CybrDisplay External Status Plugin

[cybrmage]

CybrDisplay - External Display Driver package by CybrMage


Purpose

Since the latest changes to the Mplay, SoundGraph and LCDHype driver have not been,
and likely never will be, committed to SVN, there have been many reports that the
latest versions of these drivers do not opperate correctly with recent SVN versions
of MediaPortal.

Having these drivers as a seperate DLL eliminates compatability problems caused
by changes to the other packages included in the ProcessPlugins.dll through
updates introduced by SVN changes. It also allows the other plugins contained in
the ProcessPlugins.dll to continue development without affecting the operation of
the display drivers.


Credits
This plugin incorporates:
The ExternalDisplay plugin by JoeDalton.
The MatrixMX driver by CybrMage.
The MatrixGX driver by CybrMage.
The VLSYS_Mplay driver by CybrMage with input and testing by Herr R aus B, based on the
VLSYSLis2 driver by Nopap and JoeDalton.
The iMONLCDg driver by CybrMage, based on the original iMONLCDg driver by RalphY.
The iMONLCDg Font Editor by CybrMage.
The iMONLCDg Icon Editor by CybrMage.
The LCDHype driver by JoeDalton.
The MD8800 driver by CybrMage.
The CFontz driver by CybrMage.
The MCEDisplay driver by CybrMage, based on the original MCE Display plugin by JoeDalton.
The Generic Serial Character VFD/LCD Display driver by CybrMage.
The IOWarrior driver by CybrMage, based on code provided by astronaut.
The xPL Connector protocol driver by CybrMage


Supported display drivers
1) iMON VFD and LCD displays. (OEM and Retail versions)
2) VL Systems MPLAY series Displays (developed primarily for MR-300 OEM displays, but functional with all MPLAY
versions except MR-700)
3) Displays supported by LCDHype drivers.
4) Matrix Orbital MX and GX series displays.
5) Medion MD series display. (Dritek VFD display)
6) CrystalFontz CFA63x series displays.
7) Any display that has drivers/software that impliment the Microsoft Media Center iMediaStatusSink interface
8) any serial VFD/LCD display that uses a simple command/data control structure
9) IOWarrior based Graphical LCD display


iMONLCDg Features / changes
Supports
- iMON VFD and LCD displays

Includes
- Automatic Antec VFD / SoundGraph iMON software (re)configuration
- Dynamic dependancy linking (Automatically finds the installed SG_VFD.dll)
- display ICONs (LCD displays)
- Optical Drive status (Disk Icon - optional)
- Large Icons with built-in Icon editor
- Custom Font support (LCD displays)
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Restrict Display update rate (optional)
- Custon Font Editor (LCD displays)
- Large Icon Editor (LCD displays)
- Explict PowerState Monitoring (optional)
- Show Track Information during EQ Display (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Custom shutdown message support (optional)


VLSYS_Mplay Features (VL System Mplay driver)
Supports
- VL Systems M-PLay OEM and retail displays
- VL Systems LIS2 OEM and retail displays

Includes
- Automatic shutdown/restart of Media Home Center (optional)
- Remote control support and customization (optional)
- Manual and Automatic Fan control (on some displays)
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Restrict Display update rate (optional)
- Custom Shutdown message support (optional)
- Custom Character support


MatrixMX Features
Supports
- All Matrix Orbital MX series (Retail boxed) character displays
- All displays that are based on the MX series hardware

Includes
- Keypad support
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Restrict Display update rate (optional)
- Custom Shutdown message support (optional)


MatrixGX Features
Supports
- Matrix Orbital GX (Typhoon) series graphical displays.


MD8800 Features * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Supports
- VFD display in the Medion MD-8800 system
- All displays that are based on the same hardware (Dritek VFD hardware)

Includes
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Custom Shutdown message support (optional)
- control of media status and volume icons


CFontz Features * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Supports
- CrystalFontz CFA631, CFA632, CFA633, CFA634 and CFA635 Serial/USB displays.

Includes
- Keypad support (CFA631, CFA633 and CFA635 displays)
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Custom Shutdown message support (optional)



LCDHype Features
Supports
- All displays that have an LCDHype driver with support for the LCDHype API v1.4 or greater.

Includes:
- support for backlight control and contrast control
- support for Custom Characters (when used with displays that support them)

Include experimental support for: (dependant on display hardware and LCDHype driver capabilities)
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).
- Restrict Display update rate (optional)
- Custom Shutdown message support (optional)


MCEDisplay Features * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Supports
- All displays that have a driver/software that supports the Windows Media Center iMediaStatusSink Interface. This includes many displays that are advertised as "Media Center compatable".


