Programme in Series has `firstbcast' But no `available'.

[Vangelis forthnet]

On Fri May 5 18:16:01 BST 2017, Ralph Corderoy wrote:

>> Maybe your tv.cache has gaps.
>
> It seems to have.

> I have done
> ./get_iplayer --quiet --refresh --refresh-future

"--refresh --refresh-future" won't help you in this case;
your tv.cache gap for pid=b08nyc9z is for a broadcast
date more than a week in the past; "--refresh --refresh-future"
will index tv content for current and next calendar weeks
and since pid=b08nyc9z won't be repeated in the future
(as already told in my previous message), it won't be added
to the cache; do as told to regenerate your past 15 (or more)
days worth of the tv.cache file...

> If you remove it from the cache by deleting that line,
> does --info then obtain the availabledate from what's now
> out on the Internet to retrieve?

I still fail to grasp the importance it holds for you to have
that "available" entry in --info for that particular
episode of HUTH, but then again I'm getting older (and grumpier...).
If it's purely academic curiosity you want to satisfy, do read on...

 When you -i a specific PID, most of the results are read
locally from the (tv|radio).cache file, that is if the PID is
already indexed in the cache. This is done for "economy"
reasons, so as not to redownload cached content.
Other -i results, (like the long description & modes) which
do not appear in the cache, are fetched from online metadata
feeds, currently
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08pm8cl.json

"available" is actually the 4th column of the tv.cache file,
so if a (TV) PID is already indexed, -i --pid=<pid> will
include the "available" entry, otherwise not.

The "available" field for an indexed PID was originally
populated by fetching the value of
first_broadcast_date for that PID (from the feeds).
If you compare
"available:" vs "firstbcast:" values for that PID,
you'll see they are identical
When a PID is not indexed, you'll only get the
"firstbcast:" -i result, not the "available:" one.

I have conducted, as requested, experiments
which you are free to try yourself.

pid=b08pm8cl was inside my tv.cache
(you can try with a different one already
in your cache);

get_iplayer --pid=b08pm8cl -i =>
-------------------------------------
INFO: pid found in cache
Matches:
3194:   Homes Under the Hammer: Series 21 - Episode 9, BBC One, b08pm8cl
INFO: File name prefix = 
Homes_Under_the_Hammer_Series_21_-_9._Episode_9_b08pm8c
l_original

available:      2017-05-02T10:00:00+01:00
brand:          Homes Under the Hammer
(snip)
firstbcast:     2017-05-02T10:00:00+01:00
-------------------------------------

tv.cache was manually edited to remove b08pm8cl entry;
get_iplayer --pid=b08pm8cl -i =>
-------------------------------------
INFO: Trying pid: b08pm8cl using type: tv
INFO: Trying to download PID using type tv
INFO: pid not found in tv cache
Matches:
INFO: File name prefix = 
Homes_Under_the_Hammer_Series_21_-_9._Episode_9_b08pm8c
l_original

brand:          Homes Under the Hammer
(snip)
firstbcast:     2017-05-02T10:00:00+01:00
-------------------------------------

To conclude, pid=b08nyc9z did not come up
with an "available:" enrty simply because it was
missing from your tv.cache. Reconstruct your
past cache and retry...
If it's only that pid you care about, here's
the relevant line from my own cache:
(may get mangled by mailer ;-( ) )

3193|tv|Homes Under the Hammer: Series 
21|b08nyc9z|2017-04-27T10:00:00+01:00|1495875600|Episode 
8|21|8|default|3600|Featuring properties in Langton Green in Kent, 
Stoke-on-Trent and Northwood in Middlesex.|BBC 
One|||1493933022||http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08nyc9z|

(you should change index number...)

Have a good night,
Vangelis.