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Kodi File Structure the same as Emby webUI - help!


Dewey80

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Hi,

 

I'm in the process of testing out an upgrade to my HTPC, using Emby as the server (which looks awesome, love the webUI!) and Kodi as the front end client (which also looks great) - I previously used MediaPortal.

 

I am happy with the way TV Series' are displayed but I'm struggling to get my Movies and other media (Doco's, StandUp, etc) in a useable viewing format. I have looked over these forums and the interwebs for a few days now and I'm still struggling to get this - either its not possible or I'm doing something wrong... so its time to see if the experts can help :)

 

Background on my setup;

I have an extensive movie collection (2000+) which I like to view similar to the way they are stored on my PC, via a single master genre/category (ie Back to the Future is in Adventure), rather than every single movie been displayed on one huge video wall!! I realise I could search and filter for a movie, or movie type, but I like to just go into a folder of my category types and watch say an Adventure movie when I feel like that type of movie. Further smart filtering at this point could give me the newly added, unwatched, etc... I have about 12 different categories (which would be at the Level 1 [L1] structure level) and then inside these are movies (in single folders) as well as boxsets/collections (which would be L2 structure). See Image [server File Structure.PNG]

 

The view structure I'm looking for is to be able to open Movies from the main homescreen (skin link to emby video node), which then displays my 12 custom categories (primary genre), where I can then choose Adventure, followed by the Back to the Future Boxset, and then choose which of the 3 in the collection I want to watch. I'm looking for similar nesting of content for my Doco's, StandUp, where you might have a comedian with multiple shows (Eddie Murphy; Raw & Delirious) that I want displayed side-by-side at the L2 level.

 

Emby webUI (screen grabs below), and the iPad app mimic exactly my folder structure! Its just Kodi that isn't playing nice :(

Doco, StundUp Categories : [Emby webUI - Doco, Etc Library.PNG]

Movies Categories: [Emby webUI - Movie Library.PNG]

L1 - Adventure: [Emby webUI - Movie Library - L1 Adventure.PNG]

L2 - BttF Boxset: [Emby webUI - Movie Library - L1 Adventure - L2 BttF Boxset.PNG]

 

Emby Libraries;

Emby Video Node (Type: Movies) - Movies

Emby Video Node (Type: Movies) - Doco's, StandUp, Etc

Emby Video Node (Type: TV) - TV Series

[Emby Library Setup.PNG]

 

These are the options I have tried thus far;

  1. I have tried setting up links in the skin to video-addon-emby-Movie ([Emby Video Nodes.PNG]) but this just gives me the whole list of movies, in this case all my Animation and Adventure movies clumped together and it shows all boxset movies individually ([Kodi Movie Structure.PNG]) rather than as one sub folder like the Emby webUI does.
  2. I have also tried using smart playlists with a filter for Path Contains = \Adventure\ (ie primary category), which is how MediaPortal achieves it, but for some reason this just returns a blank output - somehow by adding this all the movies get filtered away.
  3. I tried this in both Direct & Addons mode thinking that the Path field may only get parsed in the former. no luck.
  4. Finally, I have also attempted to add an additional tag, putting my category in there in the hope I could filter for it but that didn't appear to work, it seems to only accept the name of your Emby Video Node (ie Movies, or Doco's, StandUp, Etc).

My Setup;

Emby Server : Version 3.0.5871.0

Emby for Kodi : Stable (1.03), I also tried (2.2.4)

Kodi : Version 16, Jarvis. Skins: Titan & AEON NOX (both didn't help, happy to try others)

 

I hope I've given enough background on the problem and how I'd like my setup. Looking forward to hearing from anyone who's faced similar issues and how they got around it. This new setup seems really powerful, I'd love to get over this little custom view issue and keep using Emby on a permanent basis. I'm also open to suggestions on other ways of handling large media sets if what I want is just too much ;)

 

Cheers in Advance,

Dewey

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LongMan

Welcome Dewy. Try this,

 

You need to set up a Media Library for each video section that you want in the server. In the pic above you have Movie, TV Series and the Mixed (Docu, Standup etc). You need different Media Library for Docus, (Series separate from Movies because that have to be treated differently for metadata). You also want split the Movies and TV Series if you want then in sections.  In my case, I Have Movies, Sereis, Kids Movies, Kids Series, Docu Series, Documentaries (Movies), Special Interest, News Magazine etc

 

http://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/26121-tutorial-how-to-set-up-kodi/

 

Hope that helps.

