STV Import: Malore Style Online Browser

[tmiranda]

If you are looking for a better way to browse, manage, view and record all of the new Online content that is now available thanks to the hard work of the good folks at Sage and EvilPenguin, this STVi may be for you. This online browser is modeled after the Malore style (2 pane) browser that is used when the "hidden extras" are enabled in the Default STV.

Version History:

04.25.2010 - Version 1.4

• Fixed a bug that caused podcast episode information to be duplicated.
• Added ability to cleanup files (from the default STV as well as for the Malore Online Browser STV) that sometimes get orphaned. Note that the "Online Cleanup" STVi should not be used in addition to this STVi since the functionality is identical.
• Added ability for user to choose if a podcast is to be recorded after being watched. The user can have the podcast automatically recorded when the playback is complete or can choose to be prompted when the playback is complete.
• Added the ability to automatically have the podcast added to the Imported Videos after being recorded.
• Added the ability to record a podcast while watching it by pressing the Record button on the remote (or Ctrl-y on a keyboard.)
• Enhanced the record dialog so the user can choose where to store the recorded podcast and what to name it.
• Slightly enhanced the options menu to include links to the RSS Options menu and the Record Options menu.

04.03.2010 - Version 1.3

• Added the ability to record (download) Podcasts.
• Added compatibility with the EZOnline definitions. Note that the "EZOnline" STVi should not be used in addition to this STVi since the functionality is identical.
• Fixed a bug that caused Favorites with a parenthesis in the name to not work properly.
• Removed beta status. I still do not have access to Amazon VOD or Netflix but nobody has complained so it must work Please let me know if you have problems.

11.28.2009 - Beta 1.2:

• Fixed compatibility with STV fileset 2009112501.
• Focus returned to proper place when navigating up in the Category/SubCategory view.
• Added ability to update the PlayOn configuration files from the RSS options dialog.
• Added ability to view the podcasts that loaded and the podcasts that failed to load in the RSS options dialog.
• Fixed bug that caused the name of the first podcast being loaded to display incorrectly.
• Fixed bug that caused the YouTube category title to be displayed incorrectly in the Category/SubCategory view.
• Fixed a bug that caused some Google category names to be displayed incorrectly.
• Can now select YouTube and Google items as Favorites.
• No longer includes UPnP2Podcast.exe.

11.01.2009 - Beta 1.1:

• Fixed bug that caused an error when used by SageMC.
• Now sorts subcategories.
• Better handling of "No Videos Found" situations.

10.31.2009 - Beta 1.0:

• Original release.

Installation Instructions:

1. Stop Sage and the Sage service.
2. Unzip to your Sage install directory (which is usually C:/Program Files/SageTV/SageTV)
3. Import the malore online browser STVi.

Download Here: http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/down...do=file&id=346


Usage Instructions:

Select "Online Services" from the main menu. In the middle of the screen you will see five pre-configured views: Category/SubCategory, Favorite, Podcast, Source and Feed. You can add views, delete views or change the views by selecting the Options, Grouping and Sorting icons in the far left column. More on that below.

You switch between views by clicking on them or by pressing the FF or REW keys on your remote.

Category/SubCategory View:

In this view you navigate through the video hierarchy much the same way as with the default malore browser. Selecting an item in the right panel will bring you further "down" into the subcategories and selecting an item in the left panel will bring you up one level. If the item you select in the right column is a podcast it will be played.

You can make a podcast a Favorite by pressing the Favorite key on the remote or by pressing Ctrl-k on your keyboard.

Pressing the Favorite key when a Favorite is already in focus will remove the Favorite. Once you select an item as a Favorite you can download the podcast feeds and view them in one of the other views.

After selecting the favorites and switching to the Group by Favorite view you will see an empty menu with the words "Start Download". Selecting "Start Download" will initiate download of the Favorite podcast feeds you have previously chosen. Note that you can choose to download all of the podcast feeds that are defined (in the OnlineVideos folder) but that will take a long time...

Once the feed downloading has started you will see the status. You can choose to wait until the feeds are all downloaded or choose to display those feeds that have already downloaded while the remainder are downloaded in the background. You will know the downloading is running if you see the green RSS icon in the top right corner of the screen (just above the date.)

