Login at Kodi Home

spareshirt · 2013-08-28, 14:12

Hi All,

I've been looking into Smart TV's recently (bored at work rather than in the market at the moment).

However, there was a feature of the 2013 Samsung's that I thought was really interesting, and could be a great PVR interface for XBMC. It's called "S Recommend" and it supposedly learns your viewing habits and recommends shows that are either on right now or are upcoming that you might want to watch.

In the image,you can see the larger box is where current live tv is playing (probably the last channel you watched) and the boxes on the right and below are recommendations.

All of this, I'm sure, could be done by a skilled XBMC-er - either as an app or maybe a skin? Even if it wasn't sophisticated but could you show you what was playing on all of your favourite TV channels while your current channel plays in the corner.

I know PVR support is in its early stages, but just wondering whether this already exists and I haven't been able to find it, or whether anyone is working on something similar etc.

Anyway, just a thought

**da-anda** · 2013-08-28, 14:17

wonder where you get the thumbnails from

spareshirt · 2013-08-28, 14:20

TheTVDB.org?

poplap · 2013-08-31, 02:47

It would be cool to have something like this but to get it to recommend you channels based on viewing habit requires large datasets. Samsung (or a contract to samsung) data mines a huge amount of sources probably including their TV sets and compares your viewed channels to others and therefore recommending things based on what others that watched what you watched liked. This is where the problem would be, as ether XBMC or some other service would have to provide this and things like this are not easy. Lots of CPU cycles and DBs. Netflix held (and may still hold) a competition for algorithms to do just this but with their service, if someone can produce an algorithm that beats theirs by a percentage (cant remember buts its not really that large comparatively) they get US$1 Million.

I would love a feature like this but it maybe a little impractical for XBMC to do it unless they can get a service to do it for free.

spareshirt · 2013-08-31, 10:46

Agree Poplap. Can imagine the back end engine being difficult - I've always been interested in services like trakt.tv but I've never been that impressed

I was thinking you could almost do a "dumb" version - I.e telling xbmc what your favourite channels were and it being able to tell you what was playing on them, or when your favourite shows were next playing.

**spoyser** · 2013-08-31, 11:23

(2013-08-31, 10:46)spareshirt Wrote: Agree Poplap. Can imagine the back end engine being difficult - I've always been interested in services like trakt.tv but I've never been that impressed

I was thinking you could almost do a "dumb" version - I.e telling xbmc what your favourite channels were and it being able to tell you what was playing on them, or when your favourite shows were next playing.

A bit like the thumb buttons on TiVo

**da-anda** · 2013-08-31, 17:37

re thumbs: i don't think TheTvDb has thumbs for each and every thing (sports shows, news, documentary, ..) that will be displayed in such a view. Also these are supposed to be snapshots of the content of these shows, not just posters.

**spoyser** · 2013-08-31, 17:56

I think you are confusing thumbnails with the Thumb Up and Thumb Down buttons in TiVo

poplap · 2013-09-01, 03:59

(2013-08-31, 10:46)spareshirt Wrote: Agree Poplap. Can imagine the back end engine being difficult - I've always been interested in services like trakt.tv but I've never been that impressed

I was thinking you could almost do a "dumb" version - I.e telling xbmc what your favourite channels were and it being able to tell you what was playing on them, or when your favourite shows were next playing.

That could work. More of a reminder system then a recommendation system but it would work, probably would be helpful when there is "nothing" on TV and then could be used to show you channels that you normally do not watch with shows that you liked.

You could make it a little more advance by adding the ability to make suggestions based on similar shows using keywords and descriptions/tags. So for example Stargate SG-1 would bring up Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe and maybe other shows that are like it. All you would need is a system that would make comparisons with shows based on some a DB of shows and movie. Not as fancy by wouldnt be a bad idea.

Also just got the idea of having a PiP style view with all the recommended channels in their own view, live. Probably would be a bit heavy though.

nickr · 2013-09-01, 04:24

There might be some ideas in this http://www.templetons.com/brad/myth/tvwish.html