Feature Request following 3.0.3 beta

[Morgan111]

My WAF menu would have to include the weather..

Originally Posted by snoopy

I think the menu in SageTV could seem a little redundant and unclear to someone who isn't as familiar with it. I have alot of company and so I have been on a quest to find a Main Menu that makes the most sense organizationally, puts the newbies most likely choices at his fingertips while still allowing us (the wife and I) the ability to use it effeciently ourselves.

So here goes what I am suggesting as a Menu scheme with High WAF factor! Please chime in and tell me what you guys think of this one. I think it needs some work but am overall fairly satisfied with it. I am very interested anyones opinion here.

Note the 'attempt' to make everything on the Main Menu very clear while leaving additional room (2 lines) further additions, or even bigger fonts.

[Halstead]

Originally Posted by reboot_this

An example scenario...

I would connect a Firewire cable between my STB and my HTPC. Next I would start Sagetv, go into the tuner setup, and I would see a new available tuner (i.e. the firewire connection). I would then (as I would with say a pvr150 or pvr250) setup my epg service info and the channels I wanted to be used with the "new" tuner and voila! I now have HDTV on a Firewire connection!

Wouldn't this be nice? any STB owners/users out there also wanting this?

I hope this can be implemented in the (near) future. How hard could it be to do this (I really want to know)?

Heck yeah!!!!

[aperry]

Would be nice... Maybe they'll surprise us with it in a future beta...

[Opus4]

Originally Posted by silkshadow

Unicode support?

Unicode support is already in v3. If it doesn't work for you, send an example of what doesn't work to SageTV.

- Andy

[snoopy]

Firewire tuner support for existing cable boxes with firewire would be great! Seems perfectly doable to me.

[dagar]

Redbook audio ... aka that audio CD you can't listen to with Sage

I know, I know, I sound like a scratched CD

[mightyt]

Originally Posted by snoopy

I think the menu in SageTV could seem a little redundant and unclear to someone who isn't as familiar with it. I ... So here goes what I am suggesting as a Menu scheme with High WAF factor! Please chime in and tell me what you guys think of this one. I think it needs some work but am overall fairly satisfied with it. I am very interested anyones opinion here.

Snoopy, Agreed ... I could not wait to mod my Sage menu ... Like you, I wanted more simple titles that had more meaning to my wife and kids ... Here's a look at what I had been tweaking over time. (See Word Doc) Probably not as simplified as you would prefer but has worked for me thus far. Keep in mind that this was v.2 of Sage using mlbdude's STV overlaying the original STV and mielm's combo STV over mlbdude. I used Nielm's custom XML menus to set it up this way and then added the Weather Report Suite and midified it to include a local Traffic Map. I also attached a copy of my menu.xml file so you can see my layout. Note that the “Menus To Test” main menu item (only visible when scrolled) was just for me to get a look at all of the available internal screens and decide if and where I might want to place them.

Granted this is a bit of old v.2 technology considering we are talking v.3 now, but I have been holding off on upgrading to 2.x while I build a new box and waiting on 3.0.

Oh ... Glad the Virtual Disable Fav trick workd out for you

[snoopy]

Wow! NICE job with the graphics.
I'm not as crazy about your folder structure as I am mine but love your graphical choices. I have the little pictures which I think are part of Malore's work for v3.0. Those big icons of his are not necessary to me but your background of the little palm tree is well placed. Ballance wise, it makes alot of sense. I would like to do that on each screen. Can you send me that? I am using the diskspace module of Neilms that he came out with new for v3 also, but it doesn't show on each screen like yours. I like the font choice you have on your "recording manager" screen particularly. What text editor did you use? I tried to do a download.com search for text viewers like that, that people used to use for html editing. I didn't remember what they were called though and turned up very little. Nice job with the graphics. Thanks for your help.

[snoopy]

PS... Is there any way to do a moving image in a background much like the TiVo has?

[1972]

Originally Posted by mightyt

Snoopy, Agreed ... I could not wait to mod my Sage menu ... Like you, I wanted more simple titles that had more meaning to my wife and kids ... Here's a look at what I had been tweaking over time. (See Word Doc) Probably not as simplified as you would prefer but has worked for me thus far. Keep in mind that this was v.2 of Sage using mlbdude's STV overlaying the original STV and mielm's combo STV over mlbdude. I used Nielm's custom XML menus to set it up this way and then added the Weather Report Suite and midified it to include a local Traffic Map. I also attached a copy of my menu.xml file so you can see my layout. Note that the “Menus To Test” main menu item (only visible when scrolled) was just for me to get a look at all of the available internal screens and decide if and where I might want to place them.

Granted this is a bit of old v.2 technology considering we are talking v.3 now, but I have been holding off on upgrading to 2.x while I build a new box and waiting on 3.0.

Oh ... Glad the Virtual Disable Fav trick workd out for you

It was a very big disappointment for me that V3 still uses the same user interface. I asked myself if the folks at Frey are blind or something?
The SageTV menu structure and looks is not actractive at all. In the beginning I showed it to some friends (who are software/hardware engineers) and they all said: what a ugly interface. I could not even convince my wife to use it!
Only after installing the SageMC STV they all got enthusiastic!!!

Frey has shown they can make the controlling software 100% (more or less ;-), something that Microsoft has not done (yet) with their MCE, but Microsoft does know how to sell it with their great interface!

