User Fanart (2 Viewers)

[ScoopD]

Wrong FanArt getting loaded

Don't want to get lost in the middle of this argument, sorry, discussion, but I have a weird Fanart thing going on that I can't find anyone else having.

I have a series - 78075 - Beast Machines - for which there is no fanart, but when I open the series I get the fanart image - 78804_light_Doctor_Who_2.png - but only that one, not any of the other 78804 images.

It doesn't really matter, but it is weird and I like to understand weird stuff.

I've had the same behaviour in several different MP builds. I am using xface skin and again have had the same behaviour in several different versions.

 

[Clean]

Don't want to get lost in the middle of this argument, sorry, discussion, but I have a weird Fanart thing going on that I can't find anyone else having.

I have a series - 78075 - Beast Machines - for which there is no fanart, but when I open the series I get the fanart image - 78804_light_Doctor_Who_2.png - but only that one, not any of the other 78804 images.

It doesn't really matter, but it is weird and I like to understand weird stuff.

I've had the same behaviour in several different MP builds. I am using xface skin and again have had the same behaviour in several different versions.

Which version of the TV Series plugin are you using? Should be in C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Log\MP-TVSeries.log. Now that I think about it, what does the log say about what series it is finding and what fan art it is loading?

 

[ScoopD]

Which version of the TV Series plugin are you using? Should be in C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Log\MP-TVSeries.log. Now that I think about it, what does the log say about what series it is finding and what fan art it is loading?

Still using 1.2.9.34660 on that machine.

To Quote from the log -

3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Selected: 78075
3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Fanart: Series selected
3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Fanart: found, loading: C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Thumbs\Fan Art\78804_light_Doctor_Who_2.png
3/18/2008 9:18:27 PM - Begin LoadFacade

 

[Clean]

Which version of the TV Series plugin are you using? Should be in C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Log\MP-TVSeries.log. Now that I think about it, what does the log say about what series it is finding and what fan art it is loading?

Still using 1.2.9.34660 on that machine.

To Quote from the log -

3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Selected: 78075
3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Fanart: Series selected
3/18/2008 9:18:26 PM - Fanart: found, loading: C:\Program Files\Team MediaPortal\MediaPortal\Thumbs\Fan Art\78804_light_Doctor_Who_2.png
3/18/2008 9:18:27 PM - Begin LoadFacade

I tried to dupe it on my end but was not able to. Though I did just do a fresh re-install when I upgraded to 1.9.0.1687. Still, this is very strange. Have you tried changing the _2 to another number? Yep, just plain weird the more I think on it.

 

[Hopkins]

I am stunned by all this discussion. A site already exists that has many many fanart images that people (presumably MP people) have been using for quite some time. All of a sudden, moving to the tvdb comes up and the whole system is overhauled.

Has anyone actually checked to see just how many skins don't use the current "fanart in the top left hand corner" arrangement?

I look at the new fanart layout and see nothing but a "wallpaper" type picture being shrunk with some sort of fancy edge smoothing into a corner. This simply does not allow particular fanart to utilise the screen in the most efficient way. The most telling fanart for me is the one for "Rescue Me" with the "yelling face". If this was just "vanetted" (or whatever the stupid word is) into the corner or other place on the screen it simply wouldn't have the same impact as a yelling guy surrounding my tv episodes.

I still vote for the idea of fanart as before with the ability to tag/name images to indicate the focus area - top left, full screen, top right. If people are using a skin that doesn't suit, I can't imagine that they watch so many TV series, that they couldn't load up MS paint and move things around.

I still also suspect that "most" skins will continue to assume that fanart images have most interest in the top left - simply because so many images already exist in that format.

Lose the authority guys.

Sorry if this comes across as being blunt, but I wonder what is going on here?

 

[ftothe3]

Sorry if this comes across as being blunt, but I wonder what is going on here?

what's going on is that there are multiple media programs that dont use fan art exactly the same way and he was trying to make it work for everyone. just keep using spucks site.

 

[Hopkins]

ok - I have gone back and reread my previous post and it definitely was out of line.

Rather than edit and pretend I didn't think that way last night, let me try again...

I am just concerned that we are completely changing the whole system here. I understand the desire to make things completely compatible across applications/skins, but I wonder at what cost given the vast number of "top/left" designs already about.


Sorry about the previous attitude.

 

[spuck]

I don't see the point of this arguing.. Now that we got Fan Art on the tvdb we hopefully soon will have it downloadable in the plugin (hint for inker ).