Supports:
- basic status information display


Generic Serial Character VFD/LCD Display Features
Supports
- All Serial connected VFD/LCD displays that use a simple Command/Data model

Includes:
- support for basic status display
- support for displays of up to 4 lines by 40 characters
- support for basic cursor positioning command
- support for RTS/DTR control
- support for RTS/DTR signalling


IOWarrior Graphical LCD Display Driver Features
Supports
- IO-Warrior 24 and IO-Warrior 40 based Graphical LCD displays (based on code for the ct-maeusekino 128 x 64 device)

Includes:
- EQ Display (optional)
- Stereo EQ Display (optional)
- VU Meter display (optional)
- Blank display during video playback (optional)
- Enable display on MediaPortal action when playing a video (optional)
- Blank display when MediaPortal goes idle (optional).


xPL Connector protocol Driver Features * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Supports
- basic status display via xPL osd.basic schema messages
- basic media control via xPL media.basic schema messages
- basic media status notification via media.basic schema messages
- basic MediaPortal control via received remote.basic schema messages
(for information on the messages and schemas supported by the xPL connector, see the Wiki)


NOTE: EQ display options ONLY work with audio playback and only with the internal Bass Audio Engine


Installation
1) copy the CybrDisplayPlugin.dll file from the archive to your Mediaport plugins\process directory
1a) IF (and ONLY if) you are using a Matrix Orbital GX display, download MatrixGX_Support_Files.zip and extract the contents to your MediaPortal directory.
NOTE: Support files have been updated (02_07_2008)... You should reinstall the support files if you update your driver.
2) Run Configuration.exe, and click on "Plugins"
3) If you were using the "External Display" plugin by JoeDalton, double click on its icon to disable it.
4) Double click on the "CybrDisplay Plugin" icon to enable it.
5) Right click on the "CybrDisplay Plugin" icon and select "Configuration".
*** even though this is a process plugin, the icon will be shown under "Window" plugins ****
6) Select the display driver you wish to use.
7) Configure the display driver parameters to correspond with the display you are using.
8) Click "OK" to save your display configuration and exit the display configuration screen.
9) Click "OK" to save your updated MediaPortal configuration and exit the configuration program.
10) Run MediaPortal.


iMON display specific notes
1) DO NOT copy the SG_VFD.dll to the plugins\LCDDrivers directory. If you do,
the display driver WILL crash... The LCDDrivers directory should only contain LCDHype driver DLLs.
2) The driver will automatically find your installed VFD/iMON software and use the SG_VFD.dll from
that installation. If you select "Use V3 DLL" in advanced settings, the driver will not search for
your VFD/iMON software installation, and will use the SG_VFD.dll that is included in the MediaPortal
directory.
3) Correct settings for a VFD display is 16 columns and 2 rows.
4) Correct settings for an LCD display are:
Text Mode without Large Icons: 16 columns and 2 rows
Text Mode with Large Icons: 13 columns and 2 rows
Force Graphical Text mode: 96 colums and 16 rows
5) Shutdown message support is only functional for VFD displays (LCDs turn off or display the clock)
6) For AUTODETECT to function, you MUST install either Antec VFD or SoundGraph iMON Manager and it MUST be run, and have controlled the display, at least once.
7) If your LCD based device does not work with AUTODECTECT setting, Try using the LCD2 display type. Some newer LCD displays from SilverStone and Zalman use a new command set.
8) If you have a device that does not work with the AUTODETECT setting, but does work with the manual setting, please post the details of your device AND the firmware version reported by iMON Manager in the support thread.
9) If your device has a firmware version (as reported by the SoundGraph software) of 0x36XX or 0x38XX, and your display functions with the "Test Display" button in configuration but not when MediaPortal runs, you MUST enable the "Delay Driver Initialization" option in advanced settings.
10) If you have problems with the SoundGraph driver, READ and POST in the iMONLCDg SUPPORT THREAD thread


VLSYS_Mplay specific notes
1) The driver was developed and extensively tested with an OEM MR300 display. Other MPlay series
displays will work, but some functions (ie: fan control) may not operate correctly.
2) correct settings are 20 columns and 2 rows
3) If you have problems with the VLSYS_MPlay driver, READ and POST in the VLSYS_Mplay SUPPORT THREAD thread.
4) for the "Port" setting, DO NOT select "USB"... select the virtual COM port that is mapped to your device.


