Pseudo TV for Emby

[Tremas 197]

Thank You! I installed the dll for the first time this week and was having this exact issue. I thought for sure it was some type of permissions issue on my end, and I was just about to give up and ask if anyone else was experiencing this. I will try with the latest update tonight. Great work as usual @VicMoore!

[VicMoore 754]

Thanks @Tremasit was a stupid mistake on my part. I was removing some un-used code and unfortunately left one line that needed to be deleted.  Whenever you have a problem, please let me know ASAP so I can fix it.

Vic

[Tremas 197]

Will do! Like I said, I fully believed this was a permissions issue on my end since it was my first time installing a custom dll on a Synology system. No kidding, I was opening this thread to report it and a fix was already waiting!

[VicMoore 754]

@LukeI have a question. The TV platform in VirtualTVExample supports two media types, namely: TV and Radio. I don't understand how to create a Radio channel.  Is it an array of ids for audio-based media in the Emby library, such as music and audiobooks?  Or is it composed from internet radio channels?

Vic

[VicMoore 754]

@LukeI set the channel type to "Radio" and loaded the channel with audio files. The TV guide built properly, but clicking on one of the shows in the Guide cause an error. Emby could not cast the type to what it needed.

Vic

[Tremas 197]

Hi @VicMoore. I have a question about how to add videos to a channel that are movie extras (video files in the "extras" folder alongside the movie). 

I am trying to make a channel out of a playlist I have created that incorporates movie introductions (from Turner Classic Movies), the movie itself, and featurettes about the movies that came with the DVDs as extras. My TCM Intros and featurettes are currently in the directory along with the Movie per the emby naming guidelines for "movie extras." These extras have their own metadata and NFOs and can be added to playlists and collections. However, they don't show up in the "movie" library type or "mixed content" when exploring quries or files in pseudoTV.

For example, if I use "add files" from a movie or mixed content library and select the playlist I see the movies but these extras do not appear. Is it possible to just access all files in a playlist and add them to a channel in playlist order? Is it possible to have a folder explorer like in BULKY to add items to a channel?

If I use the BULKY plugin I can easily explore the playlist in question and it has the extras available as items that can be edited the same as any other video. Is it a limitation of the explorer/query setup, or is this something that Luke's code doesn't allow? Would I have to add all these extras in a new library as a "movie" or "TV Show" in order to get them to be programmed in a channel?

Thanks for all your hard work, and I love the plugin.

[VicMoore 754]

@TremasI will answer your question later today.  I have to clean up some hurricane damage to the yard first.

Vic

[VicMoore 754]

@TremasI am working on some code right now for @feerlessleadr that may do what you are asking. I hope to be able to show some of this code soon.  It is a bulky like program and it does let you explore and pick what you want to add to a channel.

On another subject, You can now create channels with audio content.  I hope to post the code later today.  

Vic

[Tremas 197]

Thanks, @VicMoore. I hope your yard wasn't damaged too bad.

Having a BULKY style of navigation to add any type of file would be a game changer for this type of personal "live channel" feature. Even using a playlist of mixed content from different libraries would be a big feature enhancement. Great stuff!

[VicMoore 754]

@feerlessleadrand @TremasI am working on both of your requests. I am creating a tool for building custom playlists. It lets you add whatever you like to a playlist and then it lets you change the order in which the media is played. To see my current progress install the plugin below and when it comes up press the control key and then click the green "Save Channels and Update the EPG" key.  This will bring up the tool.  There is still much to be done.

I am currently working on the object editor and will soon turn to the playlist.  Let me know what you think and any suggestions you might have.

On another topic, notice also that I added Audio to the supported media types.  You can now create audio channels.  For example, you can make your own radio station.

I have asked @TZTZoroif he can help me with this project.  He does fantastic work.

Vic

 

 

Edited October 15, 2024 by VicMoore

[Tremas 197]

Thanks @VicMoore. When I CTRL-CLICK "Save Channels and Update the EPG" key the tool says "image editor" and has controls for loading and sizing images. Just want to make sure that what is expected at this point. Is there any useful feedback we can provide at this point? Please let us know how we can help.

