Android MiniClient v1.2.0 - Released

[cculpepp]

Originally Posted by stuckless

So, I think found and fixed the 16/9 in a 4/3 container...

I'm actually out of town for 2 days... so, if this fails miserably... then I apologize, but i can't look at it until I get back on thursday.

I also added a debug preference for "Debug Aspect Ratios" only enable this if you really want to geeky information about your video and screen size and the "known" aspect ratios of each, etc... if you enable it, it shows a very annoying window over the video with that information... so it has very little value, except in trying to understand why a video may be stretched when it shouldn't, etc.

EDIT: And thanks for the video clips... it helped. (I hope I've resolved the issues... they appear to be resolved on my end)

Just updated to 1.2.2.....much better! All appears to be well. Thanks for your hard work. This is becoming a really nice app.

[stuckless]

Apparently there is an on screen nav bug that I introduced in v1.2.2

[cat6man]

hi folks,

i just discovered this thread and finally realized what it really is all about
(i had assumed this was a player for an android phone, not a hd300 replacement)

so, now i'm going to jump on the train, i just picked up a MiBox this morning, and will see if i can get it going this coming week. before i start asking questions, i want to do some browsing of the thread so i have at least a headstart on asking non-trivial questions

happy holidays everyone

[Fuzzy]

Originally Posted by cat6man

hi folks,

i just discovered this thread and finally realized what it really is all about
(i had assumed this was a player for an android phone, not a hd300 replacement)

so, now i'm going to jump on the train, i just picked up a MiBox this morning, and will see if i can get it going this coming week. before i start asking questions, i want to do some browsing of the thread so i have at least a headstart on asking non-trivial questions

happy holidays everyone

it's pretty simple. Turn on your Mi Box, navigate to the Play Store, search for the SageTV MiniClient, and click install. Once installed, run it, and connect to your server. Done.

[AzJazz]

Hi, stuckless! This is an awesome app!

You may already be aware of this (I only searched this thread, and didn't see anything), but there is a problem with the MiniClient and FireTV that messes up the FireTV bad enough that the FireTV needs to be rebooted to clear.

My situation is that I am trying to add a SageTV Server on my FireTV using a Placeshifter Locator ID. I can add the Placeshifter Locator into the MiniClient without any problem, and the FireTV connects to the SageTV server. However, when the Sage Placeshifter Login screen pops up, I get the FireTV on-screen keyboard on the screen, which doesn't work properly with the MiniClient. While that is bad, the worst part is that the FireTV keyboard can't be cleared from the screen even when the MiniClient is exited. The FireTV keyboard is suck on the screen until the FireTV is rebooted.

Thanks,

AzJazz

[stuckless]

Originally Posted by AzJazz

Hi, stuckless! This is an awesome app!

You may already be aware of this (I only searched this thread, and didn't see anything), but there is a problem with the MiniClient and FireTV that messes up the FireTV bad enough that the FireTV needs to be rebooted to clear.

My situation is that I am trying to add a SageTV Server on my FireTV using a Placeshifter Locator ID. I can add the Placeshifter Locator into the MiniClient without any problem, and the FireTV connects to the SageTV server. However, when the Sage Placeshifter Login screen pops up, I get the FireTV on-screen keyboard on the screen, which doesn't work properly with the MiniClient. While that is bad, the worst part is that the FireTV keyboard can't be cleared from the screen even when the MiniClient is exited. The FireTV keyboard is suck on the screen until the FireTV is rebooted.

Thanks,

AzJazz

Could you open a defect on the MiniClient defect tracker for this...

https://github.com/OpenSageTV/sagetv-miniclient/issues

[cat6man]

well, that was easy. it took me 5 minutes to setup and install the mini-client on MiBox, then 10 minutes to update the software and set the overscan.

i've got a couple of observations and some questions

1. what are folks with MiBox using for a remote control? while i don't use all the buttons on my hd300 remote, i need a lot more than the minimal set available with the stock remote

2. can the MiBox be set to boot into sageTV on powerup, skipping the selection process?

3. how do i delete all the non-desired apps at startup of MiBox? can i delete the recommendations?

4. has anyone found a way to use the google voice to give commands to sagetv? (like, 'start sagetv', 'go to recorded shows')?

