Getting Boxee to recognise both old and new Doctor Who

[hicksdesign]

Hi folks,

I've been busy making sure my media library is ready for the arrival of the boxee box, and I've come up against a big problem (big for me) in getting Doctor Who to show up correctly in Boxee. I have episodes from the classic series (1963-1989) and the new series (2005+). Having gone through each episode and labelled them meticulously using the 'S01E01' syntax, making sure episode numbers correspond with the data on IMDB it still doesn't work.

I can get the new series to show up OK (2005+), but the classic series shows up as later seasons of the new series. As there is no data for this yet, it means that each episode title is just 'Doctor Who'. I then went and added the year (1963) to each of the classic series episodes as it is on IMDB, but now they don't show up at all. They're not even visible in 'unidentified files'. I've tried every combination, with years and without, but no luck.

Obviously, I can view them all by going through 'Files', but I can do that on my PS3. My hope was to use the Boxee Box to play my Doctor Who collection.

I've seen this problem mentioned before on the forums, but without any solutions. Has anyone found a way around this?

[judgeschambers]

First, we need some examples of how you are naming a new and classic series.

Second, you will need tell boxee to rescan the files so they can be updated and either show up correctly or show up as unidentified. That's why they are not showing up.

Once I have some examples of how you are naming them, I'll reconcile them against the IMDB. IF it's a naming thing, I'll suggest how to name them. If it's not, I'll suggest you submit a correction to the boxee team to update the internal boxee IMDB database.

Other Links:
http://forums.boxee.tv/showthread.php?p=97249&highlight=Doctor#post97249

This one places the year before the SxxExx in the file name.
http://forums.boxee.tv/showpost.php?p=86278&postcount=59

http://forums.boxee.tv/showthread.php?p=107702&highlight=Doctor#post107702

[guuru]

Use FileBot (http://filebot.sourceforge.net/).
You could also try manually inserting the data to the boxee database. This would take a long time if you have lots of shows... You would need sql lite database browser, or use databoxee lite (http://forums.boxee.tv/showthread.php?t=20066&highlight=databoxee+lite)

[judgeschambers]

Use FileBot (http://filebot.sourceforge.net/).
You could also try manually inserting the data to the boxee database. This would take a long time if you have lots of shows... You would need sql lite database browser, or use

Not sure of that application, but this one has worked pretty good for many users on the forums.
http://forums.boxee.tv/showthread.php?t=20066&highlight=databoxee+lite

Opps, looks like you updated your post as I made mine.


But, we still need to sort out if it's a naming thing or a boxee database issue. The second link in my post did show a user found a solution by changing the year placement in the file name....

[guuru]

lol judge chambers, you quoted me before i could finish my post.

edit: LMAO

[judgeschambers]

lol judge chambers, you quoted me before i could finish my post.

edit: LMAO

LOL...yeah I noticed that. Had you hit post prior to adding that link?

[guuru]

Well, no I pressed enter by accident. haha... But ya, can't belive you haven't heard of filebot, I found it from the boxee support site, here (http://boxee.zendesk.com/entries/108746-can-i-rename-batches-of-media-files). It's great, it parses tv shows from a datatabse, and renames your files to whatever format you please.

[judgeschambers]

Well, no I pressed enter by accident. haha... But ya, can't belive you haven't heard of filebot, I found it from the boxee support site, here (http://boxee.zendesk.com/entries/108746-can-i-rename-batches-of-media-files). It's great, it parses tv shows from a datatabse, and renames your files to whatever format you please.

Yeah, I was wondering if I could somehow see posters post before they even posted.... I'd see it before after a typo correction and the post did not show an "edited" tag.

No, I'd not seen this in the FAQ. I'll have to try it out now. ;)

Update: but how does it update the boxee database???

[guuru]

Well filebot will properly rename the files. So next time you startup boxee, you rescan, thus updating the DB. I personally use the format, Show Name - Season#xEpisode# - Episode Name in FileBot.

Example: The Office(US) - 1x01 - Pilot

It hasn't failed me so far. As far as 'Doctor Who' being renamed with FileBot, I'm not sure if FileBot will be able to parse info for this show as it's old. Though it doesn't hurt to try. ;)

[hicksdesign]

OK, here's how I'm naming the episodes. I've used the following episode lists:

Classic: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056751/episodes
New Series: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436992/episodes

Example of a classic series naming:

Doctor Who S13E09 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who S13E10 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who S13E11 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who S13E12 - Pyramids of Mars

I also tried with the year:

Doctor Who (1963) S13E09 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who (1963) S13E10 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who (1963) S13E11 - Pyramids of Mars
Doctor Who (1963) S13E12 - Pyramids of Mars

And a new series:
Doctor Who (2005) S01E01 - Rose
or…
Doctor Who S01E01 - Rose

The new series isn't the issue though. Whether I use years or not, the new series shows up fine, while the classic series doesn't. Each time I've changed the naming, I've rescanned the source. Also tried deleting the Library>Application Support>BOXEE folder containing the UserData and re-adding the source.

