REALLY wanted to fight this out ...

[RBraverman]

... but I can not get this right. (sorry Fuzzy)

Folders.

I would like to have all my stuff shown in the folders their in with metadata. I have the flow set up with folders, but 1/2 the files are out on their own, even though they ARE in folders.

Can someone just point me in the right direction? Been at this all week.

I know I'm a pain.

[Skirge01]

Perhaps explaining how you have your folders organized and how you want them displayed would give us a little more info as to how best to accomplish that in Gemstone. I theorize that your folders aren't organized the way Sage or Gemstone is expecting them to be.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Skirge01

Perhaps explaining how you have your folders organized and how you want them displayed would give us a little more info as to how best to accomplish that in Gemstone. I theorize that your folders aren't organized the way Sage or Gemstone is expecting them to be.

Yeah, that was a bit obvious wasn't it ........

I have a 1 drive for recordings, G:.

"G:\Default" is where I've set new recordings to go.

Within G: there are about 12 others subdirectories; BBC, Shorts TV, Comedy, "Masterpiece Theatre" etc.

It helps my wife go to the stuff she wants, Grantchester was recorded on PBS, she pops into the subdirectory PBS and there it is - easier for her, actually for me also, as I usually forget the names of the stuff I record, but remember the plot/idea.
So I copy recordings from G:\Default to oh, G:\ShortsTV and when I peruse the folder Shorts TV there it is.

Sorry, a bit convoluted.

[Skirge01]

I think I'm beginning to see the issue. Before I address that, are you sure you wouldn't be better off just having your media sorted alphabetically? That's how most people do it and how most programs are designed to handle it. Once you have fanart, it's really easy to recall what each show is. But, it's your choice, so...

I get that you have G:\Default as a recording directory. Do you have the subdirectories as an imported media directory? I'm actually not certain if Sage can have imported media in a subdirectory of the recordings directory, even if they're added as imported media directories.

Which files are showing up on their own? What do they all have in common?

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Skirge01

I think I'm beginning to see the issue. Before I address that, are you sure you wouldn't be better off just having your media sorted alphabetically? That's how most people do it and how most programs are designed to handle it. Once you have fanart, it's really easy to recall what each show is. But, it's your choice, so...

I really like to keep the folder setup. After years of BTV using folders the wife has become very fond of it.

Originally Posted by Skirge01

I get that you have G:\Default as a recording directory. Do you have the subdirectories as an imported media directory?

Yes.

Originally Posted by Skirge01

I'm actually not certain if Sage can have imported media in a subdirectory of the recordings directory, even if they're added as imported media directories.

I have g:\default as the recording directory, and g:\BBC, G:\PBS etc., as import directories. They aren't under g:\Default, but under the root of G:\.

Originally Posted by Skirge01

Which files are showing up on their own? What do they all have in common?

I can't figure that out. I'll go through them shortly and see. What I remember when I cruised through them , is taht they appear to be recent recordings.

[alfi33]

Originally Posted by RBraverman

So I copy recordings from G:\Default to oh, G:\ShortsTV and when I peruse the folder Shorts TV there it is.

Sorry, a bit convoluted.

In your case, you probably want to look at the View Options and Filters (specifically, the Folder Filter) in the Gemstone Flow Options....I assume you're using Flows in Gemstone.

But you're right...this does seem a bit convoluted to me too. One of the primary reasons to use Gemstone is to be able to use Flows with VFS/Views so you can see view your media in arrangements irrespective of what folder it might be in or whether or not it is a recording or an imported file. Having to move recordings around all the time for your Flow to work sounds like a real pain and it's exactly one of the problems the VFS/Views used in Gemstone is meant to solve.

I'd probably just use the UserCategory or the Title Filter to create Flows if I needed to do something like this.

