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Full Version: "Switch Media..." option on white button context-menu
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when navigating the deep folders of my networked drives... i suddenly realize i'm in the wrong category.. i.e. music... press 'back' switch to videos and have to renavigate to the folder... it would be great to simply be able to switch media and stay in the same folder.
bad idea. not everyone has the same exact shares defined for each media window. i certainly dont.
it would be an added option... not a replacement... in case you do have a similar share... i imagine most people who download media to their pc to stream download it to folders that are close to each other... there is already an option to go directly to settings through the white button menu... why not just add the other media menus as well.
actually on second thought, its rather easy to do. how about something like this... in the context menu, there'd be an option of "change media section..."

choosing it would bring up a dialog where you choose the media section: my programs, my pictures, my music, my video, my files (with the current one removed, of course).

upon selecting the destination, *if* the current folder is valid in the destination window, you get a dialog asking if you want the current location, or the root. if the current folder doesnt match a bookmark in the destination media section, it'll automaticly just go to the root.

and by the way, just switching to another media section can be done via mapping a button in keymap.xml. use the action xbmc.activatewindow(window-name). you can get the window names here: http://manual.xboxmediacenter.de/wakka.p...list&v=2ak
i don't like it personally - i don't see a use for it.

much easier for the user just to add a button on the left (or wherever) if they want this sort of thing. or add a button to the buttonmenu (right thumbstick) etc.

if you want to grab the current folder and use that, one suggestions is to implement something like:

activatewindow(myvideos,$currentfolder)

the $currentfolder would probably be best translated before you activate the new window i think (probably in the infomanager)

cheers,
jonathan
i dont like it either, i'm just playing devil's advocate. i especially hate too many dialogs. they just get in the way. i like the idea of allowing $currentfolder as a parameter. the infomanager could keep this value readily available (and cleared if the user was not in files view of media window.)
i wasn't sugesting a convoluted set of dialogs mr. :evil: i was simply adressing an obvious (very obvious) folder navigation inefficiency and sugesting a possible solution. the only way this would not be an issue is if all your music and videos are only one or two folders deep (hence one or two clicks) or, you never switch back and forth between music and videos...any more than two folders deep then switching would be easier from a switch view command (somehow) as opposed to renavigating from the beginning... i can't see how this wouldn't be an issue for most people, thanks for the solution though, its sounds like its exactly what i'm looking for... i will try it right away...btw xbmc is absolutely amazing!



(goatninja @ mar. 27 2006,16:02 Wrote:when navigating the deep folders of my networked drives... i suddenly realize i'm in the wrong category.. i.e. music... press 'back' switch to videos and have to renavigate to the folder... it would be great to simply be able to switch media and stay in the same folder.
you could always use the built in function to add the exact folders you want to your menu under "my music", "my videos", "my pictures", and even "my files" so you don't have to navigate the folders every time. rather simple to fix and the xbmc developers made it easy to do.

when under any one of those screens hit the white controller button/remote title button/keyboard menu key/or right mouse button>add source>give it a name>punch in the source folder info or hit "browse" and browse to it. repeat as needed. then you have what you wanted pretty much.


thank you xbmc developers for making it so easy to make users able to solve their own problems.



i've often wondered why xbmc even has a view differentiation between audio and video (and picture, i just don't use pictures) files... i can understand a different set of shares for both...but once in those shares why not be able to view both types of files by default?

i (and i don't believe i'm the only one) have my folders organized so i have a permanent share for music and video on my pc... to get to these folders i have to click videos->netw. share->pc ip adress->musics->file... then if i want to play a song i have to click
back->music->netw. share->pc ip adress->movies->file
if both file types were viewable then it would be:
"b"->movies->file

i don't think i am the only one who also has one or several download folders as well probably separated depending on download method (i.e. newsgroup, torrent, etc) from here you preview files and then keep them or delete them, but again, to view my music and video downloads in those folders i have to navigate both video and music screens individ

the only situation i can think of that would be served by the current view scheme is if you have many different video, music files in one folder... in the unlikely situation that all your video and music are in the same folder...then retrieving an individual file may be less efficient with both file types visible because your list is longer...all other oss (i.e. windows) solve this problem by adding file type as a view menu option (the icons could be different as well). again, most people don't lump all their files together in one folder.

i'm really not trying to sound offensive in any way...xbmc is nothing short of genius... this is the most basic file organizational logic... to think of the file retrieval situations (possible situations tempered with what you believe to be the most common) and add and subtract the steps... if i am missing something even more basic please share...



xbmc is a media center, it is not an operating system. if you want to use it as such, then my files does exactly what you want.

the other views are simply refinements based on a specific media type, designed to work well with that type of media.

futhermore, why do you have to go movies->network share->movies->files? if that is where your files are, then why not just link to there directly in the bookmark?
i've been able to fix the problem.

all features in xbmc have a purpose, what is the purpose of a view differentiation between media typesHuh

i can think of only one...if you have lots of different media types in one share or folder. (i doubt this represents any user)

if there is another reason i'm missing please educate me as i know nothing about programming.

(friendly debate... please, i am still in utmost admiration for what you've accomplished, m$ with all the money in the world is still playing catchup with you guys)
Quote:the other views are simply refinements based on a specific media type, designed to work well with that type of media.

examples:

my pictures is optimized for viewing pictures: folders are assigned thumbs based on what images are in the folder, thumbs for images are assigned based on the exif data (if present) for fast loading.

my music is optimized for viewing music: id3 tags are read, and files can be sorted based on artist, album, genre, title, length etc. furthermore, the music library view relies entirely on tags, which obviously only works for music.

my videos is optimized for viewing videos: imdb data can be obtained, and the database views rely on this information (ie it will only work for videos.)

my programs is optimized for viewing programs: directory structure is flattened so you see only the xbe's (which are named by the actual title of the game, not the filename) and trainer overlays are displayed if a game has trainers etc.

it's obvious really. if you just want to use xbmc as a listing of all the files you have, then use the filemanager.



thanks for educating me, i was thinking from just a file viewing frame of reference, not realizing how each view behaves so differently making it seemingly more complicated to combine them...

i appreciate your patience.


another question if you can indulge me... what is the purpose of having settings in the white buton menu as well as the main menu?



the white button brings up a context menu (like right clicking with a mouse)
it's just convenient to have a quick way to get to video settings from "my videos"
Quote:i've been able to fix the problem.

all features in xbmc have a purpose, what is the purpose of a view differentiation between media typesHuh

i can think of only one...if you have lots of different media types in one share or folder. (i doubt this represents any user)

if there is another reason i'm missing please educate me as i know nothing about programming.

(friendly debate... please, i am still in utmost admiration for what you've accomplished, m$ with all the money in the world is still playing catchup with you guys)

because my girlfriend does not have any idea wich file to play. when see wants music, see gets music. see wants a movie, see get one.

even a better reason i can think of:
like the way it works you dont have to organize your files. just drop it all in one dir.

now my girlfriend gets really happy.

sollie.

ps: xbmc is not only for it-nerds.



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