Recording:

You can record (download) a podcast by pressing the Record key on the remote or by pressing Ctrl-y on your keyboard. Recording a Podcast will download the entire podcast and save it on your hard drive. This is different from downloading the feeds mentioned above. Downloading the feeds only downloads the basic information needed to play the actual podcast (such as the name of the podcast, a description of the podcast and where the podcast is stored.)

You should only record podcasts that you are legally allowed to download.

If you press Record while the focus is on the left pane all of the podcasts in the right pane will be recorded. If you press Record while the focus is on a single podcast only that podcast will be recorded.

After pressing Record you will see a dialog telling you what will be recorded and where the recordings will be stored. You have the options:

• Show Title - This will be the title of the recorded show. It can be changed by selecting "Change".
• Base Directory - This is where the recorded file will be saved. It can be any one of your configured recording or import paths.
• SubDirectory - This is the subdirectory (relative to the Base Directory) where the recording will be stored. It can be changed by selecting "Change".
• File Name - This will be the file name of the recorded show. It can be changed by selecting "Change".
• Use Show Title as SubDirectory - If set to Yes the Show Title will be used as the name of the subdirectory (relative to the Base Directory) where the recording will be stored.
• Record This Podcast - Will record the podcast using the settings specified.
• Do Not Record This Podcast - Cancels the recording.
• Change Recording Defaults - Changes the defaults. See below.

The "Recording Defaults" dialog contains the following:

• Base Directory - Sets the default base recording directory.
• Default SubDirectory - Sets the default subdirectory to use if not using the Show Title as the subdirectory.
• Use Show Title in File Name - If set to Yes the Show Title will be prepended to the episode name to form the file name of the recorded show.
• Maximum Lenght of Podcast Name - Sets the maximum number of characters in the podcast name to use. This is useful because many podcasts have exceptionally long titles that form the basis of the podcast name.
• Record After Watching - Used to automatically record a podcast after the file playback is complete. If set to No the podcast will not be recorded. If set to Yes the podcast will automatically be recorded using the current recording defaults. If set to Ask the user will be prompted when the playback is complete.

To see the status of your recordings select the red RSS icon from the icon column on the left of the screen. For more information see the configuration section below.

You will know a podcast is recording if you see the red RSS icon in the top right corner of the screen (just above the date.)

Configuration:

The far left side of the screen contains several icons that allow you to navigate to different menus and customize the online browser menu.

• Selecting the first icon will jump to the recordings menu.
• Selecting the second icon will jump to the default online services menu.
• Selecting the third icon will bring up the malore options menu.
• Selecting the fourth icon will bring up the RSS Options dialog.
• Selecting the fifth icon will bring up the Podcast Recording Options dialog.
• Selecting the sixth icon will return you to the previous menu.
• Selecting the seventh icon will bring up the Sorting dialog.
• Selecting the last icon will bring up the Grouping dialog.

Malore Options:

This dialog allows you to choose how many views appear on the screen and the names of the views. You can also tinker with many other options if you select "Malore Menu Options".

RSS Options:

This dialog allows you to control what feeds are downloaded and when they are downloaded.

• When to Download Podcasts - You can set this to On Demand, On Menu Load or At Startup. On Demand will only download when you select "Start Download" as described above or when you select "Reload" in this dialog. See below. On Menu Load will start the download process when the Online Browser menu is entered. At Startup will cause the download to start as soon as Sage is started.
  
• What to Download - This can be set to Favorites or All. If set to Favorites only the Favorite podcast feeds will be downloaded. If set to All, all of the podcast feeds defined in the OnlineVideos folder configuration files will be downloaded. I do not suggest this since it will take a long time.
  
• Download YouTube - Allows you to Enable or Disable the downloading of YouTube feeds.
  
• Download Google - Allows you to Enable or Disable the downloading of Google feeds.
  
• Downloader is inactive - If the downloader is inactive you can choose to reload the podcast feeds as defined above. If the downloader is active you will have the option to stop it.
  
• Refresh Screen After Download - If Enabled and you are in any view other than the Category/Subcategory view, the screen will be updated with the podcast feeds as soon as the download is complete. If Disabled, the screen will continue to display the download statistics until you choose to display the podcasts.
  
• Loaded Podcasts - Displays a list of the podcasts whose episodes have been loaded.
  
• Podcasts - Displays a list of the podcasts whose episodes could not be loaded.
  
• Update PlayOn Config Files - This item will only be displayed if you have installed EvilPenguin's PlayOn add-on. If selected it will force an update of the configuration files.

