w_scan

w_scan is an application that greatly simplifies the task of scanning for DVB-T, DVB-C and ATSC channel information. Winfried Köhler’s w_scan is special because it does not require any region-specific initial transponder data for operation. It will create configuration files for VDR and Kaffeine and Xine.
wirbel.htpc-forum.de

Installing w_scan

Begin by downloading the source for the w_scan application and unpacking the tarball:

root@ubuntu:~# wget "http://wirbel.htpc-forum.de/w_scan/w_scan-20090504.tar.bz2"
root@ubuntu:~# tar xfvj w_scan-20090504.tar.bz2

A pre-compiled version of w_scan is included in the tarball.

Compiling from Source

If you want to compile w_scan from source, move the directory w_scan-20090504 to /usr/local/src/ and create a symbolic link:

root@ubuntu:~# mv w_scan-20090504/ /usr/local/src/
root@ubuntu:~# cd /usr/local/src/
root@ubuntu:/usr/local/src# ln -s w_scan-20090504/ w_scan

Build the application with the following two commands:

root@ubuntu:/usr/local/src# cd w_scan
root@ubuntu:/usr/local/src/w_scan# make

Continue by copying w_scan to /usr/local/bin/:

root@ubuntu:/usr/local/src/w_scan# cp w_scan /usr/local/bin/

Examples for Using w_scan

DVB-T for VDR 1.6.x (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -ft -c DE >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

DVB-T for VDR 1.6.x (United Kingdom)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -ft -c GB >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

DVB-C for VDR 1.6.x (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fc -c DE >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

DVB-T and DVB-C for VDR 1.4.x (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -ft -c DE >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf && w_scan -fc -c DE >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

DVB-S, HDTV for VDR 1.7 (Astra S19.2E)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fs -s S19E2 -o7 >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

DVB-S, HDTV for VDR 1.6 and earlier (Hotbird S13.0E)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fs -s S13E0 >> /etc/vdr/channels.conf

Create DVB-T Initial Tuning Data (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -ft -c DE -x >> initial-tuning-data.txt

Create DVB-C Initial Tuning Data (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fc -c DE -x >> initial-tuning-data.txt

Create DVB-S Initial Tuning Data (Astra S19.2E)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fs -s S19E2 -x >> initial-tuning-data.txt

DVB-T Channels for Kaffeine (Germany)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -k -c DE >> channels.dvb

DVB-C Channels for Kaffeine

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fc -k >> channels.dvb

DVB-T for Czap/Tzap/Xine (United Kingdom)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -ft -c GB -X >> channels.conf

DVB-C for Czap/Tzap/Xine (Germany)

w_scan -fc -c DE -X >> channels.conf

ATSC Terrestial (VSB)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -fa >> channels.conf

ATSC Cable (US QAM Annex-B)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -A2 >> channels.conf

ATSC Terrestial (VSB) and Cable (US QAM Annex-B)

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -A3 >> channels.conf

Display Options

Get a list of available options by calling w_scan with the option -h:

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -h

Get an extended list of options by calling w_scan with the option -H:

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -H

Create Log file

Generate a log file with the following command:

root@ubuntu:~# w_scan -v -v 2>&1 | tee w_scan.log

Start script

Run the w_scan start script with the following command:

root@ubuntu:~# ./w_scan_start.sh