[Skirge01]

To each their own, but I have to admit I find it hard to comprehend that anyone is unable to find at least one view they like for their media in one of the many screenshots posted in these threads:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...39&postcount=2

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53531

As for your wife, a lot of people were very fond of Windows XP, but even they had to eventually move on. Also keep in mind that trying to squeeze one program's method of operation into a different program is bound to cause a lot of headaches, as you're already seeing. But, we'll keep trying to help you out.

Once you figure out the pattern for the shows you're having issues with, we should know how to proceed. You originally said that it was 1/2 of your recordings which were on their own. That sounds like a lot more than just recent recordings. If it really is just recent stuff, perhaps it's just that Sage hasn't rescanned them in their new location.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by alfi33

In your case, you probably want to look at the View Options and Filters (specifically, the Folder Filter) in the Gemstone Flow Options....I assume you're using Flows in Gemstone.

I have looked into the folder filter, built a quick one and the thing had nothing to do with folders, listed them alphabetically (I deleted it).

Originally Posted by alfi33

But you're right...this does seem a bit convoluted to me too.

I meant my explanation, but I guess what I want fits as well.

Originally Posted by alfi33

One of the primary reasons to use Gemstone is to be able to use Flows with VFS/Views so you can see view your media in arrangements irrespective of what folder it might be in or whether or not it is a recording or an imported file. Having to move recordings around all the time for your Flow to work sounds like a real pain and it's exactly one of the problems the VFS/Views used in Gemstone is meant to solve.

" ... so you can see view your media in arrangements irrespective of what folder it might be in ..." BUT that is what I want. I DO realize I must be the only person who has ever asked for this, (might be why it isn't a builtin option) which is why I can't seem to make anyone understand why I like this view a lot. Can pop right to what we want to see.

Originally Posted by alfi33

I'd probably just use the UserCategory or the Title Filter to create Flows if I needed to do something like this.

Well I've deleted all my attempts at this, and after I relax a while, I'll give it another shot.

I DO have the folders view (file browser) which will give me folder views, just not with Metadata. I can use that for a while.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Skirge01

To each their own, but I have to admit I find it hard to comprehend that anyone is unable to find at least one view they like for their media in one of the many screenshots posted in these threads:

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/show...39&postcount=2

http://forums.sagetv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53531

As for your wife, a lot of people were very fond of Windows XP, but even they had to eventually move on.

OH did you set yourself up - she DOES still use XP! She likes it and I WILL NOT touch it.

Originally Posted by Skirge01

Also keep in mind that trying to squeeze one program's method of operation into a different program is bound to cause a lot of headaches, as you're already seeing. But, we'll keep trying to help you out.

Much appreciated although I feel a guilty about asking for help on something that I seem to be the only one who has ever asked for.

Originally Posted by Skirge01

Once you figure out the pattern for the shows you're having issues with, we should know how to proceed. You originally said that it was 1/2 of your recordings which were on their own. That sounds like a lot more than just recent recordings. If it really is just recent stuff, perhaps it's just that Sage hasn't rescanned them in their new location.

As I said to Alfi33, I have deleted everything I tried and will try after awhile. I don't seem to remember much anymore, but after 35+ years of IT, this seems so bloody simple.

[alfi33]

Originally Posted by RBraverman

I have looked into the folder filter, built a quick one and the thing had nothing to do with folders, listed them alphabetically (I deleted it).

This is one way to do what you want:

1. Start with one of the Default Flows. (I like the "Simplified Flow" for most TV.) You might need to create the Default Flows from the Flow Manager if you haven't already.
   
2. From the Flow Options, set the View appropriately. (I like the TV Shows(Seasons) for most TV).
   
3. From the Flow Options, set a Filter for Folders. Define an "Include" filter for just the folder(s) you want in this view.

Then repeat by creating a new Flow for EACH folder you want to view separately. So based on the number of sub-directories you said you had, you need to do this a dozen times to view each folder separately.

Not a pretty solution nor is it all that flexible...which is why most others here don't use complex directory structures to organize their media.

