.TAC files when using File Explorer on Windows 8.1

[Black Hole]

I like Raydon's explanation of where the .tac files fit in, but I also like Mike's forensic analysis of the OP. It seems to me that something about the Win8.1 update is preventing the .ts files being visible, hence the wider sweep that discovered the .tacs.

 

[raydon]

A storm in a TeACup then? But read the OP carefully:

on my network I could see the .ts files and play them on my PC. Since the Win 8.1 upgrade I have not looked at my Hummy files on my network but now they are all .TAC files and they will not play on VLC or Media Player.

So, he was saying there were no .ts files, only TAC files. Also, post #4 gave instructions on making extensions visible and resetting file associations in W8.

I did read his post carefully, and I quite agree with what you said. Unfortunately, the .tac files were a bit of a red herring that caused the OP to reach the wrong conclusion about what he was actually seeing. Maybe a scroll down the page instead of entering the dot folder containing the .tac files may just possibly have revealed the real .ts file. Hard to say really, so just clarified things a little to take the focus away from this blind alley. The default file association for a .ts file can also be viewed, and changed if necessary, using the 'Default Programs' option in Control Panel. A .tac file should definitely not have any association at all, but once created the only way to remove it completely is by using regedit.
Dig down to this key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts
and delete the sub-key with the name .tac or .TAC. You’ll have to reboot for this to take effect.
You may also need to remove the same sub-key from HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT as well.

 

[Trev]

If all the OP is seeing is. TAC files then he is looking in the wrong place. Simples. He should not see the .TAC files at all until he navigates into the (hidden or not) FOLDER that contains them. For 'normal' (Non-series) the .TS, HMT and NTS files are in the ROOT of the Video folder so he should see three files for each recording, the associated .TAC files are not. As the OP can only see .TAC files he is NOT looking in the root of the video folder.
And just for complete clarification, I am browsing my HDR with Win7 file explorer.

 

[prpr]

A .tac file should definitely not have any association at all, but once created the only way to remove it completely is by using regedit.
Dig down to this key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts
and delete the sub-key with the name .tac or .TAC. You’ll have to reboot for this to take effect.
You may also need to remove the same sub-key from HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT as well.

Why do those idiots in Redmond inflict this sort of cr@p on people? Stuff you can easily add (even inadvertently) that is sooo hard to get rid of. What were they on when they designed it (if indeed they did)?

 

[Black Hole]

If all the OP is seeing is. TAC files then he is looking in the wrong place. Simples. He should not see the .TAC files at all until he navigates into the (hidden or not) FOLDER that contains them. For 'normal' (Non-series) the .TS, HMT and NTS files are in the ROOT of the Video folder so he should see three files for each recording, the associated .TAC files are not. As the OP can only see .TAC files he is NOT looking in the root of the video folder.
And just for complete clarification, I am browsing my HDR with Win7 file explorer.

I gave the OP the benefit of the doubt, and presumed he is not so stupid as all that. Ultimately you may prove to be correct, but let's see...

 

[raydon]

Why do those idiots in Redmond inflict this sort of cr@p on people? Stuff you can easily add (even inadvertently) this is sooo hard to get rid of. What were they on when they designed it (if indeed they did)?

Agreed, it's the same with the Explorer option "Hide extensions for known file types". Who exactly are they supposed to be known to ? Everyone who ever used Windows ?? And how else are you supposed to determine content other than by educated guesswork.

 

[Black Hole]

"Hide extensions" is supposed to make everything more user-friendly for naive users ("known" means files types with registered associations), but of course we non-naive users know what dangers lurk within.

 

[Trev]

I gave the OP the benefit of the doubt, and presumed he is not so stupid as all that.

I have found that a sanity check is always the best way forward otherwise you can have 27 odd posts chasing a non existent problem and seemingly getting nowhere fast . I would have checked 'how he could see them in W7'? Was that by FTP, Mapped drive in explorer or Network connections in explorer. But why suggest at post 2 that the OP 'use FTP instead of drive mapping'? He can obviously 'see' the Hummy by whatever method he is using. And if he can only see .TAC files, he is obviously navigating to a directory structure one level deeper than he should be. The problem 'we' have is to try to find out why/how this is happening.
The 'Hide extensions' option give the file a nice big friendly icon such as a .doc could have a lovely big Word icon indicating its associated program.

 

[grahamlthompson]

I have found that a sanity check is always the best way forward otherwise you can have 27 odd posts chasing a non existent problem and seemingly getting nowhere fast . I would have checked 'how he could see them in W7'? Was that by FTP, Mapped drive in explorer or Network connections in explorer. But why suggest at post 2 that the OP 'use FTP instead of drive mapping'? He can obviously 'see' the Hummy by whatever method he is using.
The 'Hide extensions' option give the file a nice big friendly icon such as a .doc could have a lovely big Word icon indicating its associated program.

Because ftp displays the full filenames including all extensions. Presumably it ignores Windows Explorer weird habit of hiding known extensions by default.

 

[Black Hole]

Would that not depend on the particular FTP client?

