MP 1.2.3 - minor issues/questions (1 Viewer)

[cewillis]

I've just installed 1.2.3 and have a few minor issues for which some longer term users probably have the answers.
(setup attached)
1) I'm using KeyboardInputPlugin to map my HAMA clone remote keys -- but cannot get RightArrow to work as it should, namely MoveRight action. I have it explicitly mapped for 1.2.3, but didn't even need to do that in 1.1.0.0.
What the key does is nothing, except in full screen playback where it cycles through the screen zoom settings available (which I don't want). This leads me to believe it's a setting somewhere that I missed, that overrides the mapped action. Where is it, or how do I get rid of this action?
2) I have a little dark line at the top of full screen playback. I think I just saw a setting referring to this but now can't find it.
3) Under what circumstances are thumbnails generated for recorded TV and videos? Some have 'shown up'; others not? I don't see any pattern, or any way to manual cause them to be generated.
4) Is there a way to disable all screen blanking initiated by MP?

Thanks for any help on the above.

Also, needing further investigation by me before asking for help, I'm getting some serious tuner problems when trying to record two TV shows at the same time -- even though the 1.2.3 installation is on a separate disk partition in the same machine as 1.1.0.0, and the same driver is used in both installs.

 

[mm1352000]

Hello Cal

1) I'm using KeyboardInputPlugin to map my HAMA clone remote keys -- but cannot get RightArrow to work as it should, namely MoveRight action. I have it explicitly mapped for 1.2.3, but didn't even need to do that in 1.1.0.0.
What the key does is nothing, except in full screen playback where it cycles through the screen zoom settings available (which I don't want). This leads me to believe it's a setting somewhere that I missed, that overrides the mapped action. Where is it, or how do I get rid of this action?

According to the details here the toggle zoom/AR action is usually mapped to an "s". Perhaps check whether the default mapping for that action was somehow changed and is overriding the default action (here). I'm not an expert on remotes. Somebody else will likely be able to give you a far better answer than I can.

2) I have a little dark line at the top of full screen playback. I think I just saw a setting referring to this but now can't find it.

A screenshot would help with this one - finding it hard to imagine what you're describing.

3) Under what circumstances are thumbnails generated for recorded TV and videos? Some have 'shown up'; others not? I don't see any pattern, or any way to manual cause them to be generated.

The thumbnail generator does sometimes flat-out fail to generate thumbnails for certain files.
What do your thumbnail settings look like (PS: helps to include full logs or MediaPortal.xml so that we can look this up straight away )?
You could try clearing the thumbnail DB and see whether that helps.

4) Is there a way to disable all screen blanking initiated by MP?

What is your screensaver idle setting set to (link)? Note: you need to be in "advanced mode" to see that setting - top right hand corner of MP configuration.

Also, needing further investigation by me before asking for help, I'm getting some serious tuner problems when trying to record two TV shows at the same time -- even though the 1.2.3 installation is on a separate disk partition in the same machine as 1.1.0.0, and the same driver is used in both installs.

Well, as soon as you have some concrete questions or logs I'd be happy to take a look.

mm

 

[cewillis]

Hi mm,

1) Attached are pictures of the various key mappings. The defaults page doesn't look like your link, but it seems to be the same thing. As you can see, Right is defined as 'step forward' or 'move right', and s is defined as 'change zoom' in the first 3 pictures. In the last picture, I have explicitly defined Right (again) as 'step forward', 'small step forward', or 'move right'. For all definitions, the key Right (on both remote and keyboard) continues to change zoom, like the definition for s while in full screen playback, and continues to do nothing elsewhere.

2) later

3) Thumbnail setting look like your link, except I have the speed/quality setting at a middle point, and I have 'leave a thumb in recording folder' checked. I've tried various speed/quality settings. I'll try your suggestion.
MediaPortal.xml atttached -- sorry about that.

4) I've tried screensaver off (not checked) and on, with 9999 as the timeout. I still get a 2 second blank screen when exiting playback and when quitting mp.
Edit: also MP goes to blank screen during TV recording. I don't want any 'screensaver' because the TV is only taking input from the htpc when I want to SEE IT. Not a big deal --

Thanks again for your able assistance,
Cal

 

[cewillis]

For the tuner problem, I can record 2 analog channels at the same time, or 1 analog and one clear QAM. But 2 QAMs cause video pixelation and distortion and audio drop out on both channels. Sometimes TVserver crashes, sometimes not.
(this sounds familiar, but the 'other problem' with certain QAM channels is gone, and it doesn't seem to make any difference which QAM channels are used.)