Okay so I downloaded all fanart images from my site and went trough them all, deleted the ugly ones and only ended up with about 300 good quality images. I'm sure tvdb will beat that in no time, especially with users from 4 different HTPC-apps.

Using Fan Art from tvdb will most likely help skinners a lot too (Well me anyways likes it a lot). You don't have to create the skin adjusted for fanart but you can place the fanart anywhere you want, or you can have full size fullsize backgrounds at very high quality. If you switch between different skins you don't have to download different Fan Art and switch and stuff.

Of course this means that most skins will need to be changed a little bit but this probably wont happen until someone adds support for tvdb fan art (hint for inker ) and allow JPG files until then. And btw if it gets implemented in a stable release soon (hint for inker ) I'll be happy to help out with tvseries.xmls for skins that need one.

Anyway that's it.

 

[Clean]

I don't see the point of this arguing.. Now that we got Fan Art on the tvdb we hopefully soon will have it downloadable in the plugin (hint for inker ).

Okay so I downloaded all fanart images from my site and went trough them all, deleted the ugly ones and only ended up with about 300 good quality images. I'm sure tvdb will beat that in no time, especially with users from 4 different HTPC-apps.

So far all I have seen are promo pics resized or cropped to 1920x1080, and few, if any, would look good in any MP skin. Fan Art is (or was) something created by or for a fan of a series. It seems to have been changed to being just a wallpaper, or as the Aeon skin calls it, a backdrop. Which is fitting for Aeon because when a skin covers over 75% of the screen then the background image is really irrelevant.

Using Fan Art from tvdb will most likely help skinners a lot too (Well me anyways likes it a lot). You don't have to create the skin adjusted for fanart but you can place the fanart anywhere you want, or you can have full size fullsize backgrounds at very high quality. If you switch between different skins you don't have to download different Fan Art and switch and stuff.

You could do this before TVDB started hosting wallpapers. Develop a skin the way you want it to look, the way you want it to feel. Not based on what style has the most fan art.

I've said this numerous times but it has not been addressed once. The skin should drive the fan art, not the other way around. And so far all I have heard is that to accommodate these new wallpapers, skins will need to change. It just strikes me as odd that on the one hand we are hearing these new wallpapers will give freedom to skinners and on the other hand we are hearing "as long as the skins change to use it." And we are hearing all of this in a fan art request forum, not the MP skin development forum.

And not for nothing but MP called them Fan Art for a reason. Now unless the skinner is a Fan of every TV show out there why would they want to get involved in controlling what is displayed for every series. I just think the fan should do that.

Of course this means that most skins will need to be changed a little bit

Everyone says that the skins need to be changed but no one seems too fired up to say what will need to be changed or to move that to the MP Skin Development forum which is where that topic should be discussed.

 

[szsori]

Let's get one thing clear. We're not forcing the skinners to do anything. I'm not forcing Inker or Spuck to do anything. Inker and Spuck aren't forcing end users to do anything. People are free to use whatever method they want. However, if Inker decides to use my site's fan art then it's almost guaranteed that a skinner will follow and properly implement the changes in their skin. Keep in mind they're users as well and they want the best possible experience.

Which is fitting for Aeon because when a skin covers over 75% of the screen then the background image is really irrelevant.

Actually, when the background image covers that much of the screen it's anything but irrelevant.

fan art

Semantics. Should my website refuse to hold Sanctuary information because it never aired on television? The reason for all of the current art being promotional photos is simple: there's nothing in the database yet and people are putting the easiest, highest quality images they can in. That's promo photos. In time, especially for older series, people will get more creative with them. Most of the images on spuck's site use promo art anyway, so what's the problem?

Now, on to the bigger picture. I've responded to every issue you've brought up. I've also tried doing things in a way that makes everyone happy. I just fail to understand why this is such a big deal for you since you're neither a TheTVDB programmer, a my-TVSeries programmer, a host for current fan art, or a MP skinner. Inker will do things in a way that makes sense (he always has). Spuck will do what's best for the community (he always has). The skinners will do what they feel works for them. And I'll do what's best for all my users. So why are you continuing to bring up point after irrelevant point when nothing said now will make any difference?

Nobody wants to hear this argument anymore, including myself. My mind is made up on how I'll handle things and it's 100% up to Inker, Spuck, and the MP skinners to do things as they want. That doesn't mean that I won't try helping them in every way possible. It just means that we need to drop this freakin' argument since it's going nowhere and doesn't matter at all.