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[jmone]

MCUtils

MCUtils is a powerful suite of scripts for acquiring and manipulating Media Center metadata, and for performing various actions.  These scripts are written in PERL and will run on Windows, OSX, and Unix

Previously, the scripts were available as individual scripts, and were located here:
- amg.pl: an A M G helper and dummy file creator
- discogs.pl: a Discogs metadata scraper and dummy file creator
- pscriptor.pl: a general purpose scriptable MC field manipulator + utility

The scripts have since been repackaged and updated.  While the original threads have been locked, they still contain some useful additional and historic information. The scripts have been updated and are now merged and packaged as a single MCUtils suite.

The MCUtils suite is available for download; see the attached Instructions.pdf.  Contact the author for additional information or help.

[theoctavist]

Works great!

[jmone]

MCUtils AddOn for Windows: GUI Installer/Connector
Last Updated: 15 Aug 2016

This is no longer required.  See MCUtils Install Instructions in the first post

[unfrostedpoptart]

MCUtils

MCUtils is a powerful suite of scripts for acquiring and manipulating Media Center metadata, and for performing various actions.

Hi.  

I'm happy to see people helping develop stuff like this but it seems this particular case is confused and backwards.  I wanted this for some BD Audio disks to split tracks but the links point to Windows executables and I'm running MC21 on a Mac (and possibly Linux in the future).  What seems even stranger is that mcutils isn't a Windows program.  As the source site <link removed - see OP for Instructions.pdf>   shows, it's a bunch of PERL scripts that will run on any OS.  So, what does MCUtils_Installer.exe do that downloading the raw MCUtils doesn't do?  Why take scripts that running on any OS and make it only work on Windows?

Thanks for clearing this up.

 David

[jmone]

Hi David,
Your right, MCUtils is based on Perl Scripts and hence has cross platform compatibility.  If you are comfortable following the  Instructions.pdf in the OP you are all good to go!  

For these that are not so computer literate I created a small AHK script (Windows Based) that does the initial setup for a first timer.  I'll try to make the OP clearer.

Thanks
Nathan

Edit - Moved my script from the OP to make it more clear.

[theoctavist]

"windows can not find c/users/natha etc " error message when trying to use the gui/connector

so why is it looking in your PC for the executable?

[jmone]

That's funny!  Let me look (must have hard coded something!)

[jmone]

Yup!  I've updated the installer in my Post 2.  You will need to Run "Step 4" again and with some luck it should now point to your MCUtils directory not mine!

Thanks for testing (still works for me  )
Nathan

[theoctavist]

thanks man!

[theoctavist]

ok... say ive got an album that I want to update via discogs.  do I go to the album, select all the tracks and then via MCUtils (custom command)

type, for example perl discogs.pl --rid 692390 -v   ?

before when i did this (without the connector, just using MrCs package outside of MC ) I could see the terminal displaying all the album data , and then the tags would update right after.  here when I do that, i get a log saying "finished" with the perl version or whatever. 

catch me up?

[theoctavist]

I think it is a environment variable issue

what do I need to add to the path?   I uninstalled the previous version of strawberry that I had (when i used the connector-less MCUtils).. so are these the same?  just curioous because I didnt know if perl was installed differently or not.   

C:\Strawberry\c\bin;C:\Strawberry\perl\site\bin;C:\Strawberry\perl\bin

[jmone]

What my script does is download all the bits into your selected folder.  One of which is the Portable Version of Perl (no install required).  You should see a PERL subdirectory and within that there is a "portableshell.bat" file.  This sets the environment vars when it runs (eg If you run this it will tell you if perl works or display any errors).

Now what I do with the Commands in MC is to run a version of the "portableshell.bat" file but with the MCUtil Cmd tagged to the end.  It also pipes any of the output that you would see to a TXT file and then displays that for you.