Debug logs attached. Delete old lags, start MP, start one recording, start the other, verify problems, stop MP and TV, compress and send.

Thanks for offering to look, mm. I think your name should be changed to gg, or at least ge. (gentleman genius or gentleman expert)

Cal

Don't know if this means anything --
2012-08-03 16:10:00.250000 [scheduler thread(9)]: unable to add BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter filter:0x4022D
2012-08-03 16:10:03.500000 [scheduler thread(9)]: unable to add BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter filter:0x4022D

 

[mm1352000]

Hello again

Thanks for the screenshots and settings.

1) Attached are pictures of the various key mappings. The defaults page doesn't look like your link, but it seems to be the same thing. As you can see, Right is defined as 'step forward' or 'move right', and s is defined as 'change zoom' in the first 3 pictures. In the last picture, I have explicitly defined Right (again) as 'step forward', 'small step forward', or 'move right'. For all definitions, the key Right (on both remote and keyboard) continues to change zoom, like the definition for s while in full screen playback, and continues to do nothing elsewhere.

The settings look all "honky dory", but the fact that even the right arrow on the keyboard does the same thing suggests the mapping for the remote button itself within the KeyboardInput plugin (which I've never used by the way) may be the problem. Have you tried to temporarily disable that plugin and check whether the keyboard starts doing the right thing?

3) Thumbnail setting look like your link, except I have the speed/quality setting at a middle point, and I have 'leave a thumb in recording folder' checked. I've tried various speed/quality settings. I'll try your suggestion.

Yeah, settings look okay to me. Let me know if the suggestion helps. Otherwise it may just be a limitation of the thumbnailer (which the team have discussed replacing/updating). BTW: has this issue only surfaced while trying MP 1.2.3, or is it something that has been niggling for a while?

I still get a 2 second blank screen when exiting playback and when quitting mp.

This might be a Windows limitation. I'm not an expert on this particular area but it sounds like you're describing either the switch from full screen exclusive mode used for video playback to "the other mode" ( - sorry can't remember the technical name) or a change of refresh rate (I note that your MP settings seem to say that you have dynamic refresh rate changing enabled). I hope @tourettes or @Scythe42 could confirm this for you.

Edit: also MP goes to blank screen during TV recording. I don't want any 'screensaver' because the TV is only taking input from the htpc when I want to SEE IT. Not a big deal --

During recording playback or during the actual recording (ie. saving stream to HDD)?
I take it you restarted MP after changing the settings? Your settings do look okay to me.

mm

 

[mm1352000]

Thanks for offering to look, mm. I think your name should be changed to gg, or at least ge. (gentleman genius or gentleman expert)

You're too kind! <blushes>

Don't know if this means anything --
2012-08-03 16:10:00.250000 [scheduler thread(9)]: unable to add BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter filter:0x4022D
2012-08-03 16:10:03.500000 [scheduler thread(9)]: unable to add BDA MPEG2 Transport Information Filter filter:0x4022D

I don't think so. As far as I remember, I've seen that message in the logs for everyone using an ATSC/QAM tuner.

The logs are interesting. Both of those channels that you tested with seem to be on the same physical channel or frequency, and yet TV Server decides it needs to use both tuners. That is clearly not optimal. The indiscriminate continuity errors (suggesting recording errors) start during the second recording as suggested.

I think we covered this in the thread discussing the other problem, but to give a quick summary continuity errors are most often seen with:
- low signal strength/quality
- incorrect tuning parameters
- hard drive stress due to background scanning or OS and other apps also using the drive
- overheating hardware

Do you think any of these are likely/possible here?

Putting that aside for a moment, could you please try the attached patch. It should result in TV Server using the first tuner for both recordings. Haven't quite worked through in my head what this might tell us about the issue if it solves the problem, however it will be extra information regardless.
1. Stop the TV service in the "manual control" section of TV Server configuration.
2. Close TV Server configuration.
3. Take a backup of the TvLibrary.Interfaces.dll in your TV Server install folder (typically C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal TV Server on XP).
4. Download and extract the attached DLL into that same folder.
5. Open TV Server configuration again (you'll get a prompt that the service is not running - click yes to start the service) then try the test again.

mm

 

[cewillis]

Have you tried to temporarily disable that plugin and check whether the keyboard starts doing the right thing?

Yes, I tried disabling the plugin. Same result. I'll recheck the mapping in the built-in area, and try again.

