Frequent Visitor
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19 Messages
Streaming via Desktop computer.
Hi,
We started using our big screen (40" is big screen? lol) for a computer monitor about 2 years ago btw. Then we started using the Xfinity streaming to get what we pay for as the TV part of the Triple Play. The big screen is older and quirky when it came to switching between using it as a computer screen and watching TV so streaming was a good option.
Anyway, just recently streaming stopped working on the Opera browser so we downloaded Firefox and it worked just like Opera used to. We really liked Opera but the little tweaks they kept adding to the huge of pile of nonsense caused us to switch to Firefox. Opera seemed to be breaking things left and right.
So about 2 weeks or so ago, using the desktop and Firefox we routinely went to watch a channel. It started, hestitated, stopped, looked for the channel, came on for a second, then paused, then eventually we gave up. We checked back every day to no avail. It just does not work. We did stop the hardware acceleration in Firefox and that did not do a thing. Firefox was working fine with Xfinity streaming but now it is not. Did they go the way of Opera and
It's all fine and dandy but with the high cost we are paying, 220 bucks a month at present you would think the system would be a lot more reliable.
Any thoughts on the problem? Local issue? Won't be fixed? It's ALWAYS the customers equipment, never Comcasts equipment or system.
You just don't get something working fine then it goes belly up. lol
Oh and one more thing.
Denise
Here4Help
Expert
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192 Messages
4 years ago
@niecey45
Have you checked to ensure that your computer/browser meets the minimum system requirements to use the Xfinity Stream feature?
You can find the list of requirements here: https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/xfinity-tv-website-requirements
For instance, that article says that your computer's hardware must meet the following minimum requirements:
It also says that you must have some specific "plug-in" settings, which include:
What is your Flash Player version? This is something that does not always update automatically, but I have found by simply updating my Flash Player resolves most issues I experience.
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niecey45
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19 Messages
4 years ago
I have been goofing around with computers since 1984. What makes me laugh is that Comcast always blames the customer or the customers equipment for anything that goes wrong. That said, it was WORKING then it went into the stopping, hesitating and "finding" the channel. Hear that? It worked FINE then it now doesn't. NO equipment was changed, software was as needed according to that software.
Tried several browsers and it's all the same result. I went through and checked other streaming sites and nope it is just Comcast. Opera totally died, it won't even click through to go to any channel. Opera's fine-tuning or updating is killing itself.
Using Firefox to type this, tried the usual suspects. No go. I find it very hard to believe it has anything to do with our equipment and software. BTW, we let any software including Windows 10 update whenever it wants to.
Confusing? I saw in these forums a supposed "helper" tell a customer that Flash has NOTHING TO DO with Xfinity streaming, it is all done through HTML. Is that a bad answer? When I first ran Firefox, Xfinity came up with a nag screen saying lets get your Flash working. lol That is the riduculousness of Comcast? It's like the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.
I thought it more convenient to just stream Xfinity off the internet rather than go through the burps of switching the computer screen attached to the 40" TV screen. Maybe Xfinity doesn't like the fact that people could ask why we are paying for a triple play when all we need is phone and internet? lol We pay until last bill 220 bucks a month, now tell me don't you think things should be working fine MOST OF THE TIME? It is not NOW and over 10 years something always seems to have a problem.
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Rustyben
Expert
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24.6K Messages
4 years ago
the current approved method by the providers for comcast is to verify security of the HD video using Flash. once it is verified the video streams unless the flash routine check during streaming shows path is not secure (which would cut off video flow). it was announced that by the last day of 2020 that Comcast should have another approved security method.
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Rustyben
Expert
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24.6K Messages
4 years ago
moved thread to the streaming website area of the forum from streaming app area.
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Here4Help
Expert
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192 Messages
4 years ago
@niecey45
I do not work for Comcast nor am I "blaming" you. I am just trying to provide you with some helpful information.
