(original thread) MCE Replacement Plugin v1.0.0 (1 Viewer)

[Keflon]

Area: Media Portal Plugins
MediaPortal Version: 0.2.1.0 (2006-10-21)
MediaPortal Skin: BlueTwo
Windows Version: Windows XP (SP2)
.NET CLR Version: 2.0.50727
DirectX Version: 4.09.00.0904 (9.0c)
Audio Codec: MPA Decoder Filter
Video Codec: MPV Decoder Filter
CPU Type: AMD Athlon 64 3800+
Memory: 894 MB
Motherboard: M2NPV-VM (ASUSTek Computer INC.)
TV Card Model: Hauppauge Win TV Nova-T 500 MCE/Dual Digital DVBT Tuner+Remote
TV Card Type: DVB
TV Card Driver: -
Video Card Model: Nvidia Geforce 6150 (256 MB)
Video Card Driver: -
Video Card Resolution: 800x600
Video Render Type: VMR9
Audio Card Model: SoundMAX Integrated Digital HD Audio
Audio Card Driver: -
Synopsis:: -


Hi and-81.

First off I'd like to say this plugin is excellent work. There's 'getting the job done' and 'getting the job done with style' and whilst I can't yet get it to work I can clearly see that you follow the second approach.

The problem I'm having is with learning codes from my remote that I want to blast to my amplifier and I hope you can help. Here's a summary of the problem.

I've installed both the driver and plugin from RC4.
When I try and teach the plugin a new code (e.g. volume-up on my amp remote) and I'm then instructed to press the key to be learned, there is no response from the dialog box. The dialog eventually times out and tells me that it failed to learn any code.
Before the dialog times out it is unresponsive, i.e. if I try to close it Windows tells me it is not responding.
It takes about 15 seconds to timeout.
I've also tried teaching it codes from my MCE remote (Hauppauge - it came with the DVB card) and it doesn't respond to that either.
I've also tried the test app. you provided and that doesn't respond to any remote either.
Interestingly, if I choose the 'Different Remote' option in your plugin configuration and then start pressing buttons on either remote then the scan codes for those buttons are immediately displayed, so the plugin can clearly read data from the IR port.

I haven't tried it with the original remote driver because last night I unfortunately made a bit of a mess of trying to replace it ... I'll work it out later if you think it'll help.

Let me know if you need more info. or if you have any ideas about what I should try next.

Thanks for a great plugin,

Keflon.

 

[joboehl]

...That way my plugin could be broken down into smaller ones like ...

I was about to aske you if this was feasible. Frodo just released the initial samples for server plug0ins, so if you could separate the blasting into a separate plugin, it would be possible to use it in the TVServer to control the STBs.

Since MP is spliting itself into a client+server architecture, it would really nice if the plug-in could be splitted too.

What do you think?

Great work BTW.

Julio

 

[and-81]

When I try and teach the plugin a new code (e.g. volume-up on my amp remote) and I'm then instructed to press the key to be learned, there is no response from the dialog box. The dialog eventually times out and tells me that it failed to learn any code.

Even on my pc, which works well with the plugin, I get some strange problems when learning IR codes. I know HIP has integrated MceIrApi and it doesn't exhibit this behaviour that my plugin does. So I'm going to fire off an email to the author of HIP and see if he has any tips or tricks he can tell me about. I'll see what comes of that and hopefully improve this area of the plugin. Stay tuned.

I was about to aske you if this was feasible. Frodo just released the initial samples for server plug0ins, so if you could separate the blasting into a separate plugin, it would be possible to use it in the TVServer to control the STBs.

I've started breaking out the External Channel Changing part of the plugin for use with the new TV server. I'll release a test version as soon as I can. But it will probably be next week.

Again, stay tuned

 

[CHli]

Even on my pc, which works well with the plugin, I get some strange problems when learning IR codes. I know HIP has integrated MceIrApi and it doesn't exhibit this behaviour that my plugin does. So I'm going to fire off an email to the author of HIP and see if he has any tips or tricks he can tell me about. I'll see what comes of that and hopefully improve this area of the plugin. Stay tuned.

