[Added to Roadmap] Mode bar only for modes > Online channels on main screen

[michael1]

Hi Paul,

With the last major updates you have implemented amongst others many user requests (incl. mine..) regarding Online Services and Mode bar etc. Thank you again for this. Now it’s a bit silent but we call it “the silence before the storm”, because I think for one of the next updates you will look into something like photo and video galleries, for private picture and clips, similar as it was in MCE.

So I think now it’s a good time to ask you whether basically it would be possible to use the mode bar only for different modes. Just like it is already implemented for the movie library and music library: The modes “Movies” and “Music” are selected from the mode bar, and the details (which movie, which songs, etc.) is chosen via the main screen which provides a lot of space for this. With implementation of the mode “Online Services” this concept was a bit mixed up because now all different Online Channels are shifted away from the main screen into the mode bar. I am afraid the mode bar will become confusing when populated with several Online Channels which are then mixed with the movie and music libraries, and maybe pictures and videos in the near future.

Why not using the main screen to place the symbols for the Online Channels?

Thanks a lot for your consideration.

[Pauven]

How would this work? Would you first change modes from 'Movie Library' or 'Music Library' to 'External Links' to then display all the online services on the main screen?

I certainly understand your concern, that long-term the Mode Bar isn't big enough to house all the CMC Modes plus all the desired External Links.

One idea I've thought about is an External Links Bar ABOVE the Mode Bar. Kind of like how on an Android phone you swipe down from the top to open some quick options, then again for more settings. So in my idea, you go up once to drop down the Mode Bar, then go up again to drop down the External Links Page.

[Teddyboy]

The mode bar is interesting, but I like the tradtional WMC layout. I used to use media center studio to edit the menus to remove what I didn’t need and reduce the clutter. Now if you could just make the transitions a little smother...

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[michael1]

How would this work? Would you first change modes from 'Movie Library' or 'Music Library' to 'External Links' to then display all the online services on the main screen?

There is nothing to be changed with the Movies and Music Libraries. These libraries are reachable via "fixed icons" in the mode bar.
Just make another fixed icon "Online" in the mode bar. The user configuration possibilities in the setting screen for external links, apps and executable programs shall remain as it is, however, once configured, the symbol (e.g. for PDVD, or for YouTube, etc.) should appear on the main screen (instead of in the mode bar).
I mean instead of movie covers, or CD covers, the main screen for "Online" would only show the configured external links. There could be a few default links, and the rest is up to the user.

[Pauven]

The mode bar is interesting, but I like the tradtional WMC layout. I used to use media center studio to edit the menus to remove what I didn’t need and reduce the clutter.

Perhaps I'm in the minority here, but I'm not a fan of WMC's main menu. It was always too much, and I used various tools like media center studio to customize it, and I never got it to a point that I was happy with it. It seemed like a lot of scrolling and hunting to find what I was looking for. That's the main reason you don't see a similar menu in CMC.

Obviously as CMC gains functionality I'll have to revisit navigation, so I find this all a very interesting discussion. I encourage all users to share their thoughts and preferences as I consider options for the future.

[Pauven]

There is nothing to be changed with the Movies and Music Libraries. These libraries are reachable via "fixed icons" in the mode bar.
Just make another fixed icon "Online" in the mode bar. The user configuration possibilities in the setting screen for external links, apps and executable programs shall remain as it is, however, once configured, the symbol (e.g. for PDVD, or for YouTube, etc.) should appear on the main screen (instead of in the mode bar).
I mean instead of movie covers, or CD covers, the main screen for "Online" would only show the configured external links. There could be a few default links, and the rest is up to the user.

Thanks for the clarification. I thought that's what you meant, but wasn't sure before.

My concern with this approach is two-fold.

First, it's more navigation than if I added a two-tiered Mode Bar. Navigate UP to get to the Mode Bar. Navigate LEFT/RIGHT to get to the Online mode. OK to open the Online view. Navigate DOWN to get to the Online icons, then Navigate LEFT/RIGHT/UP/DOWN to select the one you want.

With a two-tiered Mode Bar, you would Navigate UP to get to the Mode Bar, then UP again to reach the Online icons, then LEFT/RIGHT to select the one you want.

Second, by navigating to the "Online" screen, you are navigating away from the Movie/Music Library, so you would then have to navigate back to them. With a two-tiered Mode Bar, you never have to leave the current mode.

The downside to a two-tiered Mode Bar is that, in the current design, as soon as you select an Online service, the Mode Bar closes. I could make that configurable, so that the 2nd tier of the Mode Bar, showing the Online icons, doesn't close automatically, but rather stays open until you navigate back down to exit it. In that way, it would function more similar to what you are proposing, with all Online services staying on-screen until you are done.

Thoughts?

[michael1]

I was navigating through the libraries, and this brought me to another point, when I am switching from movies to music and backward:
Once I select movies in the mode bar, my first movie (-cover) is focused (of course depending on my sorting settings), which is good.
But once I select music in the mode bar, the main screen shows my CD covers but is still greyed-out. I need another click into the main screen to focus one of the CD covers.
Mabye there is a way to eliminate this extra-click?

Coming back to the main topic, I agree that the navigation is shorter with your idea.
But my point is that I would like to see all of my media presented as good as possible. This includes something like quality of meta data for movies and music, but also using the space of a big screen of my HTPC system.
And once I decided to watch an Online Channel (= another kind of media), I would like to see my available Online channels as good as possible too, from quality point of view (which you already covered with providing the transparent icons effects) but also I would like to see it in the middle of my screen. I think it’s worth to have a nice presentation of the Online Channels which e.g. includes premium contents provider for which an expensive abo is required. (Of course this also includes all other "external links" which the user specified.)
I can easily imagine that I would use this Online Mode as preferred start mode of CMC, and if there is nothing interesting offered or no live program, I would switch to my movie library to pick one.
Cut the long story short, I think this should be a part of the development of CMC from a movie browser to a complete media center, in which all media, contents, etc. should be possible to get same attention..

What do you think?

[Pauven]

I was navigating through the libraries, and this brought me to another point, when I am switching from movies to music and backward:
Once I select movies in the mode bar, my first movie (-cover) is focused (of course depending on my sorting settings), which is good.
But once I select music in the mode bar, the main screen shows my CD covers but is still greyed-out. I need another click into the main screen to focus one of the CD covers.
Mabye there is a way to eliminate this extra-click?

Yeah, that was by design. When you go to the Music Library, there is an extra menu bar, which changes how the albums/songs are displayed. If the default display is not what you want, if I focus immediately on the covers then you would have to go up, then navigate left/right to change the view, then navigate back down. I'm assuming that the default view is not what you want, and so I focus you on the menu instead of the covers, making it quicker to change the view.

And once I decided to watch an Online Channel (= another kind of media), I would like to see my available Online channels as good as possible too, from quality point of view (which you already covered with providing the transparent icons effects) but also I would like to see it in the middle of my screen.

I could certainly make it so that the 2nd tier of the Mode Bar is much larger than the 1st tier. It could drop down and essentially cover the entire screen, and place your online icons center of screen