INTERACT FORUM

More => Old Versions => Media Center 11 (Development Ended) => Topic started by: NickM on May 25, 2006, 06:32:09 am

Title: Cheating with Album names
Post by: NickM on May 25, 2006, 06:32:09 am

Is there a better way to deal with similar album names?  I have a number of duplicate album names e.g. "Unplugged" by The Corrs, Eric Clapton etc.

All the standard Album views group there together - which is frustrating when trying to count the number of albums in a directory.

I end up leaveing a trailing space at the end of the duplicate album, so that MC recognises this as a different album.

Is there a better way to deal with this?  Given MC is song centric, not album centric, I guess it's not a bug...

nick

Title: Re: Cheating with Album names
Post by: Doof on May 25, 2006, 08:23:35 am

You could create a custom, calculated data field of [Album] ([Artist]) or something and then group by that instead of just Album.

If it's the same couple of album names all the time (Unplugged, Greatest Hits, etc), you could probably even set up an expression that tested for just those album names, and the tack the Artist at the end, while leaving the rest alone.

It would be a good feature for MC12, to maintain discrete albums...

Title: Re: Cheating with Album names
Post by: Alex B on May 25, 2006, 08:26:30 am

This view scheme shows even identically named albums as separate album items:

http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=30774.msg212216#msg212216

My example displays all file types, but the system can be used with an audio only view scheme as well.

If the Album Artist (auto) and Album fields are both identical in two or more albums then you need to give those albums unique Album Artist or Album fields.

The speed problem I reported is fixed now.

Title: Re: Cheating with Album names
Post by: NickM on May 25, 2006, 07:31:09 pm

Created the custom field OK, added a new view scheme, but where do I set the 'Group By' options?

Thanks,
nick

Title: Re: Cheating with Album names
Post by: Alex B on May 25, 2006, 09:45:08 pm

Just add the calculated field to your view items like I explained in the linked thread:

Quote from: Alex B on December 20, 2005, 12:36:22 pm

I made a new calculated field:

(http://kotisivu.mtv3.fi/alexb/pix/fieldaaaa.png)

and added it to my view scheme:

(http://kotisivu.mtv3.fi/alexb/pix/myalbums.png)

The "Artist/Album" view item is the "grouped" item.

- Artist/Album is only a shorter display name that wrote in the "General, Display:" dialog. In the "Calculated Data, Templete:" dialog you need to have [Album Artist (auto)] - [Album] or a similar string. The visual separator part between the bracketed field items is not important for grouping functionality, but it comes visible when the field is used in a thumbnail caption.