Moving from Windows Media Center (1 Viewer)

[tlhackque]

It would be nice to have a "Media Portal 2 for Windows Media Center Refugees" document/topic...

I have successfully installed MP2 (the latest, Summer 2016 edition) on a Windows 7 (Ultimate) machine that may have to migrate to Windows 10.

This is a single-seat machine; 3 TV tuners (a single + a dual card; also has FM radio) in the US. I want to play live TV and record scheduled TV.

Although MP2 is impressive and probably can replace WMC, I'm having a difficult time adjusting to the UI.

I thought I should share the experience before I adapt. I have also identified some opportunities for improvement.

Here are the issues I've faced in the first day with MP2:

• This is a desktop machine. Although I do have an IR remote, I am used to operating with a mouse/keyboard.
• Finding the keyboard shorcuts has been a challenge. The MP2 docs refer back to MP1 for TV, but the MP1 shortcuts seem to be
  different. There is a list of MP2 shortcut actions, but I couldn't find the mapping between the actions and the keys. I expected the
  configuration application to at least have a list...
• With WMC, I can drag the current position forward or back (with a mouse) to skip or replay content. I haven't figured out how to
  do this with MP2.
• F7 and F8 are supposed to skip commercials back/forward (if I found the right doc). They seem to have no effect - at least on a
  recording that I'm playing of a live broadcast. (That is, the recording started 15 mins before I started watching. So I selected "watch
  recording from beginning" from the program guide.)
• The Icons on the home screen aren't obvious. I'll learn them eventually, but it would be helpful if there were tooltips that identified them.
• When I click on a program from the Guide, sometimes it will start to play. Sometimes there's a (>) play icon on the guide. Sometimes not.
• Sometimes there's a "choose program action" box. I'm confused about how that's supposed to work. There seem to be too many modes...
• The square box on the top bar also needs a tooltip - I finally figured out that it controls picture in picture or main screen. I haven't figured
  out how to close PIP once it is open, or how to switch the audio between the PIP and the main program.
• Typing numbers on the numeric pad or remote doesn't do anything.
• In the configuration, all the channels have names (usually the call letters and/or network). I get almost 40 OTA channels. It's very difficult
  to map the siteid channeled for the guide. It would be helpful if the WebEPG "TV Mappings" tab had an "export" tab to initialize the XML
  file with the list of Channel ids.
• It would be really helpful if the virtual channel number was present in the configuration and guide. (e.g. WGBH-HD 2.1); in the U.S.
  everything is oriented around the virtual channel number rather than the call letters.(The virtual channel number is not the broadcast
  frequency, but the old Analog channel number of the station.) We expect the guide and channels to be in order by virtual channel
  number, not by broadcast frequency or channel id. Also, The "Channel id" is not unique. For example, the "MeTV" network
  is broadcast on the subchannels of two different stations in my area.
• The WebEPG mapping really should be from the virtual channel number, not from the text names...
• I configured the Recording Folders for the server to be "C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV". But the recordings are ending up in
  "C:\ProgramData\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal TV Server\recordings" Why? How do I get them to be stored where I want them?
• The folder where the server is storing recordings is not listed as a media source by default. I found it by starting a recording and
  looking at the open handles. It would be helpful if the default configuration listed the server's folder as a media source - at least
  for configurations where the client and server are collated.

 

[osre]

Hi @tlhackque
There is currently a WMC lokk a like Skin in the works. The user experience should be quite similar to WMC with this.
see here: https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/threads/wmc-design-for-mp2-skin.131062/

With WMC, I can drag the current position forward or back (with a mouse) to skip or replay content. I haven't figured out how to
do this with MP2.

This currently not supported. But it's already on my list to support this.

F7 and F8 are supposed to skip commercials back/forward (if I found the right doc). They seem to have no effect - at least on a
recording that I'm playing of a live broadcast. (That is, the recording started 15 mins before I started watching. So I selected "watch
recording from beginning" from the program guide.)

This was in discussion lately. Not sure where, but if you look at the Topics of the last 2 weeks you should be able to find something about skipping commertials.

Typing numbers on the numeric pad or remote doesn't do anything

In live TV this should actually work. Not sure if ist in the Spring 2016 release, but with the latest weekly it should work.

It would be really helpful if the virtual channel number was present in the configuration and guide. (e.g. WGBH-HD 2.1); in the U.S.
everything is oriented around the virtual channel number rather than the call letters.(The virtual channel number is not the broadcast
frequency, but the old Analog channel number of the station.) We expect the guide and channels to be in order by virtual channel
number, not by broadcast frequency or channel id. Also, The "Channel id" is not unique. For example, the "MeTV" network
is broadcast on the subchannels of two different stations in my area.

In the latest Version there should be an Option to Switch beween channel index and channel number. Haven't tried it myself.

 

[Lehmden]

Hi.

Media Portal 2 for Windows Media Center Refugees

This is planed but not ready now.

Finding the keyboard shorcuts has been a challenge.

Our Wiki is in the middle of a transfer process from one software to a much better one. Behind the curtains there is lots of work going on regarding the documentation. Sadly there are only a few people who have time to work on this so it will take a while until it's finished.

The Icons on the home screen aren't obvious.

The Icons are skin/theme depending and the user can change them by simply replacing of jpg files...
Maybe a different skin fits better to your taste.

it would be helpful if there were tooltips

This also is skin depending and in some skins there are tooltips available.

Sometimes there's a "choose program action" box. I'm confused about how that's supposed to work.

Couldn't you read or understand what's written there? If yes, we maybe need to exchange some terms by more easy to understand ones. It depends on the state of the program, but you can choose if you want to view or record the program and how the recording should be handled.

Typing numbers on the numeric pad or remote doesn't do anything.

This is implemented new in the most recent weekly build that you can find here:
https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/threads/mediaportal-2-weekly-snapshot-2016-05-08.134320/

It would be really helpful if the virtual channel number was present in the configuration and guide.

You can select if the logical channel numbers or the index (aka the place in the channel group) should be displayed in EPG and used to zap. Default is the index as in most parts of the world there are no channel numbers available. The "real" channel number is available in TV Config tool since ages but the display in guide and the zapping by numbers also is part of the new weekly build and needs to be supported by the skin (not all skins do so)...

The WebEPG mapping really should be from the virtual channel number,

As told, most parts of the world did not have channel numbers at all, so this is not useful or planed.

The folder where the server is storing recordings is not listed as a media source by default.

It definitely is. As soon as you save the TV configuration for the first time the recordings folders will be added as media sources automatically. Even later, if you change the recordings folder in the TV config the new folders also will be added when saving TV configuration. This is no new feature so it must be available in your system too.

It's very difficult
to map the siteid channeled for the guide.

There are some more advanced alternatives to WebEPG like WebGrab+Plus and/or XMLTV. Lots of howtos are available in the forum.