 

Cheers,

LongMan

Edited by LongMan
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Dewey80

Hi LongMan,

 

I tied the tutorial link but unfortunately it didn't help shine any light on the setup  :(

 

It sounds like what you are saying, and let's focus on my movie section as an example, that I need to create 12 separate Media Libraries - one for each of my categories (Action, Adventure, Drama, etc). Then link those up in Kodi somehow so that when I click on the movies button on the homescreen it shows all 12 of my categories that I can then click into. Do you know how I would achieve this?

 

This wouldn't solve the problem of the boxset/collection Level 2 subfolder view I'm looking for but it might be my best option... [i found this option in the Titan settings]

 

The Emby webUI does exactly the file structure I'm looking to achieve, I wish this could be achieved in Kodi.

 

Thanks,

Dewey

Edited by Dewey80
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LongMan

If your categories are just genres, I would not suggest you make Media Library for each because you can easily get to them through a Genre playlist. However, Distant categories such as Documentaries, Docu Series ( one set is type movies while the other is TV Series), should be separated. Similarly for Standup, News Magazines and even Soap Opera if is necessary.

 

You said that you are coming from MediaPortal, so hopefully you are familiar with the tagging system in Moving Pictures and MP TV Series. Kodi and Emby has similar tagging system. It is this tagging system that is used to separate the different video libraries when this Emby plugin write your server database into the local Kodi database and keeps it in sync. In other words, If you make a Standup Media Library on your server, each item (video) written to the Kodi database is automatically tagged with the name of the Library from the server (standup in this case). You can then use playlists or nodes to separate the different libraries in Kodi.

 

If necessary we could set up a time for a chat and I will help to set it up. I have a pretty good setup here and I have done a few for friends with slightly different interest, so I am sure I could help you.

 

Just let me Know.

 

Cheers,

LongMan

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Dewey80

Thanks Longman, too kind. Let's see how we go but a chat could help move things along if I get stuck :)

 

I've done as you suggested and created separate Doco & StandUp Libraries and linked these to separate shortcuts on the homescreen - works great! Only slight problem is that because the media type is movie, the Emby webui clumps all new releases together rather than showing new releases per library, but this is a small issue.

 

Moving on to the movies, how do I create this genre playlist you mentioned? Or are you just talking about the actual pre-defined genre shortcut menu item that's available? If so I was thinking that this, coupled with the genre plugin, might be my best best to achieve the setup closest to what I'm looking for.

 

Thanks again for time, much appreciated.

Dewey

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LongMan

Yes I was talking about the nodes that Emby creates in Userdata>Library>Video>Emby.  They will give you the Movies grouped by genres. Also it is not very difficult to make your own for specific genres if you want to.

 

<node order="1" type="filter">
  <match>all</match>
  <rule field="tag" operator="is">
    <value>Movies</value>
  </rule>
  <rule field="genre" operator="is">
    <value>Action</value>
  </rule>
  <label>Action</label>
  <icon>special://home/addons/plugin.video.emby/icon.png</icon>
  <content>movies</content>
  <order direction="ascending">sorttitle</order>
</node>

 

If you replace Movies with the name of your Movies Library (If it is different) and use the text above to create a xml file and place it in the folder mentioned above, it will take you directly to your action movies. Replace Action (twice, in the rule and the label with other genres and you could have direct links to specific genres that you like instead of the general one that shows all genres. You could also have them in a separate folder with an index file. But try the Action node first.

 

To be honest, I have my own system using nodes which allows to have recently added for each of the library sections so I haven't tried anything else. But I think the skins that uses SkinHelper or Skinshortcuts also to do it for the widgets. Try Eunique, that skin should do the Widgets (recently added items) for you. Aeon should too. I just stick to a slightly modified confluence.

 

Cheers,

LongMan

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