Topic: My First Theater View Skin... MetroX Theatre (Read 44953 times)

sirganty · « **on:** March 22, 2013, 07:14:32 pm »

Hey all.

Inspired by Maverick07's MetroX skin I decided to have a go at skinning Theater View along similiar lines.

Obviously theater view doesn't offer anywhere near as much flexibility so doesn't match up to the quality of the original MetroX, but hopefully Maverick07 won't be offended by my use of his skin name

Its a two-parter in that there is the main skin folder and a complimentary theme that should also be installed.

The theme is an old adobe after-effects project from many years ago, so isn't particularly media centre related right now, but my intention is to create another one of these growing vine animations to replace it; I'm thinking with speakers and film-reels busting out from the vine heads instead of flowers.
Its quite a slow process though, and I dont have a huge amount of free time, so don't hold your breath!

Anyway, grab it here:
http://sirganty.deviantart.com/art/MetroX-Theatre-360970673?q=gallery%3Asirganty&qo=0

put both folders from the zip file into the "program files\media center\skins\theater view" folder, and select them from the "tools > options > theater view" menu.

and then let me know what you think!

UPDATED: Added vairulez's modified main.xml to allow switching out Zone for Time for those who don't use zones...

Quote

As I didn't need the zone info (I only have one zone) I modified the main.xml to show time instead. The modified main.xml is attachd to this post, rename it main.xml, paste it in "Program Files (x86)\J River\Media Center 18\Skins\Theater View\MetroX Theatre - Dark" and replace the old one.

Fabricio · « **Reply #1 on:** March 22, 2013, 08:49:02 pm »

Very good. I like.

Thanks ...

kurushi · « **Reply #2 on:** March 23, 2013, 06:20:34 am »

i really like it! love those icons.
but is there a way to disable the "zone= player" in the main menu?

StuckMojo · « **Reply #3 on:** March 23, 2013, 07:42:36 am »

Why,I prefer to see the Zone Info???

By the Way,Nice Skin,Thanks!

sirganty · « **Reply #4 on:** March 23, 2013, 09:33:29 am »

Hey kurushi,

Sorry you're not a fan of the zone display, but it's one of the most important features for me as I regularly switch between hdmi and dac outputs for video/audio and was always sending to the wrong one without it!

If you rename your zone, you can get it to display anything you like e.g. living room or office etc?
Mine displays the name of the device I'm pointing to like "HDMI: Yamaha RX-V2067" or "Audio-gd NFB7.32 DAC"

sirganty · « **Reply #5 on:** March 23, 2013, 01:23:47 pm »

The other option is to modify the main.xml file and delete the <text> tags with [zone] in them, but you'll need more tweaking to get rid of the boxes that contain them.

kurushi · « **Reply #6 on:** March 23, 2013, 08:49:50 pm »

Thx i 'll try it. i don't use multi zone.

Domi · « **Reply #7 on:** March 25, 2013, 02:51:29 am »

Congratulations for this skin sirganty!!!

I really like it.

I've just increased the fontsize for date and time that were too small to read them on my 10" tablet and I've repositioned them in "Main.xml".

sirganty · « **Reply #8 on:** March 25, 2013, 05:54:30 am »

Glad you like it!

I have it running on a 10.1" netbook (with a touchscreen mod), but the resolution is so poor, the font is automatically scaled up anyway.

I guess you've got one of these funky surface thingies?

I suppose your other option would have been to increase the font size in theater view options, although all text gets bigger then.

kurushi · « **Reply #9 on:** March 25, 2013, 11:40:28 am »

yep i have do this for my 13"8

Domi · « **Reply #10 on:** March 25, 2013, 12:50:18 pm »

Quote from: sirganty on March 25, 2013, 05:54:30 am

Glad you like it!

I have it running on a 10.1" netbook (with a touchscreen mod), but the resolution is so poor, the font is automatically scaled up anyway.

I guess you've got one of these funky surface thingies?

I suppose your other option would have been to increase the font size in theater view options, although all text gets bigger then.