Never mind, I forgot to reboot emby after updating the plugin. I see the tool and am playing with it now.

 

Edited October 13, 2024 by Tremas

[VicMoore 754]

Attached is the latest code.

Vic

 

Edited October 14, 2024 by VicMoore

[VicMoore 754]

@feerlessleadrand @Tremas, I have finished the part of the tool that selects the media from the Emby libraries that you want. I now need feedback. The latest code is attached below.

Vic

 

Edited October 14, 2024 by VicMoore

[VicMoore 754]

Everyone, I just received the code drop from @TZTZoroand he has again done a great job. The improvements center around adding files to a channel and the new playlist/editor being built (hold the ctrlKey down while clicking the "Save Channels and Update the EPG button") to view the progress being made on this tool.

Vic

 

 

 

 

PseudoTV.zip

PseudoTV.dll

Edited October 15, 2024 by VicMoore

[Tremas 197]

Hello @VicMoore, thank you for the update. Lots of good work going on.

The playlist builder seems to work for selecting individual movies or TV shows. However, it does not yet have the ability to explore in within movie folders (BULKY = FOLDERS ON/OFF).

I'm still curious to understand how/if VirtualTVExample supports Movie Extras. Per the Movie Naming documentation, Extras are found inside subfolders of the main movie folder, but it seems they are not technically part of the movie library. However, they have their own images/metadata, can have NFOs, and can be added to emby playlists and collections. With Pseudo TV, all of the selection methods for videos start with a library first - and I'm not sure what library (if any) Movie Extras are part of.  I just don't know enough about how emby treats Movie Extras in the database, but am interested to learn what can and cannot be done.

Ideally, it would be great if Pseudo TV could just import every item from an emby playlist without concern for which library it originated from. That way I could just make an emby playlist using the existing emby tools and then import it into Pseudo TV to create the channel.

 

[mickle026 650]

9 minutes ago, Tremas said:

it seems they are not technically part of the movie library

Example of how most of Emby works, this is not exhaustive and there may be exceptions to this.

Just about everything has its own library in the db, they are just linked by id's. Movies, People, Trailers, Extras, Studios, Music, Artists, MusicVideo, Photos ,AudioBooks(are Music Type), Books, Authors, Games, GameSystems, Genres, Tags, Collections etc (whatever else i didnt mention)

When you search for a movie type internally in the code, it doesnt fetch trailers.  You have query the movie then ask the database if the movie id has a trailer (technically a trailer id), and any linked trailers (trailer ids) will be returned as a seperate item list. To display the trailer you then have to query the trailer id. 
So if you search for a movie and include trailers in the search query, they wont show as linked, that then has to be queried to find the match.

Hope this helps.

 

[Tremas 197]

Thanks @mickle026, that's very enlightening. I have always wondered about how trailers are identified.

I wonder if a playlist file that contains a Movie Extra stores the ID for that Extra or just a link to the file location? I think it just stores the file location - I will have to look at one closely tonight. The other question would be if VirtualTVExample requires the full ID or just a file location is sufficient for adding content to a channel. I'm a total novice on the code side- but I'm interested in how it all works. Thanks to everyone -all of these plugin efforts by @VicMoorehave been very educational!

[VicMoore 754]

@Tremaswith the tool you can select any Emby library, any folder in that library, and any media content in the folders. The selected content can be edited, or it can be used to build an Emby playlist.  I thought this was what you wanted. Sometimes I am a bit slow understanding a request.

You can build a channel from a playlist right now. For example, select a media type of Movies, then select the Emby library for playlists, and from that library select the playlist that you want to add to a channel.  

You can also build a channel from one or more collections.

Vic

Edited October 15, 2024 by VicMoore

[Tremas 197]

@VicMooremaybe I am missing something then. It's very possible that I am doing something wrong on my end!

