Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations

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Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations

Post by The Professor » Wed Sep 27, 2017 8:40 pm

Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations
This tutorial may be distributed freely if you acknowledge tvrosat.com as the source. :grin:

Note: Click on the images below for enlarged view.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS


8.0: Introduction

8.1: Browsing and Downloading Plugins

[list]8.1.1: Plugins Repository[/list]
[list]8.1.2: Downloading Plugins[/list]8.2: Plugin Example 1: Weather Forecast

8.3: Plugin Example 2: Video/Audio Bit Rate

8.4: Plugin Example 3: Kodi

8.5: Legality of Plugins
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8.0: Introduction


In this tutorial, we will learn how to install Plugins. Plugins are software applications that can be installed on an Enigma 2 (Linux) Satellite Receiver to add additional functionality not available in the original image. They are usually written in the Python scripting language and are compatible with most Enigma 2 images, but some are specific to certain images (e.g. PLi). The developers of Plugins are usually satellite enthusiasts who are not connected with any firmware development group or receiver manufacturers. While most Plugins are legal to use, keep in mind that some IPTV Plugins may violate copyright laws in certain jurisdictions. For this reason, we will only discuss the installation of one IPTV Plugin, Kodi, which at the time of writing, is not considered illegal (as long as one uses only official add-ons) and hasn't been challenged in court.


8.1: Browsing and Downloading Plugins

Your receiver most likely already came pre-installed with some Plugins. To view these, simply go to Plugins in the main menu.

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In my case, the very useful Plugin OpenWebif was pre-installed and so was MyMetrixLite. The latter controls the overall appearance, including skin settings. You can click on these to edit the Plugin settings.

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8.1.1: Plugins Repository

The official online E2 OpenPlugins repository can be found here

https://github.com/e2openplugins

You can also check the respective forums of the developers (e.g. PLi, ATV) for additional Plugins and information.

8.1.2: Downloading Plugins

Go to Plugins > Green Button

Go to Setup > Software Management > Manage Extensions

Enigma 2 will display the Plugins and Extensions available for download. Browse through the different categories to get a basic idea of what is available. These repositories are updated frequently by satellite enthusiasts, so check them often for new applications!

screen_3.jpg

8.2: Plugin Example 1: Weather Forecast

A useful Plugin to have on your receiver is a Weather Forecast application. Let's install the Foreca 10-day weather forecaster.

Go to: Plugins > Download Plugins > Extensions > Foreca

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Select yes.

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Once the Plugin is installed, go back to the Plugin Browser and click on Foreca Weather Forecaster.

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Scroll down the list and find your city and save it.

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Exit the Foreca menu and you should now see the weather forecast for your location.

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If you don't like the above weather forecaster, you can try another like MSN Weather. Install it by clicking on it below.

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Start Weather MSN.

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This one is a little trickier to configure. You must manually enter your city and country using your remote. Click on Save and exit.

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screen_4h.jpg

The MSN 5-day weather forecast is shown below.

screen_4i.jpg

You can add a Hotkey to your remote to bring up the weather when you are watching TV. I chose the yellow button and assigned it to Weather MSN.

screen_4j.jpg
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screen_4l.jpg


8.3: Plugin Example 2: Video/Audio Bit Rate

Have you ever wondered what the bit rate of a particular video or audio channel? Well, someone wrote a Plugin to display this information when you are watching TV. Let's install it as shown below.

screen_5.jpg

From the Plugin Browser, select Bitrate Setup.

screen_5a.jpg

Edit your settings as shown below.

screen_5b.jpg

Now tune a channel and the bit rates for the video and audio will be displayed in the top left hand corner. If it doesn't display for you, you may need to increase the Infobar timeout. Go to Setup > Usage & GUI > OSD Settings > 1st Infobar timeout. Change it to 10 seconds so the bit rate Plugin has time to measure the bit rate.

screen_5c.jpg
screen_5d.jpg

8.4: Plugin Example 3: Kodi

Kodi is a very popular free and open-source media player software application developed by the XBMC Foundation, a non-profit technology consortium. Let's install it by selecting it below.

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screen_6a.jpg

Click on the Kodi Plugin to start it.

screen_6b.jpg
screen_6c.jpg
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screen_6e.jpg

Using Kodi is beyond the scope of this tutorial. For more information, the reader is referred to the official support forum:

https://forum.kodi.tv/

One of the most popular legal add-ons for Kodi is PlutoTV. This add-on allows you to watch many live TV programs such as news, sports, movies and more. Some c-band satellite channels such as Newsmax and Bloomberg are available from PlutoTV. No subscription is required and PlutoTV makes money from advertisements only.


8.5: Legality of Plugins

Some Plugins such as Kodi have attracted negative attention due to the availability of 3rd party add-ons that facilitate unauthorized access to copyrighted media content. We do NOT condone the use of such add-ons and wish to inform you that copyright holders routinely monitor the IP addresses of violators so they can be fined or sued. Since it is entirely possible that you may think you are using a legal add-on, but which is really illegal, it is highly advisable that you use a VPN for anonymity if you plan to complement your TVRO experience with the Kodi media player.

Be smart and stay legal. Don't let this happen to you:


https://www.tvrosat.com/forum/phpBB3/vi ... 179&t=4722


:grin:
Last edited by The Professor on Wed Oct 11, 2017 2:46 am, edited 9 times in total.
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Re: Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations

Post by The Professor » Tue Oct 03, 2017 5:12 am

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Re: Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations

Post by The Professor » Thu Mar 15, 2018 4:55 am

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Re: Tutorial 8: Plugins and Example Installations

Post by The Professor » Mon Mar 19, 2018 11:09 pm

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