How to - display images from different categories...

[rbziggy]

Before I embark on some trials (& error) tests, I thought I'd ask...

On my main menu screen I like to display the 'nowpalying' coverart. This was fine while it was just from my MP3 music collection. However I also have digital radio and podcasts in two other categories. When I'm playing these I cant display the now playing cover (obviously as it defaults to music) and am not able to switch the category for the image.

I was thinking, is it possible to use a variable instead and eachtime a new album/station/podcast is started, the coverart is copied to a variable, amd this variable is then shown on the mainmenu instead of music, now playing, cover?

(I ask as this is potentially quite a lot of rework of theskin and events!)

Thanks

[joebob2006]

my 2cents:

set up an album image for each type (mp3, radio, podcast, etc) right on top of eachother on the page. when a media type is not being used, the image should be blank, ie transparent. thus, since you can only play one type of media at any given time anyway, the currently in-use media should always have its art visible.

otherwise just set up events to check what type media is playing and just hide the images that arent being used

im not sure that was very clear, hope it helps tho

[rbziggy]

Well, that's what I thought I'd tried a while back and I revisited it again.

If I have an item displaying nowplaying>music it works nicely and if I select another category the coverart goes. Unfortunately, instead of now showing nothing a translucent white square appears in its place. I cant seem to get rid of this white square. Even creating a new item from scratch seems to give the same.

(using the simplicity skin here)

Argh!

[Colby]

I am not completely understanding what you are trying to do, but, you should use a set button text command for the nowplaying textbox. Or you could use a toggle button with different states. Let me know if you need direction setting up either .

[rbziggy]

Thanks for that!

I've spent a bit of time playing and got the Set Button Text Command to work so my nowplaying display works nicely

[rbziggy]

Well... I say itsworking nicely but...

If I use "category>music>cover" or "category>podcast>cover" or "category>radio>cover" in the Set Button Text then it works ok in that the text field on my main menu screen shows the appropriate cover for the specified category (music, podcast or radio).

However, this is not zone specific! My main menu (with nowplaying>music) showed the cover for the currently specified zone and you can scroll through zones and the covers (plus associated nowplaying details) change. With the "category" command that goes into the button text, it's category centred not zone centred so doesn't change as you scroll through zones.

So... I need to get "nowplaying>music", "nowplaying>podcast" etc into the button text. I've tried this both as plain text in the Set Button event command and also contained in "%" (e.g. %nowplaying>music%). Neither if these show the nowplaying cover when the text is set.

Can "nowplaying>" command be used in the Text field of a button? (I can't find it in the event & variable listing.) If so how? Perhaps I'm missing something obvious???

Thanks