It's an ACER Iconia W510 with Windows 8 full version not RT.

In fact I've just increased fontsize on Date and Time in Text item just to get its taller in views such as "Playing now", "List" or "Info".

InflatableMouse · « **Reply #11 on:** March 27, 2013, 04:29:39 am »

Very Nice. Thanks!

zerocool · « **Reply #12 on:** March 28, 2013, 06:50:39 pm »

Quote from: sirganty on March 22, 2013, 07:14:32 pm

let me know what you think

Wow... My new skin of choice.

Quote from: sirganty on March 22, 2013, 07:14:32 pm

The theme is an old adobe after-effects project from many years ago, so isn't particularly media centre related right now, but my intention is to create another one of these growing vine animations to replace it; I'm thinking with speakers and film-reels busting out from the vine heads instead of flowers.
Its quite a slow process though, and I dont have a huge amount of free time, so don't hold your breath!

Sounds great. Looking forward to it.

Quote from: sirganty on March 23, 2013, 09:33:29 am

it's one of the most important features for me as I regularly switch between hdmi and dac outputs for video/audio and was always sending to the wrong one without it!

This feature rocks.

I love the zone info box.

sirganty · « **Reply #13 on:** March 29, 2013, 12:41:10 pm »

Seems to be going down pretty well, so I may consider making another one!

Thanks for your feedback guys.
Keep it coming

Maverick07 · « **Reply #14 on:** April 05, 2013, 06:25:53 pm »

Well the skin looks good indeed, maybe the best ive seen, but....
imo it isnt "Metro" at all. Neither my MetroX or the original "Modern UI" of Windows.
For me it looks more like Android / Google inspired.

Also i personally dont really like the rounded icons - if you sharped the edges, the skin would look way more "adult" - coz the rounded icons look kinda kitchy
And ofc if it should be a Modern UI, you have to use the "original" Windows icons.

kurushi · « **Reply #15 on:** April 06, 2013, 04:29:59 am »

Yep Maverick is right not so Metro but i like it anyways and i love rounded icons.
Here's a more metro style inspired:
http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=73592.0

sirganty · « **Reply #16 on:** April 07, 2013, 05:13:59 pm »

All good points.

I hadn't really realised that maverick's metrox was supposed to be like an m$ 'modern ui'; i cant say that it bares much resemblance to the mail, IE, or xbox video / music modern uis that i have seen, and I haven't really seen any others.

My metox theater was simply inspired by mavericks skin, hence took its name.
More than anything it was the colour scheme and 'boxy' nature of the menus.

Anyway, I'm more than happy to change the name if you guys aren't happy or don't believe it's suitable

vairulez · « **Reply #17 on:** April 08, 2013, 12:04:09 am »

good work, your skin made theaterview even better

Sesam · « **Reply #18 on:** April 09, 2013, 02:25:12 pm »

Every time I enter this forum, I'm hoping to see that someone made a new Theatre View skin. So I am happy to see this thread, downloading and will try this later

.

vairulez · « **Reply #19 on:** April 10, 2013, 12:01:14 am »

As I didn't need the zone info (I only have one zone) I modified the main.xml to show time instead. The modified main.xml is attachd to this post, rename it main.xml, paste it in "Program Files (x86)\J River\Media Center 18\Skins\Theater View\MetroX Theatre - Dark" and replace the old one.
ps : hope it's alright with you sirganty

sirganty · « **Reply #20 on:** April 10, 2013, 11:07:59 am »

@vairulez; of course it is, hack away!

@Sesam; how did you get on? Check back again soon, as I have another 2 to upload before too long.

kurushi · « **Reply #21 on:** April 10, 2013, 09:09:04 pm »

Thx verulez for the main.xml maybe sirganty can attach this file to the first post

zerocool · « **Reply #22 on:** April 14, 2013, 05:26:49 pm »

Quote from: sirganty on April 10, 2013, 11:07:59 am

@vairulez; of course it is, hack away!

@Sesam; how did you get on? Check back again soon, as I have another 2 to upload before too long.