I think you can get the views in Sage to look the way you want without doing the folder thing. You just have to set your views to key on other things (like Title or UserCategory tags) rather than file location. Way easier to manage, in my opinion.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by alfi33

This is one way to do what you want:

1. Start with one of the Default Flows. (I like the "Simplified Flow" for most TV.) You might need to create the Default Flows from the Flow Manager if you haven't already.
   
2. From the Flow Options, set the View appropriately. (I like the TV Shows(Seasons) for most TV).
   
3. From the Flow Options, set a Filter for Folders. Define an "Include" filter for just the folder(s) you want in this view.

Then repeat by creating a new Flow for EACH folder you want to view separately. So based on the number of sub-directories you said you had, you need to do this a dozen times to view each folder separately.

Not a pretty solution nor is it all that flexible...which is why most others here don't use complex directory structures to organize their media.

I think you can get the views in Sage to look the way you want without doing the folder thing. You just have to set your views to key on other things (like Title or UserCategory tags) rather than file location. Way easier to manage, in my opinion.

Joy.

A minor annoyance to do, but allowed me to combine a few directories and sort them a little differently.

I just can't believe there is a way, in a flow, to pick the root of a drive and have the folders "fall in line". Much like the File Browser, but with Metadata.

Thanks for the suggestion. As I have only been using Sage for about a month, I couldn't figure out the flow. Putting this together, gave a lot of insight.

[stuckless]

Originally Posted by RBraverman

I just can't believe there is a way, in a flow, to pick the root of a drive and have the folders "fall in line". Much like the File Browser, but with Metadata.

I think you have realize that any "hierarchy" of videos in SageTV is purely virtual. SageTV keeps a database of "movies", "tv", "music", etc, and it has the full path to the file, but, it's certainly not organized in the database, like a filesystem (nor would I expect it).

Phoenix has a view, phoenix.view.default.videofolders, that will take the mediafiles and parse their filenames, and then build a "virtual" filesystem view. It's still not 100% since, it will take ALL video sources (except tv) and build this view.

SageTV (Phoenix/Gemstone) provides many different ways to organize your library.... but even with that... there will be edge cases, like yours, that appears to be completely reasonable, to you, but to everyone else it's something that they have not yet considered

[Skirge01]

Originally Posted by RBraverman

OH did you set yourself up - she DOES still use XP! She likes it and I WILL NOT touch it.

[Tiki]

A lot of people seem to really love Gemstone (and I admit, I like the eye candy and the customizability of it). I've experimented with it a few times, but always ended up going back to the default Sage v7 STV. I think you can accomplish what you want by using the default v7 STV and installing the "Phoenix Fanart for SageTV" plugin and "Complementary Metadata Tools (CMT)" plugin, both by JREkiwi.

Regardless, I would suggest that you have two main folders on your "G" drive:
G:\recordings
G:\imports

Set "recordings" as the Sage recording directory (or call it "defaults" if you prefer").
Set "imports" as an imported video directory.

Create all your special subfolders inside the "imports" directory. Sage will find them all. Do not just put all of them loose on the G: drive - otherwise you will have to add them all into Sage one by one.

Then install the "Phoenix Fanart for SageTV" plugin and "Complementary Metadata Tools (CMT)" plugin. These uses BMT/Phoenix to scan for metadata and fan art, and adds the ability for Sage to display some of that metadata and fan art in various places. There will be setups in the "Customize" section of the Detailed Setup menu related to fanart after these plugins are installed.

To see your imported videos in Sage, go to the "Videos" menu, and select the "Folders" submenu.

[Fuzzy]

Originally Posted by Tiki

A lot of people seem to really love Gemstone (and I admit, I like the eye candy and the customizability of it). I've experimented with it a few times, but always ended up going back to the default Sage v7 STV. I think you can accomplish what you want by using the default v7 STV and installing the "Phoenix Fanart for SageTV" plugin and "Complementary Metadata Tools (CMT)" plugin, both by JREkiwi.

