A bunch of "Customizing Newbie" questions

[pjpjpjpj]

Okay, here’s my situation:
I am running SageTV 6.3.10. I have the following customizations installed and running:
-MovieTimes
-IMDB Database
-Multi-Function Stop
-Create .my files
-Web Server

I have imported and installed both the RSS News Reader and the Web Page Text Viewer, but neither work because I don’t have neilm’s dynamic customizable menus installed (I figured I would give them a shot without it, since some others claim to require it, but work without…)

I want to update to SageTV 6.4.2.

So…. Here are my questions, assuming that I had installed 6.4.2:

1 – Does installing 6.4.2 clear out all of the added .stvi and .jar files from the respective folders, or are they still there? Meaning, would I have to copy them all to those folders again (I kept copies of all the original zip files elsewhere so I wouldn’t have to DL again)?

2-MovieTimes: after I go to setup/detailed setup and import the stvi, will I have to do that whole Studio thing again (although they are wonderfully-written pdf instructions that walk you through)? I assume so. But if I do that, my configuration should still be there, right (meaning, my theaters, etc.), and I won’t have to redo the daily task scheduling, right?

2a-Before you tell me to use neilm’s Dynamic Customizable Menus to avoid Studio, see my question 6 about that, below.

3-IMDB Database, Multi-Function Stop, Create .my files (and RSS News Reader and Web Page Text Viewer??): I should just have to go into the setup/detailed setup and import each of these stvi’s, right? Nothing more to do? Will I have to adjust all the settings (for example, in “Create .my Files”, there are lots of settings to adjust per personal preference), or will all of those stick? I assume this will have to do with whether the answer to #1 above is yes or no….

4-Web Server: will I have to reinstall anything, reconfigure anything, etc.? It really didn’t require any work within Sage, so I figure it shouldn’t…

Finally, if I do install 6.4.2 and get all of the above working (or maybe even before I do all of those), I am considering (finally) trying neilm’s Dynamic Customizable menus (“CDM” for short). So I have some questions about that, some simply because all the screenshots are from an old version of Sage (before I discovered it) so I don’t know how things will look now.

5-I want the main menu (for WAF) to look exactly the same as the default, save for maybe some different options or moving shortcuts around from one menu to another – in other words, plain blue screen, white text down the left side, no extraneous graphics or information. So when I install CDM per instructions (put files in proper places, start Sage, setup/detailed setup and import stvi), will anything look immediately different? I believe I get a disk usage, upcoming recordings bar on the main menu? Is this true? Anything else different?

5a-If the above is true (I think it is), but I don’t want those items, I can right-click and turn off those items, right? And then the main menu looks exactly the same as the default? (disclaimer: I did read the other thread here about the couple of lines that need to be changed in order to keep the 6.4.2 look. I think I can handle that).

6-If I install CDM before MovieTimes, how do I use that to skip Studio work? Right-click on the main menu and add a menu item, but then how do I “point it at” the Movietimes submenu (the next screen which has “list theaters”, “list movies”, “configure”)?

7-I would like the main menu to have a straight link to “DVDs”, rather than having to go to the Media Center, then Videos, then choosing the DVD option. Is this possible, or can you only move the “Videos” link to the main menu?

7a-If you can put DVDs on the main menu, instead of jumping directly to “DVD” (which shows every single one), can you jump to a sub-folder within the “Folders” view on the Videos screen? For example, I have two shared folders for videos. One has recordings, and the other has imported videos and conversions and a subfolder of my ripped DVDs. When I go to “Videos”, the DVD option shows every single DVD in alphabetical order (not my preference)… but the “Folders” makes me walk through, first from the two shared folders, then into the folder that has imports/conversions and the DVD folder, then I choose the DVD folder, and from there I have my DVD folders (Action, Comedy, Drama, SciFi, etc.). I would like to have an option on the main menu that takes me directly to this view, where I would immediately see my “genre” subfolders. Is this possible?

7b-If 7a is not possible (linking straight to DVD from the main menu), with absolutely no programming skills at all, is there any other option available (has one been created by someone), or is there any easy solution, to have a DVD-grouping option similar to what I described in 7a? I know I read a thread somewhere where people were discussing methods of displaying DVDs in groups (such as for TV show seasons, etc.), or looking for a two-pane display option with DVDs listed on one side and the IMDB data listed down the other, but I don’t think anyone ever posted a method to do it.

