INTERACT FORUM
Windows => Third Party Plug-ins, Programs, and Skins => Topic started by: Melloware on September 30, 2008, 02:31:57 pm
-
RiverMote (http://melloware.com/products/rivermote/)is a JRiver Media Center Client for the iPhone/iPod Touch and is a native iPhone application that allows you to control JRiver Media Center anywhere in your house. I had never heard of MC until about a month ago when someone turned me on to it. It is incredibly powerful and has the concept of zones that many other media players do not have. I know Apple has Remote for ITunes but the MC user community wanted something similar for controlling JRiver Media Center from their iPhones or iPod Touches. Controlling different zones of the house, playing, pausing, skipping, and selecting playlists all from the convenience of their devices. Thus I decided to create RiverMote to hopefully allow people to unlock the true power of JRiver Media Center. RiverMote consists of two pieces...a server piece which runs on your PC and the client piece which runs on your iPhone or iPod Touch. The server piece included here is called RiverMote.exe and is critical to using RiverMote on the iPhone.
The purpose of this program is simple: to allow control of your JRiver Media Center from your iPhone/iPod Touch with the touch of a finger.
Don't be a slave to your PC anymore, rock out from anywhere in your house!
NOTE: You can change playlists, browse playlists, change songs but you can NOT browse your catalog and update playlists from the device.
http://melloware.com/products/rivermote/ (http://melloware.com/products/rivermote/)
-
When should we accept your remote to hit the appstore?
EDIT: Ok it's already out! Here (http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=292170506&mt=8).
Instead of cross-posting you should have add a link to the appstore on your website :)
-
When should we accept your remote to hit the appstore?
EDIT: Ok it's already out! Here (http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=292170506&mt=8)/ Instead of cross-posting you should have add a link to the appstore on your website :)
Yeah I need to update my Apple AppStore logo on my site for the new link. Doing that now!
-
I really appreciate your work, but it might be a good idea to mention in the description that you cannot browse through your library, only through playlists. People might be dissapointed after buying.
-
I really appreciate your work, but it might be a good idea to mention in the description that you cannot browse through your library, only through playlists. People might be dissapointed after buying.
Description updated.
-
A short review on the RiverMote App:
First i want to thank you for the fast arrival of RiverMote!
I have been waiting for an app like this.
It saves many hours of my life (making it for myself).
Great things are:
- The pure existence of the app.
- Works very well out of the box.
- Very clear layout in landscape mode and the playlists.
- Timeline slider and ratings (thank you!) on the same panel, so you can rate new songs very well.
- Buttons are large enough to hit them.
- Loads fast if the playlist has not too many items.
Things to improve:
In landscape mode:
- Timeline slider and buttons are too close together (for my fingers) resulting in unwanted skips.
Perhaps positioning the timeslider on top of the pane would be better. - Volume slider should be in another place (or perhaps only be available in portrait mode), so that there would be more space for the buttons and a wider spacing between them for easier handling.
- The buttons are too colourful for my taste - i would like a more elegant button design because this is an apple-device ;D and i will use RiverMote every day.
- The playing-now-playlist does not reinitialize if a new smartlist is chosen.
- RiverMote-playing-now-playlist does not recognize when new smarlists are chosen on the host.
- A maximized MediaCenter window on the host is going to windowed if some action is made with
RiverMote.
- A low battery message on the iPod Touch kills RiverMote on the iPod - RiverMote must be restarted.
- Buttons in portrait mode are too tiny for my fingers - can't do anything with them.
- Displaying the data when skipping a song takes some time. Could perhaps be improved if textual data would be displayed first and then the coverimage afterwards?
Would be nice to have:
- Display of song-time-status like "2:55 of 4:30" in landscape mode.
- A counter that displays how many items are still to load on startup and when selecting another smartlist, for the good feeling that the app is not hanging.
- Battery status display.
These are my first impressions of RiverMote.
And let me say it again: A great iPhone app for JRiver Media Center users that i have been waiting for!
Thanks
Fred
-
Fred1,
Thanks for the feedback!!!
Let me answer some of your questions:
Sliders: try tapping them where you want the position to be instead of trying to slide with your finger. You won't get any skipping that way.
The playing-now-playlist does not reinitialize if a new smartlist is chosen: I just tried this and it worked by changing it on both the PC and from the phone? Can you do me a favor and try just creating two 10 song playlists. And using those for your tests?
low battery message: Will fix that in 1.1 thanks!
Displaying the data when skipping a song takes some time: Unfortunately this is MOSTLY due to streaming the album cover to the phone. If you right click the tray icon and go into settings you can tone the image quality WAY down to make smaller images and stream the picture faster. I have it set by default pretty high at 75% quality. Try changing that number to 5%. Also I just put a new EXE up on the site that won't resend cover data if the album does not change. So if you are playing 10 songs from the same album the cover will only be uploaded once instead of 10 times. This makes responsiveness much faster.
Can you download this EXE and try the tests I mentioned above?
http://melloware.com/products/rivermote/rivermote10-server.zip
As for your nice to haves....I will put them on the 1.1 TODO list!
You rock!
-
Sliders: try tapping them where you want the position to be instead of trying to slide with your finger. You won't get any skipping that way.
That's not quite what i meant.
When tapping the timeslider, my thick finger often accidentially touches one of the buttons (not always the skip button).
That would not happen, if the slider was on top of the pane.
Can you do me a favor and try just creating two 10 song playlists. And using those for your tests?
I did so with the following results:
Playing-now-playlist on the host is changing according to the smartlist selection on my iPod.
Playing-now-playlist on the iPod remains in the state after the app has started.
It never changes.
Not even if i play a different smartlist on the host.
After a selection change of the iPod smartlist, the playing now smartlist of the iPod is in an invalid state (because it doesn't change).
No title can then be selected from the list.
In landscape view all is working well.
Skipping titles is much faster for me now!
Fred
-
It never changes.
That is bizarre. I just tried it here and switched Smartlists 10 times. 5 on the host and 5 from the iphone and it works every time and changes the Now Playing playlist. I wonder if anyone else is seeing this same problem?
-
Tested fine for me.
I created a smartlist that includes all artists beginning with the letter A.
I created another smartlist that includes all artist beginning with the letter D.
Launched Rivermote on the ipod.
Went to smartlists tab and clicked on the D-Artist smartlist.
Playing now on ipod shows current track correctly.
Playlist tab on ipod shows all the artists beginning with D.
Changed to the smartlist tab and clicked on the A-Artist smartlist.
Playing now tab shows the new song info correctly.
Playlist tab shows all the artists beginning with A.
EVERYTHING DONE ON THE IPOD UP TILL THIS POINT.
Now in MC, I doubleclick on the D-Artist smartlist in the tree while the playlist tab is open on the ipod.
The ipod's display clears for a couple seconds and then all the D-Artists appear.
So it appears to be working bi-directionally for me.
-
Sorry,
i tried it again and again, but without success.
Even normal playlists (not smartlists) don't work.
The playlist on the iPod initializes correctly but doesn't change anymore.
No matter if changes come from the host or from the iPod itself.
There are two more little quirks:
- The volume slider initializes at 50%, no matter what the actual setting on the host is.
