Author Topic: Now Playing panel config enhancements  (Read 25302 times)

Steven

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i've enhanced the layout choices for the now playing panel
- you can now dock the track info with the player controls in a compressed format - see http://getmusicbee.com/forum/index.php?topic=3115.0 for the original proposal. Just right click on the panel/ Configure Layout/ Track Information/ Show in this Panel (compressed with player controls)
- the right click menu structure for the layout configuration has been improved
- you can now dock player controls in now playing panel with its in the left sidebar (you might have been able to get that to work before - its now properly supported)
- the tab colouring on the now playing window has been improved
- the docking state of the components within the now playing panel are separately maintained for when the now playing panel is displayed as a floating window vs. when its docked in the right sidebar eg. you could dock the player controls and compressed track info to the top of the floating now playing window but when docked to the right sidebar the player controls are not displayed within the panel

i've tested this a lot but because there are so many combinations of layout choices its possible i overlooked something, so keep a copy of your musicbee.exe just in case you want to revert to the older version

http://www.mediafire.com/?2exiks89et8lmlx


Last Edit: April 03, 2011, 07:19:44 AM by Steven

Greb

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Well, this is absolutelly AMAZING!  :)

Definitely, you have to include a screenshot with a nice group background picture and the 'now playing' floating window in the main webpage!

A couple of things:

- I found a bug. If you have the now playing window floating and in compressed format, and then you start to play around with 'Display in the bottom panel', 'Display in the right sidebar (top or bottom)' it starts to give some problems. The options in 'Configure layout>Track information' (that only give you the chance between top and bottom) work OK, so I think the problem is when you are in compressed format and go to 'player displayed in bottom panel' and go back using the old options.

- A hotkey that shows the now playing floating window (as the existing one for the lyrics floating window) would be great  :)  (and, once into it and if possible, a hotkey that turns 'on-off' the notification pop up would be great too)

- And, if that's easy and it's only about changing a property (I don't know about ASP.NET, so I have no idea), being able to select some transparence in the 'now playing' floating window could look really nice.

- Perhaps different track information font size in normal/compressed format (or a checkable option that reduces size in compressed format to 9 or 10)...

But, as said, it looks great!

Last Edit: April 01, 2011, 08:24:47 AM by Greb

Steven

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i'll change it so when you double click on the sidebar header it opens as a floating window (it currently opens the track finder but i think opening the floating window is more appropriate)
i'll also add a setting for the transparency.

Greb

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i'll change it so when you double click on the sidebar header it opens as a floating window (it currently opens the track finder but i think opening the floating window is more appropriate)
i'll also add a setting for the transparency.

That could give a problem in case of using a visualizer with the now playing floating window: if you do so, then you have to double click first to open the floating window, and then to turn on the 'Show visualizer' option.

But when you show the visualizer after making the now playing window floating, then this window remains hidden. As it works now you have to show the turn on the visualizer first, and to show the floating window after it.

But if you turn on the visualizer first, no way to double click in the header...

Steven

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antiPOP

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Steven, could you add an option for last.fm buttons (service and love)?

VX

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I'd love to see the option to show Now Playing List with the track info and the player controls in a compressed format docked to it as the one and only Music Bee window  8) (without Main Panel and Top menu bar).

Some people like such a minimalistic view. When I tried to recommend MB to one of my friends he said the default GUI is too big for him :(
He is an AIMP user and asked me if MB could look similar, but there was no suitable option at the time.

I wish I've shown him the view presented in the Steven's opening post in this topic  :(

Steven

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MusicBee is oriented towards people who need a Music Manager, quite probably with large music collections. If your friend only needs this minimal interface just for playing songs then AIMP is much better suited to that in my opinon - i dont see the point of making MusicBee try to do everything.

VX

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MusicBee is oriented towards people who need a Music Manager, quite probably with large music collections. If your friend only needs this minimal interface just for playing songs then AIMP is much better suited to that in my opinon - i dont see the point of making MusicBee try to do everything.

Yes, I understand this approach. I don't want MusicBee to make me a sandwich ;), but when a music collection have already been organized, tagged etc. one can expect that it would be possible listen to the music in a Minimalist Player View (Playlist and Player Control Panel combined together).
It's very useful and looks great alongside other opened apps (Word, Web Browser...), moreover it doesn't occupy the the whole screen.
Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's a must-have feature, but I know many people that got used to work with audio players this way. IMHO, if this feature is not hard to implement (as the above screenshot shows there is Now Playing list with the track info and the player controls docked in a compressed format, right  ???), that why don't use it in any way users would like to work with ???

soundmill

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Hi

Without trying to cause a commotion here :)
I agree with Steven on this one, I manage a 2TB (and growing) mp3 collection in MB and I think it does a perfect job and I don't really want to have to many windows, panes, tabs, docked windows etc.

But - how about a MB gadget, would that be a compromise?

kr
Robert

Steven

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at the moment the Now Playing window is "joined" to the main MB window - that means if you click on the now playing window, MB will also be bought to the foreground and vice-versa.
If it was made a detached window, so the main MB window could be minimised (or even hidden) so you are only left with the now playing window is that all thats needed here? of course you could still have both open at the same tiime as now for greb's setup.

VX

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I'm also very happy how MB works with my music collection, but it's not the case. I don't know if a gadget would be right solution for those who have older operating systems (Windows XP for example), but thanks for the suggestion  :)
If it was made a detached window, so the main MB window could be minimised (or even hidden) so you are only left with the now playing window is that all thats needed here?

IMHO, that option would be awesome: MusicBee would be excellent alternative not only for iTunes or MediaMonkey, but also for  Winamp-like looking players (I guess it's a vast majority of users who got used to old Winamp GUI and keep using it even though it's far behind

soundmill

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Whatever it takes to draw more users to MB, it is already the most awesome music collection player/manager out there!!

kr
Robert

Steven

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i will make the now playing window a detached window and also add a new menu item in the View menu
View Micro Player (if anyone has a better name please suggest it, but that seems to a common name for an "in-between" player)

Sarge

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If you were going to detach it, I'd rather see it "docked' to the Mini player, but horizontally underneath it.
you could have the artwork to the left, rather than vertical