I provided you with Comcast's minimum system requirements, as per that document there are only select browsers that work with Xfinity Stream, they include:
"Supported Web Browsers
Note: As of October 1, 2019, the Xfinity Stream portal (web) doesn't support any version of Internet Explorer."
There is also information on that article that includes things like ensure cookies, Flash, and Javascript are all enabled. I know some browsers block all or some of these things by default and can cause Xfinity Stream to not work properly.
Additionally, I do know that you need Flash enabled to ensure Xfinity Stream website works properly per Comcast's own help articles, found here:
https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/xfinity-tv-portal-safari-10-enable-flash
https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/enable-flash-on-google-chrome
https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/upgrade-macromedia-flash
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chas4
Frequent Visitor
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8 Messages
4 years ago
I see I am not the only one seeing this bug fromt he Comcast side and interesting to know that the bug is a few weeks old. I checked and Flash Plyer (I have it set to auto update) was hitting just shy of 200% CPU usage for a 360 resolution video (that bug is over 4 years old, have report it to Comcast multipule times and even shown them the bug). This machine more than meets the minimum requerments as I can run 2 guest OSes in a VM at the same time. Interesting fact is that The mobile app, cable box, interenet streaming site get the live tv data from different servers (I watched one day as the channels slowly started to get mixed up (CNN was showing on TBS)) and others slowly started to break. All I can tell is Comcast resfuses to admit their site is buggy and always blames the customer for Comcast's broken site.
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Rustyben
Expert
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24.6K Messages
4 years ago
flash is not used for 'playing'. the only role flash is used for is the security of the video data stream (the HDCP path verification). any issue with handling is the local PC. what is your processor? ram? OS brand? version? web browser brand? version?
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chas4
Frequent Visitor
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8 Messages
4 years ago
@Rustyben Flash Player is 100% still used during the streaming and the video player has broken code (I reported it and showed it to Comcast over 2 years ago multipule times) as it reads all version of macOS higher than 10.12 as 10.1 (as I get a 130+% CPU spike for a 360 resolution video stream, where I can stream 4k on other sites and the CPU usage is around 20%). Comcast covers the Flash Player content with an invisable frame (can't right click the Flash Player video player and get the Flash Player right click menu). The live streaming site have a different source for the live data than what the mobile app uses and that is different from where the cable boxes get the streaming data (3 differnt servers).
Should note I have seen the Flash Player issue in Safari, Opera, Vivaldi. i7 16GB of RAM, dual GPUs all are updated (I even beat Adobe auto updates for Flash Player a lot of the time(manually update before it is pushed via auto update)) .
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Rustyben
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24.6K Messages
4 years ago
your information is again just not correct. the rendering of video for the stream website is not done by flash. flash's HDCP routine is approved by the providers for security. It appears that Comcast is experimenting on a non-flash security implementation based on reports on the forum (small areas of the comcast footprint). not official information posted so far.
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chas4
Frequent Visitor
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8 Messages
4 years ago
@Rustyben 100% Flash Player is being used in the video player, right now it runs like Flash Player code written in the mid 2000 (full updated Flash Player) CPU spikes of around 70 to 100+% CPU just for the plug in for low 360 resolution live video stream (I have done 4k resolution live streams and the CPU usage is around 20% or lower). Comcast looks to be using code that sees macOS 10.13+ as Mac OS X 10.1 (I reported this over 2 years ago to Comcast).
Strange that for Safari on desktop is not getting the same DRM and video player that is used in Comcast's iOS app.
If you mask as Chrome with a Choimum based browser you look to get an exterimental HTML5 video player and it using Google's Widevine for DRM.
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Rustyben
Expert
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24.6K Messages
4 years ago
The protocol used for the streams is RTMPE and for some devices RTMPTE. both encrypt the TCP traffic from one end to the other preventing any man-in-the-middle decrypted stream. That is the current security component while others are not being tested as possible replacements. 1080p (1K) and higher are requiring more and more security to prevent theft of the video by pirates, etc.
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