Regardless, I would suggest that you have two main folders on your "G" drive:
G:\recordings
G:\imports

Set "recordings" as the Sage recording directory (or call it "defaults" if you prefer").
Set "imports" as an imported video directory.

Create all your special subfolders inside the "imports" directory. Sage will find them all. Do not just put all of them loose on the G: drive - otherwise you will have to add them all into Sage one by one.

Then install the "Phoenix Fanart for SageTV" plugin and "Complementary Metadata Tools (CMT)" plugin. These uses BMT/Phoenix to scan for metadata and fan art, and adds the ability for Sage to display some of that metadata and fan art in various places. There will be setups in the "Customize" section of the Detailed Setup menu related to fanart after these plugins are installed.

To see your imported videos in Sage, go to the "Videos" menu, and select the "Folders" submenu.

Just realize that what you lose in doing this, is that for any new recordings to be in the proper 'folder', you have to manually move it there, as well as likely remux it and rename it to get rid of the sagetv metadata, otherwise sage will continue to treat it as a recording, and not show it in the Videos views at all.
The advantage of the metadata based approach, is that any media items - whether recorded by BTV previously, recorded by SageTV recently, ripped from a DVD, or downloaded from some other source and dropped into an import folder - will show up in the proper view in sagetv.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by stuckless

I think you have realize that any "hierarchy" of videos in SageTV is purely virtual. SageTV keeps a database of "movies", "tv", "music", etc, and it has the full path to the file, but, it's certainly not organized in the database, like a filesystem (nor would I expect it).

And I realize for the most part why it was set up that way - breaks the whole idea of "filing" apart, but for old fa*ts like me who need order ...........

Originally Posted by stuckless

Phoenix has a view, phoenix.view.default.videofolders, that will take the mediafiles and parse their filenames, and then build a "virtual" filesystem view. It's still not 100% since, it will take ALL video sources (except tv) and build this view.
SageTV (Phoenix/Gemstone) provides many different ways to organize your library.... but even with that... there will be edge cases, like yours, that appears to be completely reasonable, to you, but to everyone else it's something that they have not yet considered

OH, I realized a LONG time ago that - as usual - I always seem to want something "slightly" different. I'm happy with what I did and SageTV seems to follow the files/videos around.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Skirge01

OH, I learned REAL quick that the LAST devices I ever touch are her computer and tablet - trust me, if I do, it will only lead to murder, suicide and heartbreak.

[Skirge01]

Originally Posted by RBraverman

OH, I learned REAL quick that the LAST devices I ever touch are her computer and tablet - trust me, if I do, it will only lead to murder, suicide and heartbreak.

For me, it's real simple. If you expect me to maintain it, then it will run what I decide upon. Otherwise, when it breaks, it's all up to you. The choice is always theirs. Either way, I get what I want.

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

Just realize that what you lose in doing this, is that for any new recordings to be in the proper 'folder', you have to manually move it there, as well as likely remux it and rename it to get rid of the sagetv metadata, otherwise sage will continue to treat it as a recording, and not show it in the Videos views at all.

Acknowledging that I'm the least knowledgable regarding this issue here (heck I can't even drag an emoticon into this, successfully and I built and ran BBS's, but I digress): Why would you, or do you think I would want to get rid of the metadata? That's the reason why I didn't use the built-in File Browser.

Also, I did set it up as alfi33 suggested and it works dandy - just want I wanted. As a benny I was able to sort them more in line with want I wanted all along.

Originally Posted by Fuzzy

The advantage of the metadata based approach, is that any media items - whether recorded by BTV previously, recorded by SageTV recently, ripped from a DVD, or downloaded from some other source and dropped into an import folder - will show up in the proper view in sagetv.

Why would you lose the metadata if you make sure you copy over the properties?

[RBraverman]

Originally Posted by Skirge01

For me, it's real simple. If you expect me to maintain it, then it will run what I decide upon. Otherwise, when it breaks, it's all up to you. The choice is always theirs. Either way, I get what I want.

You married?