It's not because TiVo's clock is wrong, or the networks made a mistake. It's because the networks deliberately start their shows earlier and later than the half/hour, to make more room for advertising time for expensive shows, to jump the gun on their competition, and to "hook" you on the next show to prevent you from changing channels (where "you" applies only to non-TiVo users, of course!).
Other times, such as when premium channel shows run over, it is because they don't always accurately report their show times to Tribune.
And, of course, no can predict whether a sports event will go into overtime, but they often overrun their scheduled time slot.
To deal with this, the "Overtime scheduler" feature (often called "padding") was added in 2.0. This allows you to specify that a show starts recording x minutes earlier, or stops x minutes later that scheduled, IF there is no conflict with back-to-back recordings. It even helps for sporting events, if you add a considerable amount of pad to the end of the game.
Those of us with cable boxes or satellite receivers often have to use IR "blasters" or emitters as the only means TiVo has for changing the channel on the cable/satellite box. Many here have complained that they see one or more digits dropped when TiVo tries to change the channel, resulting in a failure to record the correct channel! Not a good way to impress the wife/kids/neighbors about this wonderful new toy you bought!
The problem is interference with the IR signal, although what is causing the interference is a subject of some debate. The TiVo itself blasts IR out its front panel, which can reflect off stuff and interfere with the blaster signal (you might try blocking off this built-in emitter before trying a fort - see this FAQ item). Other remotes, other IR sources, or even ambient light sources may have something to do with it.
Keith Staten: "Some florescent screw-in fixtures seem to also produce light in the IR range and might affect whether digits are dropped. Changing to a different manufacturers bulb seems to be the only alternative to stop the problem. Also, if certain times of day seem to fail, check if sunlight is coming in through a particular window at those times, since strong sunlight can also limit IR reception."
Whatever the source, most people find that building a "fort" around the blaster and IR receiver on the box improves the reliability of channel changes dramatically. This fort blocks out the interfering signals, whatever the source. However, you have to make sure you completely enclose the blaster and however much of the box is sensitive to IR input (often a much bigger area than you realize!). One way to test how good your fort is is to use the remote from your cable/satellite box as a tester. Point the remote at various parts of the box with the fort, push buttons, and if the box doesn't respond, you have a good fort. Most use cardboard, but I found I had to use aluminum foil to completely block the signal. Put the foil on the inside, black cardboard on the outside, and it can blend in pretty well. (P. S. JAB says foil is evil! :-) )
Here's a post from JAB on the subject: "Use only one of the blasters. Make sure it is positioned in front of the receiver. Back it off about 1/2". I've used a Dish 2700 and a Dish 4700 with 99%+ reliability at the fastest IR setting. Although, if you are still having trouble, trying the next slower speed can't hurt. Are you sure your fort completely encloses the blaster and IR receiver?"
Others have said place it more than an inch away, and still others have said to use a different IR blaster that glues flat on the front of the receiver (such as those sold at http://www.smarthome.com ). Only trial and error will tell!
As Jim mentioned here, you might have different IR settings in the TiVo IR setup, that all work, but have different endings such as "Fast" and "Slow". Different speeds might make channel changes more reliable.
Tivo Customer Support has instructions for creating a fort here: http://customersupport.tivo.com/tivoknowbase/root/public/tv1069.htm (you will be prompted to select your tivo if you have not done so already, prior to entering. If this link does not work go to http://customersupport.tivo.com and search for "tent" in the knowledge base.)
From Oh2Smooth: "If you enable the "Use 3 digit channel numbers"
& "Send enter after channel change" this will help decrease the
frequency of incorrect channel changes. As many of the channel changes
on cable are in the double digits, those will be prefaced with a 0. If
the 0 is received the channel change will occur properly. If the zero
is dropped and the second 2 numbers are received, the enter will
complete the channel change properly.
This will NOT help if the second or third or more than 1 digit is
missed. It will help if you find that the first digit is the most often
dropped digit."
From Oh2Smooth: "While this does occur infrequently, and can be fixed by a simple pause then play, the most common cause of this symptom is incorrect wiring. The audio from your Cable/DSS box MUST be fed through your TiVo receiver and NOT directly to your receiver or TV. This is due to TiVo constantly buffering live TV and inducing a ~1 second delay. If the audio being listened to is NOT the audio output of TiVo, the audio will be leading the video."
If you are having trouble dialing, this is a quick list of things that usually work. Restarting is a good first step with any problem and generally fixes modems that have become stuck in some way. The rest deal with the modem's sensitivity to line noise and voltage fluctuations. Do not repeat Guided Setup or do a Factory Reset before exhausting all other options. Your TiVo could be left in a useless state if it can't perform the setup call.
Posted by Otto: "Tivo is hypersensitive to line noise, so call waiting WILL interrupt Tivo, unless you've set the Tivo to dial the single time call-waiting disable code (*70 most places)."
From MJB: "According to TiVo support, the TiVo modem is more sensitive to line voltage fluctuations than any standard computer modem. Even though the line quality for standard modems and voice calls was fine, it was inadequate for TiVo. The final solution, which worked flawlessly from the first time I connected, is one of those wireless phone jacks you can get at Radio Shack. It apparently levels out the voltage enough to eliminate these problems. Although the connect speed is slower, it is extremely reliable. TiVo support has specific model numbers, but I just went into Radio Shack and picked one up for about $60 that said it was fax/modem capable on the packaging."
Many people have had good experiences with the RCA 930 or the Phonex PX-441wireless phone jacks. See this FAQ item for more details on wireless jacks.
