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Author Topic: Media Library Views Settings  (Read 1753 times)

Aminifu

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Media Library Views Settings
« on: November 04, 2021, 02:00:27 AM »
The same setups for each media library view is used for all skins (classic, modern and cPro). This only works well if the overall media library window size and shape is the same for all skins. Since this is not an easy thing to do (for modern and cPro skins), I would like WACUP to save the setups for each media library view separately for each skin being used.

This shouldn't be overly difficult to accomplish. It would be similar to what the "studio.xnf" file does for modern skins.
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dro

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Re: Media Library Views Settings
« Reply #1 on: November 04, 2021, 03:13:24 AM »
Are we talking just the local media library views or the library window (navigation vs view area ratio) or both & all other potential library views (e.g. history, podcasts, etc) ?

The main thing that concerns me is how jarring it might be when the views are jumping over the place depending on the rate of skin loading / switching along with what happens if you've linked it against a certain skin & then it's updated but it's got a slightly different name which for the simple way of doing this it'd just be on the skin name & then the customisation would be potentially be lost. The other thing is what's used as the fallback if it's the first time of using the skin (i.e. just use the current values or assume some other default).

I get what you're wanting to achieve & can see that it has merit, it just depends a lot on the scope & how much change is actually required to deal with it along with how the plug-in(s) it relates to need to see updates. Also studio.xnf isn't the best of examples as that's also equivalent of winamp.ini & how almost everything gets dumped into it which often makes it a mess (studio.xnf really needs to be done a on per-skin basis so one skin going wonky doesn't require nuking the file & breaking all of the skin configurations made).

-dro

Aminifu

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Re: Media Library Views Settings
« Reply #2 on: November 04, 2021, 06:43:14 AM »
I'm talking about the view configuration files that are currently saved in the users data 'WACUP/Plugins/ml/views' folder. I should mention that the current behavior pre-dates WACUP. Would WACUP object to making these files read-only after they are setup as desired? When making a desired change, a pop-up could be used to alert the file's read-only state. Similar to what happens when attempting to save metadata edits in a read-only audio file.

These files would be the default for any new skin, as they are now. Then once the library window in a skin is used (with or without changing it's setup) a new set of these files (or what is in them) would be saved for each skin.

My favorite modern skin has a control that lets the media library window be switched to a fullscreen mode. I then adjusted the column widths (when allowed) within the default and custom views I use to let all or most of the metadata strings for each column to be seen. The column widths within some of the views I setup for this skin are sometimes made narrower when switching to another skin that doesn't support a fullscreen mode for the library window (this is mostly a modern and cPro skins issue). It won't be so bad if the column widths stayed at what I set them to. Then I could simply use horizontal and vertical scroll bars to view everything within smaller library windows. When the column widths are narrowed, their metadata strings are truncated to much and I have to readjust the affected columns. I've not been able to determine what triggers these column width changes. It doesn't happen all the time and some views are not affected.

It would be nice to not have to switch to my favorite skin just to use the library without having to sometimes readjust things.

I get your point about the studio.xnf file. I was mainly thinking of keeping the number of files that would otherwise be needed small. It does frustrate me when I have to nuke the studio.xnf file just to fix corrupt configurations for 1 skin or update the configurations when a new version for a skin is released. New skin versions will often add stuff, but never remove stuff that is no longer needed. I do realize that new skin versions are not able to clean up what is no longer needed, so the occasional nuke is not always a bad thing, but I never like doing it.

« Last Edit: November 04, 2021, 07:59:05 AM by Aminifu »
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Aminifu

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Re: Media Library Views Settings
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2021, 04:58:04 AM »
..

These files would be the default for any new skin, as they are now. Then once the library window in a skin is used (with or without changing it's setup) a new set of these files (or what is in them) would be saved for each skin.
...

That part of reply #2 should have said;

These files would be the default library views for any skin the first time a skin's library window is used (as they are now for all skins every time a skin is used). Then once the library window in a skin is used (with or without changing it's views configurations) a new set of these files (or what is in them) would be saved for that skin. Once an individual library views configuration is saved for a skin, it would be used for that skin going forward. The active skin's library views configuration would be updated (if the user changes it) when the session ends or the skin is switched to another during the session.