I agree with Trev though - there is little point chucking this around any further until the OP comes back with some more info. It surprises me how often somebody comes onto the forum with a problem and then goes silent for a considerable period (sometimes for good), maybe it's embarrassment.

 

[raydon]

The 'Hide extensions' option give the file a nice big friendly icon such as a .doc could have a lovely big Word icon indicating its associated program.

Sorry, but it doesn't. It's the file association that provides the icon. You will see an application icon regardless of the "Hide extensions" setting, as long an association to an application exists for that extension.

 

[prpr]

The 'Hide extensions' option give the file a nice big friendly icon such as a .doc could have a lovely big Word icon indicating its associated program.

That option is probably responsible for more malware infestations that all other things put together. It should have been taken out years ago, or at least had the default inverted. Those idiots in Redmond can't seem to see the problem.

 

[raydon]

That option is probably responsible for more malware infestations that all other things put together. It should have been taken out years ago, or at least had the default inverted. Those idiots in Redmond can't seem to see the problem.

My point exactly, as anyone who has had the misfortune to have opened a file named readme.txt.exe will agree.

 

[Trev]

Because ftp displays the full filenames including all extensions.

Yes, I know that. But does the OP, and could he do as you suggest without further instructions on how to do it? It's not exactly a command set that every computer user has at their fingertips

 

[grahamlthompson]

Yes, I know that. But does the OP, and could he do as you suggest without further instructions on how to do it? It's not exactly a command set that every computer user has at their fingertips

He could and did. See post 16. Not sure what you mean about command set. Filezilla transfers files using drag and drop in a gui environment exactly the same as Windows Explorer. All that was needed was simple instructions on how to create a site connection. It's no more difficult than mapping a network drive in Windows.

Are you confusing FTP with telnet ? A HDR FOX T2 and derivatives have ftp access built in without CF support but afaik no way of mapping the drive in Windows.

 

[solpuerto]

Would that not depend on the particular FTP client?

I agree with Trev though - there is little point chucking this around any further until the OP comes back with some more info. It surprises me how often somebody comes onto the forum with a problem and then goes silent for a considerable period (sometimes for good), maybe it's embarrassment.

Since the 14 November 2014 I have been out the UK on holiday and have had very limited internet connection until now, and as you may imagine I do not have my PVR with me and therefore find it rather difficult to respond/ try /test etc the various suggestions that have been made. It has certainly not been embarrassment.

 

[Black Hole]

LOL!

 

[solpuerto]

I think you have inadvertently created a default association for .tac files with the VLC player application when attempting to access your recordings via Windows Explorer. You probably also have "Hide extensions for known file types" checked in Explorer's Folder options which would hide the .ts file extension for the actual video.

There is nothing mysterious about the .tac files, it simply means (t)humbnail (a)t (c)hapter. They are created by the 3am housekeeping task in a hidden sub folder beneath the one containing the actual recording. This sub folder will have the same name as the recording but preceded by a dot. (which makes it hidden on linux systems) and will contain exactly eight .tac files. These are named according to the duration of the recording in seconds, divided by eight. First one being 0.tac, and so on. When you select the recording in the Foxsat's media browser you will see at the bottom of the pane, the eight selectable 'chapter' thumbnails corresponding to that chapters position in the video.

Thanks for your interest and also for the great work you and others have done to "Open Up" the HDR.

I may well have inadvertently created this .tac association but if I did I wish I knew how. I do not have "Hide extensions for known file types" ticked and as I stated in a previous post when I removed Twonky and used Media Tomb I could see .ts files via Windows Media Player.
When I used Windows Explorer and VLC to open the recording folder there was nothing showing beneath the list of .tac files. As I have said elsewhere I was trying as normal to use Windows Explorer to allow me to transfer Recordings to my PC for my holiday but as I eventually obtained an alternative method I gave up with Explorer. I have a Media Player in a bedroom in my house and it works just great over my network with the updated custom software.

I may investigate/try your comment about the registry when I get home. I am rather reluctant to do it when on holiday as what I have at the moment all works nicely. Interestingly I did re-instal VLC before leaving and am running that on the .ts files I downloaded.

Thank you again

 

[solpuerto]

What he is seeing is the tac files that have always been there in the similarly named folder, but now not seeing the associated .ts file on his W8 machine, and as he hasn't mentioned .hmt or .nts files either, I suspect he is looking in the wrong place.
In the HDR's video folder, for each recording there should be three identically named FILES with the extensions .ts. hmt and nts. Also there should be an almost identically named FOLDER which contains the 8 .tac files. I say almost identical for the folder name as it is identical other than it starts with a '.'

Thank you for your interest.
I used Windows Explorer to read the folders/files on the HDR using Raydons custom software. I could see and read the HDR on my network. What wrong place would I be looking in? Prior to the actions I took in my first post I did see the files you refer to but not since. Also note back in Post 13 I did see .ts files but not under VLC.

 

[Black Hole]

Raydon was saying that the .tac files should be in a sub-folder, so you would need to go up one level from there to find the .ts (and sidecar files).