looks like stock Sagetv?

[SageGk]

Is there a SageMC theme that looks just like the default STV, but has the features of SageMC? I love the default info bars when watching live tv on the HD100.

[SageGk]

Guess not?

[Brent]

I think the short answer is no there isn't a theme to mimic the default STV yet at least.

Not what you're asking for exactly, but you can get Malore Menus for SageMC which gets you the Malore Menus just like you'd see in the default STV

I don't see why we couldn't make a theme to look like the default STV without too much work though. I'll have to look into that if nobody else takes this up - just have a lot of projects going on at the moment.

[SageGk]

That would be great. there is just something about those transparent blue info bars that look so good to me. I am also picturing the stock main menu with my upcoming and recent recordings displayed.

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SageGk

That would be great. there is just something about those transparent blue info bars that look so good to me. I am also picturing the stock main menu with my upcoming and recent recordings displayed.

I've been playing around with custom themes quite a bit in SageMC and know enough to be dangerous
If it is the look of the stock STV that you're after it would be relatively easy to get that look in SageMC. However getting the submenus such as TV, Music and others to look and work like the stock STV would require a little more Studio knowledge than I'm capable of at the moment.

I'll start with the look-and-feel of the main menu and we can see what happens from there.

[SageGk]

Originally Posted by Brent

I've been playing around with custom themes quite a bit in SageMC and know enough to be dangerous
If it is the look of the stock STV that you're after it would be relatively easy to get that look in SageMC. However getting the submenus such as TV, Music and others to look and work like the stock STV would require a little more Studio knowledge than I'm capable of at the moment.
I'll start with the look-and-feel of the main menu and we can see what happens from there.

I look forward to trying it out!

[Brent]

I've been playing around with a Theme that defies logic but might answer some of the requests I've seen (such as the one above in this thread) to make a theme in SageMC that works more like the one in the base, SageTV install.

This theme is really a way to make your main menu and submenus to mimic the way the default STV User Interface all within the SageMC UI. I know, I know, many of the default STV guys are going to say "it's not the same" and I'll admit it isn't exactly the same, but its getting there. Still some work to do especially when you get to some of the screens, but the basic UI and menu structure is very similar to the default STV which might make some happy.

Here's a screen-shot of the main menu:


You can compare to the original, default STV's Main menu for comparison here

Why would you want to do this? Can't I just use the default STV and be done with it?
Yes you can, but for those few that want access to the SageMC-only functionality or plugins but are in love with the default STV, this might appeal to them.

Warning: This theme is still somewhat under development so bear with me. If you see something you don't like or you think needs to be changed let me know. Once I get a little farther, I'll upload to the SageTV download section if there is any interest.

Download Here

Requires SageMC to be installed before installing this theme (preferrably the most recent version)

Install Instructions:

1. Download the MC2Default.zip file from here and Unzip the contents of the zip file into the SageTV directory. (typically SageTV/SageTV/)
2. Change Theme: From the SageMC Settings menu, select "Select Theme>Select>MC2Default" and then execute the "Apply" button
3. Change Dynamic Menu: You should now be at the main menu. Don't worry its not there quite yet. Now hit your escape key or options menu to get the options menu. Select "Main Menu Options" then "File>Load Other Menu File>Browse". Browse to "Menus" directory and select MC2Default and hit the "OK" button. Now hit the home key with your remote or keyboard and you should now see a slightly different main menu with new names and functions more similar to the default STV
4. Change Menu Layout: Once again hit your escape key or options menu to get the options menu - this time select "Customize Screen Layout". Select "Import/Export Layout>Import All>" and browse to MC2Default.layout" Select that, hit "Yes"

That should be it. Note that you can switch back to your other themes with the same basic steps - just going backwards.

NOTE: Some of the same people who like the default STV UI and want to use SageMC with this theme might be interested in the Malore Menus for SageMC add-on.

What things are still like SageMC and not like the default STV?:

• You still can use SageMC plugins and all the other stuff that comes with SageMC - you can modify this thing as much as you want.
• SageTV Recordings are still in the typical SageMC format and not the default STV format
• Program Guide is the SageMC EPG, not the default STV's EPG
• Some of the items within the "Schedule Recordings" submenu are SageMC-centric
• Music, Photos and Videos are still SageMC's
• Instead of putting a "standby" menu item on the main menu as there is on the default STV, I left a "shutdown icon" on the top-right of the screen. You can navigate to that with your remote and select shut-down, sleep or cancel just as with all other SageMC themes.
• I'm sure there are other things as well.

