[santa_sj]

Hi, I'm Santhanam SJ, a second year undergrad student. I would like to work on porting SPMC features to Kodi and improve the android experience of Kodi.

Improvements to Kodi Android app

Name: Santhanam SJ

forum/e-mail: santa_sj / [email protected]

Summary:
Port features from SPMC to Kodi.

Benefits:
Users will benefit from a better android experience
Goals:
1) Port features from SPMC to Kodi
2) Increase target SDK version to Android N (For Picture-in-Picture support)
3) Add runtime permissions for Android M and above
4) Add media controls to notification when playing music in the background
Requirements: C++, Java, Android, JNI

It would be really nice if someone could guide me on these topics.

[RockerC]

May I suggest that you instead propose a more specific and substantial feature for Kodi on Android. Like example writting a PVR client addon for Android's native TIF (TV Input Framework) or Google's Live Channels app/API as requested here:

http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=263879

Reason for that request it that it would appear to be a gap in Kodi's PVR support as there is no a PVR backend running nativly on Android that have a PVR client addon for Kodi, as seen here:

http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR_backend

This is because of Kodi's client-server model choosen as the architectual design for the PVR implementation in Kodi, which includes Live TV from integrated or direct-attached USB-tuners on Android TV boxes:

http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR

I believe there is a huge demand here among potential cordcutters for Kodi's PVR ADP/interface to somehow gain access to such integrated or direct-attached USB-tuners on Android TV boxes.

However I have no real clue if and how this could as suggested be achieved with a new PVR client addon for Kodi that could somehow utiilize either Android's native TIF (TV Input Framework) or Google's Live Channels app/API.

[Koying]

You cannot write a "frontend" for the TV Input Framework, only "backends" ie providers.
So the functionality cannot be added to Kodi (which would be the frontend, here).

[CiNcH]

You cannot write a "frontend" for the TV Input Framework

Isn't Live Channels a frontend for the TV Input Framework? Starting with Marshmallow, I can access the integrated tuners of my Sony Android TV via the Live Channels app. So I suppose that Sony implements the TV Input Framework on the lower level and Live Channels uses it on the higher level. Same should be possible with a Kodi PVR Add-on, "translating" between the PVR API and the TV Input Framework.

[Koying]

Well, my point is that live channels is the *only* possible front-end for the framework.

I researched it
Now, I can be proved wrong, of course, which would be good

[RockerC]

You cannot write a "frontend" for the TV Input Framework, only "backends" ie providers.
So the functionality cannot be added to Kodi (which would be the frontend, here).

Could you not write a PVR client addon for TV Input Framework which would mean that the PVR client addon would act as the "backend" provider?

May I suggest that you instead propose a more specific and substantial feature for Kodi on Android. Like example writting a PVR client addon for Android's native TIF (TV Input Framework) or Google's Live Channels app/API as requested here:

http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=263879

Reason for that request it that it would appear to be a gap in Kodi's PVR support as there is no a PVR backend running nativly on Android that have a PVR client addon for Kodi, as seen here:

http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR_backend

This is because of Kodi's client-server model choosen as the architectual design for the PVR implementation in Kodi, which includes Live TV from integrated or direct-attached USB-tuners on Android TV boxes:

http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR

I believe there is a huge demand here among potential cordcutters for Kodi's PVR ADP/interface to somehow gain access to such integrated or direct-attached USB-tuners on Android TV boxes.

However I have no real clue if and how this could as suggested be achieved with a new PVR client addon for Kodi that could somehow utiilize either Android's native TIF (TV Input Framework) or Google's Live Channels app/API.

If you are interested of native PVR backend support on Android then please also read these related dicussussions and similar suggestions:

http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=182140
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=182218
http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=196200

[Koying]

Could you not write a PVR client addon for TV Input Framework which would mean that the PVR client addon would act as the "backend" provider?

The PVR addon would-be provider for Kodi, but still front-end to the framework.

[CiNcH]

I researched it

I didn't, so you are most probably right. It actually makes sense as giving apps access to TV data would undermine the CI+ secure path.

[da-anda]

why would one want using LiveChannels as PVR frontend and use Kodi as backend, when PVR in Kodi is much much better. I tried LiveChannels with the available TVH backend, and LiveChannels sucks.

[CiNcH]

Nobody. Goal IMHO was to use Kodi as frontend to the TV Input Framework as backend, which unfortunately is not possible.

So lets just come back to santa_sj's initial proposal which in my opinion is a good one...

