BBC to cease allowing downloads to PCs

[Jeff Layman]

There is a thread on this in uk.telecom.broadband which might be better
discussed here.
OP:
<http://al.howardknight.net/?STYPE=msgid&MSGI=%3Cuqi4ks%242j5v6%242%40dont-email.me%3E>

I've tried copying the whole thread over but TB won't play ball.

[JMB99]

Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

[JNugent]

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I believe that paid accounts with Spotify allow downloading.

Post by JMB99
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Probably true.

They're all obsessed with total control (prevention) of copying facilities.

[Java Jive]

Post by JNugent

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I believe that paid accounts with Spotify allow downloading.

Post by JMB99
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Probably true.
They're all obsessed with total control (prevention) of copying facilities.

My understanding is that so few people use the iPlayer PC & Mac apps
that the BBC do not consider it worthwhile to continue to support them,
just the same way and for just the same reasons as, when originally they
were first made available, they never made available a specific Linux
app, although MacOS is derived from Linux, so how difficult could it
have been?

Anyway, as I've already pointed out in the other thread, in the
GetIPlayer mailing list, the suggestion & hope is that the apps being no
longer supported will not make any difference to GiP, because it works
using data directly from the iPlayer website, not via either of the PC
or MacOS BBC applications downloadable to a PC. So, as long as the
iPlayer website itself doesn't change, GiP should continue to work.

[Roger]

On Wed, 14 Feb 2024 20:14:49 +0000, Java Jive

Post by Java Jive

Post by JNugent

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I believe that paid accounts with Spotify allow downloading.

Post by JMB99
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Probably true.
They're all obsessed with total control (prevention) of copying facilities.

My understanding is that so few people use the iPlayer PC & Mac apps
that the BBC do not consider it worthwhile to continue to support them,
just the same way and for just the same reasons as, when originally they
were first made available, they never made available a specific Linux
app, although MacOS is derived from Linux, so how difficult could it
have been?

Definitely not Linux. macOS is derived mostly from FreeBSD
although it's somewhat more complicated than being a straight
copy.

[Owen Rees]

Post by Java Jive

Post by JNugent

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I believe that paid accounts with Spotify allow downloading.

Post by JMB99
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Probably true.
They're all obsessed with total control (prevention) of copying facilities.

My understanding is that so few people use the iPlayer PC & Mac apps
that the BBC do not consider it worthwhile to continue to support them,
just the same way and for just the same reasons as, when originally they
were first made available, they never made available a specific Linux
app, although MacOS is derived from Linux, so how difficult could it
have been?

macOS is not derived from Linux. Its origins are in the Mach kernel and BSD
Unix on which NeXTSTEP was based. Apple bought NeXT and used NeXTSTEP as
the basis for OS X.

Implementing programs that can be compiled to run on various versions of
Unix and also on Linux is usually easier than also making run on MSDOS
and/or Windows NT.

A program that handles real-time video and audio is likely to be at the
more difficult end of the scale.

The world has moved on. High speed networks are more common and the
difficult parts of video and audio are available through web browsers so
maintaining a standalone application has become less economically viable.

[Jim Lesurf]

Post by Owen Rees
The world has moved on. High speed networks are more common and the
difficult parts of video and audio are available through web browsers so
maintaining a standalone application has become less economically viable.

I suspect/hope this is what the BBC have in mind. And that if no other
changes are made, GIP will continue to work OK. That's significant for me
as it lets me fetch things before 9am and avoid them adding to my 'monthly
limit' on transfer quantitiy. i.e. save me money and time.

Jim

[Brian Gregory]

Post by Java Jive
Anyway, as I've already pointed out in the other thread, in the
GetIPlayer mailing list, the suggestion & hope is that the apps being no
longer supported will not make any difference to GiP, because it works
using data directly from the iPlayer website, not via either of the PC
or MacOS BBC applications downloadable to a PC.  So, as long as the
iPlayer website itself doesn't change, GiP should continue to work.