But the volume itself doesn't change.
- When tapping on the timeslider, the playback position is adjusted.
Then the position is rewinded for about one second.
So a little sequence is played twice.
Then all works as expected.
And another "would be nice to have":
- An option to fix the display in landscape mode.
Background:
I often rate my new songs lying in my bed.
It is hard to always hold the iPod in the correct position :P.
And the other reason is, i want to control JRiver Media Center on my CarPC.
Therefore the iPod is integrated in the steering wheel.
As you may imagine, turning the steering wheel will result in funny effects :o
Fred
-
1. Volume problem fixed. Grab the new Server EXE.
http://melloware.com/products/rivermote/rivermote10-server.zip
2. That position hiccup is because every 1 second I have to send from your PC to the iPhone the "current song position". When you move the position on the iphone it sends a signal to the PC to change to that position, however the 1 second messages are still coming from the PC. So as its changing a 1 second update message is in transit telling it to move to that position. Make sense?
-
Sorry,
i tried it again and again, but without success.
Even normal playlists (not smartlists) don't work.
The playlist on the iPod initializes correctly but doesn't change anymore.
No matter if changes come from the host or from the iPod itself.
What exact build of MC are you using?
Also you could turn on logging in the rivermote pc settings.
Do the minimum number of steps to reproduce your problem, then get those two log files to melloware.
-
Updated to latest Version of MediaCenter and RiverMote server.
But nothing changed.
Tried to change to another smartlist.
Playing now in MediaCenter changed.
Playing now in RiverMote remained the same.
Here are the logs:
rivermote.log
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >RiverMote [STARTING]
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >RiverMote Version: 1.0.0.147
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >System : Windows XP Professional
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >IP Address: 192.168.0.5
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >Processor : VIA Samuel 2
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >Display : 1024x768 pixels, 16 bpp
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >Initialize Registry Settings
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >Socket = 6002
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >Max Connections = 1
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >Compression Enabled = -1
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >Compression Percent = 40
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >Rivermote Logging Enabled = -1
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] INIT >MC Logging Enabled = -1
[03.10.2008 16:42:32] START >JRiver Server Version: 12.0.534
[03.10.2008 16:42:33] START >RiverMote [STARTED]
[03.10.2008 16:42:46] SERVER>Socket Connect: 192.168.0.34
[03.10.2008 16:42:46]COMMAND>version
[03.10.2008 16:42:46]COMMAND>clist
[03.10.2008 16:42:47]Image>Other image - C:\Programme\J River\Media Center 12\Data\Default Art\Logo.png
[03.10.2008 16:42:47]COMMAND>slist
[03.10.2008 16:42:54]COMMAND>zlist
[03.10.2008 16:43:06]COMMAND>LIST574481376
[03.10.2008 16:43:06] PLIST >Setting Active Playlist = 574481376
[03.10.2008 16:43:25] FINISH>Killing Application From Shell Hook
[03.10.2008 16:43:25] FINISH>RiverMote [EXITING]
[03.10.2008 16:43:28] SERVER>Socket Server Error: [192.168.0.34] Connection Closed Gracefully.
[03.10.2008 16:43:28] SERVER>Socket Disconnect: 192.168.0.34
[03.10.2008 16:43:29] FINISH>RiverMote [EXIT]
jrmc-event.log
[03.10.2008 16:42:28]START>RiverMote [STARTING]
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >RiverMote Version: 1.0.0.147
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >System : Windows XP Professional
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >IP Address: 192.168.0.5
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >Processor : VIA Samuel 2
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >Display : 1024x768 pixels, 16 bpp
[03.10.2008 16:42:28] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[03.10.2008 16:43:09]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_PLAYERSTATE_CHANGE 0
[03.10.2008 16:43:09]STATUS>StatusPlayer~Wait
[03.10.2008 16:43:09]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_VOLUME_CHANGED -1
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_TRACK_CHANGE 0
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_PLAYERSTATE_CHANGE 0
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]STATUS>StatusPlayer~Wait
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_VOLUME_CHANGED -1
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]EVENT>MCC: NOTIFY_PLAYERSTATE_CHANGE 0
[03.10.2008 16:43:10]STATUS>StatusPlayer~Play
[03.10.2008 16:43:29]FINISH>RiverMote [EXIT]
If it works everywhere else, then it is no problem for me, if my RiverMote playing now doesn't work.
The "position hiccup" doesn't matter, too. I only recognized it because i jump around in my songs very often.
Tanks for your attention.
Fred
-
Hmmm...that all looks good to me. Very Bizarre.
the only difference is that ZXSIX and myself did most of our testing on MC 13 and not 12. I ran on 12 for a while but everyone suggested i move to 13 since that will be the predominant version going forward. I doubt that is the problem but its the only real difference I see.
-
Just a quickie, is it at all possible to browse your library on the PC from the iPod? I have no idea if this is achievable but it would be nice to just browse for an artist instead of having to set them up in their own smartlist.
As for browsing artist and album the answer is "Yes its possible" but how soon it will get done is the unknown....
1. For the first release I wanted to get core controlling ability and ability to select from your current playlist and smartlists down tight. This is NOT an Apple Remote clone for Itunes. Apple has the fortunate circumstance of controlling both the client (iPhone Apple Remote) and the Server (Itunes). I can control the client (RiverMote) but I am at the mercy of what JRiver provides access to on the server.
2. You have to be really careful about how much data you can send back and forth to the iphone. So you can't just load your 70,000 song library and expect it to be sent to the iphone so you can navigate it. That means you have to write a really smart query engine on the back that only sends very small amounts of data back to the iphone for display. So that is planned for a future version but I can't say how far in the future.
3. I am constrained by what the JRiver API allows. I can't support every single feature of JRiver on the iphone if the API doesn't allow a function for it.
Hope that explains it!
-
I tested RiverMote very intensively on JRiver Media Center 12 with little success.
Playlist on RiverMote doesn't follow JRiver Media Center 12's Playlist.
And there are some smaller quirks.
RiverMote is working however with the Beta of JRiver Media Center 13.
But relatively often the RiverMote server bombs with an Server Error message on the iPod.
A restart of RiverMote on the iPod resolves the problem in most cases.
Even with MC13 changing the playlists on RiverMote not always works.
Sometimes there is an empty playlist and the lamdscape view shows no data and "Inactive Zone" on the top left.
Then it is impossible to control MC and RiverMote must be restarted.
Fred
-
1. What server error are you getting? Disconnected?
2. ZXSIX and I hammered RiverMote against MC12 and MC13 and no problems. And I have about 30 other users so far and no one else has reported any problems? Could it be your setup? Environment? Network latency?
-
No, not "Disconnected", only "Server Error".
Network latency? I don't think so.
It is a WiFi (N-Type) to the iPod and a Gbit Lan to the PC.
Otherwise i have no problems with my network.
I tested on two different PCs.
But my songs reside on a NAS (the MC library is on the PC).
Could this make problems?
Might be my environment if there are no problems on other machines.
Fred
-
Same version of MC on all PC's?
-
No, not "Disconnected", only "Server Error".
Network latency? I don't think so.