So it "should" be the same process as if you ran "potableshell", "cd.." (to move up one dir to the MCUtils root directy), entered "perl discogs.pl --rid 692390 -v"  .  To test can you try this and see if it works as I was having some issues with hung processes if stuff did not cleanly execute.

Thanks
Nathan

[theoctavist]

----------------------------------------------
 Welcome to Strawberry Perl PDL Edition!
 * URL - http://strawberryperl.com + http://pdl.perl.org
 * to launch perl script run:      perl c:\my\scripts\pdl-test.pl
 * to start PDL console run:       pdl2
 * to update PDL run:              cpanm PDL
 * to install extra module run:    cpanm PDL::Any::Module
          or if previous fails:    ppm PDL::Any::Module
 * or you can use dev tools like:  gcc, g++, gfortran, gmake
 * see README.TXT for more info
----------------------------------------------
Perl executable: C:\Users\trb\Desktop\MCutils\perl\perl\bin\perl.exe
Perl version   : 5.20.3 / MSWin32-x86-multi-thread-64int
PDL version    : 2.013

C:\Users\trb\Desktop\MCutils>perl discogs.pl --rid 387579 -v
Can't locate Date/Calc.pm in @INC (you may need to install the Date::Calc module) (@INC contains: C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/site/lib C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/vendor/lib C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/lib .) at discogs.pl line 17.
BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at discogs.pl line 17 (#1)
    (F) You said to do (or require, or use) a file that couldn't be found.
    Perl looks for the file in all the locations mentioned in @INC, unless
    the file name included the full path to the file.  Perhaps you need
    to set the PERL5LIB or PERL5OPT environment variable to say where the
    extra library is, or maybe the script needs to add the library name
    to @INC.  Or maybe you just misspelled the name of the file.  See
    "require" in perlfunc and lib.

Uncaught exception from user code:
        Can't locate Date/Calc.pm in @INC (you may need to install the Date::Calc module) (@INC contains: C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/site/lib C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/vendor/lib C:/Users/trb/Desktop/MCutils/perl/perl/lib .) at discogs.pl line 17.
        BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at discogs.pl line 17.

C:\Users\trb\Desktop\MCutils>

[theoctavist]

also...when I send to>>mcutils  I get several CMD windows opening in tandem.   weird

[theoctavist]

got it working, but had to manually install the modules via cpanm PDL install XXX

[jmone]

Woops - while you were posting I made you one that shows the CMD box of all that is going on (just replace the MCUtils_Plugin.exe with that attached).

[jmone]

got it working, but had to manually install the modules via cpanm PDL install XXX

I wonder if it was because you already had perl install so when my portable install happened the moduls were installed in the wrong place?  No idea really.

Is it now working however?

[theoctavist]

thank you! ok, so it worked for a bit, but now when I send to command shell mcutils, nothing happens.  nor with the perl shell.

[jmone]

Can you try the one I just posted (so you can see if what the processes is doing, in case it is hanging).  You may need to reboot.

[theoctavist]

I wonder if it was because you already had perl install so when my portable install happened the moduls were installed in the wrong place?  No idea really.

Is it now working however?

working so far! (with the new plugin)

[jmone]

Mmmm I'm going to have to rethink how the Process get launched.  I can see in Task Mgr I have a few hung "Console Window Hosts"

Thanks for testing!

[theoctavist]

no problem! it is wonderful. saves so much time.  ill let you know as issues arise

[theoctavist]

still goin strong baby!

[jmone]

XLNT!  Do you mind that you see the CMD window (as the issues were me "hidding" it then trying to get all the details to present in a log later)

[theoctavist]

not a bit!  it is great as is!

