TV guide setup

This guide explains how to get a correct IPTV EPG on your screen with Northline IPTV. It covers how the guide works, why it can show the wrong times in a Canadian home, how to fix the clock on each kind of device, when to touch the player’s own time shift, and what to do when the guide is empty rather than shifted. If your guide shows a programme starting an hour before it really does, or half an hour off in Newfoundland, you are in the right place.

EPG stands for electronic programme guide. It is the grid or list that shows what is on now and next. It comes with your login, whether you use Xtream Codes or an M3U link. Most of the time it works on its own. When it does not, the fix is usually a setting on your device, not a fault in the service, and that is good news: it means you can fix it yourself in a couple of minutes.

IPTV EPG at a glance

Four facts explain almost every guide question we receive. Keep them in mind and the rest of this page will read quickly.

The second fact is the one that matters most in Canada. The country spans several time zones, some regions change their clocks for daylight saving time and some do not, and many devices are set up once by hand and never looked at again. The guide is only as correct as the clock it is read against.

What this means for you: when the guide looks wrong, think “clock” before you think “service”. The channel itself is live and on time; only the labels are off.

The fourth fact matters for expectations. A large catalogue gathers channels from many sources, and the amount of programme data varies from one to the next. We describe the guide as included because it is, with every login, but we do not describe every channel as fully guided, because that would not be true.

How the guide reaches your screen

Guide data travels a short path before you see it. Knowing the path explains why the fix sits where it does.

The programme times in the guide data are stored against one fixed reference, the same for every viewer in every country. Your player takes those times and converts them into local time. To do that, it asks your device two questions: which time zone are you in, and does that zone change its clocks today?

If the device answers correctly, the guide lines up with what is on screen. If the device thinks it is in Toronto while you are in Calgary, every programme appears two hours later than it really starts. If the device follows a daylight saving rule your region does not use, the guide is right half the year and an hour off the other half.

That is why the player’s own time shift is a last resort. It moves every programme by a fixed amount, which can cover a mistake for a while, but it does not know about daylight saving. When the clocks change, a manual shift becomes the new mistake.

There is one more link in the chain worth knowing about: the player keeps a stored copy of the guide so it can open quickly. After you change the device clock, that copy may still be drawn with the old times until the player is restarted and the guide refreshed. That is why every fix on this page ends with a restart and a refresh, even when the clock is already correct.

Shifted, empty or partial: three different problems

People describe very different problems as “the guide is wrong”. Before you change anything, name which one you have. Each has its own cause and its own fix.

The first three rows are clock problems. The last three are data problems. Mixing them up leads to the most common guide mistake of all: changing the player’s time shift to fix an empty guide, which changes nothing, or refreshing the guide to fix a shifted one, which also changes nothing.

What this means for you: shifted means clock, empty means data. Decide which before you open any menu.

Why time zones matter for your IPTV EPG in Canada

Canada spans several time zones, and the rules inside some of them differ by province or even by town. A device bought elsewhere, moved between provinces, or set up by hand can easily end up on the wrong one.

The table shows why choosing a zone by its name is not enough. “Central” covers both Manitoba, which changes clocks, and most of Saskatchewan, which does not. “Mountain” covers places that change and a few that do not. A device that only asks for a zone name may apply the wrong rule for your town.

The safe approach is to pick a city, not a zone. Most devices list time zones by a large city: Vancouver, Edmonton, Whitehorse, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Halifax, St. John’s. Choosing the city closest to you, in your own province, picks both the zone and its daylight saving rule in one go.

What this means for you: a device that says “Central” is not necessarily right for Saskatchewan, and one that says “Atlantic” is never right for Newfoundland. Look for the city name. If your device only shows zone names, switch on automatic time zone and let it work out the rule from your location or network.

Picking the right city for your IPTV EPG

Most homes only need to confirm the automatic setting. Some need to choose a city by hand, either because the device does not offer automatic time zones or because it guessed wrong. These cases come up most often.

