Gaz 20 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 (edited) Hey guys, I need some help as I've just tried Emby Theatre for the first time and I'm only posting this because I'm either confused by who it's targeted at or/and at a loss as to understand why this is a premium pay for product. Having used MB for years I was fully expecting that Emby Theatre would have been the new go-to product to enable me to watch my media on from both my PC and on my Xbox One. I was basically expecting a new updated version of Emby for WMC that didn't require your PC to have Windows Media Centre installed and therefore be ideal for all of us that will soon be prompted to upgrade to Windows 10 etc. I had visions of finally being able to disconnect all my Xbox 360's that I used solely as 'extenders' to stream my media to any room in the house and that Theatre would be the ideal solution for me. So I load Emby Theatre up and okay it looks nice as you'd expect, well - comfortably similar to Emby For Media Center, but all I can see is my usual library folders listed with artwork and.....is it me or is that it?. My Emby for Samsung TV app offers me the exact same look that Theatre does and the Xbox one media library app has the same function of playing back media from library folder names. I couldn't see an option to display an 'Enhanced Home Screen' that would show up front and foremost my most recently added media clearly on the front screen. Is the option of an EHS even available and if not surely people must have requested this a long time ago no? 9 times out of 10 I want to watch a TV show or Movie I've just added snd not just be presented with my complete library to wade through in the hope of finding something I want to watch. Is this not the same for most people? As I say i'm just baffled as to why I'd be expected to pay for this, I'm not knocking the devs as I'm sure they worked hard on it, just like they did on MB before but I just can't understand how you can expect payment for an app that that appears to offer a lot less than an app that's been free for years! Please help me understand as I'm desperately trying to find an app that doesn't need WMC but will let me playback my media on my Xbox One's around the home. I'm not interested in recording any live TV or anything like that, I just don't want to watch my media sat in front of my PC when it can be streamed to the large TV's around the house. Okay Emby Theatre may offer me basic media playback but why would you pay for this when I can't see anything unique about it that plenty of free media server apps can do. Am I missing something in Emby Theatre that would warrant paying for it? I wanted so badly to stick with Emby as the interface is so familiar to me and all my family but Theatre just looks so sparse and devoid of any depth when comapred to Emby for WMC, probably only due to the lack of the EHS etc. These are just my initial thoughts after installing it, looking through it for 5 minutes and uninstalling it. Maybe I've missed something I don't know or maybe there's a better Emby app that would suit my needs better, if so please let me know what you guys think I should be looking at! Looking forward to hearing your recommendations please guys Edited June 2, 2016 by Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37008 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 Hi, welcome. I think your viewpoint might be a little unfairly influenced by the amount of free development the old MB team gave you. I apologize that I am not personally able to give you the same free time that they were, but alas, I am not. (Speaking for the rest of the Emby team). We do need a little bit of income to cover our growing costs and a new app is a great way to do that. However, I would also like to remind you of all the free features you get with Emby Server, which hopefully you are enjoying. To compare features, the old MB never had the cross-platform goals of Emby Theater (windows, smart tv, linux, android, xbox, etc). It never had the cross form-factor goals (remote, mouse, touch, etc), It never had the technology that this app does which allows us really rapid development, and it was never this easy to skin for (think CSS). In exchange for your payment, you get to support the Emby project and be a part of Emby Theater's constant evolution process. The users of this app are getting new features and fixes on an almost daily basis, which is again, thanks to the framework we put in place that allows us to do that. To see evidence of this, check out my activity in the Emby Theater forum, and you'll see they get something new almost every single day. If you are someone who would prefer not to support the project and instead would prefer to wait to purchase until it has everything that you want, then sure, you might want to stay on the old app a little longer. If you would like a free option, we have plenty of those too, including the legacy version of the app, Emby for Windows Media Center, Emby for Kodi, and others. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37008 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 To answer this question: I couldn't see an option to display an 'Enhanced Home Screen' that would show up front and foremost my most recently added media clearly on the front screen. Is the option of an EHS even available and if not surely people must have requested this a long time ago no? 9 times out of 10 I want to watch a TV show or Movie I've just added snd not just be presented with my complete library to wade through in the hope of finding something I want to watch. Is this not the same for most people? