Clean channels from unused and speed up KodiTV startup

[HIPPOLYTE]

Hi,

I have Minix U1, with Kodi and stalker pvr addon.
When I start Kodi, it starts to load channels from the provider which takes around 15 seconds. Then it starts to retrive EPG information which takes minutes.
Also I have a large channels list with many unused ones (foreign etc.)

I'm looking for:
1. Method to reduce the channels list. Eventually trim it down to the ones I like only.
2. Speed up the startup. For example update channel list and EPG only to the ones I need
3. Easiliy access and navigate through the reduced channels list.

Any Idea how to achieve that? I know I'm asking a lot here. Just started yesterday with IPTV.

Appreciate in advance :)

[aCiDjEsUs]

Look at post number 180, should be the last one on the bottom.
http://iptvtalk.net/showthread.php?23974-USING-MC2XML-TO-MAKE-YOUR-OWN-EPG-tuturial-with-open-discussion/page18

[HIPPOLYTE]

Thanks. Acctually looked in this post which is pretty long and seems like a bit of aolutions might be spread across its 180 posts.
Read #180 though, but didn't get what I have to do.
Do I have to use Kodi Tv manager windows app? It seems that it wasn't updated since more than a year.

[cwh060]

Here is what I do, I'm not going to write a huge "how to" most of my posts are all over this forum. I use Windows 10 most of the time.

1) Download an M3U playlist from the Service Provider
2) Download and open VLC and place the playlist in here, edit till your hearts content. I have mine down to 293 channels. Use VLC to confirm the channels work.
3) Save your playlists, either one big one or several. I save mine to NEWS, MOVIES, SPORTS, ADULT etc.
4) Download and install playlist loader. Select the option for no guide, so you won't have to look at the epg loading forever.
5) Once Playlist Loader is up and running, try to point it to your newly created lists. One caveat, sometimes playlist loader can't find your local lists. Frustrating as hell.

To overcome Playlist Loaders local list problem, I created a web server on a windows 10 machine.

6) I installed configured apache server program to serve up my M3U lists on my internal LAN network. It's sounds worse than it is, apache is pretty simple. Change the .m3u lists to .txt. Point Playlist Loader to your newly created localhost:80 web site and or files.

7) Download an external EPG program from Kodi. TV FULL SCREEN is very good, lots of setup options. Read lots!

Now I can point any type of box, Windows, Android, Sony Android Television to my apache page and get my lists. Unfortunately there is no simple silver bullet solution to all of this.

cwh

[aCiDjEsUs]

Thanks. Acctually looked in this post which is pretty long and seems like a bit of aolutions might be spread across its 180 posts.
Read #180 though, but didn't get what I have to do.
Do I have to use Kodi Tv manager windows app? It seems that it wasn't updated since more than a year.

It might be an older program, but it works and that's all it matters.

You asked a question and I gave you an answer, but it's up to you if you'll use it or not.

[HIPPOLYTE]

Here is what I do, I'm not going to write a huge "how to" most of my posts are all over this forum. I use Windows 10 most of the time.

1) Download an M3U playlist from the Service Provider
2) Download and open VLC and place the playlist in here, edit till your hearts content. I have mine down to 293 channels. Use VLC to confirm the channels work.
3) Save your playlists, either one big one or several. I save mine to NEWS, MOVIES, SPORTS, ADULT etc.
4) Download and install playlist loader. Select the option for no guide, so you won't have to look at the epg loading forever.
5) Once Playlist Loader is up and running, try to point it to your newly created lists. One caveat, sometimes playlist loader can't find your local lists. Frustrating as hell.

To overcome Playlist Loaders local list problem, I created a web server on a windows 10 machine.

6) I installed configured apache server program to serve up my M3U lists on my internal LAN network. It's sounds worse than it is, apache is pretty simple. Change the .m3u lists to .txt. Point Playlist Loader to your newly created localhost:80 web site and or files.

7) Download an external EPG program from Kodi. TV FULL SCREEN is very good, lots of setup options. Read lots!