Your phone is a useful referee. Phones almost always set their clock automatically from the mobile network. If the TV, box or stick shows a different time from your phone, the device is the one that is wrong.

What this means for you: choose the city, check against your phone, and you will rarely need to think about the guide again.

If your device lists only a handful of cities and none is in your province, choose the closest one that shares both your zone and your daylight saving rule. When in doubt, compare the device clock with your phone across a clock change; if they stay together, you chose well. If they part company, pick a different city.

Before you change any guide setting

Check these points in order. Most guide problems end here, before you have changed a single setting in the player.

• The device date and time are set to update automatically.
• The time zone matches your city, or is also set automatically.
• The clock on the device matches the clock on your phone, to the minute.
• The player has finished loading after setup. A guide still loading looks empty.
• You have refreshed the guide from the player’s menu at least once since the last change.
• The player’s own time shift is at zero, unless you set it on purpose.

The last point catches many people. If someone in the home set a time shift months ago to cover a clock problem, and the clock has since been corrected, the guide is now wrong in the other direction. Always check that setting before you touch anything else in the player.

Also check the guide on more than one channel before you decide it is shifted. One programme that runs long can make a single channel look off for a while. If the same gap shows on three or four channels from different groups, the clock is the cause. If only one channel looks wrong, wait for the next programme on it before changing anything.

How to fix a shifted IPTV EPG

Follow these steps in order. Stop as soon as the guide is right. Each step builds on the one before, so skipping ahead usually costs time rather than saving it.

1. Compare clocks. Look at the time on your device and on your phone. If they differ, the device clock is the problem and the next steps will fix it.
2. Reset the player’s time shift. If the player has a guide time shift and it is not at zero, set it back to zero now.
3. Set the device to automatic. In the device’s system settings, turn on automatic date and time, and automatic time zone if offered.
4. Choose your city if needed. If automatic time zone is not available or picks the wrong place, choose the nearest city in your own province.
5. Restart the player. Close the app completely and open it again, so it reads the new clock.
6. Refresh the guide. Use the player’s update or reload option for the guide and wait until it finishes.
7. Use the time shift only if a gap remains. Move it one hour at a time, in the direction that lines up the programme with what is on screen.

If you reach step seven, something unusual is going on: a device that cannot store a time zone correctly, or a player version with a bug. Note what you tried and tell support. We would rather look at it with you than have you live with a manual shift that breaks at the next clock change.

Device clock settings, family by family

Every device has a date and time section in its system settings, outside the player app. Names vary between brands and software versions, so look for the general wording below rather than an exact menu path.

The specific steps for each device family are in our device guides: smart TVs, Android TV boxes, Fire TV Stick and Apple TV. If you cannot find the setting, tell us the device model and we will point you to it.

What this means for you: the setting lives in the device, not in the player. If you are searching through the player’s menus for a time zone option, close it and open the device settings instead.

On smart TVs in particular, check whether the clock is set from the network or from another source. Some sets can take their time from a broadcast signal or from a manual entry, and either can drift. Network time, where offered, is the most reliable choice for a correct guide.

The player’s time shift setting

Many players have a guide time shift, sometimes called an EPG offset or timeshift for the guide. It moves every programme in the guide by a fixed number of hours. It is a useful tool in one specific case and a source of confusion in every other.

The kind of settings a player shows for its guide. Names and layout differ from app to app.

Use it only when the device clock is correct, the time zone is correct, the guide is refreshed, and a whole-hour gap still remains. That combination is rare. When it happens, it usually means one of two things: the device cannot store your time zone correctly, or the player itself is reading the clock in an unusual way.

If you do use the time shift, write down that you did. A note on the fridge sounds old-fashioned, but it saves the next person in the house from fixing the clock without knowing the shift is there. TiviMate users will find the guide settings in the playlist options; our TiviMate guide shows where. The IPTV Smarters Pro guide covers its own guide settings.

Daylight saving time and your guide

Twice a year, most of Canada changes its clocks. Devices on automatic settings follow along without anyone noticing. Devices set by hand do not, and the guide drifts by one hour overnight.

