STV: Cayars17 Ultimate STV (Release 17 - Jan 18)

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by ToonGal

After being stuck in v2.0.20 using Nielm's STV (great job N!), I finally took the plunge to v2.1. This was mainly inspired by Nielm's web server. I'm taking my son on vacation for 2 weeks, and wanted to be able to manage Sage via HTML (instead of VNC, in case I don't have my computer).

I really like your STV Cayars! Has most of the things I liked in Nielm's and more! Just a quick 'thank you' note for your hard work.

Your Welcome!

Some things I'm still not sure of, but most makes sense. Some quick questions:
- What's the "A" graphic in the TV guide data? "Automatic"?
- The matte file I used for Nielm was 'see through'. Yours is dark blue. Changeable? How?
- What version of comskip are you using? The zip one is dated later than the 'official' v0.64, and you didn't label it in your notes like you did on previous versions. I'm guessing it's the bleeding edge v0.65, but unsure. Stable?
- Is v15 stable enough to use for the next two weeks? Leaving on Friday afternoon. Advise: v2.0.20/Nielm? v2.1.10/Cayars15, Orig? Cayars16 soon? Don't think v2.2.2 is a good plan at this point...
- Am using it in 'user mode' instead of 'service mode'. Not sure of the difference and how/what is separated out. Which way is more stable, in general?

A = Archive
The matte file is located in the Cayars directory and is named "matte50%.png". You can change this.
ComSkip is version 65. Basically version 64 with an extra option by Jere used in the STV for CC data.

15 is stable but does have an issue that causes some people to have pauses/slowdowns in the OSD. In your case this wouldn't be an issue since you won't be using the OSD. If you're not yet using any of the "extra" features like padding, etc.. then you might be more confortable leaving the system running OriginalV2.stv while away. But if you take advantage of the extras in the Cayars15.stv then of course you won't want to go back...

A pre-release version will probably be released tomorrow (or friday). This will be an STV release only without the external components just to get some feedback on the STV itself before everyone starts playing with the new external components.

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by mbrown3

I'm not sure about the OriginalV2 STV, but I'm almost positive that Malore's STV has the logo always go to main menu. Maybe I'm remembering wrong, but I'm 99% sure it does. I'll check this evening.

This has nothing to do with the Original or Malore STV as neither one of them use/feature dynamic menus. The Dynamic Menu system allows you to edit a text file in the sage directory and completely re-configure your menus so they can look anyway you want them to look/work.

[srothwell]

Cayars....

Slightly off the exact topic, but speaking of definable menus.....

I just switched over from a Pronto remote to Girder/USB-UIRT. Everything works just ducky. However, since the Hauppauge 45-button remote has no DVD button on it, I've mapped the PREV CHANNEL button to turn on the external DVD player, the TV, Amp, etc etc.

What I'd like to do is use the SageTV menu as a homebase for everything. Then I'd put a menu item called Watch DVD and instead of using SageTV's DVD player, it would send a command through Girder to "do it's thing" and set the system up to play DVDs. Same thing with watching HDTV.....

How do you get Sage to send a command to Girder so girder can execute something?

Thanks,

Stacy

[mbrown3]

Originally Posted by Cayars

This has nothing to do with the Original or Malore STV as neither one of them use/feature dynamic menus. The Dynamic Menu system allows you to edit a text file in the sage directory and completely re-configure your menus so they can look anyway you want them to look/work.

Ah, I see what you mean. Well, hopefully this can be done at some point. Not a major deal, but would be nice. Keep up the great work Cayars!

[mbrown3]

Question: For 16, will I need to re-do the changes to a new menu file, or can I keep my existing file with the changes I've already made?

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by srothwell

Cayars....

Slightly off the exact topic, but speaking of definable menus.....

I just switched over from a Pronto remote to Girder/USB-UIRT. Everything works just ducky. However, since the Hauppauge 45-button remote has no DVD button on it, I've mapped the PREV CHANNEL button to turn on the external DVD player, the TV, Amp, etc etc.

What I'd like to do is use the SageTV menu as a homebase for everything. Then I'd put a menu item called Watch DVD and instead of using SageTV's DVD player, it would send a command through Girder to "do it's thing" and set the system up to play DVDs. Same thing with watching HDTV.....

How do you get Sage to send a command to Girder so girder can execute something?

Thanks,

Stacy

I'd have no idea since I don't use girder at all. I've never even looked at it. However, if you can fire off the proper commands from the command line then you can add this to the menu file. Do a search of the menu file for "Rip a DVD" which fires off an external command/argument.