Give it a try and tell me what needs to be fixed, changed or if it just plain stinks Won't hurt my feelings I promise.

[MeInMaui]

Brent,

It makes my brain hurt.

Nice job.

Aloha,
Mike

[Brent]

Originally Posted by MeInMaui

Brent,

It makes my brain hurt.

I know. When I first started writing the "why" part of that post it was a big, silly circle.

Start with default STV, add SageMC, Change menus to default STV, explain the craziness of doing so and so on. But, it was something the crowd seemed to be interested in so a good chance for me to work some more on the theme stuff I'm trying to learn.

[SageGk]

Ok I'm using it, looks great so far! I think its a nice alternative to add to the mix of themes.

[JREkiwi]

Originally Posted by Brent

I know. When I first started writing the "why" part of that post it was a big, silly circle.

Maybe more like a Möbius strip than a circle? I suppose we could also look at this as a "What features of SageMC that you want, are not available as imports in the Default STV?"

A similar question was asked back in the "old days" when the Cayars STV went the way of the dodo. Once the features wanted were itemized, as opposed to being a nebulous mass, imports to provide those features actually got knocked out pretty quickly by a variety of people.

John

[Brent]

Originally Posted by JREkiwi

I suppose we could also look at this as a "What features of SageMC that you want, are not available as imports in the Default STV?"

John,
Not a bad idea if it hasn't been done already somewhere. I'm honestly more of a fan of SageMC and it's menus, built-in add-ons and customization options for the end-user so I probably wouldn't be the best person to answer that question.

Still, If I were to list out the reasons for me choosing SageMC I would say these for starters:

• Movies (Videos) screen works more intuitively for my taste. I want ripped DVDs to be seamlessly integrated with video files such as mpeg, avi, divx etc. There is no logical reason for me to see any difference between them. A movie is a movie and my family doesn't give a darn if its a ripped dvd or a mpeg file.
• SageMC has built-in importing and organizing of dvdprofiler, imdb metadata. Once I import, I can view by genre, title name etc. (similar I guess to the default STV, but works more the way I prefer and it's built-in.)
• I actually like the different styles of menus available. SageMC lets me make the UI look and work the way I want it to. And it looks less like something created in 1995. This is a personal preference thing, but you asked
• Media takes more of a role in the main menu instead of combining video, music, photos etc in a single "Media Center" submenu that requires more clicks.
• There are several plugins only available for SageMC.

I think those are the main ones off the top of my head at least. I don't know, why do others who prefer the default want to use SageMC - you know, the ones who might want to use this theme for example? Anyone want to chime in?

[wado1971]

I've played around with SageMC in the past and really like some of the features (Netflix, themes, etc) but have been dragged back to the default stv by: 1)WAF drops drastically 2)I simply miss some default features. About a week ago I installed the new MC release on my office client and decided to modify it over the holiday break just enough to fool the wife into thinking it's the default.

Your work has PERFECT timing for my upcoming days off!! Thanks for the work Brent - It will greatly help make my house an MC world

[SageGk]

Yes, the layout is easier for other people in the house to use to set their recordings, view conflicts etc etc. I'm using it now in the living room and it looks great, The layout even looks great with other theme backgrounds. I really hope Brent can make info bars just like the default STV. I like those transparent blue info bars while watching liveTV.

[Brent]

Originally Posted by SageGk

Yes, the layout is easier for other people in the house to use to set their recordings, view conflicts etc etc. I'm using it now in the living room and it looks great, The layout even looks great with other theme backgrounds. I really hope Brent can make info bars just like the default STV. I like those transparent blue info bars while watching liveTV.

When you say "info bars" do you mean the ones like this?

[SageGk]

That is exactly what I mean, would be nice to have those with the sagemc icons, i.e. tuner, recording, first run, etc.

[Fuzzy]

I'd like to make a pseudo bump here. First, I haven't cheked this theme of yours out yet, Brent, and not sure it's really what I'm wanting. I am one of those that prefer the Default STV, and it seems every update as of late has made it better and better. the ONLY reason I am using SageMC is because there are a couple plugins that require it. However, I do feel those could be easily brought to the Default STV, as they don't seem to rely greatly on SageMC's features.

1. NetFlix
2. SageMovieWall

The main reason I prefer the Default STV is the recordings window. This is where I spend the majority of my time in Sage (other than watching), and it is here that the Default STV far outclasses SageMC. All other SageMC features that I like are either now in the Default STV, or are available as an import already (Pandora, FanArt).