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37008 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 You should be seeing screens like this for your movie and tv libraries. They put your latest items, resumeable items, next up items, etc, right on the home screen for easy access. If you are not, then you probably configured your libraries on the server for generic folder presentation: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz 20 Posted June 2, 2016 Author Share Posted June 2, 2016 (edited) Hey Luke thanks for the detailed reply, as I said I know you guys work hard on these apps I just couldn't see how it was any different from all the other free options that are out there. I think the problem is that too much time is spent on some apps that offer you the world (remote access, viewable in web browsers etc) where some of us just need the ability to playback their media using a nice, clean and pretty interface. It's a real shame there isn't a 'Lite' version of Media Theater available for free to just give users this exact functionality. If I wanted all these bells and whistles that seem to be available then I'd expect to pay for it but how many of us actually do? I also certainly didn't get anyhting like the view that you posted directly above in your last post above so I must have some "generic folder presentation" library setting selected. I appreciate you guys spend many hours working on these apps and you all know the interface inside and out but I feel that you sometimes forget that not everybody would know where to find such a setting to make their media present itself as it does in your example. Would you mind sharing with me how you go about achieving this 'look' as all I have is library names across the top and all my media below in alphabetical order which, as I said before looks pretty basic. Cheers Edited June 2, 2016 by Gaz 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz 20 Posted June 2, 2016 Author Share Posted June 2, 2016 (edited) "If you are someone who would prefer not to support the project and instead would prefer to wait to purchase until it has everything that you want, then sure, you might want to stay on the old app a little longer. If you would like a free option, we have plenty of those too, including the legacy version of the app, Emby for Windows Media Center, Emby for Kodi, and others." Speaking for myself though Luke - I don't want an app that has "everything", if I did I'd certainly expect to pay for it. I just wanted the basic ability to playback my media using a familiar 'Emby'esque' interface but all I got was all my media in a box-standard display all shoved on to the front screen. it's not a case of not wanting to support the cause, it's just most users would surely want to feel that the product their purchasing offers something others don't and is also worth the price being asked. When I saw it laid out like I did I couldn't understand how it was any different from every other generic media server app that's out there. If my media library had looked like your example in your last post from the offset then I don't think I'd of have to of made the original post that I did and would maybe feel differently about being asked for payment etc. Just saying Edited June 2, 2016 by Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mentasm 43 Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 How many years have you been using MB for free? Maybe it's time to support the effort? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz 20 Posted June 3, 2016 Author Share Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) @@mentasm - I've been using MB for a long time because this community was built up over the years with the intention of a combined effort to make a good free media server solution. Then one day something slightly different arrives with a new name and devs start asking for money for it. Sure it's their right too if they want to adopt that approach but as it doesn't offer me any functionality that I don't already have and offers me nothing new that isn't already out there from a provider that doesn't charge you for the priviledge of using it. I don't subscribe to your ideology of "pay for it now because it was free for years", why should you? This community wouldn't be as big as it is today if we had to pay to beta test every build of MB that ever came out. It's also not a case of "supporting the effort", it's more the basic principle that if something doesn't give me any new functionality or solve any of the problems I suffer with my current media solution then why purchase a new one?. I've just re-installed Emby Theater again and spent some time going through all the settings on my server and customising it to see if it changes my mind but alas I'm disappointed to say that it doesn't. That's just my opinion of course but if something doesn't suit your needs then you just pass on it and keep looking until you find something that does. Edited June 3, 2016 by Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest asrequested Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 I too, have been using Media Browser/Emby, since the early days. I liked it then, but I love it now. If you read the forums, you'll see that the majority want a unified platform for all our media. And of the solutions available, Luke and the team have worked to give us, what I feel to be the best solution. They have worked very hard to reconstruct the foundation of the Emby platform, and have now reached the point of quick UI development. The small amount it costs to avail ourselves of all that has been achieved, is more than worth it. If all you want is a simple standalone player, you can use the legacy app. That's just my opinion of course but if something doesn't suit your needs then you just pass on it and keep looking until you find something that does. You're one of very few that have made such comments. I would guest that for most people for whom Emby doesn't fit their desires they just move on, without complaint. Emby is the way it is, and has many supporters. