Auto-hide taskbar, and Emby Theater focus issue

[pmac 136]

I've been having this issue for quite some time, but I've pretty much just been dealing with it until now.

 

For whatever reason, having my taskbar set to auto-hide causes issues with MBT where the taskbar becomes visible while MBT is maximized. Not the whole taskbar, just the thin strip that you can see from your desktop when it's set to auto-hide.

 

I can be browsing MBT just fine, with no visible taskbar strip, and it normally pops up as soon as I hit play on a title, but I believe it also happens from time to time while browsing through my collections. The only way I can get the taskbar to disappear once this happens is to switch MBT to windowed mode, and then maximize it again; you could see how this would get annoying. Especially since it happens about 95% of the time I click "play" to start watching something.

 

This will also randomly happen while in the middle of watching something, though less frequently than while initially hitting play.

 

The other issue I'd just like to lump in here, since I think it may be partially related, is that; sometimes when coming out of the MBT screensaver (by pressing a remote button, usually one of the nav buttons), Emby theater loses focus (ie. I can't control it, until I get my mouse and click somewhere on the screen), which is also a major annoyance, since it obviously takes you out of the experience of seamlessly playing media from an HTPC via remote control.

 

Of course, I could solve at least the first issue (possibly the second, I'm not sure though) by simply not setting my taskbar to auto-hide; but the taskbar ruins the look of my rainmeter skin, so I'd like to not have to do that.

 

I've noticed some old posts on here with similar issues, I just thought I'd bring it up again, and list my particular issues, in hopes someone might have a fix to it.

 

Thanks,

 

Patrick

[Xzener 729]

What OS are you running??

[Vidman 590]

You mean what version of windows right?

[Xzener 729]

Yes. I have found that Windows 10 doesn't have the little task bar strip Pmac is referring to. I do recall Windows 7 having that issue. Didn't run MBT with 8.1 so I can't comment on that.

[pmac 136]

What OS are you running??

Win7-64

[pmac 136]

Yes. I have found that Windows 10 doesn't have the little task bar strip Pmac is referring to. I do recall Windows 7 having that issue. Didn't run MBT with 8.1 so I can't comment on that.

I just finished installing Windows 10 on one of my other machines to try it out. Figured I'd give the free upgrade a try on a machine that I don't use regularly to help decide if I want to take the plunge on my main machine or not.

 

Unfortunately, since I'm running Windows 7 on my main machine, I'm left to deal with the "task bar strip" issue. I'm hoping someone here has an idea on how to fix it... it's quite annoying, especially if someone other than myself is using MBT, and I have to explain to them how to fix it when I'm not home.

[chef 3788]

There maybe Pinvoke code which could be used to fix this focus issue for the theatre, for Windows 7 users.

 

Pinvoke code is windows system codes, which could be used to keep applications topmost in the windows desktop application order, while they are running.

 

There are serveral third party apps which get rid of the task bar altogether, however I think that building a class in the theatre code using Pinvoke which forces it to the front and full screen whenever the taskbar wants to show itself can be done.

 

But that is where my know how ends, and I'm not very familiar with the theatre code.

 

It sounds to me like, perhaps (I am only speculating), the taskbar is showing because there is another app running (maybe in the system tray??) which wants to take control.

 

Again, Pinvoke may have a routine which will force the theatre to the front at all times...

Edited August 6, 2015 by chef

[pmac 136]

That sounds promising @@chef. I wish I had some coding know-how to be able to check something like that out.

@@Luke, any ideas about this? I'm not sure who would be the one to tackle something like this, but it would be greatly appreciated!

[chef 3788]

Here are some linked information regarding possible focus fixes:

 

http://www.pinvoke.net/default.aspx/user32.BringWindowToTop

 

But, the theatre would have to know when it is losing focus to another app/ or to the taskbar and then fix itself.

 

It might be more complicated.

 

What are some of the instances when the taskbar shows, again?

 

One was coming out of the screensaver? I believe the interop code from the link above can fix that easily.

 

But losing focus to the taskbar during playback is something else.

[pmac 136]

Sometimes when coming out of the screensaver it loses focus completely to where I need to click on the screen to continue controlling Theater. The taskbar issue seems to happen most immediately after pressing the "Play" button (in the GUI, not the remote), and sporadically during regular playback or menu navigation, but not as often in those instances.

[chef 3788]

Okay, I think that the remote control hook needs to have a function which grabs focus of the theatre window and attempts to bring it to the front each time there is a key press.

 

Then all the user would have to do is press a key in their remote to bring the window to the top.

 

Wmc had this built in weather anyone noticed or not. The green button would always bring focus to wmc, and any arrow key input would do the same.

 

I don't use the theatre, but if this isn't built in then It should be.

 

Who is developing the theatre at the moment? Is it Luke? Because if it is, then that guy has got to be a freakin machine, he's every where!

 

I have a theory that Luke is actually an artificial Intellegent Computer, who is pretending to be human from behind his emby avatar! Lol!

 

But in all seriousness, this needs to be looked at, at some point.

Edited August 11, 2015 by chef