Was I the only one that used to use Media Browser this way?

[chopwood 7]

I recently re-installed my W7 HTPC and came across the re-invented MB3.

 

Previously, I had used MB from within Media Center to display my DVD collection.... No downloads, no TV, just a library of 1:1 rips stored as .ISO.

 

It had a simple job..... Display my DVDs and mount the one I want to watch.

 

I have a NAS, with a share called DVDs. In there were the movie title folders.

 

Each folder contained just 4 files: 

movie_name.iso

folder.jpg

cover.jpg

mymovies.xml

 

This setup meant no messing around downloading stuff. In fact, the share was read-only to media browser, so it couldn't mess around with it.

Archive maintenance was done through Media Center Master.

 

This very simplistic setup now appearers to be buried under a wealth of new features. Non of which I'm interested in.

DVB Link handles all the Live TV streaming.

 

So where as I used to install Media Browser, point it at my share and configure Alcohol for mounting.....

I now have to install a server, a client, configure them both and follow a tutorial on ISO mounting because it looks much harder than it used to be.

 

Have I missed something? Is the old version still available? I miss it

 

Thanks for any replies.

Chris

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Koleckai Silvestri 1150]

The old version is not available. The people who created it and supported it have moved on. A new team is responsible for Media Browser 3.

 

In the new paradigm, you can still do what you want. You don't need to use the metadata tools in the server and you simply need to install Media Browser Classic to have playback in Media Center. Don't know of anything special needed to mount an ISO though. Always thought it was plug and play but I don't store my media in that type of container.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Wayne Luke

[Carneth 12]

From my experience, MB3 is more complex than MB2 in some ways and easier in other ways...

 

What's easier, regardless of the client (MBC, or MBT) you no longer need a distinct metadata management system, it's all done for you...  Actually done on the server. 

 

Now, ISOs, these are similar when using the MBC client on MB3 ... to just using the old MB2 system.. 

 

To set this up ... (I'll try and get some screenshots when I'm at home and not the office)... you need a player that will play the ISOs ... Neither Windows Media Center nor MBC will do this on their own (MBT will I think, which is pretty cool).

 

So.. this is what I did..

 

 

Step 1) Download and install VLC.. http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

 

Step 2) Open the Media Browser Classic Configurator

 

Step 3) Go to external players

 

Step 4) Add an external player

 

Step 5) Select the type as VLC 2 (something like that)

 

Step 6) Deselect all file formats, except ISO

 

Step 7) Set the player location to the location of the vlc.exe

 

Step 8) Set the command line arguments to exactly (case sensitive and include the curly braces): {PATH}

 

I restarted just to be safe...

 

This seemed to work, so that now, when I got to launch an ISO it essentially minimizes Media Center (and therefore Media Browser) and launches the ISO direct into VLC...

 

This is slightly slicker than my previous MB2 setup for me as this does not actually mount the ISO, VLC can play the ISO direct without mounting it.

 

Let me know if this makes sense or not!

Edited August 4, 2014 by Shiva217

[chopwood 7]

Thanks for the replies.

 I think I'll obtain a copy of MB2. I'm sure I'll find a copy somewhere.

 

With regards to the 'Classic mode'. It would be nice if it were a complete (simple) product.

 

This seems overly complicated for what I want to achieve.

 

WMC <> MB3 CLIENT        <>      MB3 SERVER

               L DAEMON TOOLS        L STORAGE

 

 

--

 

As for associating ISOs with VLC, I follow your logic, but it's a step backwards as far as I'm concerned. I'm used to clicking on a film and WMC instantly loading it because it thinks an actual disc has been placed in the drive.

 

Apart from the consistent look and feel  of keeping it in WMC (WAF is an issue here too), I use the WMC remote control and it's compatibility with VLC is flaky to say the least. I would need to re-map keys with intelliremote and it's just getting a bit of a mess at this point.

[Carneth 12]

Hmmm.

 

I'm not sure it's a step backward...

 

I'm pretty sure you can still use the old method of mounting ... There's the extenders + ISO tab in the configuration system just as there was with MB2

 

 

So that method, you click play, it mounts the virtual disc in the virtual drive whcuh then launches another player, e.g. Vlc, windows media player...

 

With this other method it goes straight from MB2 to the external player. It launches straight away and is quicker / smoother.

 

Method 1 you are reliant on the additional virtual drive and you have to wait for the system to detect that a disc has been virtually "inserted" into the drive.