1. Before the change

   Guide correct

   A device set by hand shows the right time, so the guide lines up.

2. The night of the change

   Clocks move

   Your phone and automatic devices change. The manual device does not.

3. Next morning

   Guide one hour off

   Every programme looks early or late by exactly one hour.

4. The fix

   Switch to automatic

   Turn on automatic time, restart the player, refresh the guide.

The cure is to switch the device to automatic once and for all. If that is not possible, change the device clock by hand on the same day the country changes, and do not touch the player’s time shift. Moving the shift to cover a daylight saving change means you will have to move it back the next time, and someone will eventually forget.

A guide that was right yesterday and wrong today almost always points to a clock change, not to the service.

Saskatchewan and Yukon are the exceptions to watch. Most of Saskatchewan does not change clocks, and Yukon keeps one time all year. A device in either place that follows a neighbouring rule will drift twice a year for no reason. Choose a city in your own territory or province and the drift stops.

If several devices in your home show the drift on the same morning, they were probably all set up by hand at the same time. Take a few minutes to switch each one to automatic. It is a one-off job that removes the problem for every clock change that follows.

When the guide is empty or partly missing

An empty guide is not a time zone issue. It means the player has no programme data for that channel, or has not loaded it yet. The fixes are different, so look at the pattern first.

With an M3U link, some players need the guide turned on separately, or need you to confirm that the guide should come from the same login. Look for a guide or EPG option in the playlist settings. Our M3U playlist guide and our Xtream Codes guide cover both login types.

If a channel you watch often has no guide, tell us its name and the group it sits in. We look into it. We cannot promise programme data for every channel in a large catalogue, and we will not pretend otherwise, but we do check the ones you report.

One test separates a loading problem from a data problem quickly. Open a channel from a different group, one you have not looked at before. If it has a full guide, loading works and the empty channel simply carries little data. If it is empty too, the guide as a whole has not loaded, and a refresh, or a restart followed by a refresh, is the next step.

Guide behaviour with Xtream Codes and M3U

Both login formats include the guide. The way players handle it differs a little between the two, and knowing the difference saves a few minutes of searching.

If your player offers both formats, Xtream Codes tends to give the smoother guide experience. That is one more reason we suggest it as the first choice whenever it is available. If you only have the M3U link and the guide stays empty after a refresh, check the playlist settings for a guide option before you contact us.

Switching formats is also a useful test. If the guide stays empty with the M3U link in one player, add the Xtream Codes details in the same player, or in another named player, and compare. If the guide appears with Xtream Codes, the issue lies in how the first player handles playlist guides, not in the guide itself. Keep whichever setup gives you a complete guide, and remove the other so the lists are not doubled. If your e-mail contains only one format, ask support which options your order includes.

A correct guide on a large catalogue

The more channels in your pack, the more guide data your player has to load and keep up to date. On a recent device, that is invisible. On a small one, it can make the guide slow to open and slow to scroll.

Hiding groups is the single most effective step. It shortens the list the player has to draw, makes scrolling quicker and reduces how much guide data it keeps in memory. Nothing is removed from your pack; the groups are simply out of view until you show them again.

How often the guide updates also matters on a small device. A player set to refresh the guide constantly spends memory and connection on it in the background. Updating once when the app starts is usually enough for an evening of viewing. If you leave the player open for very long stretches, a manual refresh now and then keeps the window ahead filled.

All packs and durations are on the plans page, and the full setup route is on our setup overview. If you are choosing between packs for a smaller device, the what is included page compares catalogue sizes side by side.

Reading the guide well

A correct guide is only useful if it is easy to read. Players offer several ways to view the same data, and the right one depends on how you watch.

The view is a player choice, not part of the guide data. Two players reading the same login can present the guide in very different ways. If you find a grid hard to follow on a phone, switch that player to a list view, or try a different player on that device. Our apps overview explains how the named players differ in feel.

Programme descriptions and images depend on the data each channel carries. Some channels come with rich detail, some with a title only, some with nothing. A short title with no description is not a fault; it is simply all the data there is for that slot.

