step by step newbie question

[tryingtogetby]

Okay, here it goes.

I just purchased a Hughes series 1 on ebay. I would like to upgrade the hard drive and install a turbonet card so that I can move files to my PC for DVD burns. I have been reading quite a bit but still have a couple of questions.

Is there a generic way to check the machine is good when I get it? I have seen a lot of posts about modems out, or bad motherboards.

I have downloaded xtreme2.5 and xupgrade and I think I get how to install them from the many postings. My question is when to install them with the turbonet card. Should I install 2.5 then the turbonet and then upgrade to 2.52 or should I do 2.5 to 2.52 and then turbonet?

I have seen several posts about slow connection with turbonet. Has this been resolved?

Lastly, I understand that 3.1 has beta broadband support. What does that mean? Does it mean that it will download guide data from the internet? Doesn't 2.52 do that as well?

Thanks for helping. Hopefully I haven't posted too many questions that have been asked before. Thanks.

ttgb

[mrblack51]

the way to test a unit when recieved is to power it on and throw a card in there. you should set it up for two satellite feeds, and test each one to ensure that you can tune to channels on both odd and even transponders, as well as locals if possible.

you should install all the way to whatever software you want in the end, then install the turbonet.

there are numerous reasons why turbonet could be slow. most of the time, its tracked down to the end users setup. the tivo itself has an inefficient setup for this, so theres little that can be done there. in general, grab the latest drivers from silicondust.com, and you should have good speed.

the support in 3.1 just means that it has dhcp and you can use #401 to enable calls to the mothership via ethernet. thats pretty much it...it doesnt enable bash automatically or anything useful

[captain_video]

Is there a generic way to check the machine is good when I get it?

Plug it in and see if it boots up. If you get to the screen where it's attempting to acquire the satellite data it's probably OK. If you plan on installing Xtreme then you don't need aphone connection so it's irrelevent whether or not the modem works.

Install 2.5Xtreme completely (i.e. reinstall drives in DTivo and let it boot) leave sat feeds disconnected until later. Pull the driveas after it finishes rebuilding the database and then install the 2.5.2 upgrade. I prefer using the xupgrade iso boot CD as it's faster. Replace drives back in the DTivo and let it boot and rebuild the database. Activate all the desired hacks using xPlusz commands and reboot. Reconnect the sat inputs and locals should come right in. No need to install Turbonet drivers as they're already included with the 2.5.2 upgrade. Just activate the ftp, tivoweb, and telnet options using xPlusz.

[tryingtogetby]

Thanks guys.

Two more questions:

Are there certified hds to use or will anyone do?

Is tivoweb the best way to move files back and forth? I have seen some posts that say using tytool is better. Any thoughts?

Thanks again. I am sure I will have many more questions once I get going.

ttgb

[mrblack51]

Originally posted by tryingtogetby
Thanks guys.

Two more questions:

Are there certified hds to use or will anyone do?

Is tivoweb the best way to move files back and forth? I have seen some posts that say using tytool is better. Any thoughts?

Thanks again. I am sure I will have many more questions once I get going.

ttgb

any hard drive will do. 5400 rpms are a little more desirable since they run cooler.

tivoweb isnt for transfering files. if you want to transfer files to the unit, tivoftpd is the tool to use. if you want to grab shows off of the tivo, there are three options: tytool, tystudio, or mfs_ftp. the first two are focused on editing and burning shows which you grab from the tivo. the latter is for pulling shows so that they can be restored later.