That should get you close assuming you know the girder side of things.

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by mbrown3

Ah, I see what you mean. Well, hopefully this can be done at some point. Not a major deal, but would be nice. Keep up the great work Cayars!

I can pretty much say for sure that it won't happen. I make use of this functionality and if I were to change it then I'd have to crawl through enormous amounts of code to change things which would probably cause all kinds of problems.

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by mbrown3

Question: For 16, will I need to re-do the changes to a new menu file, or can I keep my existing file with the changes I've already made?

There has been some changes. They'll be listed in the bullet point items. A couple are new submenus under the "Utilities/Apps/Setup" menu <-- new name.

Then a few things were moved to these submenus to make room for a couple of new items.

The music submenu is gone completely and replaced with a new Music library that is more integrated/consitant and I added Genre's to it based loosely on Meekell's code. <-- great head start or it wouldn't have happened for 16!

Version 17 will completly destoy the present menu system. (sort of). But only if you want to take advantage of some new extreme stuff. Enough said for now

[ToonGal]

Originally Posted by Cayars

A = Archive
The matte file is located in the Cayars directory and is named "matte50%.png". You can change this.
ComSkip is version 65. Basically version 64 with an extra option by Jere used in the STV for CC data.

Thanks for the quick response. Followup:
- "Archive"? Define.
- "matte*.png" in the C:\Program Files\Frey Technologies\SageTV\STVs\OriginalV2\cayars directory do not affect the solid blue background of the TV description/timebar/volbar. I'm familiar with Nielm's v2.0.20 STV and matte50%.png does seem to affect it. I replaced every file and even moved them to \temp directory to verify it. (And before you ask, YES, I did close/restart SageTV each time, not sleep...) Dark blue each time. Even tried the C:\Program Files\Frey Technologies\SageTV\STVs\OriginalV2 "matte*.png" files. No dice. Ideas?
- ComSkip v64 crashes, but not enough time to submit the logs to Jere. Will try to provide more data when I return.

Quick suggestion to add to future versions:
- I use my HTPC with a wireless mouse, just as much as my remote. Any chance to add configurable mouse control buttons, along the lines of the old v1.4?

Thanks again for the help. Two more days until vacation!

[ToonGal]

Originally Posted by rsagetv99

ToonGal welcome to this thread. I read your other post from a while ago where you had worked on a movie times plugin for SAGE. Did you ever get this off the ground? Maybe Carlo and you can work together on this? Seemed to work well when ToxMox and Cayars teamed up... just a thought.

Haven't read my original threads (have lots of ideas for multiple plug-ins, many not even posted yet) in a while, but the biggest issue I had back then was a lack of knowledge on what studio needs for input. The biggest issue I have right now is a general lack of time, given I'm going through a divorce. This should change in early '05.

For movie showtimes, I wrote a java script (first java experience) that parsed Yahoo's web site. It worked fine, and output to the screen. The issue is not GETTING the data, but knowing what to do with it. I still don't know the answer to what is needed for input to Sage, so not much more I can do. I was offered Studio the exact day I was informed of the divorce by my spouse. It was a bad time and a bad place, so I turned it down at the time, given my problems.

I can write web scrapers for ANY data until the cows come home. Have lots of ideas for movies, comics, sports, stocks, etc. In general, for my own usage, I've basically made each work outside of Sage. Used to do myHTPC plug-ins, and will probably make Sage &| Meedio integrations when I get back. Happy to work with Frey, Cayars, or anyone to get something integrated. After my vacation, my time commitments should be less than they have for the last 3+ months.

[SteveP]

Carlo, thanks for the feedback on how to get 2.2.2 to work with your great STV! (I haven't had time to try it yet, but will soon)

Question: I have your STV set up with Malore's version of showing TV Recordings. It works fine except that when you stop watching a show, the display jumps back two steps. Instead of going back one step to the list of shows as with Malore, the display goes back to the Media Libraries screen. Is there a way for the display to just jump back one step when I stop viewing a show?

Thanks,
Steve

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by SteveP

Carlo, thanks for the feedback on how to get 2.2.2 to work with your great STV! (I haven't had time to try it yet, but will soon)

Question: I have your STV set up with Malore's version of showing TV Recordings. It works fine except that when you stop watching a show, the display jumps back two steps. Instead of going back one step to the list of shows as with Malore, the display goes back to the Media Libraries screen. Is there a way for the display to just jump back one step when I stop viewing a show?

Thanks,
Steve

This isn't to hard to do in Malore's version because it's easy to assume the person will be using a "Malore" view. So at the end of the file the OSD can just go "back" to that page.