 

Method 2 .. Simply no need to mount - auto or otherwise.

 

I get what you mean about having a client/server model. For a single machine and single client set up, it's a bit of pain. But you're doing the same configuration as before only in two screens. I.e. Library management in the server and client configuration in the specific client, e.g.; ISOs players etc

 

There isn't much more - if any configuration than before. Is just in two screens.. And it's slightly cleaner and also easier to add more clients around the home.

[Carneth 12]

I do get your point on consistent player though.

 

I haven't yet had any issues with VLC. But every system is different.

 

There is a second player that will load movies from ISO format.

 

Once MBT is completely finished I think things will be a lot nicer.

 

 

But anyway, you can do the mounting approach as you did with MB2....

 

So MB3 adds the MB3 Server, but loses the metadata management tool as it does that itself. So broadly speaking the same amount of software.

 

I used to have a ton of problems getting MCM to work properly.

 

Meh. Each to their own

[ebr 14925]

If all your ISOs are DVD rips then you don't need an external player.  You can set it up exactly as you did with MB 2.  Just point to the ISO mounter in the configurator just like you did with MB 2 and let autoplay take over.  This is all the same as it was.

 

One thing I notice though is that you must have been using a very old version of MB 2 as well because we haven't supported mymovies.xml for a number of years - even with MB 2.  So, you will need new metadata but the server can create that for you.

[chopwood 7]

Hi, 

Thanks all for the tips. I caved in and ended up back on MB2 over the weekend.

As my collection only changes once in a blue-moon, I don't require all the features that MB3 has to offer.

Ultimately, the tipping point was that after pointing MB3 server at my media directory, it scanned and decided there was 'no media'. I'm sure there is a way to make it detect iso's..... or maybe it's just bad luck it didn't see any of mine. But MB2 pointed at the same location, scanned and repopulated library straight away.

Also, running over gigabit lan, the time from clicking play to the movie beginning is about 1 second. So it's definitely my preferred method over using VLC.

 

That said, I've always wanted to see a shortlist option. Will post it in feature requests. That would probably sway me to re-visit MB3 as an option.

[Carneth 12]

Hey there,

 

well... idk what's going on with your setup..

 

Glad you got it working the way you like it 

 

 

I have my MB3 Server running on a machine with all my media (my server acts as an ~8TB RAID 10 storage server as well)..

 

MB3 Server scans all my media: all my 250+ DVD & BluRay ISOs, all my 7000 ALAC files, and countless JPEGs etc and detects them all fine and loads the metadata nearly perfectly.. just about 4 DVDs where it can't find the disc image for the spinning disk graphic. (All this resulting in me no longer needing MCM)

 

I also run a gigabit LAN; well sort-of two LANS actually, one at 600mbs one at a gig... I'm using power lines to network to some rooms which creates a separate LAN that's freely routable but operates at 600mbs instead of a gig.

 

 

I'd say clicking play to playing in VLC takes less than a second in my setup on the main system, or clients on the 1gig LAN... maybe about a second to two on the other clients over the 600mbs LAN..

 

So, to answer the question in your topic title - yes, I used media browser in that way too - your setup is what I did with MB2 ... But now, it seems faster for me.. I mean, it's not mounting anything any more.. it's just using VLC's in-built functionality to play an ISO direct.. So, for playing DVDs it's taking software out of the equation .. 

 

I mean, it's not doing Media Centre hosting Media Browser, mounting an ISO (via VCD) then back to media center or another player to detect that a virtual disc has been inserted... (I used to do this on MB2 - so, )

 

Instead now, for me, it's Media Center hosting media browser classic, passing the ISO direct to VLC.. done.. 

 

That said.. To get VLC to work smoothly, I had to switch to VLC 2.0.. The newest version of VLC had some issues with my specific graphics card on my main system..

 

On the other MB3 clients in the house, they are using the latest version of VLC fine ..

 

So.. idk... For me, the server was easy to set-up, install.. create the folders (as you did with MB2, but on the server, not client).. then specify the physical path or paths  for those folders... Not sure what's going wrong...

 

The MB3 classic install, add VLC as the external player for the ISO type .. done.. 

 

 

If / when you try MB3 again, I can send over screenshots of my configs if you want.. 

 

Though, by then.. maybe MBT will be up and running with all the themes etc.. and everything will be even simpler! No external players, just MBT and MBS!