usability question about controlling music playback
#1
Hi folks,

If I select some songs for playing, then I get the Opengl_spectrum visualization on top of the main menu. Maybe I am too blind to see, but how am I supposed to reach the pause, next song, etc. OSD buttons? I don't have a remote control, but a gyroscopic mouse, so the OSD is essential.

After 3 minutes waiting the main menu goes away, and I can access the OSD buttons to control music as expected. But I would like to avoid this 3-minutes-suspension.

Any helpful comment would be highly appreciated.

Harri
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#2
Uhh...I develop this thing and have no idea what you're on about. Try again, this time with details, like which skin you're using and I have no idea what "main menu" is in this context. I can navigate the OSD immediately upon moving the mouse, so you must be leaving something out.
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#3
Please excuse my bad English. Maybe I can describe a sample session to make things clear?

xbmc is started automagically at boot time of my PC. After the "xbmc" splash screen I see the main menu of the Confluence skin. I can select between Scripts, Weather, Picures, Videos, Music, Programs and System. I click on "Music". The "Music Files" window opens. The root window shows a burning guitar.

After some navigation I right-click on the folder to play (e.g. "Kraftwerk") and select "Play". The music starts playing. The file browser window is still open. I see the burning guitar and the OpenGL spectrum visualization on the root window. I right click on the guitar to go back to the main menu. The burning guitar and the spectrum are still shown in the root window. At the left edge I can select between Scripts, Weather, and so on. I see a speaker icon and some text "Now playing", the artist and album names, etc. in the bottom right corner.

Now what next? How can I get to the menu with pause, stop, skip forward, etc? It is not obvious at all. I tried clicking everywhere with left and right mouse buttons, but in vain.

After 3 minutes idle time the main menu and the guitar disappear. All I see now is the OpenGL spectrum. If I move the mouse, then the OSD menu with pause, skip forward and backward is available. But these 3 minutes idle time are _highly_ painful.


Hope this helps.

Harri
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#4
Right so the problem is that there is no OSD on the home window. You should be able to get at it under any of the media windows. It's on the menu to the left when media is playing. File a feature request on the bug tracker to get the OSD on the home screen.
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#5
What do you mean by "home screen" and "home window"? Is that the root window with the burning guitar, or is it the root window with the OpenGL spectrum on a black background that I get after 3 minutes idle time? The latter _does_ have an OSD. The problem is I cannot make it show up. For playing movies I can.
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#6
home window is the topmost window. The one XBMC starts at, assuming you haven't changed the default startup screen. Has stuff like music, pictures, weather, system, etc in a list (in the default skin anyway). This is where you need an OSD.

TBH, your experience would be much better with a real remote.
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#7
home window is the topmost window. The one XBMC starts at, assuming you haven't changed the default startup screen. Has stuff like music, pictures, weather, system, etc in a list (in the default skin anyway). This is where you need an OSD.

TBH, your experience would be much better with a real remote.
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