BTW: has this issue only surfaced while trying MP 1.2.3, or is it something that has been niggling for a while?

As far as I know, there were no thumbnails in 1.1.0.0 -- at least I never saw any. So this is the first time I've seen any.
I tried your suggestion of deleting all the thumbnails: the same ones, and no others, were regenerated. I guess this is just what happens -- so be it.

This might be a Windows limitation. I'm not an expert on this particular area but it sounds like you're describing either the switch from full screen exclusive mode used for video playback to "the other mode" ( - sorry can't remember the technical name) or a change of refresh rate (I note that your MP settings seem to say that you have dynamic refresh rate changing enabled).

It's not just full screen playback; also happens with playback (or live TV) in a part of the screen. (start playback ->full screen, click 'back to the previous screen'-> playback continues in a small window, click stop -> playback stops, and 2 second blank screen happens).
Should I disable dynamic refresh change?

Both of those channels that you tested with seem to be on the same physical channel or frequency, and yet TV Server decides it needs to use both tuners. That is clearly not optimal.

I don't understand. TVserver has to use both tuners because it's recording two different tv shows at the same time. One tuner per show -- right? (this is why I have a two tuner card)

I think we covered this in the thread discussing the other problem, but to give a quick summary continuity errors are most often seen with:
- low signal strength/quality
- incorrect tuning parameters
- hard drive stress due to background scanning or OS and other apps also using the drive
- overheating hardware

Do you think any of these are likely/possible here?

signal -- all the channels are fine by themselves
tuning parameters -- sure, maybe, but how?
hard drive activity - don't think so, no other user level programs run on this machine.
overheating - I really don't think so. Again, it's the same hardware as runs 1.1.0.0 successfully.
The only difference in setup is now the disk has two 500GB partitions, each with a full OS install; partition 1 has 1.1.0.0 which does not have this problem, partition 2 has 1.2.3.
I don't see why the 2nd partition would cause any extra disk activity (eg, file system administration) - but could it?

It should result in TV Server using the first tuner for both recordings.

Again, I don't see how this is possible. What am I missing? (I'll try this if you still want me to)

 

[tourettes]

I still get a 2 second blank screen when exiting playback and when quitting mp.

This might be a Windows limitation. I'm not an expert on this particular area but it sounds like you're describing either the switch from full screen exclusive mode used for video playback to "the other mode" ( - sorry can't remember the technical name) or a change of refresh rate (I note that your MP settings seem to say that you have dynamic refresh rate changing enabled). I hope @tourettes or @Scythe42 could confirm this for you.

Having 2 second black screen on exiting MP sounds a bit weird. Does it happen if you just start MP and then close it? If yes then it is probably some bug in the display drivers.

Having 2 second black screen after stopping a video playback on Windows XP is most likely related to VMR9 + Exclusive mode. I think we had such bug on some systems years ago, but I cannot really remember what was causing it. MP togless between DirectX Exclusive mode and normal mode when starting & stopping video playback under Windows XP.

 

[cewillis]

Having 2 second black screen on exiting MP sounds a bit weird. Does it happen if you just start MP and then close it? If yes then it is probably some bug in the display drivers.

No, start followed by immediate stop does not produce a blank screen.

Having 2 second black screen after stopping a video playback on Windows XP is most likely related to VMR9 + Exclusive mode.

So there's no way to get rid of it via settings, without causing something worse?

"Commy64 - The problem there is that Oprah was on. MP tried to save you by blanking the screen"

Very appropriate!

Thanks tourettes.

 

[cewillis]

Have you tried to temporarily disable that plugin and check whether the keyboard starts doing the right thing?​

Yes, I tried disabling the plugin. Same result. I'll recheck the mapping in the built-in area, and try again.

Here's a little results matrix for our amusement --
KIP - KeyboardInputPlugin enable: MCE - Remotes>MCE enable: HID - Remotes>Generic HID enable: Right - key working or not
KIP MCE HID Right
Y N N N
N Y N N
N N N Y - but media control keys (skip, pause, rewind, ect) not working
Y Y N N
N N Y Y - but no media control
Y N Y N

For all the N cases under Right, the media control keys do work correctly.

Also discovered that I am unable to add keys and mappings in Keys and Sounds(? or Default Mappings, one of those)), even though there is an Add key.
Attempting to add mappings in MCE mappings doesn't work because my remote sends combinations of control characters -- which is why I started using KeboardInputPlugins to start with. Maybe adding keys and mappings under Generic HID will work --??

This is kind of annoying, but not a show-stopper.