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More => Old Versions => Media Center 12 (Development Ended) => Topic started by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 10:27:27 am

Title: Request: a more useful "Album Thumbnails" view
Post by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 10:27:27 am
[version 0.5]

The Album Thumbnails list style to me looks like a thumbnails view where the tumbnails grouping is always made by the Album field.

Sometimes it's better to be able to group by different library fields. For example, in classical music more than albums it's the work that makes sense. And with Pictures and Video the Album field is often useless anyway.

It would be nice if:
1) one could set which field to group by when using the above mentioned style (I'll call it "Group By this item").
2) the list style would have a layout like the famous iTunes one (see http://robydago.interfree.it/iTunes.jpg, sorry I had no  covert art for those albums...)

If creating the iTunes style layout is too complicated, JRiver could keep using the current MC style for it, but at least implement a way to set the group-by item; otherwise, the current implementation IMHO is not useful for anything else the music albums.

My idea to implement this new feature is this (to be added in the View Scheme dialog: http://robydago.interfree.it/mc12.2.jpg):

|- Step 5: Group Thumbnails options --------------------------------------|
|                                                                         |
| Group By this item: [drop-downlist-containing-all-Step1-created-items]  |   
|                                                                         |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------|

The drop-down list should be populated with the names of all items created in 'Step 1' in the View Scheme dialog.

Then "Album Thumbnails" could be renamed in "Group Thumbnails" and selecting it would create a view like the one available now, or hopefully like the iTunes one, but grouping by what has been selected as "Group By this item" (instead of always using "Album").

A note: the approach of putting this new option in the "View Scheme" dialog, would mean that one could have only one Group Thumbnails setting per scheme. Maybe it makes more sense to set it as a view setting so that, once saved, different settings can be applied to the same scheme. To do it this way, everything I wrote so far should still apply, with the only difference that the "Group By this item" option (the drop-down listbox) should be added to the "Customize Current View" (http://robydago.interfree.it/mc12.2.jpg) dialog instead of the "View Scheme" dialog, and that only library fields names would be selectable in the "Group By this item" listbox.
But I think that having this option in the "View Scheme" dialog is better 'cause it would mean that one could group not only by library fields, but by all Items created in the Step1 section of the View Scheme dialog.


Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: park on May 31, 2007, 10:29:41 am
This would be very useful for images and video especially. I second it.
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: hit_ny on May 31, 2007, 11:55:29 am
It would be easier to  understand, if there are some pics or mock-ups.
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: Mr ChriZ on May 31, 2007, 12:14:49 pm

BTW, in the digital world Albums are (going to be) legacy... 8)


I really hope not
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: gappie on May 31, 2007, 12:18:04 pm
Quote
BTW, in the digital world Albums are (going to be) legacy...
but not for me
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 01:28:14 pm

BUMP
edited the original post to make it more clear, I hope...
(see top of this thread)
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: hit_ny on May 31, 2007, 01:59:35 pm
It would be nice if:
- it would be possible to have a view layout like the famous iTunes one (see http://robydago.interfree.it/iTunes.jpg, sorry I had no covert art for those albums...)
- one could set which field to group by when using the above mentioned layout; let's call it "Group By this item in group view" item.
On first glance isn't it possible to do this already in MC12 ?

just add large icon as the first column when you customize current view.

The icon resizes itself accodring to the number of tracks, maybe not the uniform look you were hoping for.

You can group by whatever you like in the panes above it.
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 02:01:49 pm
BUMP
another edit of the original post, still to make it more clear, I hope...
(see top of this thread)
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 02:06:39 pm
On first glance isn't it possible to do this already in MC12 ?

just add large icon as the first column when you customize current view.

The icon resizes itself accodring to the number of tracks, maybe not the uniform look you were hoping for.

You can group by whatever you like in the panes above it.

Sorry I don't get what you mean...
I'm talking about how MC groups what's shown as thmbnails. Can you figure out the logic here: http://robydago.interfree.it/mc12.1.jpg ??
I can't...
Title: Re: A more useful "album" view
Post by: johnnyboy on May 31, 2007, 02:36:16 pm
Nice 'mood' there lol
Title: Re: Request: a more useful "album" view
Post by: robydago on May 31, 2007, 04:26:30 pm

BUMP

sorry guys, but english is not my mother tongue, so.... still another edit of the original post!
same goal: make it more clear, I hope...
(see top of this thread)

Title: Re: Request: a more useful "album" view
Post by: mhakman on June 01, 2007, 06:19:14 am
This feature would be nice to have. I hope that the notion of Album as an expression of artist’s mood, a particular period in artist’s career, theme, story, not to mention a musical or opera etc will stay with us even in the digital world.
Title: Re: Request: a more useful "album" view
Post by: hit_ny on June 01, 2007, 08:41:46 am
Reading the description and something is still not clicking here.

right click->customise current view->thumbnail text (select what Field you want to display here)..

you can do this for each view scheme, if you like too.
Title: Re: Request: a more useful "Album Thumbnails" view
Post by: robydago on June 01, 2007, 10:23:32 am
BUMP
judging by what most people are posting here, I think that I didn't write clearly what I mean.
so still another edit of the original post
(see top of this thread)
Title: Re: Request: a more useful "Album Thumbnails" view
Post by: Matt on June 01, 2007, 11:26:14 am
Have you tried the graphical tile browsing?  You can specify any groupings, fields, expressions, etc. and view graphically by them.

You can also see the files inside the grouping at any time.

For a simple example, pick "Genre" from the view header menu in Audio.  Double-click to go into artists.  Click "File" to see files.

Make custom view schemes to do custom groupings.
Title: Re: Request: a more useful "Album Thumbnails" view
Post by: robydago on June 04, 2007, 04:05:02 pm
Matt,
if you mean this: http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=40921.msg279179#msg279179
I didn't know it could be done.
Not bad at all.

Thanks.