It is a WiFi (N-Type) to the iPod and a Gbit Lan to the PC.
Otherwise i have no problems with my network.
I tested on two different PCs.
But my songs reside on a NAS (the MC library is on the PC).
Could this make problems?
Might be my environment if there are no problems on other machines.
Fred
OK well its not network latency. :) How about can you try it on a PC and just use a small library of a couple of local albums not stored on the NAS? That will help us figure out whether it is your NAS or not. I run with a 750GB external USB drive for my catalog and haven't had any problems but I know NAS's are different animals!!!
-
Sometimes there is an empty playlist and the lamdscape view shows no data and "Inactive Zone" on the top left.
Fred
This happens as rivermote is retrieving and caching the data for the playlists from the database.
It shows a blank white screen while it's working. Once it gets all the data, then it displays everything at once.
Under the playlists tree in Media Center, how many individual playlists do you have (drill down and include ALL of them)?
Also put 5 songs in the playing now list in MC prior to connecting with the ipod.
This should then load the initial playlist quickly, then try switching to a different playlist after waiting for 10 seconds.
Melloware, how about getting Fred the instructions to test with putty?
See how long an slist command takes.
Should be no longer than 10 seconds due to the limit we set.
I'm headed to work in Houston for a few days so can't test anymore until the weekend.
-
Had no time for further tests but i have an idea :).
I switched to the playlist on the iPod very soon after choosing from the iPod smartlists i.e. while the playlist was loading (showing an empty list and 0/0 on top).
Afterwards the "Inactive Zone" came up when switching to landscape view and didn't go away until restart of RiverMote.
Also the playlist remained empty when switching back.
Might be i switched too fast?
Fred
-
Fred,
I will be really interested to see the results of you just testing with a 10 song playlist and switching to a 10 song playlist.
Also here is a new version:
http://melloware.lostlands.net/download/warez/rivermote10-server.zip
It adds a new Setting called "Verbose Logging Enabled" which if you turn it on will show you every single Socket command coming in or out of RiverMote so it should help us figure out what is going on!!!
-
First i want to thank you for this app.
I have been waiting for an app like this.
Nearly all things i use works, only one point not.
-> Options -> Startup Actions -> "Start playing current Playlist"
don't work any more after start over RiverMote Server
Andrew
-
First i want to thank you for this app.
I have been waiting for an app like this.
Nearly all things i use works, only one point not.
-> Options -> Startup Actions -> "Start playing current Playlist"
don't work any more after start over RiverMote Server
Andrew,
2 things....
1. Thanks for the kind words! I hope you can say something similar in an Apple AppStore review?
2. That appears to be a feature not implemented in JRiver. I start the application using the COM object and it must not go through its normal startup routine because I have just verified what you said. If I start MC normally it starts playing, if I start using RiverMote Server it does not. Let me investigate to see if I can get to that option in the COM object and start playing if its checked in Rivermote.
IF we don't want to bog these forums down we can always use my own forums...
http://forum.melloware.com (http://forum.melloware.com)
-
Found the time now to test again with MC13.
Results:
All is working well, if the songs are located on an internal drive.
RiverMote works fast then.
If the songs are located on the NAS, then it takes a long time until playlists are filled, especially long ones.
With playlists of 10 songs there is no problem any more.
Playlists synchronize now in both directions.
With the new RiverMote server installed i could reproduce a server error.
Here is the shortened logfile:
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >RiverMote [STARTING]
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >RiverMote Version: 1.0.0.151
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >System : Windows XP Professional
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >IP Address: 192.168.0.88
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >Processor : Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU T7400 @ 2.16GHz
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >Display : 1920x1130 pixels, 32 bpp
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] START >Initialize Registry Settings
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Socket = 6002
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Max Connections = 1
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Compression Enabled = -1
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Compression Percent = 50
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Rivermote Logging Enabled = -1
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >MC Logging Enabled = -1
[09.10.2008 19:16:07] INIT >Verbose Logging Enabled = -1
[09.10.2008 19:16:08] START >JRiver Server Version: 13.0.36
[09.10.2008 19:16:08] START >RiverMote [STARTED]
[09.10.2008 19:16:13] SERVER>Socket Connect: 192.168.0.34
[09.10.2008 19:16:14]COMMAND>version
[09.10.2008 19:16:14]COMMAND>clist
[09.10.2008 19:16:14] SOCKET>CLEARCURRENTPLAYLIST
[09.10.2008 19:16:14] SOCKET>Playlist~399~Acoustic~Vol. 1~Turin Brakes «» Underdog (Save Me)~3:30~160kbps~Acoustic~2002~~~~
[09.10.2008 19:16:14] SOCKET>Playlist~398~Acoustic~Vol. 1~Coldplay «» Don't Panic~2:15~160kbps~Acoustic~2002~~~~
[09.10.2008 19:16:14] SOCKET>Playlist~397~Acoustic~Vol. 1~Stereophonics «» Handbags and Gladrags~4:43~160kbps~Acoustic~2002~~~~
[09.10.2008 19:16:14] SOCKET>Playlist~396~Acoustic~Vol. 1~Badly Drawn Boy «» Once Around the Block~3:42~160kbps~Acoustic~2002~~~~
.
.
.
[09.10.2008 19:25:04] SOCKET>StatusPlayer~Play
[09.10.2008 19:25:04] SOCKET>KeepAlive
[09.10.2008 19:25:04]COMMAND>LIST538305324
[09.10.2008 19:25:04] SOCKET>StatusPlayer~Play
[09.10.2008 19:25:04] SERVER>Socket Server Error: [192.168.0.34] Cannot create file "C:\Programme\J River\Media Center 13\rivermote.log". Der Prozess kann nicht auf die Datei zugreifen, da sie von einem anderen Prozess verwendet wird
//Translation: The process isn't able to access the file, because it is used by another process.
[09.10.2008 19:25:04] SERVER>Socket Disconnect: 192.168.0.34
[09.10.2008 19:25:32] FINISH>RiverMote [EXITING]
[09.10.2008 19:25:52] FINISH>Killing Application From Shell Hook
After killing RiverMote (by clicking Exit) RiverMote used 100% of processor power and could only be terminated by shutting off the computer.
Otherwise there were no problems left for me ;D.
Fred
-
That is great news!!!!
As for the error, it looks like a process had a lock on the rivermote.log file when you tried to run again it couldn't establish a lock. very strange. You can always turn logging off now that you have diagnosed your problems!
-
Just purchased & installed in on my Iphone (16 GB 1st gen, 2.0.1 firmware, MC 12 on Vista Home Premium x86) and it works well!
Some thoughts based on the brief time I spent with it so far:
- It doesn't show all the smartlists I have, but about 40 or so that seem to be picked randomly among the ~200 I have in MC; as I can't seem to pick standard playlists (only smartlists) I hope I can browse more of them?
- It would be helpful if the Smartlist view supports folder hierarchy like in MC (e.g. I have the smartlist called 'Classics' under several genre Smartlist folders).
- Would it be possible to control volume using the hardware buttons when the app is active?