5. i've just ordered an 'AnyMote' which is a super IR blaster that can do macros and it should be arriving tomorrow. anyone with experience using this? i'd like to use this to replace my venerable "ProntoPro" remote which controls my entire video system (hd300, jvc tv, oppo dvd player, denon avr, dvdo video processor, fios cable box). my wife, who is very smart and computer knowledgeable, is still, after all these years, terrified of anything involving complex remote controls. simple macros that she can run from her phone would help a lot..........or even better==>

6. my 'holy grail' is to replace the ProntoPro remote with voice command and control of macros for the entire system. I see that under android, folks have used Tasker and Autovoice to create customized voice commands. I am hoping that combining those apps with AnyMote, I can have the the entier setup work with a small set of voice commands and a single simple remote. for example, 'turn on sagetv' would turn on the TV set to hdmi input 1, turn on mini-client and connect to server, turn on AVR and video processor and set both to the appropriate inputs, etc. i have this today with macros written over the years for the ProntoPro remote and the plan would be to map this functionality over to a voice command platform. has anyone done any of this? i'll start a new thread for the topic of mini-client and voice command integration when i get into the project over the holidays.

ooooooooooooooohhhhhhhh.................new toys to play with

7. just wanted to reiterate-----you folks are great! this open source project is fantastic and your contributions are deeply appreciated by those of us without low level coding skills (c++, java, etc...........i am learning NS-3 these days, but that and matlab and fortran are less than useful here)

[stuckless]

Originally Posted by cat6man

1. what are folks with MiBox using for a remote control? while i don't use all the buttons on my hd300 remote, i need a lot more than the minimal set available with the stock remote

I'm using the stock remote. The MiniClient out of the box is setup to work with SageTV v9 and a limited remote. The MiniClient works with v7 but in v9 there have been tweaks to enable the MiniClient to work with a "dumb remote". For example, when you are playing a video, you press select it will pause/play. If video is playing and you hit right/left, it will skip right left. If you long press right/left it will skip commercials, etc. There are a number of remote enhancements that have been done to make it flow better.

If you use FLIRC or some other type of IR receiver and a full remote, be sure to turn off "Smart Remote" in the MiniClient settings.

Originally Posted by cat6man

2. can the MiBox be set to boot into sageTV on powerup, skipping the selection process?

Unfortunately, no. Android TV, for some reason, prevents you from using a customer Home Screen application, which is too bad, since, it really deters innovation on the homescreen front, if you can't replace it. There is a setting in the MiniClient settings, though, to connect automatically to the last connected server... but that's not what you are asking about, I realize that.

Originally Posted by cat6man

3. how do i delete all the non-desired apps at startup of MiBox? can i delete the recommendations?

In the Mi Box settings, under Apps, when you select an app from the Downloaded Apps section, there is an option to uninstall. just remove the ones you don't want. If the app is listed in the System Apps, then you can use the "Disable" but be careful, if you disable a system app, that is required by the box, you might make the box unusable, and require a complete firmware replacement.

[Fuzzy]

I have FLIRC connected to my Mi Box in the Master Bedroom, and have it configured to use the hauppauge/SageTV remote that comes with the HD-300 extenders. That said, after a couple weeks of use, we've pretty much stuck to the Mi's included 'simplified' remote for viewing in that room. Once you start using it, it gets pretty easy to use.

[jm9843]

Originally Posted by cat6man

2. can the MiBox be set to boot into sageTV on powerup, skipping the selection process?

The Kodi wiki recommends a Startup Manager app to auto-start Kodi when the device boots. Maybe you could try it and let us know if it works with the MiniClient.

Originally Posted by cat6man

3. how do i delete all the non-desired apps at startup of MiBox? can i delete the recommendations?

In addition to what stuckless said about disabling/uninstalling an app, you can also disable recommendations on a per-app basis if you find that more appealing.

Originally Posted by cat6man

4. has anyone found a way to use the google voice to give commands to sagetv? (like, 'start sagetv', 'go to recorded shows')?

I think that this would 'just work' to open the app by voice command, but I'm not sure. More advanced control would require Google bringing the Assistant feature (as seen in Pixel Phone, Google Home) to Android TV and developing Actions that talk to the MiniClient. Tasker/Autovoice stuff sounds like a lot of custom work but would no doubt impress the ladies.

Originally Posted by cat6man

5. i've just ordered an 'AnyMote' which is a super IR blaster that can do macros and it should be arriving tomorrow. anyone with experience using this?

I actually kickstarted the AnyMote but wasn't impressed by its blasting capabilities in my limited testing. It's probably not ideal for setups like mine where components are in a cabinet but located physically away from the display. Good concept so hopefully you fair better.

[rickgillyon]

Originally Posted by jm9843

The Kodi wiki recommends a Startup Manager app to auto-start Kodi when the device boots. Maybe you could try it and let us know if it works with the MiniClient.