Podcast Recording Options:

This dialog shows you the recording status and lets you control where the recordings are stored.

• Podcast is Currently Recording - Displays No if nothing is being recorded. Displays Yes and the progress if something is being recorded. Selecting this item will show you what is being recorded and give you the option to cancel it.
  
• Podcasts in Recording Queue - This will tell you how many podcasts are waiting to be downloaded. Selecting the item will show you the list and give you the option to cancel one or all of the downloads. The list is automatically cleared each time Sage is stopped.
  
• Recorded Podcasts - This tells you how many podcasts have been recorded. Selecting the item will show you the list and give you the option to clear it. The list is automatically cleared each time Sage is stopped.
  
• Podcasts that Failed to Record - This tells you how many podcasts had an error during the record process. Selecting the item will show you the list and give you the option to clear it. The list is automatically cleared each time Sage is stopped.
  
• Download Directory - This lets you select where the recorded podcasts are stored. When you select the item you can choose a Base Directory, which can be any one of your recording or import directories, and a SubDirectory, which can be anything you choose. If the SubDirectory does not exist it will be created.
  
• Run Library Scan After Download - If set to Yes an import library scan will be triggered when there are no items left in the recording queue.
  
• Import Recorded Podcasts - If set to Enabled podcasts that are recorded will automatically be added to the Imported Videos databse.
  
• Automatic Cleanup - Allows the user to enable, disable and configure the automatic cleanup process. This is described below.
  
• Change Recording Defaults - Takes you to the Recording Defaults options menu previously described.

When the default STV and this STVi play podcasts several temporary files are created in the Temp directory. Unfortunately these items are not always cleaned up properly. The Automatic Cleanup feature lets the user control how to handle these items.

The Automatic Cleanup options are as follows:

• Enable Automatic Cleanup - Allows the user to enable periodic automatic cleanup of the temporary items. This should be Enabled if you frequenly watch and record online content. if you infrequently watch and record online content it is suggested you run the cleanup manually as needed. See below for details.
• Cleanup Default STV Temp Items - If Enabled the cleanup when run manually or automatically will delete the temporary items left by the Default STV. The suggested setting is Enabled.
• Cleanup RSS Items - If Enabled the cleanup when run manually or automatically will delete the temporary RSS Items left behind. the suggested setting is Enabled.
• Minimum Age Before Deleting - The minimum age of a temporary item before it will be deleted.
• Time Between Checks - If Automatic Cleanup is Enabled, this specifies the number of hours between scans for temporary items.
• Time Since Last Run - The approximate last time the cleanup process was run. Select the time to display the exact time of the last run.
• Cleanup Now - Triggers a manual cleanup. The numbers is parentheses indicates the number of items from the Default STV, Malore Online STV and RSS Items respectively, that may be deleted. Note that after running a manual cleanup these numbers may not go to 0. This is normal because of the way Sage attempts to cleanup after itself. When Sage creates these temporary files it keeps track of them which causes them to become locked and then deletes them when Sage exits. (Actually when the Java Virtual Machine exits.) So if all goes as planned the temporary items are deleted automatically each time Sage exits. Things do not always go as planned and that results in orphaned temporary files.
• Note - If you are using PlayOn and the Hulu plugin you may notice that temporary items also buld up in the Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\MediaMall\Media\<IP>\ subdirectory and in your Temporary Internet Files subdirectory. This STVi does NOT cleanup those places since, in general, PlayOn cleans up after itself pretty well.

Known Issues:

1. Favorite selections will not be consistent between clients. You will have to setup your favorites separately on each one.
   
2. In the Category/SubCategory view the YouTube subcategory count may be incorrect.
   
3. There is no Search, Weather, or Get Hulu Application. (If you are running under Linux there are none of the other applications available.) You will need to go to the default Online Services menu for these functions.
   
4. Sort by Date does not always work correctly. This is because the dates in the podcast feeds are stored as strings and various formats are used.

[nyplayer]

I just tried this... When I select online services it brings me to the malore custom guide not the online services. FYI I am using Dynamic menus with default STV.


Extra:
Tried with default works great... Tried again with dynamic menus same error goes to guide.

[tmiranda]

Originally Posted by nyplayer

I just tried this... When I select online services it brings me to the malore custom guide not the online services. FYI I am using Dynamic menus with default STV.


Extra:
Tried with default works great... Tried again with dynamic menus same error goes to guide.