[judgeschambers]

I need to test the classic series.

Also, Season 13 is actually the year of 1975...not 1963. Stay tuned...rescanning now.

[judgeschambers]

Ok I tested this: Doctor Who S13E09 - 1975.avi

It came up as Unidentified. See pics.
Then I clicked the manually ID show. In the list you will see it grabs just "Doctor Who" and then gives a list of possible choices. If I select Doctor Who (1963) (TV) it gives me the option of resolving all the episodes I may have on the server. (see pics--Notice too how it gives Doctor Who (1975) (1975)??? It also gives me the option to resolve the series there too). Now, I did not let boxee manually resolve. I hit the Back button!.

Instead, I want to change the file name to match the 1963 suggestion ((1963) (TV)) and rescan to see how boxee resolves it and the choices it gives me if not. Now trying Doctor Who S13E09 (1963) (TV).avi See next post!!!!!

[judgeschambers]

Ok, that did it! I named the file like this: Doctor Who S13E09 (1963) (TV).avi Boxee indexed automatically and it appears to be correct. ( I did NOT have to manually resolve!!)

Name all your 1963 files in the following format (sub the ?? for Series & Episode number and container type)
Doctor Who S??E?? (1963) (TV).???

Then Rescan and wait for about 4 minutes and boxee should start. Stay in the Local Sources view and you'll see it start and complete the scan. When complete, go to TV shows and it should be there....

[hicksdesign]

Many thanks for doing so much investigation Judge! I'll try this when I get home tonight!

[judgeschambers]

NP. Keep us posted on the success or not...;)

[StevenR]

One problem I encountered with Boxee resolving the old and new Doctor Who was that it would encounter "constraint violation" errors when trying to insert one series because the other series already existed in the database. This is the same as Issue BOXEE-4694 on JIRA (http://jira.boxee.tv/browse/BOXEE-4694) (but in that case it was for the UK and US versions of Life on Mars).
I needed to manually edit the database to change the series name for the new Doctor Who to "Doctor Who (2005)" to allow it to resolve properly.

I also organise the episodes in folders by show and season. I'm not sure if this actually helps Boxee index them, but it doesn't hurt to keep them organised anyway. I use something like this layout:



Show Name (Year)
|__Season n
|__Show Name (Year) Snne01.ext
|__Show Name (Year) Snne02.ext

[judgeschambers]

Good info!

Boxee can and does use folder names to resolve if needed.
You could try foldering by season or at least by 1963 and then another folder for all the newer gen series shows.

[hicksdesign]

OK, so I've tried renaming all the files, as well as adding the date and type (1963 TV) to the containing folder (they're already in separate folders, with subfolders for each season), rescanned, left it for a while (to make sure it had identified all the files) but no joy. Also tried removing the source and re-adding.

The new series still shows up without any issues, but the classic series is still missing, and doesn't show up in 'Unidentified Files' or misidentified as a movie.

However, you obviously managed to get it working so I'll fiddle on along those lines.

While I can edit the database manually (as StevenR suggested) on my Mac, I presume I won't be able to do this on the actual Boxee Box?

[darcilicious]

It's also possible that Boxee is a bit confused at this time (especially since you can't find any sign of the classic series in Boxee) -- to test out this theory, you could quit Boxee, rename (NOT delete) your current UserData folder (http://support.boxee.tv/entries/172855-userdata-folder), restart Boxee and add the media source(s) that have both series and see how it does -- this would probably be a better indication of how the Boxee Box will be starting from scratch...

(You can then stop Boxee, delete or rename this latest UserData folder and rename the original back if you like).

[hicksdesign]

OK, now I'm getting somewhere! I renamed the UserData folder, and this time just added the classic series folder as a source - nothing else. This time I got the same result as JudgeChambers!

I've now done the same again (rename the userdata folder) and have re-added all my sources. I'll see what happens when it's finished identifying, but I feel confident now that it'll work.

I'm glad I started working on this now, so that when the actual Box comes, I can be sure everything will import well at the first setup.

Thanks everyone for your help!

[hicksdesign]

Interesting - adding just the classic series folder worked, but adding my whole TV Shows folder as a source doesn't (only new series shows up again). I'll look at how the new series is named to see if that will fix it…

[hicksdesign]

Can't progress any further with this one. Boxee can recognise the classic series fine when it's the only series added, but once you add the new series, the classic drops off the radar. Not visible anywhere - even in 'Unidentified Files'.

What should the nest step be? Submit a bug report?

[darcilicious]

Use the form pointed to on this page: http://support.boxee.tv/entries/90018-my-tv-show-was-not-recognized-or-was-incorrectly-recognized describing the issue and point to this thread maybe.