I'm using this on my boxes. Along with the auto-connect in the miniclient it means on starting the box, Sage will appear.

HOWEVER, on my boxes inactive apps are closed automatically. So if you leave the box on when you turn the TV off, when you come back it'll be back on the homescreen. PITA.

[panteragstk]

Originally Posted by stuckless

I'm using the stock remote. The MiniClient out of the box is setup to work with SageTV v9 and a limited remote. The MiniClient works with v7 but in v9 there have been tweaks to enable the MiniClient to work with a "dumb remote". For example, when you are playing a video, you press select it will pause/play. If video is playing and you hit right/left, it will skip right left. If you long press right/left it will skip commercials, etc. There are a number of remote enhancements that have been done to make it flow better.

If you use FLIRC or some other type of IR receiver and a full remote, be sure to turn off "Smart Remote" in the MiniClient settings.



Unfortunately, no. Android TV, for some reason, prevents you from using a customer Home Screen application, which is too bad, since, it really deters innovation on the homescreen front, if you can't replace it. There is a setting in the MiniClient settings, though, to connect automatically to the last connected server... but that's not what you are asking about, I realize that.



In the Mi Box settings, under Apps, when you select an app from the Downloaded Apps section, there is an option to uninstall. just remove the ones you don't want. If the app is listed in the System Apps, then you can use the "Disable" but be careful, if you disable a system app, that is required by the box, you might make the box unusable, and require a complete firmware replacement.

I'll look into auto starting apps as that is something I can actually help with.

Also, if you can't disable the app you can turn off notifications for it so it doesn't annoy you. An example would be the mi box row of recommended apps or the sheild having its own row for gamestream, geforce now. You can disable those so they just show on the one row like any other app.

http://android.stackexchange.com/que...-on-the-mi-box

http://www.techhive.com/article/2986...endations.html

Looks like you can sideload AutoStart - No root and it will launch anything you want at startup. Since it is not an official android TV app you'll need something like HAL launcher to access it and a keyboard/mouse to navigate. Only should require setup the one time so it should be a do it and forget it solution.

[rickgillyon]

Originally Posted by panteragstk

Looks like you can sideload AutoStart - No root and it will launch anything you want at startup.

That one didn't work on my boxes.

[bialio]

Originally Posted by stuckless

Unfortunately, no. Android TV, for some reason, prevents you from using a customer Home Screen application, which is too bad, since, it really deters innovation on the homescreen front, if you can't replace it. There is a setting in the MiniClient settings, though, to connect automatically to the last connected server... but that's not what you are asking about, I realize that.

There is a way to use other launchers, although it's not easy. And since it's hard there aren't a lot of alternate launchers out there!

But here's how you do it:
http://androidtv.news/2016/10/hands-...y-tv-launchers

The gist is that you log in via ADB and run this command:

adb shell pm hide com.google.android.leanbacklauncher

This works for sure on Shield which is where I did it. I'm using the 'TVLauncher' app as my default launcher.
btl.

[stuckless]

Originally Posted by bialio

There is a way to use other launchers, although it's not easy. And since it's hard there aren't a lot of alternate launchers out there!

But here's how you do it:
http://androidtv.news/2016/10/hands-...y-tv-launchers

The gist is that you log in via ADB and run this command:

adb shell pm hide com.google.android.leanbacklauncher

This works for sure on Shield which is where I did it. I'm using the 'TVLauncher' app as my default launcher.
btl.

That's a cool idea. I think that rather than building a Home Screen launcher into the MiniClient... it might be a nice second project (some someone) to build a Home Screen app that can auto-launch the SageTV MiniClient.

[cat6man]

thanks for all the responses everyone.

is there a link that summarizes the new smart remote functionality?

[stuckless]

Originally Posted by cat6man

thanks for all the responses everyone.

is there a link that summarizes the new smart remote functionality?

https://github.com/OpenSageTV/sagetv..._NAVIGATION.md

[AzJazz]

Originally Posted by stuckless

Could you open a defect on the MiniClient defect tracker for this...

https://github.com/OpenSageTV/sagetv-miniclient/issues

Issue submitted: Issue #66

[jm9843]

ExoPlayer 2.1 - What’s new

There's improved support for MPEG-TS and seeking in live HLS streams which might be interesting if the long-dormant httpls server built into Sage is ever put to use.

[panteragstk]

Originally Posted by rickgillyon

That one didn't work on my boxes.

Let me do some testing and I'll get back to you.