I'll add getting it to work with the Dynamic Menus to the ToDo list.

[wado1971]

This is a nice alternative.

I like the favorite option but it's difficult to add for me because I normally don't have a keyboard or a favorite button. Ctrl-k doesn't seem to add the podcast to the favorite - only the other two views.

Originally Posted by nyplayer

I just tried this... When I select online services it brings me to the malore custom guide not the online services. FYI I am using Dynamic menus with default STV.

The beta 1.0 CAN be used with the Default with Dynamic Menu. Just add a 'New Internal Screen' called 'Xtra: malore online browser' to your main menu.

[tmiranda]

Originally Posted by wado1971

I like the favorite option but it's difficult to add for me because I normally don't have a keyboard or a favorite button. Ctrl-k doesn't seem to add the podcast to the favorite - only the other two views.

Sorry, I don't understand what you mean by this. What are you running Sage on if you do not have a keyboard or a remote?

Adding the favorite should work in any view, except "group by favorite" where you can only remove favorites.

If you are in the Category/Subcategory view you can only add a podcast as a favorite if the podcast, or the parent category of the podcast is in the right pane. So if the path to the podcasts is Browse Hulu -> Action -> Arnold Movies -> <list of Arnold Movies> you need to have either the list of Arnold movies in the right pane or Arnold Movies in the right pane. If Action is in the right pane you will be unable to select any favorite.

I hope that helps.

Tom

[tmiranda]

Beta 1.1 is now available. Changes:

- Fixed a bug that caused an error when called from SageMC. (Thanks skyeclad and nyplayer)
- Subcategories are now sorted alphabetically.
- Better handling of "No Videos Found" situations.

Tom

[matt91]

Originally Posted by tmiranda

- Fixed a bug that caused an error when called from SageMC. (Thanks skyeclad and nyplayer)

From this item in the 1.1 change log, I'm led to believe that this does work with SageMC. I downloaded this new version, however, when I try to install the *.stvi file, I'm not able to find it. I had to rename the file to *.xml to be able to import it in SageMC.

The default Online Services screens were still there when I tried to go that route. I then added a new link to internal screen (as wado noted above), but I just get a black screen.

Am I missing something here?

thanks
matt

[gplasky]

Since SageMC uses the default SageTV3.xml for the Online Videos you need to make sure that has the .stvi imported into it from the default SageTV. Not SageMC. (Like in the original EP form of the plugin.)

Gerry

[wado1971]

Originally Posted by tmiranda

Sorry, I don't understand what you mean by this. What are you running Sage on if you do not have a keyboard or a remote?

Difficult but not impossible - just need to drag a keyboard into the living room. Run the client with only a harmony remote without a 'favorite' key mapped. I'll need to add it in the future. Also, thanks for the tips on adding the favorite - i'll give it a try.

Originally Posted by matt91

......I then added a new link to internal screen (as wado noted above), but I just get a black screen.

I edited my post above to say "default with dynamic menu" - not using MC.

[simonen]

I like this menu format! Thanks for writing this.

[tmiranda]

Originally Posted by simonen

I like this menu format! Thanks for writing this.

You're welcome.

[matt91]

Hi -

I just got around to installing this stvi. I have Playon installed, and can access all Hulu, Netflix, etc, from the default online services menu.

However, when I go to this menu, all I see is this:



What am I missing?

thanks
matt

[simonen]

I got the same thing as soon as I updated to the latest STV that was just posted today. It has worked fine until I updated.

[matt91]

OK, good to know.

I hadn't installed it prior to upgrading to the latest STV yesterday. I hope it's just some obvious tweak in the coding, and tmiranda can make a quick fix when he has a few minutes.

Matt

[simonen]

There is a note in the release notes for the new STV about malore style menus: http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...6&postcount=66

[tmiranda]

I haven't downloaded the new STV but it looks like it breaks the import. I'll look at it over the weekend.

Tom

[tmiranda]

I can verify that the latest STV update broke this import. I'll work on getting it fixed.

For now the best I can tell you is to revert back to an older STV.

[tmiranda]

New version posted that fixes the STV compatibility issue. It also adds some goodies and fixes some bugs.

Download: http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/down...do=file&id=346

[matt91]

Thanks much. Looks very nice.

Appreciate the quick work.

Matt

[tmiranda]

You're welcome. Let me know if you have any suggestions for improvement. There are a few things I have on my list but I'd welcome feedback.

Tom