And / or use http://support.boxee.tv/ to submit a support ticket.

[hicksdesign]

Thanks - done both of those. I'll report back if I get a solution.

[judgeschambers]

Ok, that did it! I named the file like this: Doctor Who S13E09 (1963) (TV).avi Boxee indexed automatically and it appears to be correct. ( I did NOT have to manually resolve!!)

Name all your 1963 files in the following format (sub the ?? for Series & Episode number and container type)
Doctor Who S??E?? (1963) (TV).???


Are you sure you followed my suggestion exactly?????

Doctor Who S13E09 (1963) (TV).avi

It indexed for me.........All that foldering is not necessary, really. That is particularly good for DVD vob files.
I made a folder called : Doctor Who

[darcilicious]

Are you sure you followed this format exactly?

Doctor Who S13E09 (1963) (TV).avi

It indexed for me.........

Are you indexing BOTH series successfully?

[judgeschambers]

He had an issue with the 1963 series only (he said the newer 2005 indexed ok). So I converted a few .txt files into the example above and they indexed just fine.

[darcilicious]

His latest post is pretty clear ;)


Boxee can recognise the classic series fine when it's the only series added, but once you add the new series, the classic drops off the radar.

So still a problem for the OP to have both, even they the appear to be named / recognized correctly at one point or another.

[judgeschambers]

speed reading accuracy is my short coming...

Even still, that makes no sense......:confused:

[hicksdesign]

Even still, that makes no sense......:confused:

Tell me about it!

In short Boxee can index both classic and new series just fine, but if you add both, it only shows the new. The classic series disappears completely, and I found someone on Twitter who had the same result (https://twitter.com/martschian/status/2110568383123456)

I've submitted it as a bug report anyway.

[GuidovS]

Same problem here. Could it be Boxee doesn't resolve correctly because they started over in 2005 by naming that season Season 1? How is this handled in Boxee's database?

[Avengerki]

I actually have the opposite issue right now the classic series is showing up and the new one has disappeared. Originally I had all of the episodes showing under one doctor who settting so I renamed the classic to be
Doctor Who (1963).S01E01.An Unearthly Child.avi
Doctor Who (1963).S01E04.The Firemaker.avi
and the new series is
Doctor Who (2005).S00E01.Special Mini Adventure (Children in Need).mpg
Doctor Who (2005).S00E02.The Christmas Invasion.avi
After I did this the 2005 series was showing just fine but I was missing the classic series. So I cleared my media information and rescanned and now I am only getting the classic series and the new series has disappeared.

One thing I noticed is that in TV shows it shows them both as "Doctor Who" only but with different thumbnails based on which series it is. I wonder if boxee needs to do like Battlestar galatica's and add classic to the classic doctor who series. So it would be Doctor Who and Doctor Who Classic.

[Avengerki]

I have gotten it to show both series now if you set the Doctor Who (2005) to Doctor Who (2005)(2005) but it does not automatically get the episode data you need to go back and do the wrong video thing and reset the data. Any idea around this?

[erdie]

Has anyone had any luck getting boxee to recognise both series of Doctor Who. This is really driving me mad, the boxee only shows the new series and no matter how I label the classic series it isn't being recognised.

[stryguy]

My classic doctor who episodes are getting mixed in with my new series episodes. They are named correctly with the 2005 designator as per SickBeard and TVDB. I'm afraid it's a boxee thing.

[judgeschambers]

My classic doctor who episodes are getting mixed in with my new series episodes. They are named correctly with the 2005 designator as per SickBeard and TVDB. I'm afraid it's a boxee thing.

Use the IMDB.com and the way they list them, as that is what boxee uses. Read through this entire thread and if no resolution, then submit them to boxee for manual inclusion per post #23.
http://forums.boxee.tv/showpost.php?p=116961&postcount=23

[erdie]

With the new boxee update classic and new Doctor Who are now being identified and put into separate folders.:D

[mindslap]

Doctor who..both classic and new are doing fine on my BBox (1.0.4.17443)
I took the advice of this thread by renaming properly
I.E.
Classic:
Doctor Who - S04E41 - (1963) (TV) The Evil of the Daleks (5).avi

Current:
Doctor Who (2005).S06E03.The Curse of the Black Spot.avi

I then wiped out all my media and manually identified an episode in the classic series, then in the current series.
I then let boxee do its own scanning.
It worked like a charm.

I renamed using a combination of THERENAMER and FILEBOT.

[KTownDaren]

Classic:
Doctor Who - S04E41 - (1963) (TV) The Evil of the Daleks (5).avi

Thank you for your summation. However, might I suggest:

Doctor Who - S04E41 - (1963) (TV) 5-The Evil of the Daleks.avi

This will preserve the sort order of the individual chapters of each episode.