8-Similar to question 6, if I have CDM installed, how do I create links to the RSS News Reader and the Web Page Text Viewer (or is the Web Page Text Viewer something that only operates when you use the RSS News Reader and you don’t link to it directly)? I understand that I apparently right-click on the menu page where I want the link to appear, and choose to add a new item, but then how to I point to the RSS Reader? Will there be a listing of links to choose from and RSS Reader will be on it?

9-Since the CDM requires right-clicking, obviously I won't be using its functionality on my HD Extenders, but the changes that I make in SageTV on the server will show up on the Extenders, right?

Thanks in advance to anyone who is brave enough (and has time enough) to tackle all of these questions!

[Tiki]

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

1 – Does installing 6.4.2 clear out all of the added .stvi and .jar files from the respective folders, or are they still there? Meaning, would I have to copy them all to those folders again (I kept copies of all the original zip files elsewhere so I wouldn’t have to DL again)?

You probably will not need to copy all of the stvi and jar files again - they should not get deleted when you install a new version of SageTV over an older version. However, Sage will overwrite some of its own files, and after the install, it will default to the new default SageTV3.XML STV file. You will need to re-import any STVi files again.

I recommend making a backup copy of the entire SAGETV folder (which is usually under C:\Program Files\). Rename the backup folder with today's date or the old version number. This way you have a full backup of Wiz.Bin and all properties and STV files.

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

3-IMDB Database, Multi-Function Stop, Create .my files (and RSS News Reader and Web Page Text Viewer??): I should just have to go into the setup/detailed setup and import each of these stvi’s, right? Nothing more to do? Will I have to adjust all the settings (for example, in “Create .my Files”, there are lots of settings to adjust per personal preference), or will all of those stick? I assume this will have to do with whether the answer to #1 above is yes or no….

Most of the settings for the STV and most imports get stored in Sage's properties files. These settings should be retained.

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

5-I want the main menu (for WAF) to look exactly the same as the default, save for maybe some different options or moving shortcuts around from one menu to another – in other words, plain blue screen, white text down the left side, no extraneous graphics or information. So when I install CDM per instructions (put files in proper places, start Sage, setup/detailed setup and import stvi), will anything look immediately different? I believe I get a disk usage, upcoming recordings bar on the main menu? Is this true? Anything else different?

5a-If the above is true (I think it is), but I don’t want those items, I can right-click and turn off those items, right? And then the main menu looks exactly the same as the default? (disclaimer: I did read the other thread here about the couple of lines that need to be changed in order to keep the 6.4.2 look. I think I can handle that).

The Dynamic menus don't change the default look much at all. Yes, you will get a disk usage bar graph and upcoming recordings at the bottom of each menu, but this can be turned off by right clicking and changing a setting in the pop-up menu. You also get some graphics that appear in the lower right corner as you select different menu entries. If they really bother you, the easiest way to get rid of them is to delete the folder containing the images (if it can't find them it doesn't display them).

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

8-Similar to question 6, if I have CDM installed, how do I create links to the RSS News Reader and the Web Page Text Viewer (or is the Web Page Text Viewer something that only operates when you use the RSS News Reader and you don’t link to it directly)? I understand that I apparently right-click on the menu page where I want the link to appear, and choose to add a new item, but then how to I point to the RSS Reader? Will there be a listing of links to choose from and RSS Reader will be on it?

It's probably best if you just install the dynamic menus and give them a try. When you want to add a menu item, it pops up a list of every possible screen that exists in the STV, based on the menu name assigned inside Studio. You just pick the one you want and then you can type in whatever text you want to show-up for the menu name in your custom menu. The menu names for the STVi items are usually easy to figure out, but the documentation for the STVi should also tell you what the name of the screen you are looking for is.

Originally Posted by pjpjpjpj

9-Since the CDM requires right-clicking, obviously I won't be using its functionality on my HD Extenders, but the changes that I make in SageTV on the server will show up on the Extenders, right?

I haven't tried with the extenders, but I think you can also use the "option" button if it is assigned on the remote control you are using. It is probably easiest to set it up on a PC and then just select that same customized STV on your extender.

Like I said, give it a try. It only takes a few minutes to install it and you can always go back if you don't like the dynamic menus.

[mightyt]

Install Dynamic Menus, you won't regret it. If you want o minimize change, you can keep the default menu items, create your own sub folder and add all of your imports to it. It's very easy to do.

Next to ComSkip, it's my favorite.