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianW 1052 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) @@Gaz - you can continue to use the server and EMC for free. This gives you much more than basic playback. You just need to install the hacked version of Media Center on Windows 10 so you can add EMC to it. Edited June 3, 2016 by AdrianW 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawrage 13 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) @@Gaz that screenshot Luke posted is what the new ET looks like. You may simply need to set a few settings on your server. Not in front of my machine at the moment but in essence what you need to do is login to Emby Server, click your user icon to open up the settings. Once in settings there are some settings that you need to check to enable your Movies / TV Shows etc... to show up. If you cant find them let me know and il grab a screenshot when I get home. Edited June 3, 2016 by Lawrage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vidman 589 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 I also certainly didn't get anyhting like the view that you posted directly above in your last post above so I must have some "generic folder presentation" library setting selected. I appreciate you guys spend many hours working on these apps and you all know the interface inside and out but I feel that you sometimes forget that not everybody would know where to find such a setting to make their media present itself as it does in your example. Would you mind sharing with me how you go about achieving this 'look' as all I have is library names across the top and all my media below in alphabetical order which, as I said before looks pretty basic. Cheers What luke posted is basically the default look....if you don't get something similar you must have altered the default settings at some point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBers 6766 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 @@Gaz - are you running the Emby Theatre beta, or the free version ?? The current beta version is v2.38 (may have increased), whereas the free version is v2.0 Just trying to clarify what you're using. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14903 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 This is correct: What luke posted is basically the default look....if you don't get something similar you must have altered the default settings at some point In response to this: ...but I feel that you sometimes forget that not everybody would know where to find such a setting to make their media present itself as it does in your example. So there must have been some deviation from the defaults when you did your setup. Can you explain what those were? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz 20 Posted June 3, 2016 Author Share Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) Firstly a big thankyou to everybody that posted a reply, it's really appreciated. I was extremely frustrated last night after trying to get Emby Theater to work how I wanted it too and prior to that had spent most of the day trying out PLEX and KODI etc and concluding that none of them were as good as EMBY. My IDEAL solution would be to get (as AdrianW above suggested) Emby for Windows Media Center working in Windows 10. It was the inevitable upgrade to this operating system that sparked off all this need to change my media setup and wondering how I'd get around still using Emby now that Windows Media Center is no longer supported. I tried many, many times installing and configuring the *hacked* version of WMC from the folks over on the my digital life forums but alas I could never get my Xbox 360's to work as extenders and from what I've read this seems to be the case for most people out there. I'm disabled and heavily rely on Emby Server and Emby for WMC to help get me through my days so the thought of 'losing' this due to upgrading to Windows 10 scares me silly. I know some people would either refrain from upgrading to Windows 10 or stick a PC in their bedroom and connect their TV directly to it but ideally I want to use Windows 10 as an operating system but don't want to lose my current Emby setup. This is why I decided to test out Emby Theater but even then if it had worked I'd have to replace all my xbox 360's with Xbox One's to use the ET app and then on top of that purchase a subscription to use ET fully. I'm just so frustrated guys as to how dificult it seems to be to find a simple solution for my needs. Windows 10 not having WMC has really messed things up for me If any of you guys have any alternative ideas I'd love to hear from you. Thanks again for reading Edited June 3, 2016 by Gaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14903 Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 If the screen shots above meet with your expectations of what you want, then we should work on helping you get your library setup so that is how it is presented. Perhaps, just a clean install of the server with all default settings...