In other words, I'm asking that what is now being done globally for the library views for all skins, be done individually for each skin.
« Last Edit: November 05, 2021, 05:46:56 AM by Aminifu »
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dro

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Re: Media Library Views Settings
« Reply #4 on: November 23, 2021, 01:40:24 PM »
I'm talking about the view configuration files that are currently saved in the users data 'WACUP/Plugins/ml/views' folder. I should mention that the current behavior pre-dates WACUP. Would WACUP object to making these files read-only after they are setup as desired? When making a desired change, a pop-up could be used to alert the file's read-only state. Similar to what happens when attempting to save metadata edits in a read-only audio file.
I know it's those files you're referring to but they're used also for storing the current sorting state & a few other things so setting them to read-only can then break some aspects which if someone just toggles options however (as some do) & then wonder why it's not working. Adding in more pop-ups gets more confusing easily but it probably would be the only sane way.

These files would be the default for any new skin, as they are now. Then once the library window in a skin is used (with or without changing it's setup) a new set of these files (or what is in them) would be saved for each skin.

My favorite modern skin has a control that lets the media library window be switched to a fullscreen mode. I then adjusted the column widths (when allowed) within the default and custom views I use to let all or most of the metadata strings for each column to be seen. The column widths within some of the views I setup for this skin are sometimes made narrower when switching to another skin that doesn't support a fullscreen mode for the library window (this is mostly a modern and cPro skins issue). It won't be so bad if the column widths stayed at what I set them to. Then I could simply use horizontal and vertical scroll bars to view everything within smaller library windows. When the column widths are narrowed, their metadata strings are truncated to much and I have to readjust the affected columns. I've not been able to determine what triggers these column width changes. It doesn't happen all the time and some views are not affected.
Switching the skin shouldn't be changing the column widths & what's then seen unless it's using a different font to display things - that's the only thing I can explain why it'll then change.

It would be nice to not have to switch to my favorite skin just to use the library without having to sometimes readjust things.

I get your point about the studio.xnf file. I was mainly thinking of keeping the number of files that would otherwise be needed small. It does frustrate me when I have to nuke the studio.xnf file just to fix corrupt configurations for 1 skin or update the configurations when a new version for a skin is released. New skin versions will often add stuff, but never remove stuff that is no longer needed. I do realize that new skin versions are not able to clean up what is no longer needed, so the occasional nuke is not always a bad thing, but I never like doing it.
I know what you're trying to achieve & it does make sense. I just need to get to a position to try out something towards it as I don't know how well it might work in reality vs expectations. As thinking about it a bit more I could just have it only use the current vmd files & with the proposed mode use the existing default values & then save out a new section if the new option was enabled which will then be used subsequently & hope you don't use enough skins to make those files grow to the 64KB limit & then start to break :) Doing things in general with default local library views is something that probably needs some additions anyway since it was never that well configured & is now what I've been able to figure out from reverse handling of the files that ml_local created to allow ml_ll to support them with the changes.

-dro

Aminifu

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Re: Media Library Views Settings
« Reply #5 on: November 23, 2021, 10:48:10 PM »
Thank you dro, for your comments. As usual, things that appear rather simple on the surface aren't when looked at more closely. I didn't think about the other things saved in these files, beyond column setups. I seldom change things (including sort order) once I setup a view, but I can understand that others may, and probably do, use views differently.

Beyond that, now that I'm using a mix of 32KB and 64KB apps, I need to keep in mind the limits of 32KB apps.

The modern skins I'm using appear to be using the same font, but maybe not the same sizes, in their library views. So that could be what is causing column widths to change when I randomly pick a skin that is using a different font size. In any case, this is something controlled by the skins developers and is not easily changed by the user.

Whatever you come up with to improve default library views in general is appreciated. Even if nothing changes, you just taking time to think about these things is even more appreciated.

Now that I'm including these view configuration files with my other configuration files backups (which I should have been doing all along), it is easier to replace a changed file than readjusting a changed view. My only excuse is that it has taken me awhile to learn which configuration files control what is important to me and where they are. This is the price of using an app that gives the user so much control over it's user interface (and other features). It is this high degree of customization that kept me using Winamp (and now WACUP) over the years.

I've never been the kind of user who stays with the out-of-the-box experience, when given the ability to change things.  ;)
« Last Edit: November 23, 2021, 11:14:39 PM by Aminifu »
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