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[DocLotus]

Why does Properties not follow the currently playing file ??

It is very irritating to have to keep clicking on the currently playing file to update Properties. This should be totally automatic.

[gkerber]

Why does Properties not follow the currently playing file ??

It is very irritating to have to keep clicking on the currently playing file to update Properties. This should be totally automatic.

Funny you should mention it...  I just found out how to dock the properties window, and found it does not follow the playing now and was going to ask the same question.

Following playing now is the whole point, I'd guess...

[Doof]

Um, no it shouldn't.

I'd be mighty peeved if I was listening to a song and decided to add lyrics to it, so I opened it's properties, then hopped on the web to retrieve the lyrics, came back and pasted them in only to find that MC had magically changed which file I was working on.

For example.

[gkerber]

Okay, I see your point.

When displaying an album image in a docked Properties window, I do what the image to be what is playing now.

So maybe displaying an album image for the current playing album should not be linked to the properties window?

[DocLotus]

Doof;

Solution... Stop playing, make your changes before you continue playing.  That's what I do now.

The properties window should track the currently playing song or it has little value for me.

[bennyd]

Solution :

Make this an option so the user can choose whether the properties window follows the playing now or not

[jleerigby]

I agree with Doof.  I expect standard consistent behaviour so whether I'm in playing now or in the media library I expect the properties window to display the details for the currently selected track.  It would cause me big problems if it were restricted to the one playing as I tag new audio by adding it to playing now from windows explorer and then tag it all whilst in there.

[nila]

New Solution:  Make a button/right click option - Jump to playing now.

This way you can easily modify the properties for any track thats playing and yet at the same time the properties window isn't trying to change while your using it.


Also - this is good for if you manually select a song way up the list of playing now, its sometimes hard to again find the currectly playing song (I've had this with a lot of tracks qued up).

[NoCodeUK]

The only time I think the props window should follow the currently playing song is when it is displaying cover art.  If I want to change properties for a file whether it is in playing now or Media Library I will click that file.  I mean come on guys it is one mouse click to select the file...

But if cover art could follow the currently playing song this would be good!!

Adam

[Doof]

Doof;

Solution... Stop playing, make your changes before you continue playing.  That's what I do now.

The properties window should track the currently playing song or it has little value for me.

So in effect, what you're saying is, we should no longer be able to edit the properties for any other file than the one we're listening to. If we want to tag files, we can't listen to any music.

Basically the properties window would become useful for you, and the whole program would become useless for most everybody else.

But I could see a compromise here... maybe a button or menu item or something for "Track Playing Now" that did what you want. Because I can see times when that would be nice. Most of the time, however, it would just piss me off.

[nila]

Yeah - thats my solution for those times I cant find the 'playing now' song (when I shove tons of my songs into playing now)

[jleerigby]

This facility is already there and works perfectly.  Just double click the text in the player display and the properties window displays (if not already displayed) and the properties shown are those of the currently playing track rather than the selected track.

I really don't see any need to change it, not even in the case of cover art.  I would like to see the properties window display the tags, covert art, format, statistics etc for the tracks I select - even if I am in the playing now view or tracks are playing - for the reasons that Doof stated.  It's undesirable to introduce non-standard behaviour that adds little benefit (other than to a few) and will otherwise confuse many.

[gkerber]

The only time I think the props window should follow the currently playing song is when it is displaying cover art.  If I want to change properties for a file whether it is in playing now or Media Library I will click that file.  I mean come on guys it is one mouse click to select the file...

But if cover art could follow the currently playing song this would be good!!

Adam

Total agreement.  Maybe cover art display should not be tied to the properties window, which would solve the problem.  

There should be a way to display the current playing cover art without any clicking required, it should change automaticallly.

[JimH]

There should be a way to display the current playing cover art without any clicking required, it should change automaticallly.

Have you tried visualizations?

[gkerber]

Have you tried visualizations?

Yes, and it they didn't really fit my needs because:

1.  They take up room in the track display area.  (also one of my reasons for disliking panes).
2.  They are not always there.  Most of us are playing music while doing other tasks in MC (like tagging, importing...).

I'd really like some way to display coverart in the lower left area under the tree which ALWAYS displays the cover art for playing now, no matter what other mode I may be using in MC.

Screen space is valuable, so the lower left corner is a compomise I'm willing to make, that's my opinion, others may think differently.

