aphra

I grudgingly subscribe to Sky Movies and occasionally there is something on Modern Greats or Classics that I want to record. I have never seen GORKI PARK and have noticed that it has been on Modern Greats several times in the past. And several times I have managed to miss it.
On Wednesday 1 August it was showing at 6.0 am, 3.55pm and 4.35 am (Thursday morning)
I have a basic Sky Digital box which has no means of being programmed to change channels, so one can only record one channel in absentia. On Tuesday night around 11pm I left the box on Sky 309 with the DVD recorder coupled to record GORKI PARK at 6am the next morning. Result. Blue screen and the message "GORKI PARK started 6am. Enter PIN ****". During the morning I phoned Sky's 0870 02435000 technical helpline. A girl told me how to over-ride the need to enter a PIN. Press Services - Parental Control - enter PIN - Other Restrictions - set to OFF - Save changes. Easy. At midday I went home and put the Sky box to 309 having made sure restrictions were set to Off. Left home. Result. Blue screen and the message "GORKI PARK started at 3.55. Enter PIN ****".

Not to be beaten I tried for the third time. Set Channel 309 without any Parental Control around 11.30pm on Wednesday night for 4.35am next morning, set DVD recorder. Went to bed.

Result, perfect recording of GORKI PARK for an hour, then blue screen and Enter Pin ****.

Today I have spoken to another girl at Sky's so-called technical line; she told me that it is NOT possible to override Parental Controls unless one is actually present at the time the film starts. These controls have, I believe, only recently been introduced so that the British Board of Film Certification Guidelines are strictly adhered to.

I can only assume that I was able to record the first hour of GORKI PARK from
4.35 am until about 5.30am, because this must be when the 18 certificate prohibition kicked in. I asked the girl at Sky what the hours of prohibition were, but she did not know. She told me that the changes had been announced in the Sky Magazine, but as that goes straight into the Aphra Lloyd bin, I missed reading about them.

Does anybody know if there is ANY way round this? And does exactly the same drawback apply to Sky + membership? Not that I would even consider joining.

DB7

It's the same with Sky+. I can understand it for the soft porn channels but it's a pain on the movie channels.

alex

After you have recorded the film and when you want to play it back just enter your PIN number and and the film should play.

alex

[I have a basic Sky Digital box which has no means of being programmed to change channels, so one can only record one channel in absentia.

You can programme the Sky Digital box to change channels by using the Auto View facility (i.e. press the red button when you have selected your programme).

Unfortunately you cannot do this with the Sky+ box.

Fellwanderer

I don't think that is right.

Certainly, if trying to watch a film live that requires a PIN one has to enter it. However, I'm pretty sure that if I record it onto [without having set the PIN] Sky+ and then re-record it onto dvd, there is no need for the PIN.

All the best
FELL

A signature is no substitute for a life

DB7

Not on mine, if you 'Sky+' an 18 cert film and play it back during the day it requires the PIN.

aphra

"You can programme the Sky Digital box to change channels by using the Auto View facility (i.e. press the red button when you have selected your programme). "

Thanks a lot, Alex. To think I have been limited to one channel at a time for all these years just because I did not know I could use AutoView. I have just tested it with DEATH WISH 3 and SLITHER (both now safely wiped) and it worked a treat...

I am still uncertain, however, about adding a PIN to an already recorded 18 film that has only produced blue screen, and for it then to play. I tried this out and it did not seem to work. Under what circumstances would it work? Had I kept the first hour of GORKI PARK which recorded okay and then went into blue screen and then had I put my PIN into the second half of the film would it have played?

I have finally spotted that RADIO TIMES prints "PIN' against films on Sky that require a PIN.

Steve Crook

Well one way around it is to buy the DVD
I presume you mean Gorky Park (1983) with William Hurt and the gorgeous Joanna Pacula

Steve

alex

"[I am still uncertain, however, about adding a PIN to an already recorded 18 film that has only produced blue screen, and for it then to play. I tried this out and it did not seem to work. Under what circumstances would it work? Had I kept the first hour of GORKI PARK which recorded okay and then went into blue screen and then had I put my PIN into the second half of the film would it have played?]"




My experience has been if the programme has recorded, even if it only shows the blue screen, as soon as you have entered the PIN it start playing normally.

Initially you think all you have recorded is two hours or whatever of the blue screen asking for your PIN when you have in fact recorded the program.

David Brent

Thank God we do not have such a complicated system on PAY here in Australia - yet.
We have the Parental Lock Out System but no such PIN hassle.

My Pay television is delivered by satellite dish and the only problem that tends to happen is if you are recording a film/program from a pay channel between 2.00am and 5.00am. For some reason the system reboots during those hours. There is no set time when this occurs. If you are unlucky enough to be recording when the boot happens the picture will go black for around 30 seconds before resuming.
I've been caught by this a few times.

Dave.

aphra

I stand corrected, Steve! I was mistakenly using the spelling of the book's title

Amazon.co.uk: Gorki Park.: Books: Martin Cruz-Smith

Do you buy the DVD of a film that is readily available on TV and only want to see once?

See you soon in Canterbury dv

Steve Crook

It's a great book as well, although that doesn't have Joanna Pacula in it and her character isn't quite as prominent in the book

I don't buy many DVDs at all, except all the P&P ones of course
I do usually just have recordings from TV. But I don't subscribe to any of these "specialist" movie channels, except FilmFour, because I find that they don't show the types of films I like often enough to make a subscription even worth considering.

Yes, see you in Canterbury on August bank holiday Sunday

Steve

mushy747

Well you learn something new every day, if Aphra hadn't started this thread i would have been none the wiser about autoview.
Thanks to Alex for pointing it out.
Lyn

vanmunchen

If you go to "Services" and then "Parental Control" you can switch the PIN restrictions off. This enables you to play 12, 15 and 18 films which you have recorded on the Sky+ box without having to enter the PIN (it's not just 18 films which need a PIN and Gorky Park is a 15).