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[lalittle]

2. NEW: Theater View sizing and layout better accounts for varying aspect ratios. (widescreen, etc.)

How does one "utilize" this?

I recently switched my Theater View output to a Widescreen monitor.  I'm using composite video output from the computer (this is the only cable run through the house), so the image is always stretched on the screen in order to fill the whole 16x9 screen.  I'd like to be able to have the Full Screen output of Theater View "aware" that I'm using an NTSC signal connected to a 16x9 monitor, and horizontally "squish" the Theater View display so that when it's horizontally "stretched" onto the widescreen monitor, it once again looks "correct."  This would mean that MC's Theater View would take advantage of the extra room provided on the widescreen monitor, and that the album art would display as "square" rather than rectangular (i.e. stretched.)

Is this possible?

Thanks,

Larry

[Matt]

MC assumes you're using square pixels, but could you simply switch the resolution of the video card to be 16x9? (or does composite not support this)

[NickM]

I too have the same issue, but it may be easier for MC to ""remember" the manually zoomed and scrolled settings for each channel.  You could adjust your display layout once only then?

[lalittle]

could you simple switch the resolution of the video card to be 16x9? (or does composite not support this)

Your assumption was correct -- the composite video output cannot be adjusted in this manner.

MC assumes you're using square pixels

But could MC be "told" that the video output is being sent to a 16x9 monitor?  This is how DVD players have worked for years -- you tell them in the setup options which type of monitor you have, and the player alters the image appropriately so that a circle appears as a circle on the monitor whether you have a 4:3 or a 16:9 monitor.  This is a fairly basic adjustment in today's world given the fact that there are a LOT of both 4:3 and 16:9 monitors being used today.

This actually points out something that's always bothered me a bit about MC's Theater View -- it continues to be much more targeted toward computer monitors that it is toward TV monitors, yet the whole idea of "Theater View" is centered on the idea of watching in a home theater, which use TV monitors and NOT computer monitors.  This is evident in the lack of overscan considerations on the Theater View skins, as well as (as far as I know) the lack of the abitlity to have MC adjust the image depending on what type of monitor you're using (4:3 or 16:9.)  Given that this is "Theater View," aren't these issues important?

Thanks,

Larry

[Matt]

This actually points out something that's always bothered me a bit about MC's Theater View -- it continues to be much more targeted toward computer monitors that it is toward TV monitors

That's not true.  We're targetting any display where you need a simple interface and good visibility. (car, theater, etc.)

This is evident in the lack of overscan considerations on the Theater View skins, as well as (as far as I know) the lack of the abitlity to have MC adjust the image depending on what type of monitor you're using (4:3 or 16:9.)  Given that this is "Theater View," aren't these issues important?

To pin those limitations on Media Center isn't fair, since they're somewhat specific to using a old-style composite video cable.  You'll get better quality, eliminate overscan, and have true 16x9 resolutions with DVI, HDMI, VGA, or even component connections. (assuming your display supports it)

In general, overscan is a hardware issue between the display and driver.

We could add support for non-square pixels, although it hasn't been requested much, and is probably just as well handled by the video card.

[lalittle]

That's not true.  We're targetting any display where you need a simple interface and good visibility. (car, theater, etc.)

I honestly didn't mean to "put down" MC in any way -- I love the program.  It's just that as someone who has been using Theater View on a TV monitor for a few years now, I find that MC does not seem to take into account many of the specific aspects of using the display on a TV monitor (other than the size and simplicity of the display, which are of course the "main" concern.)

If the interface was specifically designed for a TV, it would not push so close to the edges since unlike computer displays, TV signals are designed with some degree of overscan involved (and this includes both NTSC and ATSC signals.)  Also, MC is missing a "4x3/16x9" selection, which is something that has been considered necessary on DVD players since the very first generation several years ago.  You can't really blame the graphics card manufactures for this limitation since traditionally, this setting has been made available in software, not hardware.  Just look at software DVD players, which also typically offer this setting.

To pin those limitations on Media Center isn't fair, since they're somewhat specific to using a old-style composite video cable.

But until VERY recently, composite video connections have by far been the standard connection for TV signals.  In fact, even though DVI/HDMI is certainly getting a lot more popular and is the "new" standard for TVs being manufactured, the VAST majority of TVs in this country continue to utilize composite video connections.  To say that these features are not included because DVI/HDMI makes them unecessary doesn't seem fair to me since a TINY percentage of TVs in this country are actually using DVI/HDMI (or even component) at this point.

Keep in mind also that if the computer is in a different room, DVI, HDMI, VGA, or component cables are not very good options since these connections have much more stringent length restrictions compared to standard, composite video cable.  I use both component and HDMI cables for HDTV viewing, but for MC I continue to use composite because I have an 80 foot cable run, and composite cable (which is already run) provides a very sufficient quality for this purpose (i.e. utilizing the MC Theater View menu on the TV in order to listen to music, etc.)

You'll get better quality, eliminate overscan, and have true 16x9 resolutions with DVI, HDMI, VGA, or even component connections. (assuming your display supports it)

Better quality yes, but using DVI/HDMI does not mean that overscan is eliminated, and component, which is an analogue signal, has the same overscan issues that composite does.  I have an CRT projection HDTV, and overscan is still very much a concern on this set EVEN when using a DVI connection.  The only time overscan might not matter is when using a DVI/HDMI connection on a fixed pixel display.  These are of course the only TVs being sold now, but once again, the number of these sets in actual use today comprise only a tiny percentage of the total.

We could add support for non-square pixels, although it hasn't been requested much, and is probably just as well handled by the video card.

But graphics cards traditionally do not have adjustments for this -- it's the software that typically takes care of this (i.e. software DVD players, Non-Linear video editors, etc.)

Thanks for the feedback on this,

Larry