MatrixMX specific notes (Matrix Orbital Character LCD driver)
1) correct settings for MX series displays are 20 columns and 2 rows
2) correct settings for other displays are either 16 columns and 2 rows or 20 columns and 2 rows


LCDHype specific notes
1) Before using any of the the LCDHype drivers, you MUST install the port95nt package! (available HERE)


Generic Serial Character VFD/LCD Display specific notes
1) Before the display can be used, you must set the commands that it uses on the Advanced Setup page
2) Commands must be specified in Hexadecimal (IE: 12 = 0C, x0C or 0x0C)
3) Commands used by various displays can be found on the manufacturer website, or in their controller datasheet


Development Status
This plugin is NOT being actively developed.
This stand-alone plugin was released to allow continued use of the drivers, independant of continued development of other MediaPortal process plugins.
Further development or bug fixes may be forthcoming, but should NOT be expected.


Version history

01_27_2008
- Initial version

01_28_2008
- Added experimental code for EQ display and advanced display control to VLSYS_Mplay driver

01_29_2008
- Fixed - drivers that use a serial/parallel port would throw an exception when started

01_29_2008b
- Fixed - Driver would send both text and graphics to displays that support both

01_29_2008c
- Fixed - VLSYS_Mplay driver would ignore the equalizer and advanced display control options

01_30_2008
VLSYS_Mplay - Changes to correct anomolous EQ behaviour

01_31_2008
Plugin - Changed - Renamed "Backlight" option to "Turn OFF display on exit" as nobody understood what the option does with the old wording.
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "Stereo EQ"
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "VU Meter"
iMONLCDg - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "Stereo EQ"
iMONLCDg - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "VU Meter"

01_31_2008b
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Equalizer display has display lines inverted

01_31_2008c
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - VU Meter mode crashes MediaPortal

01_31_2008d
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Stereo EQ displays incorrect data

01_31_2008e
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - logic error in EQ display

01_31_2008f
iMONLCDg - Changed - Channel order inverted for VU meter and Stereo EQ display
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - Channel order inverted for VU meter and Stereo EQ display
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - EQ display logic changed
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Additional debug logging for EQ display

01_31_2008g
Plugin - Changed - Stereo EQ processing did not seperate channel data

01_31_2008h
Plugin - Changed - UI Form would open randomly on screen. will now open centered over the MediaPortal form
MatrixMX - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) code for EQ display and advanced display control to VLSYS_Mplay driver
MatrixMX - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "Stereo EQ"
MatrixMX - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) New Equalizer display style "VU Meter"
MatrixMX - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) configuration for Keypad buttons

02_01_2008
Plugin - Added - Support for custom shutdown message (driver implimentation required)
iMONLCDg - Added - Support for custom shutdown message
MatrixMX - Added - Support for custom shutdown message
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Support for custom shutdown message

02_01_2008b
iMONLCDg - Added - Channel indicator for VU Meter display
MatrixMX - Added - Channel indicator for VU Meter display
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Channel indicator for VU Meter display

02_02_2008
MatrixMX - Fixed - driver would not use custom keypad button mappings
MatrixMX - Added - Option to allow use of internal (original) keypad mapping or a custom keypad mapping

02_02_2008b
Plugin - Changed - Thread management code optimized to attempt to aleviate high CPU usage
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - Custom Character management changed to attempt to correct display anomolies

02_02_2008c
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Option to control clock display on MediaPortal shutdown
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - Automatic Fan Control changed to retry temperature reading if a response is not received in a reasonable amount of time
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Advanced Settings screen UI has "glitches"
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Contrast slider did not function

02_03_2008
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - (Experimental) Equalizer display style "VU Meter 2"

02_03_2008b
iMONLCDg - Changed - Advanced setting page redesigned to improve readability
iMONLCDg - Added - (Experimental) Equalizer display style "VU Meter 2"
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - "VU Meter" and "VU Meter 2" settings were reversed

02_03_2008c
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "Use channel prefix" was not selectable for "VU Meter 2"
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - "Use channel prefix" was not selectable for "VU Meter 2"
MatrixMX - Added - (Experimental) Equalizer display style "VU Meter 2"

02_04_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "Extensive Logging" did not generate usefull information unless MediaPortal's log level was set to debug
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver did not handle unsupported displays gracefully
iMONLCDg - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) - support for iMON display inluded with Zalman HD160plus case (LCD - FW ver 0x3801)

02_04_2008b
iMONLCDg - Changed - updated logging to be more descriptive during driver startup

02_05_2008
iMONLCDg - Changed - (EXPERIMENTAL) support for "custom" commands on Zalman iMON LCD display

02_05_2008b
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - "VU Meter 2" display did not function correctly