[theoctavist]

gah. having problems installing mcutils on a different PC

i see this log file open up, but no command window. //


Finished! See the Log below for more info
 
----------------------------------------------
Perl executable: C:\Users\Nancy\Desktop\perl\perl\bin\perl.exe
Perl version   : 5.20.3 / MSWin32-x86-multi-thread-64int
PDL version    : 2.013

 

[jmone]

Try running it manually from the command prompt:
1) In explorer go to the ....\MCUtils\perl directory and run "portableshell.bat" and see if you get any errors
2) Type "CD.." (to go backup one level to the MCUtils directory)
3) Run a MCUtils command (eg "perl pscriptor.pl -E MakeBDChapters -v -a check" without the quotes) and see what happens

[theoctavist]

well i figured it out. for some reason the modules werent installed. had to manually install Roman etc via command line

(I thought the installer did it for some reason?)  at any rate, all seems well now

[theoctavist]

aw cuss! ok it doesnt run from the connector.  i can only run from command line

[theoctavist]

ok! got it back. I failed to install the *updated* plugin , had to scroll down the page (on this thread) to find it.  (maybe put all the good ones in the OP? for dumb*@ses like me> )

[jmone]

ACK - will update my OP with the updated ver (sorry!)

[theoctavist]

Got her rolling on 4 different PCs now.  Great, great stuff that.   Has reduced tagging/maintenance time drastically. 

[jmone]

[Neis]

Am i blind or just stupid, where can i download the installer? I only see the mcutil plugin attachment?

[gkenfield]

I too scoured the forum, web and dropbox folders and wasn't able to find it.

Was all excited to NOT have to perform the complicated installed replaced by the connector.

[jmone]

Sorry - that was my fault.  I put the "plugin" in my second post instead of the "installer" that will download and install all the components (including the plugin).  Should be the right download now.
Thanks
Nathan

[gkenfield]

Excellent! That's really slick... thank you for your contribution and I can't wait to test the scripts.

[Al ex]

MCUtils AddOn for Windows: GUI Installer/Connector
Last Updated: 30 Sep 2015

To simplify the installation and usage within MC, I’ve created a Simple GUI that will:
- Download all the required components
- Configure MCUtils
- Provides a Connector so you can run MCUtil commands from within Media Center
- Note: as this AddOn is a AutoHotKey script it will only run under Windows
...
One thing I've seen if is you enter a dodgy MCUtils (Perl) command you can get a loop that does not end.  If so, in the System Tray right click on the AHK icon and close the app.  It odd things are still happening it is due to hidden cmd processes and it is just easier to reboot.

Hi Jmone,
great work, seems exactly what is needed for users like me.
Unfortunately I cannot finish the installation with the installer, I get stuck with step 2, as I am receiving several error messages (see attached).
Screenshot 1 --> Timelimit reached
Screenshot 2 --> Status of the handle is not according to the requested procedure
Screenshot 3 --> Hanging up while installing PERL - I can only abort...

[jmone]

Did it hang on the Download or the Install of the Perl module?

[Al ex]

Did it hang on the Download or the Install of the Perl module?

It is during the install of the PERL module.

[jmone]

Go to the folder you created for MCUtils and see of you can do the following manually for Step 2 (these are the cmds I send from my script):
1) Install Perl = run portableshell.bat
2) Install the Perl Moduls from a CMD Box by trying in order each of the following
   cpan install Date::Calc
   cpan install Win32::Clipboard
   cpan install XML::LibXML
   cpan install XML::XPath
   cpan install Roman
 
Then from my script you need to Do Step 3 onward

Lets see where the error appears.
Thanks
Nathan

[Al ex]

I was trying to download PERL from strawberryperl.com but it seems the URL is not working? Maybe this is the reason as the website is currently down?

[jmone]

Could be that.  But you should be able to go through the steps I posted and it will give you a more verbose list of errors.  It sounds like Portable Perl was downloaded, unziped, and probably installed correctly and it is one (or all) of the Perl Moduls that is not being able to be downloaded as part of the cpan install.

[8139david]

Thanks for the package! It worked fine for me.