In my STV I've got many different recording views and there's no easy way to know where the user came from. What I do instead is lauch an internal page that brings up your "Preferred Recording Screen" that you can configure in Detailed Setup. So you could set the Malore Recording view up to be the default.

[Cayars]

Originally Posted by ToonGal

Thanks for the quick response. Followup:
- "Archive"? Define.
- "matte*.png" in the C:\Program Files\Frey Technologies\SageTV\STVs\OriginalV2\cayars directory do not affect the solid blue background of the TV description/timebar/volbar. I'm familiar with Nielm's v2.0.20 STV and matte50%.png does seem to affect it. I replaced every file and even moved them to \temp directory to verify it. (And before you ask, YES, I did close/restart SageTV each time, not sleep...) Dark blue each time. Even tried the C:\Program Files\Frey Technologies\SageTV\STVs\OriginalV2 "matte*.png" files. No dice. Ideas?
- ComSkip v64 crashes, but not enough time to submit the logs to Jere. Will try to provide more data when I return.

Quick suggestion to add to future versions:
- I use my HTPC with a wireless mouse, just as much as my remote. Any chance to add configurable mouse control buttons, along the lines of the old v1.4?

Thanks again for the help. Two more days until vacation!

If you're getting a solid blue background it sounds like you're not using the semi-transparent overlays at all. Check the setting found here Detailed Setup->Interface->OSD Options->Semi-Transparent Overlays and make sure it is ENABLED.

Another thing you could do is use 2.2.2. which supports semi-trans-overlays now (sort of) in Overlay mode. In order to get them to work and not be solid you have to have Detailed Setup->Advanced->3D Acceleration DISABLED since it only works in 2D Mode. Mine works either way and I'd suggest keeping 3D turned on (makes some things faster).

[SteveP]

Carlo, thanks for the reply. I see what you are saying about the problem of trying to return from watching a show to the source page ( in this case Malore's Recording view). Since there are many source pages, is there a way to set an id flag from each source page that the target page can use to determine where to return to?

BTW, I have started playing around with your Menu file -- cool idea. It's helping me improve the WAF for the way we (er, she) watch shows.

Thanks,
Steve

[redman]

Originally Posted by ToonGal

Thanks for the quick response. Followup:
- "Archive"? Define.

I am also a little unclear on this.
What does it signify? How can something in the recording view be archived?

Also,
Is there a way to configure which icons are used or not?
I use an external epgdata and everything is 1st run, which sort of makes it redundant.

[Cayars]

Depending on the version you will see "Archive" or "Move to Library" which archives the show/movie so it doesn't get deleted.

[srothwell]

Carlo,

I noticed one other thing in the STV (all later versions)

When you select the upcoming recording schedule, it always reverts to the normal view (parallel), even if you've selected the dual-panel one.

Is there a way to get the system to remember that I want to ALWAYS see it in dual panel?

Stacy

[ToxMox]

Originally Posted by redman

Is there a way to configure which icons are used or not?
I use an external epgdata and everything is 1st run, which sort of makes it redundant.

Just delete the corresponsding image file from the cayars folder in the originalv2 folder. I believe the file you want to delete is tox1stsm.png

[ToonGal]

Originally Posted by Cayars

If you're getting a solid blue background it sounds like you're not using the semi-transparent overlays at all. Check the setting found here Detailed Setup->Interface->OSD Options->Semi-Transparent Overlays and make sure it is ENABLED.

Another thing you could do is use 2.2.2. which supports semi-trans-overlays now (sort of) in Overlay mode. In order to get them to work and not be solid you have to have Detailed Setup->Advanced->3D Acceleration DISABLED since it only works in 2D Mode. Mine works either way and I'd suggest keeping 3D turned on (makes some things faster).

Semi-Trans Overlays were already ENABLED, so that wasn't it. Hm... Still find it strange that even deleting all the matte* files didn't remove the blue...

For v2.2.2, I think my biggest concern is using bleeding edge s/w. I've had v2.1 running for over a week, so am happier w/ the known quantity, esp since the blue b/g isn't relevant while I'm gone. Happy to mess around w/ bleeding edge when I get back tho...

Thanks again for the help, hun.

[rsagetv99]

Originally Posted by Cayars

What I do instead is lauch an internal page that brings up your "Preferred Recording Screen" that you can configure in Detailed Setup. So you could set the Malore Recording view up to be the default.

I have my "Preferred Recording Screen" set to Malore's, but the STOP feature that you are speaking of will not be available until 16 correct? Or did I miss it in an earlier release?