Can't wait to see what you have come up with

Chauncey · « **Reply #23 on:** April 15, 2013, 02:18:12 pm »

This is my default skin. Thanks sirganty!

jdizzy623 · « **Reply #24 on:** May 25, 2013, 11:34:39 am »

Yes, it is nice to see something new on the screen.
Thanks for your effort!

raym · « **Reply #25 on:** June 02, 2013, 05:49:35 pm »

Love the skin. Couple of issues for me though:-

1/ in YouTube "search", or any view that uses an on screen keyboard, moving the cursor b/w the list and rollers can be quite a challenge. This is due to the new orientation of the roller menu from centered to left.

2/ the background flower animation eventually causes MC to hang for me. It happens if i drop back to theater view from full screen video playback (usually requires a few attempts). If I remove the animated video from the theme, the problem goes away. This is not a new problem though as I've always had issues with these kind of backgrounds (in any skin). I think it has more to do with MC than your skin.

Thanks.

jdizzy623 · « **Reply #26 on:** June 02, 2013, 07:19:48 pm »

Quote from: raym on June 02, 2013, 05:49:35 pm

2/ the background flower animation eventually causes MC to hang for me. It happens if i drop back to theater view from full screen video playback (usually requires a few attempts). If I remove the animated video from the theme, the problem goes away. This is not a new problem though as I've always had issues with these kind of backgrounds (in any skin). I think it has more to do with MC than your skin.

I might have experienced this too...
I made a few movies to run as backgrounds and noticed when they stopped that MC would hang.
I quit using them and used pictures as my backdrops for the various menu options.

zerocool · « **Reply #27 on:** June 06, 2013, 07:19:50 am »

Quote from: sirganty on April 10, 2013, 11:07:59 am

Check back again soon, as I have another 2 to upload before too long.

Have you abandoned the project or when can we expect to see more?

Quote from: raym on June 02, 2013, 05:49:35 pm

This is not a new problem though as I've always had issues with these kind of backgrounds (in any skin).

What other Theatre View skins have you seen with animated backgrounds?

sirganty · « **Reply #28 on:** June 09, 2013, 11:22:04 am »

Must admit I've seen that a few times too (hangs caused by the mpg backgrounds), and I need to alt-f4 out of theatre view and switch back to correct it.
Doesn't seem to matter which video you use either, so my guess is its an MC issue too.

I did notice that it really chokes when you try and use a really high res / large file, but thought I'd hit a sweet spot with my one, but obviously not quite

My new skins are still coming.

I decided to take a different route, as I really wanted personalised content based on the MC library, so i'm coding up an extension to MCWS services to serve up some pretty pictures.
I'd include some screenshots if I could add them directly to this board, but it appears I need to link to them which means a bit of faffing around.

there will be a v1.1 of metrox theatre too, with some fixes (like the on screen keyboard position), and some added eye-candy from your library.

sirganty · « **Reply #29 on:** June 09, 2013, 03:54:17 pm »

First screen shots of my next skin...

I'm calling it MC:UX

As it requires the installation of a small service that I've coded (.net), I'll be looking for beta testers in the coming weeks...

Root screen with "spotlight" images.
configurable using jrmc search functionality, but shows most recently added, recently played, most played etc and can take images from lastfm, tmdb, thetvdb, jrmc itself etc

Context menus pop up throughout as you select certain options

zerocool · « **Reply #30 on:** June 09, 2013, 05:54:20 pm »

Looking good

dgm1960 · « **Reply #31 on:** June 09, 2013, 06:35:58 pm »

This is amazing! I can't wait to see this skin in action. Thank you for your obviously hard work.

jdizzy623 · « **Reply #32 on:** June 09, 2013, 06:50:26 pm »

Now we're talking!
Will try anything you come up with.

