XMLTV / applied guide-data decisions · Primary-source explanation; no UK IPTV implementation or account test. Instructions are based on publisher guidance; a UK IPTV account was not tested on this platform.
Retain the level of validation performed
A developer can truthfully report that a file parsed without proving that every programme appears under the intended channel. XML syntax, declared document structure and application-level mapping are different checks. Name the check actually run before using the word valid in a support report. A successful parser exit is not automatically a full guide-import acceptance test.
Use the DTD’s explicit limitation
XMLTV describes programme channel values as references to channel identifiers while noting that its DTD does not express that relationship constraint. It also permits channel details to be omitted. The application’s supported source contract therefore matters. Do not declare every unlisted channel invalid without considering that contract, or assume a DTD pass validates the entire relationship graph.
Work through a hypothetical mismatch
Imagine an import contains programmes referencing source-east while the consumer’s intended mapping uses source-west. The XML can remain syntactically readable while the viewer receives the wrong schedule or no mapped schedule. Compare the exact identifiers and the application configuration rather than editing the human-readable channel name and expecting every reference to follow automatically.
Perform the missing semantic check
For the actual permitted workflow, inspect the consumer’s expected identifier rules and verify a small known channel with its programme entries. Preserve missing identifiers and intentional omissions as different cases. Keep private feed details out of public captures. This article explains validation scope and a mapping example; it claims no performed XMLTV import or UK IPTV programme-guide test.