Now I can point any type of box, Windows, Android, Sony Android Television to my apache page and get my lists. Unfortunately there is no simple silver bullet solution to all of this.

cwh

@cwh060 Thanks a lot . I have gotten tripped by 1) already and stopped. How do I download M3U from service provider? I have a MAC number and url. When I type URL in the navigator I got "Firmare of your STB is outdated..." in a black box, it gives nowhere the option to download.

@aCiDjEsUs Thanks, yes I have a kind of understood that the answer is somewhere in the post but it is like asking first year medecine student to perform a neurosurgery :). I'm confident though I'll get to understand how to do it one day.

[aCiDjEsUs]

@cwh060 Thanks a lot . I have gotten tripped by 1) already and stopped. How do I download M3U from service provider? I have a MAC number and url. When I type URL in the navigator I got "Firmare of your STB is outdated..." in a black box, it gives nowhere the option to download.

@aCiDjEsUs Thanks, yes I have a kind of understood that the answer is somewhere in the post but it is like asking first year medecine student to perform a neurosurgery :). I'm confident though I'll get to understand how to do it one day.

This might help you further
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=245830

It explains how to use that little program.

[HIPPOLYTE]

Thanks, does it work with Kodi android? The post talks about OpenElec.
If I have Kodi android I guess I have to manually copy it on USB drive, bring to Windows, modify, then bring it back?

Also, say this step is successful, how I can disable automatic updates, and make sure KODI uses this TV29.db only and don't overwrites it?

I know I'm asking a lot, thanks for the patience and prompt answers.

[aCiDjEsUs]

Thanks, does it work with Kodi android? The post talks about OpenElec.
If I have Kodi android I guess I have to manually copy it on USB drive, bring to Windows, modify, then bring it back?

Also, say this step is successful, how I can disable automatic updates, and make sure KODI uses this TV29.db only and don't overwrites it?

I know I'm asking a lot, thanks for the patience and prompt answers.

Should work on all platforms (works on Amazon Fire TV and RPi3 and 2)

Yes you need to manually copy to USB use with the program and then copy back to the device.

Just don't clear your data under Live TV and you should be fine, if you clear your data under Live TV - General or Live TV - Guide then you'll have to do the procedure all over again.

[HIPPOLYTE]

Should work on all platforms (works on Amazon Fire TV and RPi3 and 2)

Yes you need to manually copy to USB use with the program and then copy back to the device.

Just don't clear your data under Live TV and you should be fine, if you clear your data under Live TV - General or Live TV - Guide then you'll have to do the procedure all over again.

Thanks again, so after 4 hours tinkering with samba server and trying to wrap my head around I managed to modify and upload the new TV db file.

The groups show well, no problem. However in Kodi, the EPG and channels load like before. I see my groups, but when I go in all channels group I still see all the channels that I have deleted. Same for EPG, it starts to pull the deleted channels.
These options I put:

In TV General:
- Synchronise channel groups with backends (unchecked)
- Use channel order from backends (unchecked)
- Use channel numbers from backends (unchecked)

In TV Guide:
- Dont cache in local database (checked)
(also I have cleared the data before uploading custom tv db)

In Stalker add-on:
- Cache guide data (unchecked)
- Preference (Prefer XMLTV) I put a link there for the XML thinking it will update faster.

I'm now 1/2 after and EPG guide is still updating.

[cwh060]

To get a playlist go to your service providers portal (where you set up your MAC and do resets) and delete MAC address. When the MAC is erased, the portal will then enable the drop down lists.

[kens]

Processor speed ???
On a win7PC with 6Gb ram, channels load in 1/2 second. Guide is about 2 - 4 seconds.
If you disable all addons you do not use, and delete any android apps that are running upon startup, that you dont use (use the app manager 2 C what is running), you will gain processor time and memory resources. Other than that, just trade up. $100 these days gets you a STB w/ Quad processor/graphics processor/3-4Gb ram/32Gb storage and upgraded Android O/S version. If this is your main viewing method, is it not worth it?
/kens