When I CTRL-CLICK "Save Channels and Update the EPG" and then chose a movie library I am presented with all of the movies within that library. If I click on the movie, the poster is highlighted and gets a checkmark. How do I get into the folder for that movie and see the other media files (extras)?

Regarding playlists that I have already created that contain Movies (features) and Movie Extras, if I choose "add files," Media Type "Movies" Emby Library "Playlists," Media Play Order "In Sequence" I am presented with all of my playlists. If I chose a playlist with a mix of Movies (features) and Movie Extras it will add only the features to the channel/preview. Any item in the playlist that is not a Movie (feature) or in a Movie Library is ignored in the preview/channel. This may be a limitation of emby - I'm just trying to learn and understand.

Thanks again for all of your hard work (and patience)!

[TZTZoro 26]

@Tremasi suppose they are 2 different types
From what i understand the code from Vic just grabs anything with type X(movie) from the directories/libraries you select and then sorts it
but your extras are type clip so it does not work

@VicMooremaybe this info helps extending the system?
/emby/Users/USER_ID/Items/ITEM_ID/SpecialFeatures
is the endpoint the UI uses to get the info

Extratypes types:
    "ExtraType": "Clip",
    "ExtraType": "BehindTheScenes",
    "ExtraType": "DeletedScene",
    "ExtraType": "Interview",
    "ExtraType": "Scene",
Json response:

[
  {
    "Name": "0001-1800",
    "ServerId": "",
    "Id": "1018900",
    "ExtraType": "Clip",
    "CanDelete": true,
    "SupportsSync": true,
    "RunTimeTicks": 300380000,
    "IsFolder": false,
    "Type": "Video",
    "UserData": {
      "PlaybackPositionTicks": 0,
      "PlayCount": 0,
      "IsFavorite": false,
      "Played": false
    },
    "PrimaryImageAspectRatio": 1.6588888888888889,
    "ImageTags": {
      "Primary": "bee4789aeb5506fe50a734708a48a4dc"
    },
    "BackdropImageTags": [],
    "MediaType": "Video"
  }
]

based on these folders of extras:




I think a solution would be to remove the playlists option from emby library and move it to media type
This way the behavior would be to load the entire playlist no matter the type, maybe create a blacklist of unsupported items but i believe that you support all file types now video and audio
So if i create a playlist from music, movies, tv shows, etc it should just load them and not filter it to only 1 type

If you do not want this @VicMoorecould you please at playlists to radio/music support?

[TZTZoro 26]

@VicMoore
I seem to have found a bug, loading collections using recursive search makes it display 0 items, using non recursive search works fine

it just does not create html elements, the console log and network fetches are just working fine and giving normal responses

[VicMoore 754]

@TZTZoroI have duplicated the bug you found and I have fixed it.  I will post the new code tomorrow.

It's very late in the night for you.  It's time to get some sleep.   Good Night

Vic

[Tremas 197]

13 hours ago, TZTZoro said:

i suppose they are 2 different types
From what i understand the code from Vic just grabs anything with type X(movie) from the directories/libraries you select and then sorts it
but your extras are type clip so it does not work

Thank you @TZTZoro, that make sense. I expected the behavior was something along these lines but I don't know enough about how emby sees these types of files (extras, etc.). I never knew there was a type "clip." It's very interesting to learn the right terminology and the inner workings of the system, which in turn makes for better feature requests.

If a mixed-library playlist could be imported as a channel (even if there are some exceptions) that would be a real game changer for this type of plugin. That's a real "your media your way" type of feature. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of having a programmatically generated TV channel, and the VirtualTV plugin has done that for some time. However, it's very useful to be able to curate a channel deliberately as well. Cheers!

[VicMoore 754]

@TremasWe are all learning. Here new ideas are always welcome and tried, if for no other reason than to learn how to do them.  I am learning more about what you want every day and hopefully we can devise a solution. @feerlessleadralso has some great ideas.

Vic

[feerlessleadr 173]

Sorry for being MIA @VicMooreI am planning to test the new plugin tonight and will report back.