If your problem is with the Guided Setup calls, try what you can from the list above, but the problem could be that TiVo's servers are busy. TiVo's servers seem to get overloaded during rebate offers. Keep trying throughout the day and you'll get through eventually.
If all else fails there are alternatives besides expensive manufacturer service. Many people have replaced their modem, switched to an external modem or just plain set the TiVo up to update via the internet. These subjects fall under the Hack Faq. If you do a search at the Tivo Community Forum for modem, you are likely to find a solution.
This is because of limitations in the MPeg encoding: it only does incremental frame changes in the forward direction. Frame forward goes one frame at a time, but frame backwards can't reconstruct the pieces of a frame, and so must jump back to the nearest complete frame (which occur only every 10 frames or so).
Most new TVs come with their picture settings way too bright, over colored, etc. Some people have found that calibrating their TV with a special DVD can improve the picture quality they get with TiVo. Because of the signal quality, you cannot calibrate from a VHS tape.
On standard DirecTV receivers, local channels are usually in the 900s. On DirecTV Plus receivers, they are renumbered to correspond to their broadcast channel numbers (e.g., 4, 7, 9). When picking a lineup in guided setup, there are 2 or more options for DirecTV: "DirecTV - National" and "DirecTV - <local big city name>". Choose the local option if you have a DirecTV Plus receiver. The national lineup has all the possible local channels for different locations in the higher channels, and is therefore much larger. If you set up your TiVo before this feature was added, you will need to redo guided setup.
From Paul ("There is no spoon."): "I was able to choose "DirecTV Portland" or "DirecTV Seattle" or "DirecTV National". As an added bonus, when I chose the seattle one, it didn't have all the other markets' locals, so I didn't have to unselect all of those channels (tediously) in the "channels I watch" list. I'm running the 1.3 software, so the fact that it works now is not a 2.0 thing."
Although TiVo supports Pay-Per-View (PPV) for many cable systems, it does not yet support PPV for either satellite system (DirecTV or Dish). DirecTiVo supports PPV for DirecTV. It is not clear if and when TiVo will support PPV for other DirecTV systems or Dish Network.
TiVo doesn't have PPV program listings for DirecTV or Dish because Tribune, their data provider, doesn't have the listings. It is unclear whether Tribune doesn't want to list them, or whether the satellite providers don't want to release the information. Either way, it's out of TiVos hands, although I'm sure they continue to push their providers to give out the information.
Tribune does list the Pay-Per-View channels, they just don't have programming information for them. This results in the listings being displayed in generic 4-hour blocks. If you don't see the channels in Channels You Watch, the solution is to re-run Guided Setup and make sure you select "Premium" when it asks if you have any additional satellite lineups. This should add the PPV channels to your listings.
From JAB: "Try this.
If you don't have Suggestions within 48 hours, please let us know."
TiVo recordings are based on the call letters (e.g. HBO, WABC, etc) not the number. This allows TiVo to transparently move season passes when only the channel number changes, such as if you redo GS and change cable companies. Previously, TiVo always defaulted to the lower channel. There were complaints from cable + satellite customers because the lower, cable channel was usually worse reception. So, as of 2.5, it will pick the better quality (based on connection type) channel instead.
If the channel TiVo picks is not the one you want, you must disable the unwanted channel from "Channels You Receive". If both are enabled, it will always pick the same channel number. You can still tune to the disabled channel directly in LiveTV.
http://customersupport.tivo.com/tivoknowbase/root/public/tv1053.htm?
It has been a known problem that SOME people (not all) have poor reception on channel 4 and/or 6 on their TiVo. TiVo is working on the problem, but it appears to be tough to pin down to software or hardware.
In 2.0, a new feature was added to help with this problem. Try turning on RF Smoothing. (TiVo Central / Messages & Setup / My Preferences / RF Video / Yes). Note that this menu item is only available for cable setups. If you are not using cable, it is a different problem.
Another solution that has been reported to help without affecting other channels is to record in Medium or Basic for the problem channels. These modes do not seem to have the same problem.
Here's a heated thread (pre 2.0) where Richard does respond to the
question:
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4389
Unfortunately, TiVo cannot handle shared channels. Those are channels that have programming from one network part of the day, and the other the rest of the day. TiVo will assume that one network has that channel number throughout the day.
This is common on Dish Network receivers. I'm not sure if it also happens on DirecTV or cable boxes, but the fix would be the same.
If a Dish receiver is sent to a channel you don't subscribe to, perhaps a premium or Pay-per-View channel, it will lock up with an error message that tells you to hit channel up or down to clear the message. In this state, it will no longer respond to numbers to change the channel. You must find your Dish remote and hit channel up or down to unlock the receiver.
Since TiVo doesn't know about the error, and can't send channel up/down anyway, you will lose all further recordings until you notice the problem and fix it with your Dish remote. To prevent this from happening, you must disable all such channels in Channels You Receive (CYR). Otherwise, TiVo will try to record shows or Suggestions on the bad channel, or you could accidentally channel surf using TiVo into the bad channel.
Disabling the channel in CYR does not prevent you from typing in that channel number directly in LiveTV, or from scheduling Manual Recordings using that channel. In fact, the latter is how we record Pay-per-View events.
If you're not sure which channel is causing the problem (you thought you had them all disabled!), try this: When you grab your Dish remote to clear the error, hit channel up, and CAREFULLY note what channel it goes to. Then, go to your Dish guide (All Channels) and see what channel number is just below the one you noted, and that's the one causing the problem. It will be red if it's a channel you don't get, or it may be a Pay-per-View. Go to Channels You Receive, and disable the offending channel.