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danswan 13 Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 Also a confirmation that it is definitely not the legacy ET the OP is using - screenshots of your interface would confirm that? As others have said, pretty much everything you want ET to do, it does. By default. Out of the box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37008 Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 Also a confirmation that it is definitely not the legacy ET the OP is using - screenshots of your interface would confirm that? As others have said, pretty much everything you want ET to do, it does. By default. Out of the box. Thank you for confirming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Cameron 40 Posted November 12, 2016 Share Posted November 12, 2016 (edited) I agree some form of cash flow is needed for continued development, BUT.. the way i see it clients should never require a premium on-going subscription to use the basic features. Its not Netflix lol Emby Theater on the XboX One should be a one time purchase. To use special features within the app may require premium, But the basics like playing should be part of a one time purchase. Plex understand this and plex on the XboX One is FREE!! Some features within like trailers etc. require premium, and that makes sense ... IMO If i am going to use a client that requires a premium on-going paid subscription for just playing content then it will be a subscription to something that supplies the content like, Nexflix, Hulu, HBOgo Amazon Prime.. etc lol Edited November 12, 2016 by a1b2c3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vidman 589 Posted November 12, 2016 Share Posted November 12, 2016 Are you talking about metadata fetchers? Or do you mean features Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Cameron 40 Posted November 12, 2016 Share Posted November 12, 2016 Lol.. damn auto correct. Yeah.. features Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RKCJ 0 Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 I agree some form of cash flow is needed for continued development, BUT.. the way i see it clients should never require a premium on-going subscription to use the basic features. Its not Netflix lol Emby Theater on the XboX One should be a one time purchase. To use special features within the app may require premium, But the basics like playing should be part of a one time purchase. Plex understand this and plex on the XboX One is FREE!! Some features within like trailers etc. require premium, and that makes sense ... IMO If i am going to use a client that requires a premium on-going paid subscription for just playing content then it will be a subscription to something that supplies the content like, Nexflix, Hulu, HBOgo Amazon Prime.. etc lolI have to agree with this. I'm seeing if I can replace my XBOX 360 extenders with cheap Win 10 PC's. And after successfully setting everything up with the legacy version of ET, I thought "right, best I buy the app". To my disappointment, the only option is Premiere. Like the above poster, I can understand Premiere being required for all the advanced features, but I only require playback, which in my view should be a one time purchase. Why would ET's pricing model be different to the Android app? As that is a one time payment for the playback functionality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChannelZ 3 Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 Personally Emby Theater is the reason why I bought a subscription. I used Plex, but they buggered up the Plex Home Theater program with a new "lighter" version which is in perpetual beta, and generally broken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrincessClevage 173 Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 @@mentasm - I've been using MB for a long time because this community was built up over the years with the intention of a combined effort to make a good free media server solution. Then one day something slightly different arrives with a new name and devs start asking for money for it. Sure it's their right too if they want to adopt that approach but as it doesn't offer me any functionality that I don't already have and offers me nothing new that isn't already out there from a provider that doesn't charge you for the priviledge of using it. I don't subscribe to your ideology of "pay for it now because it was free for years", why should you? This community wouldn't be as big as it is today if we had to pay to beta test every build of MB that ever came out. It's also not a case of "supporting the effort", it's more the basic principle that if something doesn't give me any new functionality or solve any of the problems I suffer with my current media solution then why purchase a new one?. I've just re-installed Emby Theater again and spent some time going through all the settings on my server and customising it to see if it changes my mind but alas I'm disappointed to say that it doesn't. That's just my opinion of course but if something doesn't suit your needs then you just pass on it and keep looking until you find something that does.Water tightTighter than a Ducks Ass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37008 Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 Emby Theater for Linux and Raspberry Pi are currently in testing. You can learn more about them here: Linux: https://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/42868-emby-theater-for-linux/ Raspberry Pi: https://emby.media/community/index.php?/forum/169-raspberry-pi/ Enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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