Video Library: Direct to Titles View from Movies and TV Shows in Library Mode?

[wolfzero]

Hello,

This is my first post, and this is kind of complicated, so bear with me.

I am trying to migrate from using File Mode to Library Mode. I feel like there is a great deal of functionality that will benefit my stored Movie and TV Show watching.

My main issue is that when I load up My Videos from the main menu, then select Movies or TV Shows it dumps me into a screen to select how to list the media with Genre, Title, Year and Actors as options. I do NOT use this feature and think it is annoying. Who really needs to select the movie based
on what actor was in the movie? Perhaps someone with a much more extensive movie library than mine. Anyhow, is there any way to set it so that when I select Movies it goes directly to the Titles view?

Note: This is NOT solved by using "Make Default". Make Default's function is to determine the folder that is opened upon the initial My Videos selection on the main menu. Since I still want to retain the ability to navigate to either TV Shows or Movies or Recently Added, etc, using Make Default as a workaround is unacceptable.

My guess is that I'll have to dig around in the XML config files. Anyone know where to look so I can repoint Movies and TV Shows? Remember this is in the Library Mode.

For conversation's sake, does anyone use this feature to sort by anything other than Title?

Thanks!

-Rob

[buges]

One idea would be to use nfo files (see online manual) & Genres.

So all your Films would be the Genre of Films & the same for Tv shows

That's how i do mine.

(now that make's more sense, had think faster than type moment!!! lol)

[ShortySco]

I'd suggest taking a look at the XTV skin, the home page link takes you directly to movies or tv shows, depending which button you click.

This applies Every time you click said button. (You can still get genres/years...etc by clicking "B" from the movie/tv show list... but coming out and back again goes straight to the movie/TV list, as you want)

Or to put it another way... it acts just like "Make Default", but not just the first time.

If you work out how they do that there, i guess you could alter any skin (May be a big task, i don't know). Either that or just use XTV, it's a fabulous skin!

Shorty

[KidKiwi]

Originally Posted by wolfzero

Hello,

This is my first post, and this is kind of complicated, so bear with me.

I am trying to migrate from using File Mode to Library Mode. I feel like there is a great deal of functionality that will benefit my stored Movie and TV Show watching.

My main issue is that when I load up My Videos from the main menu, then select Movies or TV Shows it dumps me into a screen to select how to list the media with Genre, Title, Year and Actors as options. I do NOT use this feature and think it is annoying. Who really needs to select the movie based
on what actor was in the movie? Perhaps someone with a much more extensive movie library than mine. Anyhow, is there any way to set it so that when I select Movies it goes directly to the Titles view?

Note: This is NOT solved by using "Make Default". Make Default's function is to determine the folder that is opened upon the initial My Videos selection on the main menu. Since I still want to retain the ability to navigate to either TV Shows or Movies or Recently Added, etc, using Make Default as a workaround is unacceptable.

My guess is that I'll have to dig around in the XML config files. Anyone know where to look so I can repoint Movies and TV Shows? Remember this is in the Library Mode.

For conversation's sake, does anyone use this feature to sort by anything other than Title?

Thanks!

-Rob

Yeah...this really bugs me a lot too! It's on the to-do list, but like you I don't know how to do it. I am one of those with a big library and I still don't use this as "title" is enough for me.

Hope you get an answer as I'd like to add this to my info pile to change when I get the chance. I might look at the xTV skin as well.

[Coco]

I do use the other searches, actually my friends use the other searchs mostly to try and find shows with the same actors and such. They are nice to have but I think most people just use title. Kinda suprised there isn't currently a way to set the default to skip over the other nodes though. I bet if you can get the right developers attention he could add a default setting with very little work.

[sho]

IMHO there should at least be an Advancedsettings.xml option to flatten these out... I never use them.

[ShortySco]

Originally Posted by sho

IMHO there should at least be an Advancedsettings.xml option to flatten these out... I never use them.

Yes, this would be a nice option to have.

Shorty

[szsori]

XBMC supports jumping directly into the Titles area:
ActivateWindow(MyVideoLibrary,MovieTitles)

Just update that in your skin.

[KidKiwi]

Originally Posted by szsori

XBMC supports jumping directly into the Titles area:
ActivateWindow(MyVideoLibrary,MovieTitles)

Just update that in your skin.

Does this also apply to the TV side? (ActivateWindow(MyVideoLibrary,TVTitles??)

Also, do you know what xml file this is added to. Knowing the correct file can save hours of hunting, especially when you don't really understand what you're actually looking for or at

[jmarshall]

To use that stuff you'd have to add it outside of the video window (eg 2 buttons on home.xml) and/or create a dummy window for the video library front end with 2 buttons on it for TV shows and Library.

It's easy to get it set up action-wise, but probably reasonably tricky to get all the animations etc. working nicely.

Ideally this needs to be addressed at the code level - I'm not sure exactly how to do it as yet, as you don't want to lose the ability to get to the additional nodes, but still want it fast to access the usual ones. Any ideas will be considered.

Cheers,
Jonathan