02_05_2008c
iMONLCDg - Added - (EXPERIMENTAL) startup delay for Zalman LCD device to account for device reconnect

02_05_2008d
iMONLCDg - Fixed - options were not properly enabled in configuration
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Zalman LCD did not shut down properly
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "Blank display with video" and "Blank display on idle" did not work with Zalman LCD

02_05_2008e
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver sent wrong command to turn off Zalman LCD

02_06_2008
iMONLCDg - Added - "Delay driver startup" option to work around problem where the display device would disconnect from the USB bus when MediaPortal was started
iMONLCDg - Added - "LCD2" display type for newer LCD displays that use an alternate command set
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - "VU Meter 2" did not work properly

02_06_2008b
iMONLCDg - Changed - AutoDetect code updated to conform to the display parameters extracted from iMON Manager v7

02_06_2008c
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Math error in rendering "VU Meter 2" display

02_06_2008d
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "VU Meter 2" caused MediaPortal to crash
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Forcing display type to "LCD2" did not work
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "VU Meter" display data was inverted
iMONLCDg - Changed - VU display optimizations (Full screen display updates seem to be hardware limited to 4 updates per second

02_07_2008
MatrixGX - Fixed - MatrixGX_Support_Files.zip updated to include configuration.exe.con and mediaportal.exe.config files that fix a version issue with log4net.dll
MatrixGX - Added - Equalizer display options to configuration screen (Equalizer display not yet implimented)
iMONLCDg - Changed - AutoDetect changed to attempt support of devices with firmware 0x3601

02_08_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Deadlock in display management cause display to stop functioning with LCD2

02_08_2008b
Plugin - Fixed - Configuration needlessly ran the display dirivers Setup() function
Plugin - Added - "Test Display" button... Clicking on this button will start the selected display driver using the currently selected settings (and advanced settings, if supported by the driver), display a message on the display for 5 seconds and close the driver
Plugin - Fixed - Deadlock that would cause MediaPortal to hang on exit under certain circumstances
MatrixGX - Fixed - Deadlock would cause the driver to lock when music or video was played
MatrixGX - Added - "display Control" options to configuration and driver

02_08_2008c
Plugin - Added - More extensive logging for plugin startup and shutdown
iMONLCDg - Added - More extensive logging for startup and shutdown
MatrixGX - Added - Equalizer display
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - More extensive logging for startup and shutdown

02_10_2008
iMONLCDg - Changed - Changed "Delay driver start" to occur earlier in the initialization
iMONLCDg - Added - Retry on device open if it initially fails

02_10_2008b
ALL - Moved Equalizer data aquisition and processing from driver to plugin

02_11_2008
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Selecting a display type other than "AUTOMATIC" would not set display specific options correctly in some situations
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Minimum communication delay of 2 for LCD2 type displays
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Support for Mplay MR-700 devices (Remote Control ONLY)
iMONLCDg - Added - Dynamic configuration support *
MatrixMX - Added - Dynamic configuration support *
MatrixGX - Added - Dynamic configuration support *
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - Dynamic configuration support *

* = Dynamic configuration... The driver will check it's configuration once every 60 seconds and reload it's configuration if it has changed.


02_15_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - "Force Graphical Text" mode was ignored
ALL - Added - support for driver notification of configuration changes
ALL - Added - support for dynamic driver restart
iMONLCDg - Changed - Advanced settings configuration parameters changed to conform to other the names used by the other drivers
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver did not properly close the SG_VFD.dll on shutdown
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - Advanced settings configuration parameters changed to conform to other the names used by the other drivers
ALL - Added - Configuration of basic operating options from within MediaPortal
ALL - Added - Dynamic configuration GUI based on selected driver type and driver options

NOTE - Once installed, you MUST run configuration.exe and reconfigure the plugin
NOTE - The plugin DLL is STILL installed in the mediaportal plugins/process directory
NOTE - In configuration.exe, the plugin now appears under WINDOWS plugins and not PROCESS plugins
NOTE - In configuration.exe DO NOT change the plugin to appear on the home menu
NOTE - Once configured, you can change BASIC OPERATING PARAMETERS of the display
NOTE - The configuration GUI is accessed from the "My Plugins" menu as "CybrDisplay Setup"


02_18_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver restart would cause an exception under certain circumstances
iMONLCDg - Fixed - various cosmetic errors in configuration.exe
MatrixMX- Fixed - dynamic restart did not function correctly
MatrixGX- Fixed - dynamic restart did not function correctly
Plugin - Added - Contrast setting to Setup GUI
Plugin - Added - extra iMONLCDg device dependant configuration options to Setup GUI
Plugin - Added - access to iMONLCDg Font Editor from Setup GUI
Plugin - Added - access to iMONLCDg Icon Editor from Setup GUI
Plugin - Added - extra MatrixGX device dependant configuration options to Setup GUI