- I love being able to adjust rating on the fly in horizontal mode; makes for a great way to review & rate freshly imported music
- Volume and position sliders are a bit jerky
- Giving volume control a full width horizontal slider and using the extra space for bigger prev/next buttons (horizontal mode size is just right) and maybe add a button to toggle the shuffle states? Also, with Play/Pause present I won't be using the stop button much.
- Since I installed Rivermote server, my MC app is constantly in the background (clicking the window itself doesn't bring it to the foreground/focus). Only way to enter MC is by alt-tab or clicking it in the task bar
- If you could find space to add not just the length of the track but also current position (e.g. '1:32 of 3:42') and perhaps the position in now playing (e.g. 'track 14 of 225')?
It's already a great app that is going to increase my MC usage considerably - showed it to my girlfriend and she mentioned she would also like to use it so the acceptance factor is there too. Now if only I can convince some friends to abandon iTunes for the much better MC!
Keep up the great work!
-
Just purchased & installed in on my Iphone (16 GB 1st gen, 2.0.1 firmware, MC 12 on Vista Home Premium x86) and it works well!
Some thoughts based on the brief time I spent with it so far:
- It doesn't show all the smartlists I have, but about 40 or so that seem to be picked randomly among the ~200 I have in MC; as I can't seem to pick standard playlists (only smartlists) I hope I can browse more of them?
This was done for performance reasons. It picks the first x number of smartlists (I think 50) presented by the API. This was based on our testings. If it waited for all of the playlists to load it would be minutes before you could start using the app after starting it.
Our testing puts it at under 9 seconds from startup with the quantity it now loads. I can attest that most users would become impatient at anything more than 10 seconds and start clicking around the interface trying to get something to happen.
I'd suggest going through and deleting any unnecessary or redundant playlists. MC has some default ones in there that you may not use. Also check under the tree for "imported playlists". I had hundreds of those that I don't have any use for so I deleted that branch of the tree.
- Would it be possible to control volume using the hardware buttons when the app is active?
Volume is controllable on the touchscreen in both portrait and landscape modes. Not sure what you mean by hardware buttons, maybe you have an iphone. There's no hardware buttons on the touch.
- Volume and position sliders are a bit jerky
This is due to the communication between MC and the app. When you touch the slider to change it, it sends a command to MC, MC issues an update message to the app, the app moves the slider to the new position indicated by MC. Tap on the sliders and pause for 2 seconds instead of sliding them.
- Since I installed Rivermote server, my MC app is constantly in the background (clicking the window itself doesn't bring it to the foreground/focus). Only way to enter MC is by alt-tab or clicking it in the task bar
The developer did some changes here in the latest build of the pc component. Do you have the latest executable from the melloware website?
Not sure if the changes covered all areas as I haven't been home to test it much more than an evening since those changes were implemented.
-
Just purchased & installed in on my Iphone (16 GB 1st gen, 2.0.1 firmware, MC 12 on Vista Home Premium x86) and it works well!
Thank you so much for both purchasing and the compliments! A few things.
1. Would you mind doing an AppStore review? It doesn't have to be long.
2. I created a thread on my forums for Feature Requests and added your comments as the first post.
http://forum.melloware.com/viewforum.php?f=11
3. I thought we had quashed that bug where the MC window is not in the foreground but maybe not? What version of MC are you using?
4. As for Smartlists I only load 100 Smartlists and I don't include any smartlists that have 0 songs. So is it possible you have a whole bunch of lists that have no songs and I am hitting the 100 limit so I stop asking for more lists. Thus you only have the first 40 appearing that actually have songs in them? We discovered this because ZXSix had like 1000 Smarlists of M3U playlists MC had found in his directories.
You rule!
-
Hi - didn't have time this weekend to play more with RiverMote, hope to do so again.
I have another question though - I noticed the old generation Ipod Touch is on sale. If RiverMote supports two clients (my Iphone and the Ipod Touch I'm considering) connecting simultaneously, that would sweeten the deal for me... And get you another download in the app store ;-)
So do you support two (or more) clients connecting simultaneously to the server?
-
Hi - didn't have time this weekend to play more with RiverMote, hope to do so again.
I have another question though - I noticed the old generation Ipod Touch is on sale. If RiverMote supports two clients (my Iphone and the Ipod Touch I'm considering) connecting simultaneously, that would sweeten the deal for me... And get you another download in the app store ;-)
So do you support two (or more) clients connecting simultaneously to the server?
Two part answer:
1. You can definitely OWN two devices be it ipod's or iphones and use them both against the same RiverMote server. BUT....
2. As for simultaneous...I don't have two to test with but i have it set to only allow 1 connection at a time. However I created a registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Melloware\RiverMote\TcpMaxConnections that you can set to 2 to try it and it will allow 2 simultaneous connections. I am just not sure what the results will be!
-
Just wanted to let you guys know I sent version 1.1 to Apple for review.
Changelog: http://forum.melloware.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6565 (http://forum.melloware.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6565)
-
Sorry guys, Apple Nazis are as incompetent as they are mysterious. They have now rejected the update TWICE.
See here for their supposed reasons...
http://forum.melloware.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=6565
-
OK I just got word the 1.1 Update was approved by Apple and will be available within the next day!
-
Sorry to report that the 1.1 update isn't working very well for me.
First of all, the "swipe feature" is working and it is very convenient.
But it is working on the whole screen, not only at the cover art region of the screen.
In consequence, it is no longer possible to go to a certain song position, because a skip to the next song is triggered when tapping on the "timeline" slider.
Also it isn't possible to set the volume of the song.
And there is a white stripe at the bottom of the screen, that partly covers the numbers of "Time Elapsed" and "Total Time".
All that happens in landscape mode.
How can i temporarily go back to version 1.0, that wasn't perfect but worked for me?
Fred
-
Sorry Fred, thanks for the reports, I will look into those and fix immediately.
I am not seeing any of those issues in the Simulator but i am seeing them now in my phone. I wasn't during testing but I wonder if OS 2.2 screwed something up.
-
All I can say is 'wow'. What a great invention and the melding of two great technologies. Thanks for the work - I am a happy guy.
Jack
-
OK so the bugs reported by Fred in OS 2.2 have been fixed and sent to Apple for review.
My apologies, all of my testing was done on 2.0 and the bugs definitely surfaced because of the OS 2.2 update. I am now compiling and building against 2.2 going forward so if you are not on 2.2 by the time this update gets pushed out your RiverMote will not work.
-
OK I have been informed that RiverMote 1.2 has been posted by Apple to the AppStore. Hopefully all the weird quirks that appeared with OS2.2 have been solved. You will definitely need to upgrade your iPhone or iPod Touch to OS 2.2 to use this new version. Sorry about that but it was the only way I could compile to make sure it worked was to compile it for 2.2. I guess this is apple's way of forcing people to keep their OS up to date!
-
Works all fine for me now, thanks!
I still have some cosmetically wishes, that i will post on the Melloware forum.
Fred
-
I have tried the RiverMote software and I'm afraid it is too unstable to work for me. I suggest if anybody wants to remotely control their server running Media Center to install realVNC server software on their computer running the JRiver Media Center and install VNC software on their other computers on the network and on their iTouch iPods (or iPhones if you have them). You can control Media Center perfectly and both ends of the VNC software are free..
