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[benn600]

How do I start MC from the EXE?  mediacenter.exe /theater ?  I have tried some combinations and nothing has worked.  I'd like to set my Keyspan remote to start MC in theater view mode when ANY button is pushed and MC is not already open.

I'm hoping that this action of opening the EXE with theater view will send an already-open MC to theater view if it isn't already there.

[benn600]

Wow I'm bad.  Sorry.  I tried -theater and just now tried my example of /theater and it worked.  lol.  I'll probably come back here when I can't get what I want working so hold that thought.

Addition: sure enough, it doesn't work.  I have entered:

"C:\Program Files\J River\Media Center 12\Media Center 12.exe /theater"

But the Keyspan software says it can't launch the file.  Error code 2 (that's helpful).

Without slash theater it works.  Any other ideas?

Addition: Linking to a shortcut with the command line option in there works.  Progress!!  Progress after asking for help before I get responses...kind of strange.

[benn600]

Now there is a real issue to solve.  I have created, in the default entry, a launch program item for every button.  So, as long as MC is not in focus, the Keyspan remote will start MC in theater view after any button push.  This is EXACTLY what I was hoping for.

However, if MC is in focus, the Keyspan (my remote) software uses the Media Center key=>command map.  So if MC is in focus, it doesn't work correctly.  Any ideas on how to fix this?  I was thinking of adding a Ctrl + 4 to a specific button so if MC was present, users would just hit the Play button for instance.  In other words, I would TRY to have Ctrl + P AND Ctrl + 4 so it would send both.  Unfortunately, if MC is in theater view, this would kick it out of theater view (not good).

If Keyspan could determine the key mapping based on window title and MC changed its title to include Theater when in theater view, then this would allow for differentiation.

It's important to note for this setup that you cannot have allow multiple instances checked or it will keep opening more MC's.  So DON'T remove this option.  After looking around for a bit I thought maybe the checkbox was removed.  Luckily it wasn't.  It's buried, as it should be, in the advanced stuff.

[benn600]

I found a bug.  When I have the font size set and open MC through the Media Center 12.exe /theater shortcut and exit theater view, the font in the main list area appears to be set to what theater view uses.

Please fix the proportions so the text isn't so large when the percentage is set high.  I want the thumbnails large with small text.  Just let us custom set the font size and then apply a percentage to this so larger and smaller percentages in theater view will still affect the font size but on a proportion scale...don't just hard set the font size.

[benn600]

I have another idea.  Is there a way to have the MC exe startup with a specific library in addition to theater view?  If it could, then I could have MC startup using the server's database.  This would allow wherever we have HTPCs or desktops running as HTPCs, the database would all be the same--same view schemes, etc.  Now, it's using the user's database which is okay but it isn't kept as clean and neat as I'd like the HTPC database to be.

But if this was possible, I would like more control.  For example, when exiting theater view, it should actually close that instance of MC which is using the server's database.  Also, it should not set the default database to the server's database.  This way, a user could be listening to his or her own database and then by starting HTPC, it would leave their MC alone but start the HTPC Media Center.  Upon clicking Exit on the main screen, they would return to their personal library with no changes.

[benn600]

No one?  Read the second to last post and this one.

Also, is there a way to startup MC on a specific monitor from the command line options?  /theater .. monitor???

[steveklein]

well i can't comment a lot on the library organization as i only have one... but i dio tgink it is odd i can't exit the program from theater view. it'dbe nice to be able to click "exit" and it close media center 12 (without asking me if i want to do so:)). a separate return to standard view would be cool too. i really think theater view would become a whole lot more powerful and useful if we could just add our own selections to the main list and have a lot more control over it.

instead of just clicking "audio" or "images" we could click "pop hits" or 'internet" and it would take us to whatever we wanted to do.... within media center.

i'm waiting for a firefox and sagetv plugin

oh and of course a movie theater plugin

[benn600]

Sorry but Firefox won't be added because there isn't a good 10-foot interface for it.  Theater view is supposed to be simple with big buttons and only the options that are necessary to keep things clean.

They just need to spend some time examining Theater View and add a few built-in options to the included list.  They should include these options...Hopefully they can be renamed.  All items should be editable OBVIOUSLY so users can customize further.

1. Shutdown Computer
2. Close Media Center
3. Blank Space (PLEASE!  Just a blank space would let me separate Music/Images/Video from all the other junk that I have including weather images from the internet.
4. Change Zone (I think others would enjoy this)

[skeeterfood]

1. Shutdown Computer

This one is actually pretty easy.  So is Standby.

1. Download and install PsShutdown.
2. Run PsShutdown.exe at least once, since it asks you to accept it's license the first time you run it
3. Add a new Custom Item to Theater View (Tools->Options->Theater View->Add->Custom Item...)
  Name: Standby
  Type: Program
  Parameter: "C:\Program Files\PsTools\psshutdown.exe" -d -t 0  (-d = suspend -t 0 = now)

You can do the same thing for shutdown:
  Name: Shutdown
  Type: Program
  Parameter: "C:\Program Files\PsTools\psshutdown.exe" -k -t 0  (-k = poweroff -t 0 = now)

-John

[Griff]

Hey Benn

1. Shutdown Computer

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/shutdown.mspx?mfr=true

If youre running xp

 

[benn600]

I tried shutdown but it didn't work on its own.  So I went searching and found this, which is built-in to XP and 2000 I believe.  It seems to take a few seconds to actually shut down but it works without installing something else!  I was kind of hoping for it to work without needing something else.  That is just one less thing I have to setup on our computers.  I believe the theater view parameter *may* carry to other computers through the database but I could be wrong.

C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\TSSHUTDN.EXE 0 /DELAY:0 /POWERDOWN

I'm still hoping for a blank (spacer) item in theater view.  PLEASE!

[ThoBar]

shutdown should work on its own. check your command options. i use it here.

shutdown.exe -f -t 10 -s

you should use it in a batch file to cleanly shutdown mc etc. first

[NickM]

Perhaps hibernate would be more efficient?  Create a shortcut as follows:-

%windir%\System32\rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState

[jmone]

For those of us with the MS MCE Remote you just push the "PC Power" button which can be assigned to Shutdown, Standby or Hibernate.

[skeeterfood]

Perhaps hibernate would be more efficient?  Create a shortcut as follows:-

%windir%\System32\rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState

Actually, that will Hibernate if enabled, or go into Standby if Hibernate is not enabled.

-John