02_18_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - extra Equalizer configuration options to Setup GUI

02_19_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - Setup GUI would become inconsistent if the skin was changed

02_21_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Added - option to ensure that the Antec VFD or iMON Manager process is running before the driver starts

02_22_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Support for Medion MD-8800 display (Dritek VFD hardware)
MD8800 - Added - initial support for basic display functions

02_22_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
MD8800 - Added - initial support for display icons and volume display

02_23_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Display message configuration editor (available in plugin configuration in configuration.exe NOT from the setup GUI)

02_23_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD Display would not be turned on once turned off for video or idle
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD would be sent spurious commands when MediaPortal shutsdown

02_23_2008c (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - Message configuration editor loaded/saved the wrong XML file

02_24_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Support for CrystalFontz Serial/USB LCD Character displays
CFontz - Added - initial support for CrystalFontz displays

02_24_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Message Editor - Fixed - some display actions were not displayed correctly
CFontz - Fixed - KeyPad support could not be enabled

02_25_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Backlight brightness control to configuration
LCDHype - Changed - Pass seperate values to driver DLL for contrast and brightness
iMONLCDg - Fixed - display initialize retry routine would open the display twice
MD8800 - Changed - recoded driver to use new brightness/contrast controls
MatrixGX - Changed - recoded driver to use new brightness/contrast controls
MatrixMX - Changed - recoded driver to use new brightness control and contrast control
VLSys_Mplay - Changed - recoded driver to use new brightness/contrast controls
CFontz - - Changed - recoded driver to use new brightness/contrast controls
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02_26_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
LCDHype - Added - initial support for advanced display options (actual functionality of these features MAY be dependent on the capabilities of the selected display)
LCDHype - Added - initial support for Equalizer display (full equalizer for graphic displays, VUMeter for text displays)

02_26_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
VLSYS_Mplay - Added - support for (older) LIS2 displays
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Display anomolies in the configuration.exe advanced setup form

02_28_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Changed - display driver shutdown recoded for reliability
Plugin - Changed - status information message pump recoded for support of MCEdisplay
MCEDisplay - Added - Initial support for Media Center iMediaStatusSink interface

02_29_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - MediaPortal Idle state would not be set if the Idle message was changed with the message editor
Plugin - Added - prefix to LCDHype driver names in configuration to distinguish them from native drivers
Plugin - Fixed - LCDHype advanced configuration page display anomalies
All Drivers - Changed - idle state functions recoded to allow change of Idle message
MCEDisplay - Fixed - driver would not release all sessions on shutdown

03_04_2008
Plugin - Fixed - Math error in EQ data processing routine caused truncated EQ data for normal EQ on iMON VFD displays
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver would not open the display correctly under certain circumstances
iMONLCDg - Added - option to force a restart of the Antec/iMON manager after the display driver is started
iMONLCDg - Added - option to restart Antec/iMON manager FrontView on MediaPortal exit

03_05_2008
iMONLCDg - Added - option to force iMON/Antec Manager to use Keyboard mode for iMON PAD remote

03_06_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Initial support for displaying context menu items
NOTE: For context menu items to be displayed you *MUST*
1) delete the CybrDisplay.xml file from the MediaPortal directory
2) run configuration and reconfigure the plugin for your display driver (the drivers advanced settings are not affected)


03_07_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - functions to retrieve capture card status for the drivers
iMONLCDg - Changed - Retrieve capture card data from the plugin instead of the MediaPortal core
MatrixGX - Changed - Retrieve capture card data from the plugin instead of the MediaPortal core
MD8800 - Changed - Retrieve capture card data from the plugin instead of the MediaPortal core
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03_09_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Changed - moved more functions to the plugin core
iMONLCDg - Changed - recoded display update to retrieve MediaPortal status from the plugin core
iMONLCDg - Added - Support for display blanking during idle in graphical text mode
MD8800 - Changed - recoded display update to retrieve MediaPortal status from the plugin core
MD8800 - Added - support for more of the displays custom icons
LCDHype - Added - additional logging for debugging
LCDHype - Fixed - driver did not use bightness/contrast settings properly