Jack
-
I have tried the RiverMote software and I'm afraid it is too unstable to work for me. I suggest if anybody wants to remotely control their server running Media Center to install realVNC server software on their computer running the JRiver Media Center and install VNC software on their other computers on the network and on their iTouch iPods (or iPhones if you have them). You can control Media Center perfectly and both ends of the VNC software are free..
Jack
What exactly is unstable for you? Have you tried our forums or submitted any bugs with what is unstable? I have many MC users on this forum and most of them that reported any issues had it solved almost immediately as to what the limitation was?
I would be glad to help you through any issues you are having or if you visit our forums you might find the answers there.
http://forum.melloware.com/viewforum.php?f=11
-
Version 1.3 has been approved and should in the AppStore in the next 24 hours.
1.3 Release Notes
----------------------------------
- Memory Leak fixed
- When changing song or playlists now focuses the Now Playing tab due to Apple UI Guidelines
-
Version 1.4 has been approved and should in the AppStore in the next 24 hours.
1.4 Release Notes
----------------------------------
- Proximity Detector option now if you want to conserve battery by turning the screen off but leaving the application running
- Hardware volume buttons now control Volume Up and Volume Down
-
Any idea if this going to still work on Apple's 3.0 firmware?
I can hold off on upgrading the touch, but there's compelling reasons to upgrade immediately on the iphone. Don't think I can wait on that one.
-
Any idea if this going to still work on Apple's 3.0 firmware?
I can hold off on upgrading the touch, but there's compelling reasons to upgrade immediately on the iphone. Don't think I can wait on that one.
Yes it will work on OS 3.0. As of May 1 Apple started testing all new apps and updates on OS 2.2.1 and OS 3.0 to make sure they work. At least that is what Apple tells me....
-
Can you rate tracks with this app? If so, I'd buy an iPhone for this app right away.
No, wait a minute. There's a new one coming soon. I'll wait a few days then :)
-
Can you rate tracks with this app? If so, I'd buy an iPhone for this app right away.
No, wait a minute. There's a new one coming soon. I'll wait a few days then :)
Yes! If you turn the phone on its side in landscape mode the screen changes to look like below. You can just click on the stars and it rates the song back on the server with that rating.
(http://melloware.com/images/rivermote-landscape.jpg)
-
Yes. Tap on the stars to rate the track.
-
Sweet. I'll have to bite the dust and get a iPhone then. I guess there's no way I can rate my own rating fields though. Just have to live with that until J River implements half star rating.
-
Sweet. I'll have to bite the dust and get a iPhone then. I guess there's no way I can rate my own rating fields though. Just have to live with that until J River implements half star rating.
You probably know by reading this forum that MC will not sync music, etc. to the iphone.
Those of use that have them are syncing to a fictitious handheld folder and then using itunes to sync that folder to the iphone.
Just wanted to make sure you're aware of that before you purchase the iphone.
Also, the new iphone model comes out next week. Supposedly better battery life, faster processor, and a video camera.
Make sure you get the 3GS instead of the 3G model unless they make it worth your while $$ wise to get the 3G.
-
Yea, I know. Have also seen that there are one or two apps that can sync more or less directly with the iPhones through iTunes. So, it will probably do for now. Even if it's not that great, the phone and remote part seams so good that I would be happy to use it for that. Got a Shuffle if the music sync is troublesome on the iPhone.
-
Those of use that have them are syncing to a fictitious handheld folder and then using itunes to sync that folder to the iphone.
Slightly out of topic... A question on that procedure, if I may... Is the "last played" date of a song listened in the iphone sync'ed back correctly to MC or is that information lost?
Thank you.
-
It's a 1-way street. MC syncs to a handheld folder, which in my case is the library source folder of itunes. Itunes syncs those songs to the iphone.
Iphone syncs back to itunes and would update the last played and last skipped info to itunes, but then that never comes back to MC. It ends there.
-
I see. Thanks for the info, zxsix.
-
I love this app! When I have a party, everyone is asking how I change tracks and so on.
The only 2 issues I have is this:
1. The volume button.. it lag's. sometimes I can "hammer" on it and it will not move. If I try 2 minutes later it moves easy... don't know why, but it felles like a bug.
2. What's even worse... the program drain my battery! FAST! I have the 1.gen and if I have a fully charged phone i can surfe the web and watch movies for hours. The battery is realy good on it. Last time I used the rivermote my phone was charged 100%, and in a couple of hours almost empty! Is there anyway of adjusting the frequency of the polls over wifi or some other thing. It would be nice with a powersavermode. Most of the time I do not need to see the seconds move, I don't need to have it up to date all the time. It would for most of the times be good enough to have just a change of cover and track info and then skip and pause/play to work. also a dimming feature so the screen don't have to be at 100% all the time. This would surly save power. THINK GREEN!! ;D
Don't know if this is possible, but it sure would be nice. having a "wired wireless remote" is a bit dull. :P
keep up the good work!
-
I love this app! When I have a party, everyone is asking how I change tracks and so on.
Thanks for the props!
1. The volume button.. it lag's. sometimes I can "hammer" on it and it will not move. If I try 2 minutes later it moves easy... don't know why, but it felles like a bug.
I have not experienced this and no one else using Rivermote has reported this yet. Weird.
2. What's even worse... the program drain my battery! FAST! I have the 1.gen and if I have a fully charged phone i can surfe the web and watch movies for hours. The battery is realy good on it. Last time I used the rivermote my phone was charged 100%, and in a couple of hours almost empty! Is there anyway of adjusting the frequency of the polls over wifi or some other thing. It would be nice with a powersavermode. Most of the time I do not need to see the seconds move, I don't need to have it up to date all the time. It would for most of the times be good enough to have just a change of cover and track info and then skip and pause/play to work. also a dimming feature so the screen don't have to be at 100% all the time. This would surly save power. THINK GREEN!! ;D
Already ahead of you... Are you using RiverMote 1.4? It has a setting called Proximity Detector Enabled. IF you turn it ON then if you put your finger over the earpiece or turn the phone face down the screen goes black just like it does when you answer a call but the app is still running. It helps save battery life.
-
My main use of MC and now Rivermote is for video.
Some of my smartlists are showing up with just a date rather than their name. Is this normal?
I only figured out my movies smartlist from the number of 'songs' in it.
Is there a way for Rivermote to distinguish between items, such as audio, video and image files? Or just use the generic "items"?
Is it possible to stop Rivermote from starting play of a smartlist when it's selected? I want to select a track/video from within the list.
Thanks for developing the app.
-
Hey fitbrit,
Do you mind posting this on our RiverMote forums? hate to make you create another account but it keeps these off the MC forums and onto the Rivermote forums.
http://forum.melloware.com/viewforum.php?f=11
I can address them there.
-
A bunch of important bug fixes have been made to the Rivermote Server EXE. Please download if you are a Rivermote user...
http://melloware.com/download/ (http://melloware.com/download/)
-
I bought an Ipod Touch a few days ago and was hoping to browse artist/album in MC like iTunes. Like others, I found out that RiverMote is limited to smaller playlists after buying and trying. Of course I should have read the material properly before buying...