But when trying to use pscriptor.pl, I had error messages.
So I had to do this in succession:
cpan install Win32::Clipboard
cpan install XML::LibXML (or cpan install XML::XPath, I don't remember which was required)
Maybe you could explain something to that effect in your first post or in the installation instructions?
Edit: In fact, one should do ALL this in succession:

Code: [Select]

   cpan Date::Calc
   cpan Win32::Clipboard
   cpan XML::LibXML
   cpan XML::XPath
   cpan Roman


[8139david]

Otherwise, I'm trying to use.
I get this error message, I can't figure out why:

Code: [Select]

C:\Scripts>perl pscriptor.pl -E CSVLookup -v -f composer -a "C:\Users\David\Documents\Composers.csv"
Uncaught exception from user code:
        The view is missing the column 'composer', which defines the file grouping
        Stopped at Scriptlets/CSVLookup.pm line 87.
        CSVLookup::do_preprocessing("C:\\Users\\David\\Documents\\Composers.csv", ARRAY(0x2f67d04), ARRAY(0x3094ad4)) called at pscriptor.pl line 197My csv is as follows:

Code: [Select]

composer compositeur
Bach Bach_xxx
Edit: I just understood why: I need to use a view where selected files are organized by composer. Done, and it works!

NB: Previously, I also had a problem because I hadn't used the proper delimiters when saving the csv file.
This works for me: the comma , as delimiter. And all text surrounded by quotes ".

[8139david]

I was tired of having to navigate to the folder where MC Utils and Perl are installed (in my case C:\Scripts) and launching perl through portableperl.bat (which is in C:\Scripts\perl).
So I first created a bat file ScriptsPerl.bat in C:\Scripts, which opens an explorer and launches portableshell.bat:

Code: [Select]

explorer .
C:\Scripts\perl\portableshell.batThen I created a shortcut for ScriptsPerl.bat.
This shortcut can be put in any handy place. In my case, I'm using Classic Shell, so with a right click, I just asked to attach the shortcut to Classic Shell.
I'm also using ConEmu to run commands and scripts, instead of the normal Windows shell.
So when clicking on the shortcut, it opens ConEmu in C:\Scripts and launches portableshell.bat in that same place.
I can then do any operation I want with MC Utilities, for instance:

Code: [Select]

perl amg.pl -i composer,styles,featuringThis updates the files selected in JRiver for the fields composer, styles, and featuring.

[stevem87]

Anyone else missing lyrics? They used to work, but they no longer come in. I imagine it has something to do with a change on AllMusic's site. If anyone can fix, please let me know.

Thanks,
Steve

[theoctavist]

hey buddy, forgive me if I have asked this, but each time I use the perl command(from within jriver) multiple command windows open instead of just one.  it is annoying! how to fix this?

[SkGe]

@stevem87
It seems those lyrics are not anymore in the song. I think they remove lyrics because i checked some old songs who had lyrics in it and now are not anymore there, so i don't think any change can be made on the part of MCutils.

[theoctavist]

I was tired of having to navigate to the folder where MC Utils and Perl are installed (in my case C:\Scripts) and launching perl through portableperl.bat (which is in C:\Scripts\perl).
So I first created a bat file ScriptsPerl.bat in C:\Scripts, which opens an explorer and launches portableshell.bat:

Code: [Select]

explorer .
C:\Scripts\perl\portableshell.batThen I created a shortcut for ScriptsPerl.bat.
This shortcut can be put in any handy place. In my case, I'm using Classic Shell, so with a right click, I just asked to attach the shortcut to Classic Shell.
I'm also using ConEmu to run commands and scripts, instead of the normal Windows shell.
So when clicking on the shortcut, it opens ConEmu in C:\Scripts and launches portableshell.bat in that same place.
I can then do any operation I want with MC Utilities, for instance:

Code: [Select]

perl amg.pl -i composer,styles,featuringThis updates the files selected in JRiver for the fields composer, styles, and featuring.

can you share the script(s)?