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[kensn]

Get Plugin: http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=65985.0

So I am working on an Inactivity plugin due to my own needs. I wanted to be able, in certain circumstances, to select songs on my HTPC, walk away and have either Theater View Playing Now or Display View showing visualizations start automatically after a selectable amount of inactivity. Then if I move the mouse, have the previous view restored so I can select more songs. It also restores the view when playback stops.

This wasn't too difficult, one down side that any User input will restore the view such as volume and such.. but like I said it is for certain occasions. I also added the option to go back additional steps in the previous view to help make selection easier. So if I drill down 2 levels to a list of songs on an album, select a song and walk away, when the view is restored it will be showing an artist view, or 2 levels back from where I left it.

You have to select the view you are using (Standard, Cover or Theater) and what view you want to jump to (Display or Theater View Playing Now).

I also added an shutdown option to either Sleep, Hibernate or Shutdown on playback stop.

I have the plugin disabled at start up so that it will only be in effect if the User turns it on.

If anyone has any input, I would like to hear it...

Ken

[kensn]

If anyone is interested testing, let me know. I could email you the Plugin.

Ken

[MrC]

How about make the plug-in, code available, and continually update your first post to reflect the status of development, release, comments you receive from this thread, etc.

Sounds like you're making a MC Playing Now screensaver-like plugin.  Perhaps that will appeal to a wider audience.

[rick.ca]

Interesting plugin.

The Additional views feature works when returning from Playing Now to Theatre View, but not when returning from Display View. It only returns to Playing Now, regardless of the Views to go back setting. I haven't tested other combinations of Starting view and View to show.

For those who may want to use this more like a screensaver, you may want to make Seconds to wait editable, so they don't have to increment to values like "600."

"Display View" is spelled incorrectly.

[kensn]

Could not get additional views to work in Theater View coming back from Display view. No combination of back commands would work. The Seconds to wait will restore the last user setting, so this should only need to be set once in a screensaver type application. As far as it being editable, when I set a min value to the control it would not restore the saved value. I found others complaining about this, so I had to set the min in code. This would error if someone starting typing 100 as the 1 was under the min.

spelled incorrectly....  I believe that...let me go look... (*)%&) spelling isn't my strong suit...

Thanks for checking it out Rick...

Ken

Fixed spelling.......

[jmone]

I'm interested in the plug in if I could use it to force the PC to S3-Hibernate after a certain period of inactivity (I find Windows is unreliable in doing this for some reason!)

[kensn]

Hibernate worked on the pcs I tested with the plugin. This is not a function of the plugin, it only calls the MC command to hibernate. It will hibernate after playback stops if it is enabled.

27001 MCC_SHUTDOWN int nMode (0: shutdown; 1: sleep; 2: hibernate; 3: restart) (based on CSystemShutdown::EShutdownModes)

If this works the plugin will work for you...

Ken

[rick.ca]

Could not get additional views to work in Theater View coming back from Display view. No combination of back commands would work.

I can see one complication is there are a number of Jump on play options, so you can't predict for sure where the exit point is. But you might assume someone wanting to use this is likely using the PN option—the other options don't seem very logical. If so, you can count on PN being a consistent exit point. If you're using MCC_TOGGLE_MODE to change views, returning to Theatre View show return to that point. Oh. Maybe this is the problem...I see that on return from Display View, the cover is sometimes selected in PN, rather than the top roller. In any case, <up><up><left> would always gets you back to the original view (<up><up> moving from the cover to the top roller, but doing nothing if already there).

I realize issuing commands from a plugin might not be the same. Just an observation for you to consider. Getting this working in some fashion might be easier than explaining why it doesn't.

[kensn]

I realized that the jump to options in MC might give unwanted results and meant to call that out. The plugin for me would replace the built in jump to functions. The plugin is primarily used to jump from a list used for selecting items and then go back. If they are selecting from cover view, standard view or theater view they can jump to a visual mode and then return to where they were selecting from.

[jmone]

Hi Ken - If I select "Sleep" from MC's TheaterView menu the HTPC goes to sleep just fine.  

I've had a play with the plugin but I think I'm after something slightly different.  I'd like to be able to set a separate timer say:
- After XXMin of "inactivity" --> Sleep

The inactivity may be after a STOP, or END of media playback.  But it may also just be after just browsing around in Theaterview.

Also can I suggest you change the name on the install prog from "setup.exe" to something less generic like Kens_Great_MC16_Inactivity_Plugin ...well maybe not this

[rick.ca]

The plugin for me would replace the built in jump to functions.

I realize that. But the built-in jump on play still occurs, and determines the exit point. I was trying to suggest a possible solution to the "additional views" feature not working when returning from Display View to Theatre View. Another approach would be to allow the feature to work, and assume Jump on play is "None"—in keeping with the purpose of the plugin. If that were the case, would the problem not go away?

[kensn]

Hi Ken - If I select "Sleep" from MC's TheaterView menu the HTPC goes to sleep just fine.  

Good to hear

I've had a play with the plugin but I think I'm after something slightly different.  I'd like to be able to set a separate timer say:
- After XXMin of "inactivity" --> Sleep

The inactivity may be after a STOP, or END of media playback.  But it may also just be after just browsing around in Theaterview.

I could look into putting a seperate option to sleep after playback, or just after no activity.

Also can I suggest you change the name on the install prog from "setup.exe" to something less generic like Kens_Great_MC16_Inactivity_Plugin ...well maybe not this

Sounded like a good name to me...

I will change it...
Thanks for the feedback..

Ken

[kensn]

I realize that. But the built-in jump on play still occurs, and determines the exit point. I was trying to suggest a possible solution to the "additional views" feature not working when returning from Display View to Theatre View. Another approach would be to allow the feature to work, and assume Jump on play is "None"—in keeping with the purpose of the plugin. If that were the case, would the problem not go away?

I had tried many different command to try to get it to work. sending keystrokes, commands and such. I will look into some other routines as well. It just something with that senerio that it does not like. I think it has to do with display view being able to be displayed in the window when you return to the previous view as a smaller inset window.

Ken

[kensn]

I've had a play with the plugin but I think I'm after something slightly different.  I'd like to be able to set a separate timer say:
- After XXMin of "inactivity" --> Sleep

The inactivity may be after a STOP, or END of media playback.  But it may also just be after just browsing around in Theaterview.

New Version posted, should be what you're looking for....

Thanks again for checking it out...

Ken

[jmone]

Thanks - I'll have to have a proper play on the w'end.  I may have an issue where something keeps waking my HTPC back up....