Thanks for the suggestion though, I retried visualizations again, to get a fresh view.

[Doof]

You can use the Windowed view of Playing Now, set it to Image (which will show cover art as long as you aren't also viewing a slideshow) and set it to Always on Top. Then just put it wherever you want it.

[gkerber]

You can use the Windowed view of Playing Now, set it to Image (which will show cover art as long as you aren't also viewing a slideshow) and set it to Always on Top. Then just put it wherever you want it.

Amazing, something new.  What is windowed mode and how do I turn it on.  I looked around, and nothing is obvious to me.  I'll try it.

Okay, I found it, tried it before, I remember now.  That doesn't let me do other things in MC while the current playing image is displayed.  I don't find this feature usefull at all.   I wonder if anyone else uses it - ever?

[JimH]

gkerber,


Why doesn't it let you do other work in MC?

Jim

[gkerber]

gkerber,


Why doesn't it let you do other work in MC?

Jim

It does, sorry for the misunderstanding.  I was just pointing out that when I am doing other work, the visualizations go away, they only show when I am in Playing Now.

I guess I'd like to see the current playing now cover art be displayed all the time someplace, just like the current playing now artist/track/... info is displayed to the right of the player controls (I love how we can customize this display).

[JimH]

Right click on the window and set the option for "always on top".

[gkerber]

Right click on the window and set the option for "always on top".

We must be talking about different things. when in MC mega-me, with playing now as the current mode, with the cover art showing above the track listings, right clicking on the cover art image  does not provide me with a menu offering "always on top".

Media Center Registered 9.1.219 -- C:\Program Files\Media Jukebox\

Microsoft Windows XP  Workstation 5.1 Service Pack 1 (Build 2600)
Intel Pentium 4 2516 MHz MMX / Memory: Total - 1048 MB, Free - 649 MB

Internet Explorer: 6.0.2800.1106 / ComCtl32.dll: 5.82 (xpsp1.020828-1920) / Shlwapi.dll: 6.00.2800.1106 (xpsp1.020828-1920) / Shell32.dll: 6.00.2800.1145 (xpsp2.021108-1929) / wnaspi32.dll: Internal ASPI Layer

Ripping /   Drive K:   Copy mode:ModeBurstBigBuffer   CD Type:Auto   Read speed:Max
 Digital playback: Yes /  Use YADB: Yes /  Get cover art: No /  Calc replay gain: No /  Copy volume: 32767
 Eject after ripping: Yes /  Play sound after ripping: Yes  Soundfile:   chord.wav

Burning /  Drive K: CDWRITER IDE5224            Addr: 1:0:0  Speed:32  MaxSpeed:52  BurnProof:Yes
 Test mode: No /  Eject after writing: Yes /  Direct decoding: No /  Write CD-Text: Yes
 Use playback settings: No /  Normalization: None

[JimH]

Go to playing now, choose visualizations, right click on the visualization.

[gkerber]

Go to playing now, choose visualizations, right click on the visualization.

We must be talking about different things. when in MC mega-me, with playing now as the current mode, with the cover art showing above the track listings, right clicking on the cover art image  does not provide me with a menu offering "always on top".

I believe that's what I did, and when I right click IN the visualization the menu I get offers me these choices:

Okay, I found the "always on top" by selecting "configure display" and "always on top" was there.

However, as soon as I click on "media library" in the tree, the visualization goes away, it only shows when I am actually in Playing Now.

[JimH]

Is the visualization floated as a separate window?

[gkerber]

Is the visualization floated as a separate window?

No, I've had it in windowed mode, but then the ONLY thing I get from MC is that visualization window, there is no way to do anything else in MC, since nothing else from MC shows anywhere,  The visualization is all there is.

[JimH]

When you float the window, MC minimizes to the task bar, but you can open it again.

[gkerber]

When you float the window, MC minimizes to the task bar, but you can open it again.

Amazing, thanks for your patience.  Works pretty neat.  I would still like it better if it was actually on the mega-me screen someplace and not a floating window, but this is pretty neat.  Thanks.  (so much to learn....)

When I exit MC and run it again, all is lost, and I must reconfigure it be a floating window again.  Not really too useful if it must be set up everytime.

But thanks for showing me what is available.

[JimH]

I'm glad it works for you.