Roku Developer Program

[newchannel]

I have channels that need to be converted but I have a question..

If my channels are currently using XML, can they be adapted over to the scene graph and meet the requirements, or do all channels have to go through the Direct Publisher "convert" option?

[EnTerr]

"newchannel" wrote:
I have channels that need to be converted but I have a question. If my channels are currently using XML, can they be adapted over to the scene graph and meet the requirements,

Yes. But if your channel can use DP, i would highly recommend that route because re-writing in RSG is expensive (qualifications x labor).

or do all channels have to go through the Direct Publisher "convert" option?

No.

My personal advice would be do "lazy evaluation", i.e. do not rush to upgrade anything yet - but plan accordingly to the deprecation timetable presented. Here is why: you have almost two years to do get replacement - and by that time RSG might be superseded - or DP can have a "drag & drop" interface. So i guess it's like for electronics: never buy in advance something you don't need right now, because in a year it would be old tech

[matrixebiz]

Currently RSG and DP are the future. 
Possibly 2D APIs are ok too but roVideoPlayer and roVideoScreen are both listed in the deprecated components list ;
https://blog.roku.com/developer/2017/02/01/legacy-sdk/

but as EnTerr said, "do not rush to upgrade anything yet"

My issue is that I have code in the old SDK for stream manipulation from my XML and do not see anyway to do this in DP as it just reads the XML and there is no other options to manipulate the feed stream once it has been read so will be unable to convert to DP and may be forced to go to RSG. 

[EnTerr]

"matrixebiz" wrote:
My issue is that I have code in the old SDK for stream manipulation from my XML and do not see anyway to do this in DP as it just reads the XML and there is no other options to manipulate the feed stream once it has been read so will be unable to convert to DP and may be forced to go to RSG.

Better approach might be to do the xml-mutation at server-side and not on Roku. That's more flexible, e.g. can update at any time, with no need to re-submit app.

[newchannel]

I see your point 🙂

With the learning curve, it might take me 2 years lol I would love to understand more about using the DP. The articles I have read say build a channel with no coding and use a feed. Well, I don't have a feed so how to I build one?. I have XML files and video content on AWS. I have no idea how to setup a JSON or RSS to access my server content. ie that is if JSON and RSS can read my XML files or perhaps I have to learn some other type of file for them to read and provide a feed.

I do wish I could find more information on how to make the feed, how to get a URL for the feed and if my XML files can be used or not. 

I guess I will be reading and researching for quite sometime and follow the forum posts. 

Thank you for the reply. I appreciate you taking your time to answer. Some of my channels are subscription and I don't want to upset the subscribers. 🙂

[newchannel]

Just saw the other post...that is my goal too, To make changes to content etc server side like I am doing now without having to re-submit the app. I have XML on AWS and of course the links to the content in the app and make changes at server.

[EnTerr]

"newchannel" wrote:
I have XML files and video content on AWS. I have no idea how to setup a JSON or RSS to access my server content. ie that is if JSON and RSS can read my XML files or perhaps I have to learn some other type of file for them to read and provide a feed.

RSS is a kind of XML file, probably in slightly different name/order of the data. JSON is another text file format, simpler/easier perhaps than XML. So it's as easy as reworking manually or autom... wait a minute, has nobody made yet a web tool that translates between all these formats? It'd be rather simple job

I do wish I could find more information on how to make the feed, how to get a URL for the feed and if my XML files can be used or not. 
I guess I will be reading and researching for quite sometime and follow the forum posts.

I am clue-free on DP. Try the forum next door, https://forums.roku.com/viewforum.php?f=100
A truly miraculous event happened this week: a Roku* person has been spotted answering questions there! Hallelujah! 8-) (seriously - rejoicing)

[newchannel]

EnTerr,

LOL they have been spoiled?! Funny. I hope I can spoil them a lot while they answer the many questions I already posted in the DP forum 🙂

I found a website the other day that says it will convert XML to JSON but I had a snippet of code I found and tried..had an error in it. Actually, I tried to plug in 2 snippets of XML and both had errors. Perhaps an easy fix from people that write JSON.

Once the JSON written code is in a file, does it have ",json" on the end similar to how .xml ? On AWS I can right click and bring up a menu that gives me the URL to the XML file. Perhaps a JSON file is placed on a server, also ie in a bucket?

Ugh.. I have so much to learn...again 🙂

I have so many questions but won't add them all now. Will see if I can get answers from the forum on these for now.

[matrixebiz]

"EnTerr" wrote:

"matrixebiz" wrote:
My issue is that I have code in the old SDK for stream manipulation from my XML and do not see anyway to do this in DP as it just reads the XML and there is no other options to manipulate the feed stream once it has been read so will be unable to convert to DP and may be forced to go to RSG.

Better approach might be to do the xml-mutation at server-side and not on Roku. That's more flexible, e.g. can update at any time, with no need to re-submit app.

I would like to do that but then I would need to figure out how to have one program extract/read some text from a website then add that to my XML file in the StreamURL location in the file. 
Any ideas for Windows programs that can do this on a schedule? Thank you

[EnTerr]

@matrixebiz - hmm, did you finish the CS101 class at Udacity yet?
Or are you hustling because ... ?