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[Vocalpoint]

Happy New Year!

Time to try and figure out exactly what is going on with my MC installs - specifically when JRemote is used by any client device.

First - the layout as it exists right now - our "master" copy of MC is installed on a dedicated HTPC (Windows 7 Pro) rackmounted in our media room. This instance of MC is ALWAYS on and ALWAYS running in Theatre Mode and is used to playback our digital movies in the media room.

When we want to watch a movie downstairs "on the big screen" - I simply fire up our Logitech Touch remote and select the "Watch Digital Movie" activity - this fires up our projector, lowers the screen and turns on the Oppo BDP-105 (which the HTPC is plugged into using HDMI). Long story short - because the HTPC instance of MC is always on and always in Theater mode - when this activity completes it's cycle - the screen is down, MC (Theater Mode) is displayed and I use our MC remote to browse the Video area. Select a movie and we are golden.

When the movie is done - I hit the "big green button" on the MC remote - which takes MC back to home base - displaying the standard Theater Mode welcome screen. I then hit Off on the Logitech remote - which turns off all the gear in sequence until we want to watch another movie another day.

Important - The server instance of MC is always running and always on Video mode and always in Theater view.


Now - this HTPC instance of MC - is accessed by 4 Windows client PCs - which are used exclusively for audio. We can fire up any one of these PC's and then immediately connect the "media server" instance of MC and all is good.

The trouble starts when we access the "server" instance of MC using JRemote. This became more apparent this Christmas - as Santa brought a snazzy new Bose Soundlink bluetooth speaker - so suddenly my copies of JRemote (iPhone/iPad) and my wife's copy of JRemote - are front and center as we can now use JRemote to send our MC library music to an iPhone or iPad and playback using the new speaker.

We have used JRemote several times over the Christmas break and while it seems to do it's thing correctly (play music to the Bose on demand) - I have noticed some real annoying problems back on the actual HTPC instance of MC.

Yesterday - the wife purchased JRemote for her phone and then dragged the new Bose speaker into the kitchen to try it out. She fired up the new Adele album via JRemote and messed around in the kitchen for an hour. When Adele was done - so was her JRemote session. We went out to do some errands and came back several hours later.

The last night - it was movie time. So I go to spark up my "Watch Digital Movie" activity as per above - and everything came to life. But as soon as MC (via the HTPC) appeared on screen - it was totally frozen on some obscure Audio Screen. I bashed a few buttons on the MC remote and then watched in pain as Theater View looked like it was operating in a vat of molasses. No amount of button pressing could get it to come out of whatever weird ass state it was in so I had to completely restart the HTPC to get the server instance to actually behave properly.

This happens every time I use JRemote for anything.

Can anyone please enlighten me as what is going on? What is JRemote doing that causes my server instance of MC - which I need to stay put in Theater Mode - to move way off the Theater Mode home screen and out into some unrecoverable state?

Why can I access the HTPC instance of MC on any PC in the joint and it leaves the screen state and running state of the MC Media server exactly as I left it after the last movie?

I am hoping it is some setting that I have wrong becuase I cannot believe I am the only one running like this. Also - I have no idea how to even start to get the HTPC to behave like a proper "device" that the Logitech can control - so that's the reason I leave it in Theater mode 24x7x365.

[AndrewFG]

Try setting up your Oppo so that it does NOT use energy saving mode when it is switched "off". That might keep its HDMI input awake and therefore still visible to the HTPC.

[Vocalpoint]

Try setting up your Oppo so that it does NOT use energy saving mode when it is switched "off". That might keep its HDMI input awake and therefore still visible to the HTPC.

Not sure what this has to do with JRemote taking control of the HTPC MC display?

VP

[jmone]

Could it be that one of the JRemote had been set to control the HTPC at some point instead of the Bose?  I've done that a few time by mistake.  Pressing away in the Remote wondering what is happening while the HTPC has been responding to all my inadvertent button pressing.  What also happens with me is if the Wireless Speaker (DLNA in this case) is no visible to the remote when I turn it on it will revert to the main zone.

[Vocalpoint]

Could it be that one of the JRemote had been set to control the HTPC at some point instead of the Bose?

Well - that is clearly what is happening here - but what have I done to "enable" JRemote to control the HTPC?

Maybe I am completely misunderstanding exactly how JRemote works. I was under the impression that it simply gets it's data from the "media server" instance that is running and does it's thing - on the local device - with the data it gets.

What it looks like is happening is - press a button on JRemote and the actual running instance of MC (on the server) starts jumping around - reacting the button presses on the JRemote instance.

I do not need or want that to ever happen. If anyone knows what I have done (or not done) to cause this annoying behavior - please let me know.

Could it be the option (On JRemote) - Server Follows App Zone Changes?

This item is set On on my iPhone. Which would mean the server will change zones if I change zones on the iPhone?

I need my running "Theater View" instance of MC on the HTPC to stay exactly the way I left it - and have JRemote do it's thing while never changing anything UI-wise on the HTPC.

VP

[jmone]

In JRemote, swipe out the menu and look at the Bottom Item.  If you click on it you can see the various Zones you can control, one of which will be your HTPC.  Don't select that one!

[jmone]

Also on the HTPC there is under Options --> Media Network--> Advanced--> DLNA Renderer (allow other DLNA devices to control Media Center) but I just tested but this does not stop Remotes (which use MCWS) from controlling Media Center.  Maybe a feature request?

[AndrewFG]

Not sure what this has to do with JRemote taking control of the HTPC MC display?

If the PCs HDMI output is not connected to an actual device (the Oppo is off) there will be no handshaking, so the PC will assume that that display is not functioning, and it will select another "display" output (having different settings) by default. And when you reconnect something to the HDMI output again, you may see whatever was being shown on the "other" display.

[Vocalpoint]

If the PCs HDMI output is not connected to an actual device (the Oppo is off) there will be no handshaking, so the PC will assume that that display is not functioning, and it will select another "display" output (having different settings) by default. And when you reconnect something to the HDMI output again, you may see whatever was being shown on the "other" display.

Hmm...interesting theory. And one I will certainly test today.

But then again - even with everything off including the Oppo - when I connect to the HTPC via remote desktop - first thing I see upon connection is Theater View being displayed correctly as it should be.

I am wondering - if your theory is correct - why I would not see MC being stuck in some weird Audio menu area if JRemote had somehow "navigated" my HTPC away from home base?

VP

[Vocalpoint]

In JRemote, swipe out the menu and look at the Bottom Item.  If you click on it you can see the various Zones you can control, one of which will be your HTPC.  Don't select that one!

When I fire up JRemote - I see three "zones"...two are my own - Video and Audio. I also see my Marantz AV7701 advertising itself as a play destination (presumably by DLNA) and there is a fourth zone (Oppo BDP-105) that appears - but only when the Oppo is on. And of course - JRemote gives an option of playing to "this device".

However - anytime we use JRemote to play music to the Bose Soundlink - play to "this Device" is the choice we make. Anything else is pointless - so I am puzzled as to how/why any other zone could possibly come into play by a JRemote logon. Or cause the HTPC instance of MC to "follow along" as we select music from an iPhone via JRemote.

I am going to test this today - extensively - and see exactly what is causing the HTPC running instance of MC to change.

VP