03_09_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - more status functions added to the plugin core
iMONLCDg - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
VLSys_Mplay - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
MD8800 - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
MD8800 - Fixed - icon display and display blanking did not function under certain circumstances
MCEDisplay - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
MatrixGX - Changed - recoded display update to retrieve MediaPortal status from the plugin core
MatrixGX - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
MatrixGX - Added - display blanking on idle for force graphical text mode
CFontz - Changed - recoded display update to retrieve MediaPortal status from the plugin core
CFontz - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player
MCEDisplay - Changed - recoded display update to retrieve MediaPortal status from the plugin core
MCEDisplay - Changed - removed dependancy on MediaPortal.Player

03_11_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - plugin would not track the idle state of MediaPortal accurately
Message Editor - Added - support for TextProgressBar tag
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03_11_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Message Editor - Fixed - Adding a TextProgressBar would throw an exception under certain circumstances
Message Editor - Fixed - message editor would fail to load the xml file after adding a TextProgressBar

03_12_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Changed - don't start the plugin if the configuration file is missing
iMONLCDg - Changed - Redesigned advanced settings screen to make the options available only for LCD/LCD2 more apparent

03_16_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Fixed - plugin would fail to start if an unsupported GUI Skin was selected in MediaPortal
Plugin - Added - option to disable the GUI Setup pages. (for use with unsupported GUI Skins)

03_16_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Fixed - turning off ExtensiveLogging would not turn off all logging during driver operation
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03_16_2008c (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Debug Form driver
Debug - Added - Basic Debug Form display driver (Graphical mode only)
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03_17_2008
Plugin - Fixed - Configuration editor would not save changes to a TextProgressBar property under certain circumstances
Debug - Added - Support for Text Mode (used a fixed size monospaced console font)

03_19_2008
Plugin - Fixed - Plugin would not start when executing on Windows Vista
Plugin - Fixed - Plugin would throw an exception when obtaining system volume level under Vista
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03_20_2008
Message Editor - Fixed - would look for the configuration file in the wrong place under certain circumstances
Message Editor - Fixed - would save the updated configuration file in the wrong place under certain circumstances
iMONLCDg - Fixed - driver would still try to start if both hardware and software AutoDetect failed.

03_21_2008
Plugin - Fixed - "Test Display" would throw an exception under certain circumstances
Plugin - Added - Driver for generic serial character VFD/LCD displays
Serial - Added - support for basic status display on serial connected VFD/LCD displays

03_22_2008
Plugin - Added - extra umlat characters to the default translation table
Serial - Added - ability to change Parity, DataBits and Stop bits for the serial port
NOTE: For the updated translation tables to be used you *MUST*
1) delete the CybrDisplay.xml file from the MediaPortal directory
2) run configuration and reconfigure the plugin for your display driver (the drivers advanced settings are not affected)


03_22_2008b
Serial - Fixed - inter-character comm delay was not observed for all commands
Serial - Added - use inter-character comm delay for multi byte commands

03_22_2008c
Serial - Added - Support for "Cursor Set" commands
Serial - Added - support for displays that reference cursor position starting at one instead of zero

03_22_2008d
Serial - Added - Option to set RTS active when the Serial Port is opened
Serial - Added - Option to set DTR active when the Serial Port is opened
Serial - Added - Option to toggle RTS while sending display commands to the Serial Port
Serial - Added - Option to toggle DTR while sending display commands to the Serial Port

03_23_2008
VLSys_Mplay - Added - support for custom characters

03_23_2008b
Plugin - Fixed - custom characters were not sent to the display driver
VLSys_Mplay - Fixed - custom characters were not processed correctly

03_24_2008
Serial - Fixed - Options for RTS/DTR control would not persist
Serial - Fixed - driver would crash when closing the serial port under certain conditions

03_24_2008b (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Added - Option to use the RC hardware directly (only functions with RC hardware configured for an MCE Remote)
iMONLCDg - Added - Option for user adjustable key repeat rate
iMONLCDg - Added - Option to disable key repeat
iMONLCDg - Added - Remote button mapping for iMON RC hardware for use with an MCE remote
NOTE: If you enable the remote functions in the iMONLCDg driver, you should NOT have iMON Manager running while MediaPortal is running.