Great ! (Because I have the same problem) but I could make it learn by trying multiple times...


Thanks for the great work so far ! Impressive !

 

[arjay]

Aaron - re the flcikering/disappearing info key. i attach my MPlog. I tried a few things first:

1. The info key works fine if I disable your plugin, but won't work properly when i re-enable the plugin.

2. I tried the sky 2500N settings that you have for stb setups but it still happens there, so I reverted to the generic sky stb settings.

3. I tried increasing the time delay from 250 m/secs to 500 m/secs but that made no difference.

N.B you will see from the log that I have had mce2005 running on this machine (it is the combined winxp/mce2005 O/S - not plain xp). The log shows that some mce processes are running and it stops those for the duration - re-initiating them at shut down (pretty neat huh?). I remember once finding out what they were and trying to disable them, but if I renamed them or deleted them Win XP automatically put them back. That's what I hate about MS - they think i am an idiot and mollycoddle me by replacing system files I try to delete!! Anyway - not sure if that would have anything to do with things.

The log will show I fired up MP - chose tvguide, chose a channel (Animal Planet) and then tried to call up info using the info key. I tried three times or so - the last time double clicking. This seemed to work but I also found that doing this sometimes called up a different menu (the one that gives a choice of 5-6 things like watch this channel, record, go back a window or such things - not the info dialogue box at all.

If you need anything else, let me know.

Good hunting!

RJ

EDIT: Forgot to say that I used the mouse to shut down at the end - hence no key presses shown at the end of the log.

 

[and-81]

Thanks RJ,

By the look of this log it seems that the MediaPortal built in MCE remote support is still enabled. Can you check that for me?

Thanks,

 

[arjay]

...
By the look of this log it seems that the MediaPortal built in MCE remote support is still enabled. Can you check that for me?

Aaron
I checked in Setup/Remotes and it shows "Use MS MCE Remote or Keyboard" as checked (i.e. selected). Is that what you meant? I am using the mce default drivers rather that your replacement in order to keep use of my mce keyboard.

RJ

 

[Marcusb]

Hi Aaron, I get the same issue and can confirm that I have disabled the built in MCE functions.

 

[and-81]

OK, I've finally been able to reproduce the problem.

It only occurs (for me) with the following setup:

MCE Remote Driver: Original Microsoft Driver.
My Plugin: Enabled.
MediaPortal Setup, Remote, Microsoft MCE, Use Microsoft MCE Remote or Keyboard: Enabled.

It's your classic case of the button being seen and acted on in two different areas of MediaPortal. Like the double-press problem with the arrow buttons.

Try turning off the "Use Microsoft MCE Remote or Keyboard" and see if everything is ok. If not, then what you want to do is remove all the button mappings from the MediaPortal integrated MCE support and just let the replacement plugin handle button mappings.

I'll try to make the plugin a little smarter about handling these sorts of things. But give what I've said a try and let me know you go.

@Murcusb: Are you sure? I can only reproduce the problem as I've described above. But I imagine that anything that acts on the MCE remote buttons would interfere with my plugin, so any sort of other remote handler or HID handler might cause trouble. Are you using the latest version of the plugin?

Thanks guys,

 

[arjay]

Try turning off the "Use Microsoft MCE Remote or Keyboard" and see if everything is ok.

Well done Aaron - that has fixed my problem of the info key flashing on and off and not "sticking". Everything seems to work fine now. I'll let you know if I discover anything else.

BTW - what I don't understand is that I have turned off "Use MCE remote or keyboard", but my mce keyboard continues to function just fine. I thought you said that the replacement driver did not enable the mce keyboard, but apparently, the plugin itself provides for that functionality?

Anyway - great job pal - I'd buy you a VB if you were a bit nearer.

RJ