Channel plugin handling really needs an overhaul

[pünktchen 1258]

@@Luke i'm in the process of creating a new channel plugin similar to BlurN, but for TVShow premiers in Germany.

Because of the internal way Emby server handles channel items and some unexpected behaviour it's really frustating and i'm nearly at a point to give up:

 

1. Channel items don't provide the same sort order options as the webinterface does and the few options that are available aren't respected. This was already reported 8 months ago!

    Of course the user can change it in the channel view, but not for homescreen Latest Media. I really need date created ASCENDING, not descending!

 

2. There's only one type of image for the channel items and that is primary. If there are mixed image orientations provided by the plugin (landscape and poster) then Emby doesn't adapt the views.

    The images get stretched and squashed. We need a way to define poster, thumb (landscape) and fanart!

 

3. As already reported in the recording channel plugin thread, if i define channel containers as series and season folders, then no episodes are returned.

 

4. Every channel item sadly needs an unique id! I've wanted to create some subfolders in my channel plugin, that act as some kind of filtered views. But if the same item with the same id is in more than one folder,

    then only the last folder in the list returns anything. Every other channel folder that has this same (non unique) item is COMPLETELY empty!

    If i define different id's for the same item in different folders, then of course the playstate is handled independently.

 

5. Latest Media items. It doesn't matter what is defined here:

public async Task<IEnumerable<ChannelItemInfo>> GetLatestMedia(ChannelLatestMediaSearch request, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
{
    var result = "WHAT EVER. IT DOES NOT MATTER. IT GETS COMPLETELY IGNORED";
    return result.Items;
}

    It gets ignored by Emby! Instead Emby queries and returns the items from the channel itself. But only from first level subfolders!

Channel
    -Subfolder1
        -Item1        ->returned
        -Item2        ->returned
    -Subfolder2
        -Item3        ->returned
        -Item4        ->returned
        -Subfolder3   (inside subfolder2)
            -Item6    ->IGNORED
            -Item7    ->IGNORED

    Because of problem #4 where i have to define different id's for the same item in different subfolders, the Latest Media returns duplicated entries.

[Luke 37060]

Thanks, yes most channel features have been implemented on an as needed basis so that is why it's not fully fleshed out.