I understand the reason for this though, but it would sure be nice if it was resolved in some way. Controlling MC just like one controles iTunes with Ipod/Iphone would be awesome. If it's not possible in any way without crashing the Ipod, perhaps one should try to get someone else to make a MP3 player that's suited for Melloware and MC?
Your website says the playlist can contain 1000 songs, but I'm seeing a limit of 500. Why?
It would also be nice to have a volume control that was increased and decreased by smaller steps. With my Lynx card it seems to go up/down by 6 or 7 db. That's too much in my opinion.
-
You can increase the song count if you right click the RiverMote tray icon and bump the number. 500 is the default.
The volume issue is all controlled through the MC API so unless there is some way to tweak the volume steps there I don't know how to solve that one?
-
You can increase the song count if you right click the RiverMote tray icon and bump the number. 500 is the default.
The volume issue is all controlled through the MC API so unless there is some way to tweak the volume steps there I don't know how to solve that one?
I assume you mean the RiverMote tray icon that's installed on the computer. I couldn't find a way to bumb it up by using the right mouse click.
The volume issue doesn't seem to be only related to MC. I also have a Logitech Harmony remote and a cordless Logitech dinovo Edge keybard that can control the volume. With Harmony (using Intellliremote) I'm getting steps by 9-10 dB. With the keyboard I'm getting steps by 2-3 dB. So it differs from device I'm using.
-
I assume you mean the RiverMote tray icon that's installed on the computer. I couldn't find a way to bumb it up by using the right mouse click.
When you run Rivermote you will see a little RED tray icon. When you connect from your iPhone the iCon turns Blue. When you disconnect it turns red again. Right click that Icon in the tray and choose "Settings...".
Thye volume issue doesn't seem to be only related to MC. I also have a Logitech Harmony remote and a cordless Logitech dinovo Edge keybard that can control the volume. With Harmony (using Intellliremote) I'm getting steps by 9-10 dB. With the keyboard I'm getting steps by 2-3 dB. So it differs from device I'm using.
Now that is interesting, 3 different apps bumping your volume 3 different increments? Intelliremote simply sends the Volume UP and Volume Down MS API commands that is supposed to bump the sound 1 notch or down 1 notch. If you bring up the Volume Control for Windows in the tray and then use Intelliremote you should see it only go up or down 1 notch. I think what is happening is that is controlling Windows Master Volume but if you go into Control Panel-> Sound And Audio Devices you will see it lists different inputs and applications and their own custom sound level. So if you have MC set really low then 1 bump in Windows Master Volume is going to sound like 9-10DB in MC. Since Vista each audio input is independently controlled.
-
River 1.6 has been released to the AppStore.
1.6 Release Notes
------------------------------------------------------
- UIRequiresPersistentWIFI flag so your WIFI radio does not automatically turn off after 30 minutes even if you are using it.
- Using new Apple Reachability API the app reliably waits until you have a WIFI connection before trying to reconnect after sleep
-
Saw this a few days ago. Thanks!
I have used XPtunes in the past and though I can't browse my entire library, the GUI in this is much more refined and reliable imo.
-
Any chance this will be available on Android Market?
Thanks,
Osho
-
Any chance this will be available on Android Market?
Thanks,
Osho
Osho, I have been doing some prototyping to see if I can get something similar ported to Android. It is going slowly!
-
I hope it's getting there one day. I ended up buying a HTC Hero instead of a iPhone. Boy am I glad I did that. Android is just going to keep on growing in popularity. People are getting tired to the locked down iPhone it seems :)
-
Hi, just wanted to say thanks for this app, I think its just brilliant!! especially love the new function of proximity detection.
I have 1 "nice to have" suggestion. Album art is best in vertical view, but the rating stars is in horisontal only. Would it at all be possible to have the stars input as a "visible on tap" in the lower edge on top of the abum art in vertical view?
Oh, and you mentioned 1.6 was out, but in the info it says its 1.5, and I find no updates in app store...?
-
Hi, just wanted to say thanks for this app, I think its just brilliant!! especially love the new function of proximity detection.
Thanks!
I have 1 "nice to have" suggestion. Album art is best in vertical view, but the rating stars is in horisontal only. Would it at all be possible to have the stars input as a "visible on tap" in the lower edge on top of the album art in vertical view?
Let me see what I can do...the Portrait screen is pretty crowded right now.
Oh, and you mentioned 1.6 was out, but in the info it says its 1.5, and I find no updates in app store...?
1.6 is definitely out but it is for OS 3.1 or higher so my guess is you have not upgraded to the latest OS firmware?
-
I have suggested the same thing about ratings in Portrait mode. What about a star that is a collapsible/expandable menu that expands when pressed and shows all 5 stars?
-
I am more a whole album man than playlist man and am now feeling disappointed and sorry about purchased Rivermote before finding out there is no library browsing function.
May I ask if there is any refund policy for this purchase over the Apple app store?
Or, better, will library browsing by album / artist be available soon?
Regards,
ninekit
-
I am more a whole album man than playlist man and am now feeling disappointed and sorry about purchased Rivermote before finding out there is no library browsing function.
May I ask if there is any refund policy for this purchase over the Apple app store?
Or, better, will library browsing by album / artist be available soon?
Regards,
ninekit
Unfortunately due to the lack of database querying functionality in the JRiver API's Artist and Album browsing is not really possible. It is a limitation of the API.
As for a rebate you must contact Apple only, Apple does not give me any information on users or who purchased my app. All refunds go through them.
-
Little joy after contacting Apple via the iTunes interface. :-\
-
Little joy after contacting Apple via the iTunes interface. :-\
I wish I could help. Unfortunately "Big Brother" Apple is your only recourse. They give me no records of purchasers and no way to offer refunds. They take the entire user -> developer communication out of the equation. They control the entire transaction 100%. And they rule with an iron fist...
-
Did I understand correctly that it is not possible to search for an album and play it?
What does 'no library browsing' mean? does ir mean I can only use playlists and not actually browse? please help me understand... thanks
I am more a whole album man than playlist man and am now feeling disappointed and sorry about purchased Rivermote before finding out there is no library browsing function.
May I ask if there is any refund policy for this purchase over the Apple app store?
Or, better, will library browsing by album / artist be available soon?
Regards,
ninekit
-
Did I understand correctly that it is not possible to search for an album and play it?
What does 'no library browsing' mean? does ir mean I can only use playlists and not actually browse? please help me understand... thanks
That is correct. You can control your 'Now Playing' playlist and you can load new playlists into the Now Playing window but you cannot currently just browse for an album and start to play it.
-
That is correct. You can control your 'Now Playing' playlist and you can load new playlists into the Now Playing window but you cannot currently just browse for an album and start to play it.
But can I add to the 'now playing' playlist a specific song from my library (that I searched by name/artist/album for example)
OR
is it that the only possible way to play anything is through pre defined playlists ?
thanks again!
-
But can I add to the 'now playing' playlist a specific song from my library (that I searched by name/artist/album for example)
NOPE! There is no searching or browsing or anything and no way to add to the current playlist.
is it that the only possible way to play anything is through pre defined playlists ?
