[PATCH] "Always On Top" option (for Windowed Mode) in XBMC for Windows
#16
Just an FYI, osx users have a similar problem but with fullscreen. The current code sets fullscreen such that nothing and I mean nothing gets above the xbmc contents. This is problematic for a small set of users that want to get system notifications when xbmc is in fullscreen.

Rather than add a GUI setting to control this, I'll be adding a setting in advancedsettings for this as it only effects the minor rather than the major subset of XBMC for Mac users.
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#17
CrashX Wrote:Yup you are right .. I will go with the advancedsettings option ..

Should I fix this for particular surface or for all surfaces? If yes, which one ?

No need for Linux atleast, we have this for all apps through Window Manager.
If you have problems please read this before posting

Always read the XBMC online-manual, FAQ and search the forum before posting.
Do not e-mail XBMC-Team members directly asking for support. Read/follow the forum rules.
For troubleshooting and bug reporting please make sure you read this first.

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"Well Im gonna download the code and look at it a bit but I'm certainly not a really good C/C++ programer but I'd help as much as I can, I mostly write in C#."
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#18
What davilla mentioned about full screen affects both linux and windows users as well. Can you tell why you want this though since the app is in fullscreen, you shouldn't be able to see os messages ?
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#19
CrashX Wrote:What davilla mentioned about full screen affects both linux and windows users as well. Can you tell why you want this though since the app is in fullscreen, you shouldn't be able to see os messages ?

No quite sure I understand your question but for me, when xbmc is fullscreen, I'm watching a movie and I don't want to see any notifications. No growl, no mail check, no nothing. Any popup notifications would be a distraction to my viewing pleasure.
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#20
I guess I misunderstood you, I thought you wanted to add feature where os notifications were displayed when xbmc is full screen.
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#21
Created a trac with patch .. http://trac.xbmc.org/ticket/6675 ..
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#22
@davilla

hi - back again. Could you already investigate into the thing with the external player not beeing on-top while running on OSX (you said it's on the schedule for 9.04)?

Thanks,
TvonT
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#23
Topfs2 Wrote:...so why would you ever not have it ontop.
How about users like me who need to switch to SageTV for watching recorded TV, or switching to a web browser to check email or surf the web, or switch to the new Hulu desktop app? Yes, I do all this on my dedicated HTPC. Right now it's a bit of a pain trying to switch to another app while XBMC is running.

I know of at least 5 others users off the top of my head who want to do this as well.
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#24
kricker Wrote:How about users like me who need to switch to SageTV for watching recorded TV, or switching to a web browser to check email or surf the web, or switch to the new Hulu desktop app? Yes, I do all this on my dedicated HTPC. Right now it's a bit of a pain trying to switch to another app while XBMC is running.

I know of at least 5 others users off the top of my head who want to do this as well.

I think you have missed what this patch does, it keeps XBMC ontop even if have another application active, so if you would alt+tabb to another application, XBMC would still be ontop.

This patch has ZERO to do about switching between applications as you describe it, at most it would make it harder to do, switching between apps and fully minimize XBMC I have nothing against, that makes perfectly sense to do. I even did the XBMC.Minimize builtin executable for that purpose.
If you have problems please read this before posting

Always read the XBMC online-manual, FAQ and search the forum before posting.
Do not e-mail XBMC-Team members directly asking for support. Read/follow the forum rules.
For troubleshooting and bug reporting please make sure you read this first.

Image

"Well Im gonna download the code and look at it a bit but I'm certainly not a really good C/C++ programer but I'd help as much as I can, I mostly write in C#."
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#25
You asked the following,
Quote:...but in HTPC it feels redundant, the entire gui is meant to be the only GUI to that PC, so why would you ever not have it ontop.
So that is what I was responding to.

Also, as I read it the patch is to enable or disable always ontop for window mode. Why limit it to only windowed mode and not have it for all modes?

I use Evenghost for controlling my HTPC. To switch to SageTV from XBMC I call an Evenghost event (from a home screen menu item in XBMC) which triggers SageTV to open from the tray to a specific screen. Doing this from XBMC means that XBMC calls EG and then switches back to "ontop" hiding SageTV behind it. If XBMC wouldn't try to always be ontop this would not happen, so being able to disable always ontop in fullscreen would have a benefit. The XBMC always minimizing when launching other apps is a related discussion, but I know it's not for this thread.
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#26
Topfs2 Wrote:No need for Linux atleast, we have this for all apps through Window Manager.

I wasn't able to make XBMC in window mode in Linux ? If I pressed "\" in full-screen, it would diplay a small window and the rest of the window will be black. Any ideas ?
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#27
Kricker:-

Why aren't you launching as a external player ? Here are some options you can use ..

<externalplayer>
<forceontop>
<hideconsole>
<hidecursor>
<hidexbmc>
</externalplayer>

Seems to be all options are missing from http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=Advancedsettings.xml ..
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#28
CrashX Wrote:Kricker:-

Why aren't you launching as a external player ? Here are some options you can use ..

<externalplayer>
<forceontop>
<hideconsole>
<hidecursor>
<hidexbmc>
</externalplayer>

Seems to be all options are missing from http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=Advancedsettings.xml ..
Because I have to use EG to send the command to SageTV to open to a specific screen. That means I am invoking EG to get to Sage. So XBMC is only keeping track of EG and not SageTV or whatever other app I open this way. EG is always running minimized in the tray. When I call it from XBMC, XBMC always quickly minimizes then restores itself to fullscreen hiding everything else behind it. I have to do various tricks in EG to try to get XBMC behind the app I just called. It works most of the time, but every now and then it doesn't and the wife gets pissed she can't get to the web to do her facebooking and what not. This method I have to currently use also results in a lot of screen flashing as XBMC minimizes, then restores itself, then is hidden again.
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#29
tvont Wrote:@davilla

hi - back again. Could you already investigate into the thing with the external player not beeing on-top while running on OSX (you said it's on the schedule for 9.04)?

Thanks,
TvonT

hehe, yes. this missed 9.04 and 9.04.1. Still in the queue Smile
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#30
Here is how to do it in OSX:-

http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=14110
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[PATCH] "Always On Top" option (for Windowed Mode) in XBMC for Windows1