new recordings.



If we did not provide you with a solution, you can :

Reply to this email - Use your email Reply button to reply to this email and provide more information about your questions. Note: for best results, do not change the Subject line of the email as we use this for tracking purposes.

OR

Try another Help Option

Go to the Help & Support Web site
Submit a new help request

OK, I can buy that, but again, it just says it was a rerun - doesn't take into account that it was improperly labeled as a rerun...

My response:

Are  you kidding me?  None of those links have anything to do with my question!!!!!!

Their next response:

Verizon E-mail Help

Original Problem
Subject: Re: Receivers-Troubleshooting Help Request
Description: I set up a series recording but it didn't record

Follow-up Problem
Description: What's the point of setting up a series recording if your guide informationdoesn't have the correct data if it's a new episode or not? We really needa better guide with more information on each show!!!!!On Tue, Sep 23, 2008 at 3:01 PM,   Please use the information below to examine in detail the possible solutions to your issue.


Why does my DVR intermittently freeze and reboot while recording? - Top Questions
This can indicate that your DVR is overheating and is thereby shutting down to prevent damage to its internal components. Try the suggestions below:

Setting up PlayStation®3 with a Wireless Router - Setup
To open the management console, type http://192.168.1.1 into the address bar of your web browser. Enter the router username and password.

How do I set up my TV tuner card to work with FiOS TV? - Computer
Follow the installation instructions that came with your TV tuner card. The manufacturer of your TV tuner provides software that lets you:

Set Up Sub-Accounts -
Sub-accounts are a great way to allow individuals in your household to have their own email addresses and to customize their internet experience. Verizon Online DSL provides you with the option to have up to eight sub-accounts, at no additional charge.

Set up sub-accounts - Setup & Use
To create additional email accounts for friends and family, set up a sub-account. A sub-account is a secondary email account associated with your main Email & More account.

We hope we have provided you with the answer to your question. If not, please try one of the other options provided below.

Go to the Help & Support Web site
Submit a new help request

My response:

WTH? None of that is anything that I even asked about!!!!!!!

 There response:  (And i'm serious, i didn't cut up the email)

Verizon E-mail Help

 

Thank you for submitting your help request to Verizon.

Please visit Verizon Help & Support

FANTASTIC help there!

Message Edited by armstrda on 10-07-2008 02:04 PM

[ItsMyLife]

Yes, I'm finding the guide extremely lacking in information and even flat out wrong.

Case in point, I record "America's Game" on the NFL network.  It's a show about the great teams in NFL history.  The guide describes it as (I'm paraphrasing as I'm at work) "commentary about baseball".  Not even close.

I agree that there is much room for improvement with the guide and DVR.  But I can't say I'm that surprised, all these other companies have been at it a lot longer.  The DISH DVR is great, but they've been refining it for years and years.

I'm counting on Verizon to do the same and continuously refine their product.  I just am realistic and don't expect it to happen over night.

[JohngVZ]

Presently, I do not have any information about the guide but I appreciate your feedback.  I will forward this information as we look to improve our product. 

Thanks.

[NewFiosLover271]

What gets me about this subject.... Has everyone at Verizon been sleeping? How long has FiosTV been available? This problem, from what I can see, started from DAY ONE! Are the people who subscribe to television service really NOT care about the programs they watch? You would think, this issue would be been taken care of, before DAY ONE!