YES! you can only select another predefined playlist from the server and load it into the Now Playing.
-
clarified, thank you!
-
There is no searching or browsing or anything and no way to add to the current playlist.
I don't think you're right about this. You should be able to search for content and add it to playing now.
You could send matt at jriver an e-mail with details of what you're doing and what you want to do.
-
I don't think you're right about this. You should be able to search for content and add it to playing now.
You could send matt at jriver an e-mail with details of what you're doing and what you want to do.
OK will do. I have scoured the API documentation on the Wiki and found nothing. Maybe it is undocumented. I will email matt.
-
I don't think you're right about this. You should be able to search for content and add it to playing now.
You could send matt at jriver an e-mail with details of what you're doing and what you want to do.
Just an update for those who have been following this thread. After conversing with Matt from JRiver he confirmed the API does not have the functionality that I need to accomplish my goals.
-
Not without some work on your part, I believe.
-
Not without some work on your part, I believe.
Unless I am taking what Matt said the wrong way, here was his exact quote:
"The library grouping system (view schemes) to produce lists or artists, albums, or anything else isn't currently exposed via the COM SDK."
Isn't currently exposed means that functionality is not available to developers through the API does it not? I just don't want to mislead people that the functionality they are asking for cannot be accomplished with the current API state. And that is something as simple as...
"Show me all Artists with the word "DJ" anywhere in their name" etc....
-
Matt said this:
The library grouping system (view schemes) to produce lists or artists,
albums, or anything else isn't currently exposed via the COM SDK.
Groupings don't have immutable integer IDs in our database, so you'd
probably need to make your own ID -> Value map at runtime. It can also
work to use a 64-bit hash as an ID since this only gives a collision every
~2^32 values.
Which I interpret as "it's possible".
But it would take work on your part and may not be worth the trouble.
Matt,
Correct me if you disagree.
Jim
-
Have you explored all the possibilities here?
http://wiki.jrmediacenter.com/index.php/DevZone
-
Have you explored all the possibilities here?
http://wiki.jrmediacenter.com/index.php/DevZone
Of course. I have meticulously poured over every aspect of your documentation on what can be accomplished through the COM SDK. I would never answer a question blindly without doing my research first.
I will try and explain this for the non-developers out there.... A COM object is basically the "contract" between two applications. It exposes the functionality that any other applications wish to use and communicate by. So that contract defines what is and what isn't possible for developers to do. So for example say Google created a COM object but it only exposed one method that was "googleSearch(string)" that returned a collection of web search results for whatever string you put in the search. Great, but then another developer comes along and says "I need to use Google Maps to look up a location on a map by zip code". Well if there is not "googleMaps(location)" function exposed by Google COM object, then that developer cannot accomplish his task no matter how hard he tries.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Component_Object_Model
-
Hi,
I also think it would be good for J River to specifically expose API methods to allow direct querying of the media library. J River has good sound quality and is a flexible all-in-one package. However, there is no reason to keep a monitor, keyboard, mouse, or a remote control hooked up to the PC in my listening room when devices like the iTouch can be used as remote controls for a large variety of applications.
If you add library browsing into the API, J River would become a valid competitor to products like Squeezecenter / Squeezebox, and would include greater functionality and flexibility.
Thank you,
Alan
-
I second aljordan and may the force with whom wish this to come true! ;)
-
I too believe the MC product would benefit largely from full-on app for iphone remote control, and those proving such an app will surely have a huge number of MC users with iphone/touch-ipods buying it - MC does not seem to be interested in developing such an app (why?), so there's room for people like melloware to market such a product.
-
I too believe the MC product would benefit largely from full-on app for iphone remote control, and those proving such an app will surely have a huge number of MC users with iphone/touch-ipods buying it - MC does not seem to be interested in developing such an app (why?), so there's room for people like melloware to market such a product.
Yeah +1
Its the same with the squeezebox devices. The iphone/touch apps are developed by third party developers and are very popular. Just look at ipeng it is a very complete iphone app that can even access all custom menus provided by squeezecenter plugins ( http://penguinlovesmusic.de/ ). If jriver could extent their api so that rivermote and maybe others could do something similar that would be wonderful!
peter
-
I agree with those asking for full library browsing in RiverMote. I purchased MC 14 and RiverMote. I'd hoped I'd be able to work around the limitations of the RiverMote app, but it didn't work out that way. I need a fully functioning remote. As a result I've gone back to iTunes and Remote, which feels like a step backwards.
I don't understand why MC is apparently unwilling to do this.
-
Sadly, I believe I'm through with MC... I need a full-on remote and iphone sync capabilities.
Could MC do all of this? Of course... people like melloware and other develop stuff that do the trick but are, in the end, workarounds, in which support and functionalities are both necessarily limited.
This is a bit offtopic so head here if you care to read - http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=55412.0
cheers
-
I'm a bit confused about this?
JRiver has always been developer-friendly.
What is going on?
Melloware makes a great plugin that needs some help; when the iPod sync plugin was in the works Matt was actively make suggestions and input.
Not sure where the bottleneck is on this one .... ?
-
MC,
I think you need to seriously look at this. Giving access to the library will HELP your sales in the long run. The iphone will be the primary phone if not now but in the future for a lot of your customers and having limited access to your library will hurt you in the long run.
I'm using itunes because of this but like rivermote much more save for this deficiency. This is something you really need to consider and revise.
-
jroyale,
Even if MC adds support I would prefer to create a product for MC similar to another product I have already made that has incredible power to use the native Apple Remote application to control MC. Besides the one drawback you listed the Apple Remote is a superior UI application for controlling music. Plus there is an Android client too so from one server side application I would be able to support controlling MC from iPhone, iPod Touch, AND all Android devices without maintaining 2 codebases! Using something called DACP...
But that is all vaporware without the API access. :0
-
Consider the more open and broad based standard, DLNA (http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=55670.0).
-
DNLA is for streaming and controlling on remote devices. The goal of Rivermote is to control the music/movie playing on your HTPC already connected to a TV.
And as far as I know, no DNLA apps have been accepted by Apple yet. Just like VOIP apps Apple puts a strong vice on any apps that do any kind of streaming.
-
The goal of Rivermote is to control the music/movie playing on your HTPC already connected to a TV.
It is possible to do that with DLNA. The terminology is odd. MC would be a renderer and your app would be a controller. MC, in build 127, can render (playback) from another copy of MC, using DLNA.
-
It is possible to do that with DLNA. The terminology is odd. MC would be a renderer and your app would be a controller. MC, in build 127, can render (playback) from another copy of MC, using DLNA.
Interesting... Though if my memory serves me DNLA can only list files in a DNLA share? No reference to Metadata stored inside tags. I believe it just returns you one giant list of all the media files exposed in the DLNA share?
No search ability or querying ability to show all Artists that start with 'MC' so it would display...
MC Hammer
MC Skat
And then be able to click on MC Hammer and drill into the albums of MC Hammer and then into the songs on one of those albums? Is that true or can the DLNA Renderer interface handle these capabilities?
-
Doesn't xptunes allow browsing the mc database? Doesn't this suggest that the option exists and if so, could this logic not be adopted here also?
