Common problems faced with streams & PPLIVE FAQ

[dazza]

Below are  list of Common Problems and Tips for The Programs and channels

Why are the streams disrupted?

There can be a number of reasons for getting disrupted streams:

1. Not enough users sharing the stream:

2. Your network connection is not fast enough. We recommend to use at least a 750kbps connection.

3. Other applications are consuming too much bandwidth. Most notably traditional P2P clients such as Emule, Kazza or Bittorent are very bandwidth demanding. Make sure those are not running when you try to watch video streams.

4. Your system is infected by a virus, spyware or malware. The later two are very common these days, and may significantly reduce your pc's performance. Keep your system clean by using an anti virus and anti malware/spyware software regularly.

5. You are running Windows XP with service pack 2 which limits TCP/IP connections.


How do I improve the quality of my picture?

Little Program Called PixelFusion will help for WMP Stream You can get this here  http://qolabs.com/pixelfusion/

How do i improve the quality of Sound?

DFX Audio enhancer will help, you can get this here http://www.fxsound.com/

Can I do anything to Help the streams go Faster?

Yes you can, Windows Service Pack 2 includes an update which limites Peer 2 Peer Programs on the amount that can be downloaded and uploaded. SP2 Limites your number of TCP/IP connections to 10. the reason they did this was to help prevent the spread of trojans, worms and viruses. This LINK  http://www.lvllord.de/?lang=en&url=4226patch/faq will take you to  site which can increase this to 50. This should have the effect of increasing the speed of download and ultimately better picture. when you install it, make sure you change it from 10 to 50, it wont do it for you

While we can assure you that many people have used this patch successfully, if you choose to install it you do so at your own risk, make sure you backup your old one just in case.


Can I Record The Stream?

You certainly can, go here http://all-streaming-media.com/record-vi...V-Ants.htm

The picture keeps jumping and isnt very clear
Get onto the channel early and the picture will settle nicely, if your having problems with one channel and there's more channels showing the same game try out different one. Picture quality will depend on the stream and how many people are viewing them.

How do I full screen the Programs?
Double click in the middle of the program screen to full screen and again to return to normal

The commentary isnt in English, what can I do?
learn chinese but what you can do is try to sync it with the radio or on realplayer you can pause live audio so try and sync the 2

Im clicking on the links in tv guide but when the channel loads up there's no channel
Make sure you have at least leave it run for 5 minutes. If the channel doesnt show as buffering then it may not be showing anything at this time or there may be  problem with that particular channel, have  look see if there is another channel showing the same game.

PCast Doesnt Buffer passed 23% what do I do?
Restarting Pcast if it does this for too long, this should fix the problem

The channel I was using has gone or been moved
The channels thats each program show differ from week to week, check out the tv guide for other channels.


PPLive FAQ


The following is a translation of the official pplive FAQ:
  
Q1. Version 9.5 works fine but 9.6 and later versions don't. Download, buffer and connections all read zeros.
A1. If you are using XP and Win 2003, uninstall and reinstall pplive, then restart PC.
  
Q2. Buffer is taking too long or never reaches 100%.  
A2. The buffer mechanism has been optimised to improve quality which has led to a slower buffering. The program will only start to appear when the buffer reaches 80%.
  
Q3. After using PPlive, I can't use the internet at all, e.g. browsing the web.  
A3. Under Options>Network>Peer, change the Max Peer Count to 10.
  
Q4. It keeps saying "Downloading Channels List" and then program hangs.
A4. Use the online channel list instead.
  
Q5. I can't open pplive using PPplayer.  
A5. Download the latest version and under PPlive's engine Option>Play>Player Option, change both player path to point to where ppplayer.exe is. e.g. c:\program files\pplive tv\ppplayer.exe. If you are part of a LAN, then check the UPNP under Option>Network>Peer and restart pplive.
  
Q6. Buffer is 100% but it's still laggy as hell.
A6. This is caused by the viewer. First close the viewer, then make sure the viewer has full access to the internet, i.e. let it pass through the firewall or any parental control software you are using.
  
Q7. After buffering for 5 minutes on cctv5, the picture quality is ok but the sound goes up and down all the time.
A7. This is totally dependant on the quality of the source.
  