(just my 2 cents)

[dagar]

Eh, it's subjective like most things UI. I hate, with a passion, the MCE (and SageMC) interface. I think it's utter crap, inefficient, and an all together clunky experience. Not that I adore the default mind you I enjoy the dynamic menus, but that's my taste. To each their own.

lol, and my wife dislikes the MCE interface more than me

[1972]

Originally Posted by dagar

lol, and my wife dislikes the MCE interface more than me

She's a profesional technician?

[snoopy]

Originally Posted by mightyt

Snoopy, Agreed ... I could not wait to mod my Sage menu ... Like you, I wanted more simple titles that had more meaning to my wife and kids ... Here's a look at what I had been tweaking over time. (See Word Doc) Probably not as simplified as you would prefer but has worked for me thus far. Keep in mind that this was v.2 of Sage using mlbdude's STV overlaying the original STV and mielm's combo STV over mlbdude. I used Nielm's custom XML menus to set it up this way and then added the Weather Report Suite and midified it to include a local Traffic Map. I also attached a copy of my menu.xml file so you can see my layout. Note that the “Menus To Test” main menu item (only visible when scrolled) was just for me to get a look at all of the available internal screens and decide if and where I might want to place them.

Granted this is a bit of old v.2 technology considering we are talking v.3 now, but I have been holding off on upgrading to 2.x while I build a new box and waiting on 3.0.

Oh ... Glad the Virtual Disable Fav trick workd out for you

Desprately seeking free help

[Crashless]

Originally Posted by snoopy

I think the menu in SageTV could seem a little redundant and unclear to someone who isn't as familiar with it. I have alot of company and so I have been on a quest to find a Main Menu that makes the most sense organizationally, puts the newbies most likely choices at his fingertips while still allowing us (the wife and I) the ability to use it effeciently ourselves....snip...

You could easily make this menu using the dynamic menu import for the Original v3 STV. You might even want to post it on the Wiki, if you're so inclined.

That actually isn't a bad idea - for people to share their menus. Maybe different purpose menu files for say - Kid's room client, Main Server, Simple Living Room etc.

Just an idea.

[snoopy]

Originally Posted by Crashless

You could easily make this menu using the dynamic menu import for the Original v3 STV. You might even want to post it on the Wiki, if you're so inclined.

That actually isn't a bad idea - for people to share their menus. Maybe different purpose menu files for say - Kid's room client, Main Server, Simple Living Room etc.

Just an idea.

I've never edited a wiki might be fun

[dagar]

Originally Posted by 1972

She's a profesional technician?

Actually a network admin I'm a network architect Actually our folks can navigate fairly well (using Cayars 17 still -- haven't had time to look at anything else lately)

[broderp]

Improve install wizard to know about previous installs/versions and allows us to configure specific items for use fro the old critical file set with new wiz.bin and other critical files as well as an eaisier way to "reload" MP3 and saved videos in case something goes wrong.

The current solution for many problems is "back this file up, erase this file, select this, do that ...is tedious and should be stream lined. As this happes for some reason more times than I care to say, each time I have to spend hours looking up the info and writing it all down again, the last time it didn't work, so I have been with out my MP3 collection, weather suite for months now.

[snoopy]

Originally Posted by broderp

Improve install wizard to know about previous installs/versions and allows us to configure specific items for use fro the old critical file set with new wiz.bin and other critical files as well as an eaisier way to "reload" MP3 and saved videos in case something goes wrong.

The current solution for many problems is "back this file up, erase this file, select this, do that ...is tedious and should be stream lined. As this happes for some reason more times than I care to say, each time I have to spend hours looking up the info and writing it all down again, the last time it didn't work, so I have been with out my MP3 collection, weather suite for months now.

Ai....

I concur young Jedi master.... It is difficult to get stuff to work with the miriad of hardware out there. SageTV is definitely not perfect by any stretch. It is however, IMHO the best "True PVR" on the market. The way these guys let us customize it is down right astonishing. For paid software, that approach is really thinking in their customers interest. I'm thrilled with SageTV. If however, you are looking for a better "out of the box experience" perhaps a TiVo is more to your likeing.

No worries my friend... Have a bag of popcorn on me

[mightyt]

Originally Posted by snoopy

Wow! NICE job with the graphics.
Those big icons of his are not necessary to me but your background of the little palm tree is well placed. Ballance wise, it makes alot of sense. I would like to do that on each screen. Can you send me that?

See the PM I just sent you ...

Originally Posted by snoopy

I am using the diskspace module of Neilms that he came out with new for v3 also, but it doesn't show on each screen like yours.

Not sure if Neilm's Diskspace widget still works the same, but I just added it to any menu I wanted as an option (see below)

<subMenuItem
title="Recording Manager"
icon="STVs\OriginalV2\mlbdude\Default\mm_schedule.png">
<menu title="Recording Manager">
<option>showrecschedwidget</option>
<option>showdiskspacewidget</option>

Originally Posted by snoopy

I like the font choice you have on your "recording manager" screen particularly.

See the PM I just sent you ...

Originally Posted by snoopy

What text editor did you use?

Well believe it or not I use FrontPage 2003's editor for my XML editing ... Then printed to a file through Adobe Acrobat to retain the colors to make it an easy read.

Take care ... T.

[mightyt]

Originally Posted by Crashless

You could easily make this menu using the dynamic menu import for the Original v3 STV. You might even want to post it on the Wiki, if you're so inclined.

That actually isn't a bad idea - for people to share their menus. Maybe different purpose menu files for say - Kid's room client, Main Server, Simple Living Room etc.

Just an idea.

Great Idea ... That would be good way for us non-developer types to share what we can mod ....