Deep dive: why the guide and the picture can disagree for a moment

Guide data describes the planned schedule. Live broadcasts sometimes run long or start a little late, and the guide does not know that. If a programme overruns, the guide moves on to the next slot while the picture is still showing the previous one. A small gap at the edges of a programme is normal. A gap of exactly one hour, on every channel, all evening, is the clock problem described above.

IPTV EPG checks through the year

A guide that is right on day one usually stays right. These are the moments when it is worth a quick look, and what to check each time.

None of these checks takes more than a minute. Together, they explain almost every case of a guide that “went wrong by itself”. Something changed around the guide, and the guide simply followed.

Moving, travelling and second homes

A guide that was right for months can go wrong the day a device changes address. Devices keep their time zone until something tells them otherwise.

A TV box set up in Toronto and taken to a cottage in Manitoba keeps Eastern time unless it updates automatically. A stick bought abroad may still think it is in its country of purchase. A tablet set by hand in Halifax shows Atlantic times when you carry it to Ottawa. In each case the guide is shifted by the difference between the two places.

• After a move, check the time zone on every device that came with you.
• For a second home, set devices that stay there to that home’s city.
• For a device you carry between provinces, use automatic time zone where offered.
• Remember that your login stays the same; only the clock needs attention.

Your one connection still applies wherever the device is. A box at the cottage and a TV in the city cannot play at the same time on one pack.

Travel inside your household works the same way. A tablet taken from the living room to a cabin keeps your login and your favourites; only the clock may need a look. When you return, switch it back to your home city, or leave it on automatic so it follows you without a second thought.

Reporting a guide problem to support

If the steps on this page have not solved it, write to us. The right four details let us tell you quickly whether the fix is on your side or ours.

With those details, we can usually tell at a glance whether it is a clock issue, a loading issue or a channel without guide data. If it is ours, we say so and work on it. If it is a setting at home, we walk you through it. Either way, one complete message gets you further than several short ones.

Please do not send your login details in the message. We can find your account from the e-mail address you used at checkout. Keeping the login out of chats and screenshots protects your one connection.

Guide words, explained

EPG

Electronic programme guide: what is on now and next, by channel.

Time zone

The region setting your device uses to turn guide times into local time.

Daylight saving time

The clock change twice a year in most, but not all, of Canada.

Time shift

A player setting that moves every programme by whole hours. A last resort.

Guide refresh

Telling the player to fetch fresh programme data.

Guide window

How far ahead the player loads programmes. It fills in as time passes.

Related pages

FAQ

Is the IPTV EPG included in my subscription?

Yes. The guide comes with your login, in both formats. There is nothing extra to order or pay for on our side.

Why is my guide exactly one hour off?

Your device time zone or daylight saving rule is wrong. Set date, time and time zone to automatic, or choose the right city, then refresh the guide.

Why is my guide half an hour off?

Your device is probably on Atlantic time while you are in Newfoundland. Choose St. John’s as the time zone city.

I live in Saskatchewan. Which time zone should I pick?

Pick Regina, or another Saskatchewan city if your device lists one. Picking Winnipeg would shift the guide for half the year.

Should I use the app’s time shift setting?

Only after you have fixed the device clock and a whole-hour gap remains. If you change the device later, reset the time shift to zero first.

Why do some channels show no programme information?

Not every channel carries full guide data. The channel still plays. Tell our support team which ones matter to you.

The guide was right yesterday and wrong today. What changed?

Most likely a daylight saving change on a device set by hand. Switch the clock to automatic and refresh the guide.

Why is the guide empty on every channel?

It has not loaded yet or needs a refresh. Use the player’s guide update option and wait. With M3U, check the playlist settings for a guide option.

Does the guide work the same on every device?

Yes, but each device has its own clock. A guide right on one device and wrong on another means the second device is set differently.

Will moving to another province affect my guide?

Yes, if the device keeps its old time zone. Check the setting after any move and choose your new city.