03_25_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
VLSYS_Mplay - Fixed - Remote key repeat did not function with MPlay Blast devices

03_26_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Fixed - entering Advanced settings would throw an exception

03_27_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Added - support for MCE Keyboard

03_30_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
iMONLCDg - Fixed - disable inconsistent options in configuration when "Use Remote" is selected
iMONLCDg - Added - Clean the system notification tray when VFD/iMON Manager is shut down

04_03_2008 (* EXPERIMENTAL *)
Plugin - Added - Driver for IOWarrior based Graphical LCD displays
IOWarrior - Added - support for basic status display, EQ display and display blanking

04_06_2008
Plugin - Fixed - GUI Setup XML files were not correctly generated

04_09_2008
Serial - Fixed - logic error in the cursor positioning function prevented the "cursor down" command being used

04_10_2008
Serial - Added - Extra logging to assist in specific device debugging

04_11_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - display update thread would not terminate on MediaPortal exit with some devices
iMONLCDg - Added - clock display on driver shutdown for VFD displays that have an internal clock
NOTE: For the clock to be enabled on shutdown with VFD displays, the "turn off display on exit" must be enabled and the "Shutdown message Line 1" and "shutdown message Line 2" fields must be blank

04_12_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD update thread blanked the display during video playback regardless of the setting
iMONLCDg - Added - extra exception handling for VFD devices while using the equalizer display

04_16_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD update thread flashed the display during video playback

04_17_2008 ( ** Available as an MPI Package ** )
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD update thread flashed the display during video playback
iMONLCDg - Changed - Updated LCD/VFD firmware list to exclude new IDs for Zalman and Silverstone Touchscrren devices
iMONLCDg - Fixed - VFD display would flash before shutdown if no shutdown message was specified
LCDHype - Changed - recoded initialization to conform to method recommended by the LCDHype author
LCDHype - Changed - recoded backlight control to try to eliminate backlight control issue
LCDHype - Addeded - A "configuration selector" to the "Advanced settings" button, to allow access to DLL specific configuration (if provided by the driver) as well as advanced options for the plugin
MD8800 - Changed - code cleanup and optimization
VLSYS_Mplay - Changed - code cleanup and optimization

04_20_2008 ( ** Available as an MPI Package ** )
Message Editor - Fixed - <Image> tags in the configuration were not handled correctly
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Plugin would try to set the VFD clock regardless of display type

04_21_2008
iMONLCDg - Fixed - Contrast control did not function for LCD displays
LCDHype - Added - Option to reverse the interpretation of brightness (Light slider) and contrast control to Plugins Advanced Settings

04_22_2008
LCDHype - Added - additional debug output
LCDHype - Changed - recoded backlight control to conform to new LCDHype information
LCDHype - Removed - Option to reverse the interpretation of brightness (Light slider) and contrast control to Plugins Advanced Settings

04_24_2008 ( ** Available as an MPI Package ** )
MPI - Removed - MatrixGX support file installation
DebugForm - Added - support for advanced setting and options
Plugin - Fixed - plugin would crash on exit under certain circumstances

04_30_2008 * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Plugin - added - xPL Connector protocol driver
xPL_Connector - Added - basic display and status reporting via osd.basic and media.basic schemas
xPL_Connector - Added - basic media control via media.basic schemas

05_01_2008 * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
Plugin - Changed - recoded "disable screensaver" option to better handle player state

05_05_2008 * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
xPL_Connector - Changed - removed dependance on the xpllib.dll... this xpllib framework in not embedded in the connector
xPL_Connector - Added - basic MediaPortal control remote.basic schema

05_08_2008 * * * * EXPERIMENTAL * * * *
iMONLCDg - Fixed - "Garbage" characters would be displayed on VFD displays
iMONLCDg - Fixed - iMon Manager functions were inoperative under certain circumstances.



**NOTE** - Select versions of this plugin will now be made available as a MediaPortal Installer package.


Migrating your configuration to MediaPortal v1.0.0 (and Release Candidates)
In MediaPortal v1.0.0, the installation process has changed, and the definition of the configuration directories has changed. While this does NOT break the operation of the plugin, but does mean that you will have to completely reconfigure the plugin or move your configuration files into the new file locations.

To Migrate your current configuration:
1) copy all of the CybrDisplay*.xml files from your MediaPortal directory to a safe location.
2) If you are using a driver that supports a remote control (IE: VLSYS_Mplay) and have customized your remote button mappings, copy your mapping file the MediaPortal InputDeviceMappings\Custom\ directory to a safe location
3) Install MediaPortal v1.0.0
4) reinstall the CybrDisplay plugin into the MediaPortal plugins\process directory
5) If you are using a LCDHype driver that is not included with the MediaPortal distribution, reinstall the LCDHype driver into the MediaPortal plugins\process\LCDDrivers directory.
6) run MediaPortal Configuration and click on the "view log files" button. (This will open a copy of windows explorer with the MediaPortal logs directory loaded). Navigate up one directory level. This directory is the new location for the MediaPortal configuration files.
7) Copy the CybrDisplay*.xml files from your safe location into the new configuration directory.
8) If you are using a driver that uses a remote control, copy the input mapping file from your safe location to the InputDevicesMappins directory under the new configuration directory



iMONLCDg SUPPORT THREAD thread

VLSYS_Mplay SUPPORT THREAD thread.