Also like XBMC random movie on spotlight.
(I was using Aeon Nox)

Maverick07 · « **Reply #33 on:** June 10, 2013, 08:25:17 am »

awesome, by far the best Theater View i ever saw - even if the icons are not custom made

just one suggestion...is it possible to remove the square of the selected object?

xplain · « **Reply #34 on:** June 10, 2013, 09:13:29 am »

This look fantastic

sirganty · « **Reply #35 on:** June 10, 2013, 11:35:26 am »

Quote from: Maverick07 on June 10, 2013, 08:25:17 am

even if the icons are not custom made

about 50% are ripped straight from windows 8, the others had to be hand crafted

InflatableMouse · « **Reply #36 on:** June 10, 2013, 01:33:26 pm »

Awesome!

Looking forward to see it in action.

sirganty · « **Reply #37 on:** June 11, 2013, 10:56:05 am »

Quote from: raym on June 02, 2013, 05:49:35 pm

1/ in YouTube "search", or any view that uses an on screen keyboard, moving the cursor b/w the list and rollers can be quite a challenge. This is due to the new orientation of the roller menu from centered to left.

raym, I'm struggling to reproduce your problem with the navigation between list and roller when searching

I've tried the standard search and youtube search, and every time I press up from the top of the list I end up on the roller; which is as I would expect.
anytime I press left when on the left most item in the list I move to the on-screen keyboard; also as I would expect.

Can you explain anymore?
Is it specifically moving from the roller to the list, avoiding the on-screen keyboard you are talking about?

kurushi · « **Reply #38 on:** June 13, 2013, 11:25:27 am »

Preview is very good if you want a beta tester i can help you pm me

J-a-k-e · « **Reply #39 on:** June 23, 2013, 09:02:17 pm »

+1 I'd also be keen on beta testing this when you get to that stage.

imugli · « **Reply #40 on:** June 23, 2013, 09:39:53 pm »

Quote from: sirganty on June 09, 2013, 03:54:17 pm

First screen shots of my next skin...

I'm calling it MC:UX

As it requires the installation of a small service that I've coded (.net), I'll be looking for beta testers in the coming weeks...

Root screen with "spotlight" images.
configurable using MC search functionality, but shows most recently added, recently played, most played etc and can take images from lastfm, tmdb, thetvdb, MC itself etc
http://s8.postimg.org/6tb96qixh/MCUX_1.png

Context menus pop up throughout as you select certain options
http://s8.postimg.org/ys5exlkk5/MCUX_2.png
http://s8.postimg.org/j3zmd2fkl/MCUX_3.png
http://s8.postimg.org/3jwu09utx/MCUX_4.png

Holy Cow!

Count me in for beta testing as well please :-) This looks fantastic!

paul1970 · « **Reply #41 on:** June 24, 2013, 05:37:20 am »

Looks like my dream theater view. Amazing work you're doing.
Can't wait to see this released.

sirganty · « **Reply #42 on:** June 25, 2013, 05:03:32 pm »

I've been rather busy the last couple of weeks, but fear not, "UX" is still coming!

As there's been such a good response, I may release it in an "Alpha" state sooner, rather than spend much longer polishing the edges
I have a tendency to be a bit of a perfectionist, so the beta might take longer than people would like to wait.

InflatableMouse · « **Reply #43 on:** July 08, 2013, 01:12:33 pm »

Looking forward to it.

Thanks!

InflatableMouse · « **Reply #44 on:** August 01, 2013, 10:35:58 am »

Hey sirganty, any news to report?

Marra · « **Reply #45 on:** August 01, 2013, 05:58:14 pm »

Yeah I'm patiently waiting too.

datdude · « **Reply #46 on:** August 02, 2013, 11:49:58 pm »

Add me in too, can't wait to see it.

bytestar · « **Reply #47 on:** August 03, 2013, 10:02:39 am »

Add me to your Beta

AoXoMoXoA · « **Reply #48 on:** August 03, 2013, 11:57:07 am »

Quote from: bytestar on August 03, 2013, 10:02:39 am

Add me to your Beta

mee too pleez

InflatableMouse · « **Reply #49 on:** September 05, 2013, 07:05:45 am »

Waiting patiently, any news on UX?

Thanks.

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Author Topic: My First Theater View Skin... MetroX Theatre (Read 44953 times)