-
Doesn't xptunes allow browsing the mc database? Doesn't this suggest that the option exists and if so, could this logic not be adopted here also?
I contacted the XPTunes developer. He gave me the way he achieves it but it depends solely on how users have their View Schemes set up. So say you have a View Scheme that doesn't contain ALL of your data then it will never be found. He essentially caches the entire MC data by looping through the View Scheme one tree node at a time storing the data.
-
Interesting... Though if my memory serves me DNLA can only list files in a DNLA share? No reference to Metadata stored inside tags. I believe it just returns you one giant list of all the media files exposed in the DLNA share?
No search ability or querying ability to show all Artists that start with 'MC' so it would display...
MC Hammer
MC Skat
And then be able to click on MC Hammer and drill into the albums of MC Hammer and then into the songs on one of those albums? Is that true or can the DLNA Renderer interface handle these capabilities?
Those are possible with DLNA. You might get the build from the top of the MC14 board and experiment with it.
-
Hi, any updates for the DLNA route?
I am still eagerly waiting for library access using RiverMote.
-
Please, wherever the matter lies, get library browsing to function with MC!
-
DNLA is for streaming and controlling on remote devices. The goal of Rivermote is to control the music/movie playing on your HTPC already connected to a TV.
And as far as I know, no DNLA apps have been accepted by Apple yet. Just like VOIP apps Apple puts a strong vice on any apps that do any kind of streaming.
Is'nt that what Plugplayer does - ie works as a DNLA app for audio /video etc (and works with MC), and thats an Apple approved app ?
-
Is'nt that what Plugplayer does - ie works as a DNLA app for audio /video etc (and works with MC), and thats an Apple approved app ?
I did not know about Plugplayer but it looks awesome! I am still not sure if it does full text searching of your library though? I think it allows Remote Control similar to what RiverMote does but I will definitely check this out! Thanks for the tip.
-
Plugplayer works for me, but it is read only, meaning I can't update the rating field of the playing song like Rivermote does.
I'm betting the DLNA spec doesn't offer that functionality.
-
.
I'm betting the DLNA spec doesn't offer that functionality.
I think melloware has a great opportunity here. It could combine dlna with the jrmc api. With the latest version of jrmc you can browse the mc library really fast with plugplayer. Similar to ipeng with squeezecenter. But plugplayer and its kind are very basic. Rivermote by interfacing with the regular jrmc api could give the user a much richer experience. I would like to point again to ipeng for what could be achieved.
peter
-
I think melloware has a great opportunity here. It could combine dlna with the MC api. With the latest version of MC you can browse the mc library really fast with plugplayer. Similar to ipeng with squeezecenter. But plugplayer and its kind are very basic. Rivermote by interfacing with the regular MC api could give the user a much richer experience. I would like to point again to ipeng for what could be achieved.
peter
Peter, merging the two API's is what I was kind of trying to avoid. It makes the code twice as complex. If anyone out there is an experienced iPhone/UpNP/DLNA developer I would be more the happy to work with them to modify RiverMote source code to achieve this.
No doubt iPeng is AWESOME, I have two friends that use it religiously. I have spoken with the lead developer of iPeng a few times and he is a very nice guy. I wanted to share coding ideas and get some ideas from him. Unfortunately the difference is the iPeng is directly accessing Squeezecenter through a TCP socket interface API.
-
Consider the more open and broad based standard, DLNA (http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=55670.0).
Sorry Jim if I take your comment too far out of context but the "broad based standard" in my non-programming thinking is part of the problem with UPnP/DNLA. I have had great success with few servers like JRiver and TVersity but have tried nearly every other one out their to find them comming up short as servers. JRiver's is excellent but most often my experience has been it is the limitation of the Render not the Server. It would be nice to have something that worked hand-in-glove with MC.
Mellonware, I do not know if you would truely consider a DNLA app like Plug Player but tuned to work with MC. I purchased PP, and as a Render with MC as the server it works great. As a control point like what Rivermote does it leaves alot to be desired in functionality and I found works inconsistently with differing Win OSs and Renders. Of course at this point I do not care much about the other Renders, I want MC to be controled like PP is meant to do and does with other Renders.
I am no expert but seems the industry is headed to DNLA/UPnP and if you developed the skills and the App you might have a wider audience than just our MC community. Just my thoughts.... but I sure would like to see your talent develop the Rivermote to something that is fully fuctionality either with the opening of the API or the DNLA route. Hope you haven't given up.
-
...
I am no expert but seems the industry is headed to DNLA/UPnP and if you developed the skills and the App you might have a wider audience than just our MC community. Just my thoughts....
Take a look at the Melloware website: http://melloware.com/
From the looks of it, they already have an audience wider than our MC community. I feel fortunate that they have even bothered to create the Rivermote software in the first place! Nevertheless you're right, it would behoove any a/v software programmer to stay on top of DLNA.
-
I am using MC much and much less these days because of the lack of a good remote control function with my iPod Touch.
Just come back and wonder if there is any new enhancement / improvement in this aspect?
What I am after is something equally good as compared to iTunes + its remote app on iPod Touch / iPhone.
Regards,
ninekit
-
I think it is as good if not better than iTunes save for the search function. I like the zone management as well the the reshuffle function. You may say ya but iTunes shuffles, it does but when you go into the playlist it doesn't show as it is playing, you never know what you are getting next. Whereas with rivermoet it reshuffles the songs then shows them in play order.
I will say sometimes connectivity is an issue and of course search function is huge. I just can't understand why these 2 can't get together to solve the issue. It benefits both parties.
-
While I enjoy WebRemote, Rivermote after a long hiatus due to moving and a rebuild is back on my system. It's is really sharp, streamlined, a native iPhone app, and lacks only a search function. What a great app. I get cover art and can do ratings (maybe this can be done in WR?).
So now that JR have added a Search to their Webremote. Will this functionality be in the API?
Seriously, 3rd party apps like this only enhance MC and make it more popular to a wider user base.
-
I'm now completely off Rivermote and therefore MC. I'm not sure who should share the blame for this but in any event advances in itunes, save for the zone managment, have up'd the anty.
Again I'm not laying blame at the feet of everybody but remember, some of the pie is better than none of the pie and if 3rd party apps like this run into roadblocks, all will suffer.
-
That's too bad. Rivermote is/was top notch, but the focus issue was a real problem (wish all the API fuss could all be worked out, oh well).
-
I just installed RIVERMOTE on my IPAD, works well, one thing however :
"The playing-now-playlist does not reinitialize if a new smartlist is chosen."
Do you have any solution
Thanks
-
Ijust installed RIVERMOTE on my IPAD, works well, one thing however :
"The playing-now-playlist does not reinitialize if a new smartlist is chosen."
Do you have any solution
Thanks
jocar,
I would direct all tech support questions to the RiverMote forums...
http://forum.melloware.com/viewforum.php?f=11 (http://forum.melloware.com/viewforum.php?f=11)
Also I have compiled and sent to Apple a new version certified for OS 4.0 and fixes another bug people have reported.
-
Rivermote 4.0.1 has just been approved for the AppStore. It fixes a few bugs including OS 3. and 4.