I agree. get_iplayer is kind of pretending to be a video player, not an
app that can download. It seems like there's a good chance it'll
continue to work.

[Jeff Layman]

Post by Java Jive

Post by JNugent

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?

I believe that paid accounts with Spotify allow downloading.

Post by JMB99
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Probably true.
They're all obsessed with total control (prevention) of copying facilities.

My understanding is that so few people use the iPlayer PC & Mac apps
that the BBC do not consider it worthwhile to continue to support them,
just the same way and for just the same reasons as, when originally they
were first made available, they never made available a specific Linux
app, although MacOS is derived from Linux, so how difficult could it
have been?
Anyway, as I've already pointed out in the other thread, in the
GetIPlayer mailing list, the suggestion & hope is that the apps being no
longer supported will not make any difference to GiP, because it works
using data directly from the iPlayer website, not via either of the PC
or MacOS BBC applications downloadable to a PC. So, as long as the
iPlayer website itself doesn't change, GiP should continue to work.

Possibly, but on an Android phone iPlayer will default to, and can only
be used with, Chrome as far as I can see. I won't use Chrome for
anything, and will one day actually get round to using adb to remove it
from my phone (there is no option to shut it down or uninstall from
"Settings").

I was hoping to use iPlayer on my phone to see how you could download a
BBC programme, and then perhaps copy the saved file to a PC. Anyone know
whether or not if that's possible?

[Blueshirt]

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Yes.

I didn't even know you could download to a PC from the BBC iPlayer.
It's not something I would have even thought about. For me the
iPlayer was just about streaming the programme I wanted to watch...
if I wanted to watch it again, I'd go back and stream it again.

[AnthonyL]

On Thu, 15 Feb 2024 12:42:50 +0100, "Blueshirt"

Post by Blueshirt

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Yes.
I didn't even know you could download to a PC from the BBC iPlayer.
It's not something I would have even thought about. For me the
iPlayer was just about streaming the programme I wanted to watch...
if I wanted to watch it again, I'd go back and stream it again.

It probably was more useful when many folk were still on dial-up or
6mbit/s "broadband" and I would have used it had I not known about
GIP.

It's only a few years back in a previous property that streaming was
quite painful and even here, on the edge of a modest sized city, it's
only 20mbit/s, no sign of full fibre and the nearest cabinet is quite
a distance away.

[JMB99]

Post by AnthonyL
It probably was more useful when many folk were still on dial-up or
6mbit/s "broadband" and I would have used it had I not known about
GIP.

It would be useful to someone on a journey or away from home and so not
wanting to have to rely on unreliable connections or even going
somewhere they have no access to broadband/

[NY]

Post by Blueshirt

Post by JMB99
Which other streaming service allow download to a computer?
I thought most replay from the streaming service server.

Yes.
I didn't even know you could download to a PC from the BBC iPlayer.
It's not something I would have even thought about. For me the
iPlayer was just about streaming the programme I wanted to watch...
if I wanted to watch it again, I'd go back and stream it again.

Ah, whereas I would always look for a way (and hope there *is* a way) of
downloading before watching, so I can use my own player (eg VLC, or
VideoRedo if I want to single-step through parts) and can play the video
at faster than real time (most documentaries and even dramas are so
slooooooooooow), instead of using that player that the catch-up site
includes, most of which do horrible things like displaying big banner if
you freeze frame, which makes it bloody difficult if you are trying to
transcribe credits for submission to IMDB or other film/TV database: in
those circumstances I tend to film the screen with my mobile phone and
then freeze that video so I can read and transcribe the credits. Yes,
OK, a rather niche usage ;-)

[Smolley]

Post by Jeff Layman
There is a thread on this in uk.telecom.broadband which might be better
discussed here.
<http://al.howardknight.net/?STYPE=msgid&MSGI=%3Cuqi4ks%242j5v6%242%

40dont-email.me%3E>

Post by Jeff Layman
I've tried copying the whole thread over but TB won't play ball.

I record the streamed program off screen. I have quite a good library now.