IF you post asking for support, you MUST turn on "extended logging" in the plugin and POST YOUR MEDIAPORTAL.LOG FILE. Without the log, support is NOT possible.


Regards,
CybrMage

[AirRulez]

Thanks for the great work Cybrmage.
I'm testing this release (got an iMon UltraBay that worked flawlessly with your old release 12-03), but I'm experiencing a weird bug: no matter if I check or not "Force Graphical Text", the display try to show me both text mode and graphic mode flashing between the two (only during scrolling or update). No option on the advance settings seems to influence this behavior. Column and row size are specified as per README, and the problem happens even on default settings.
Any idea?

[Dubyahjay]

You have really put in some fantastic work over the past few months, Kudos to you!
I will be sure to test drive it this evening.

[cybrmage]

Originally Posted by AirRulez

the display try to show me both text mode and graphic mode flashing between the two

That is due to the fact that I exported the ExternalDisplay plugin to a stand-alone package for the TouchScreen Plugin... Then, after I made some changes to facilitate the TouchScreen plugin (which uses the graphic sent by the plugin for the display and the text sent by the plugin to extract extra status information), I repackaged the plugin for the standard drivers... and I forgot to reverse the TouchScreen specific changes.... oops...

It has been fixed, and is now available in the first post of this thread.

Regards,
CybrMage

[Adler]

Thank you so much! The timing could not be better, I just put together my HTPC with a soundgraph vfd today. Of course I got problems with the equalizer in MP, did som searching and this came before my eyes! One little little little small problem though, remeber now I said little. I can't change the way the eq behaves, it always expands from the middle can't get the bars comming from the bottom. The box "EQ display mode" where one can change this is greyed out and sometimes it states "from the bottom" but it pops back to expand from middle again when one clicks the ok button. A tiny and very hard to explain problem indeed Once again, you're the best!!

Btw my first post, please take care of me

[cybrmage]

Originally Posted by Adler

Thank you so much!

Your welcome

Originally Posted by Adler

I just put together my HTPC with a soundgraph vfd today.

You have my sympathies!

Originally Posted by Adler

I can't change the way the eq behaves, it always expands from the middle can't get the bars comming from the bottom. The box "EQ display mode" where one can change this is greyed out and sometimes it states "from the bottom" but it pops back to expand from middle again when one clicks the ok button.

The VFDs only support "up from bottom"... So if you have a VFD display, the "EQ Mode" option will be ignored (or disabled completely if you have selected "VFD" as the display type specifically). The value displayed in the "EQ Mode" box is just a cosmetic glitch - it displays the last selected value or the default value (and for some strange reason, I have the "Expand from Middle" as the default... It will be changed to "Up from bottom" in the next release).

If you have a VFD and it is actually displaying an equalizer with "expand from middle", you will need to post your log so I can see what's going on... The VFD should not behave that way!!!... Run configuration and configure the plugin for "Extensive Logging" and then run MediaPortal... Play a music file and let MediaPortal run for a minute or two.. Then exit MediaPortal and post you MediaPortal.log.

Regards,
CybrMage

[Adler]

Ok now this is weird, as always with computers. I got to bed after my post last night. And this morning I turned on my HTPC to do as you told me. Now the darn things come from the bottom Guess a restart did the trick because I have not changed anything in config afterwards. So everything is jolly good here!

[AirRulez]

Originally Posted by cybrmage

That is due to the fact that I exported the ExternalDisplay plugin to a stand-alone package for the TouchScreen Plugin... Then, after I made some changes to facilitate the TouchScreen plugin (which uses the graphic sent by the plugin for the display and the text sent by the plugin to extract extra status information), I repackaged the plugin for the standard drivers... and I forgot to reverse the TouchScreen specific changes.... oops...

It has been fixed, and is now available in the first post of this thread.

Regards,
CybrMage

Glad was an easy fix

Thanks again for all your efforts!

[dhanjel]

Great work. Don't get it to work though. My iMon display (Silverstone case) only displays one line of scrolling random characters no matter what settings I use :/

[pcwizzul]

Hi Cybermage and thanks for this great effort.
You already helped me a lot withe the "normal plugin" and then you give us this "hat-trick" with the EQ!
That's great!
I got it to wwork on my display but with inverted lines as Adler and as Herr R aus B describe in the other post about the Zalman VFD. I'm sure the problem is that upper and lower lines are inverted.
Do you want my log too to check that out?
I tried with the later plugin version.
Cheers
Pcwizzul