Q8. After installing, I am unable to open pplive. There is only a ppplayer window, there is nothing on the task list and I can't close the program.
A8. After installation, ppplayer is opened by default, click on a channel on the channel listings to watch a program.
  
Q9. I don't have RealPlayer, I use Media Player Classic to watch programs. The majority of the programs are without sound. I installed 1.0.9.4 today and got an unknown error.
A9. Please use RealPlayer or WindowsMediaPlayer.
  
Q10. Whenever I use pplive to watch programs, Windows firewall automatically starts.  
A10. This is by design in this version.
  
Q11. Today I upgraded to the latest version, RealPlayer keeps giving errors.The buffer is at 100% but RM can't open the stream.
A11. If networks condition is poor, RM will report errors.
  
Other PPLive Tips
The smoothness of the stream is directly related to the uploads of all users. You can only download as fast as the combined uploads can provide. Therefore, in order to get a smoother picture, everyone should make sure that they do their bit to upload.
If you are running a firewall, e.g. zonelarm or kerio or windows firewall, you must tell it to allow incoming connections. As from version 1.0.9.7, the ports are TCP 5547 and UDP 7135. These ports are found under Option>Network>Port.


Any questions? Ask here.

[kpar]

thanks for this dazza. i'll sticky this.

[jackhigh]

Can you please help, I am having the same problem with all streams whether I use ppstream, tvu or any other. I get the red cross in the top left of screen, it never buffers and consequently dont see any games. I had no problems with your site until I had a virus, bootkilled hdd and computer now clean. I have sp2 and have carried out instructions re changing range to 50 but nothing has improved. Any ideas.

[dazza]

jackhigh Wrote:Can you please help, I am having the same problem with all streams whether I use ppstream, tvu or any other. I get the red cross in the top left of screen, it never buffers and consequently dont see any games. I had no problems with your site until I had a virus, bootkilled hdd and computer now clean. I have sp2 and have carried out instructions re changing range to 50 but nothing has improved. Any ideas.

it may seem like a stupid question but, have you re-installed ppstream tvu etc, etc? a red x means it isnt installed i think. whats your netspeed? have you checked your firewall? antivirus software? spyware programs?

[utd4evr]

Hi i just wanted to know what sort of speed ur broadband needs to be to watch streaming clearly because last season it was working well at 1mb but nw even at 2mb the streaming buffers all the time

[dazza]

1mb should be more than enough

[LFC4LIFE]

Hi all,

I have downloaded sopcast again and when I select the channels spcified it buffers for ages and then tells me channel is offline or channel not available. The first time I downloaded Sopcast I watched a full game with no problems. Now I've tried unsuccessfully three times. I've uninstalled and reinstalled sopcast but still nothing. I'm in desperate need of help, cannot miss another football game! pLEASE HELP.

[Sissoko]

Dazza thanks for this mate, i wasn't aware of the service pack 2 issue. I have 10mb Virgin Broadband now so I do get clear streams but occasionally i still get freezing screens, more so with TVANTS. I used to get that problem with PP Stream all the time.

One thing to consider as well is if you close down PP Stream or PP Mate etc make sure the process is completely gone in task manager otherwise it ll be like watching the moon landing!

[basil brush 4]

Hi

Does anyone know of a change to Pcast? up until yesterday it used to work fine but now everytime it opens i get a runtime error box and it stops.I only have windows ME so cant use some of the others,any help would be appreciated.

[thirtiesmale]

dazza Wrote:Can I do anything to Help the streams go Faster?

Yes you can, Windows Service Pack 2 includes an update which limites Peer 2 Peer Programs on the amount that can be downloaded and uploaded. SP2 Limites your number of TCP/IP connections to 10. the reason they did this was to help prevent the spread of trojans, worms and viruses. This LINK  http://www.lvllord.de/?lang=en&url=4226patch/faq will take you to  site which can increase this to 50. This should have the effect of increasing the speed of download and ultimately better picture. when you install it, make sure you change it from 10 to 50, it wont do it for you

Hi, thanks for helping me.

The link you provide there, doesn't let you download anything to change the TCP/IP to 50, or am i missing something? All i see is a list of things in green which dont link anywhere, and a list of things to do that aren't in plain English.