[RockerC]

why would one want using LiveChannels as PVR frontend and use Kodi as backend, when PVR in Kodi is much much better. I tried LiveChannels with the available TVH backend, and LiveChannels sucks.

Sorry but you have misunderstood me.

What I would like to use Kodi as a PVR frontend, and then I would like Kodi to have a PVR client addon that is able to either connect to TIF directly and as such also act as an PVR backend on its own or for it to connect to a native Android app third-party software running on the same Android box which is capable of using USB TV-tuners, and as for that native Android app third-party PVR backend software I only speculated that maybe that could be Google's Live Channels app as a possible native PVR backend running nativle on Android OS with support for USB TV-tuners.

Point is that there is today no way to access direct-attached physical TV-tuners in Kodi on Android today. Currently you instead need to connect to tuners over the network, and that is what I would like to avoid.

USB TV-tuners directly plugged-in your Android TV box would be a very cheap and easy way to get legal access to Live Television inside Kodi without having to setup an external PVR backend server or use an expensive network attached tuner. And as now Android TV 7.1 comes with TIF one can specilate that more and more Android TV boxes will also come with integrated TV-tuners built-in to the box so all users need to do is connect an antenna and launch an app to tune into Live Television channels.

Dreams of a legal cordcutter. Make it user-friendly and cheap to get users legal access to broadcast television inside Kodi PVR on Android with USB TV-tuners.

[Koying]

Are usb tuners working with TIF an actual thing, or just a dream?
If it's a real thing, I suppose that if the TIF component can access the hardware, so can Kodi...

[CiNcH]

Are usb tuners working with TIF an actual thing, or just a dream?

I asked that to myself as well. USB tuner manufacturers would have to provide a driver which hooks up to the TIV I suppose. Don't think that they do. Then you obviously can't just install those drivers (unless you root it) but the box manufacturer would have to provide those with the image which is another hurdle. Suppose this is all just a big bubble.

[RockerC]

Are usb tuners working with TIF an actual thing, or just a dream?
If it's a real thing, I suppose that if the TIF component can access the hardware, so can Kodi...

Not a dream, it is official from Google for Android TV 7.0 firmware, though I'm not sure if it is actually done through their own TIF or if they now just allow Video4Linux API access.

https://plus.google.com/1051620993852315...DLvKKgAXZf

Feature was quite recently added, frist available in API level 24 via Video4Linux2 (V4L2) as I understand, so not yet supported by most manufacturers firmware but it is actual thing, with official support in Android from Google. Read:

https://androidtv.news/2016/10/live-chan...abilities/
https://androidtv.news/2016/05/usb-tuner...ample-app/
https://androidtv.news/2016/11/hands-usb...-channels/

But again not yet supported by most manufacturers firmware, however if you have an Nvidia Shield TV you could try out this unofficial firmware:

https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic...-channels/
http://www.cnx-software.com/2017/03/09/n...b-support/
https://androidtv.news/2017/02/unofficia...sb-tuners/
https://github.com/Jetson-TX1-AndroidTV/...ideo4linux

This feature will likley also be added to the official firmware for Nvidia Shield TV soon.

USB tuner manufacturers would have to provide a driver which hooks up to the TIV I suppose. Don't think that they do. Then you obviously can't just install those drivers (unless you root it) but the box manufacturer would have to provide those with the image which is another hurdle. Suppose this is all just a big bubble.

Follow links above and read the articles. This is with official support from Google for Android TV 7.0 firmware. but yes it is currently official only for a limited amout of TV-tuner models.

So far Google only officially support these three USB TV-tuners but official support for more tuners will sureley come in the future with coming Android TV 7.x and 8.x releases.

• Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-955Q
  
• Hauppauge Digital TV Tuner for Xbox One
  
• AVerMedia AVerTV Volar Hybrid Q (H837)

However since it appers that they are using the standard Video4Linux API for Linux you should be able to hack in all and any drivers for Video4Linux (V4L and V4L2), ...like example those from the LibreELEC and OpenELEC Linux distrobutions.

Checkoput:

https://github.com/LibreELEC/dvb-firmware
https://github.com/OpenELEC/dvb-firmware
https://www.linuxtv.org/wiki/index.php/H...nformation

If they just use the Video4Linux API then you should be able to hack the firmware to add support to all tuners that work with Video4Linux.

[Koying]

If they just use the Video4Linux API then you should be able to hack the firmware to add support to all tuners that work with Video4Linux.

... the bottom-line being that Kodi *should* be able to access those tuners via V4L2 as well (pending security issues) which basically puts TIF out of the picture...