# eyetv in main menu

**URL:** <https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585>\
**Category:** Dev/API Corner\
**Tags:** other-dev\
**Created:** [September 17, 2009, 12:47pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585 "2009-09-17T12:47:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 19\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![fuglu01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/2bfe46/32.png) [@fuglu01](https://forums.plex.tv/u/fuglu01)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 12:47pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/1 "2009-09-17T12:47:49Z")

</div>

what do i need?
Hi all,  
  
for my personal viewing pleasure I would like to add "EyeTv" to the Plex main menu.  
I already added an "EyeTv" button but I need to know the onclick action.  
I want this button to behave like starting eyetv via "Programs" (Stop Plex; Start EyeTv; Start Plex after quitting EyeTv)  
  
Could somebody tell me what XBMC call I have to trigger on click?  
Is there something like XBMC.startProgramm("eyetv")?  
  
Or is there another (simpler) way to add EyeTv?  
  
  
  
Cheers!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kent](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/kent/32/184_2.png) [@kent](https://forums.plex.tv/u/kent)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 4:45pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/2 "2009-09-17T16:45:10Z")

</div>

Plex.Runscript(“runeyetv.applescript”)  
  
  
  
where runeyetv.applescript is in your ~/Library/Application Support/Plex/scripts dir  
  
  
  
Unfortunately, my applescripting is about as good as my sense of fashion… so that’s where I stop giving good advice  
  
  
  
  
  
The runeyetv.applescript _should_ contain something like:

```auto

tell application "EyeTV" to<br />
activate<br />
end tell

```

  
  
but I've got no idea if even that is syntactically valid unless I look it up :)  
  
I would use  
  

```auto

do shell script "open /Applications/EyeTV.app"

```

  
  
but that isn't really the apple way ;)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jam](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/jam/32/186050_2.png) [@jam](https://forums.plex.tv/u/jam)\
**Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 1:59pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/3 "2009-09-19T13:59:17Z")

</div>

Plex.ActivateWindow(MyPrograms,EyeTV) should also work (if you’ve added EyeTV to Plex’s Applications menu) 🙂

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![fuglu01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/2bfe46/32.png) [@fuglu01](https://forums.plex.tv/u/fuglu01)\
**Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 2:23pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/4 "2009-09-19T14:23:23Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> Plex.ActivateWindow(MyPrograms,EyeTV)

  
Thanks Jam! That was the command I was looking for.  
  
  
If someone prefers Kent's (kudos) way, he could use this applescript:   

```auto

on run<br />
	tell application "Plex"<br />
		quit<br />
	end tell<br />
	<br />
	tell application "EyeTV"<br />
		activate<br />
	end tell<br />
	<br />
	repeat<br />
		if application "EyeTV" is running then<br />
			delay 1.5<br />
		else<br />
			exit repeat<br />
		end if<br />
	end repeat<br />
	<br />
	tell application "Plex"<br />
		activate<br />
	end tell<br />
end run

```

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![wassit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9f8e36/32.png) [@wassit](https://forums.plex.tv/u/wassit)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2009, 9:11am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/5 "2009-09-23T09:11:57Z")

</div>

Hi,  
  
  
  
How did you add EyeTV to the plex Main menu? Presumeably in one of the skin xml. Can you give me a pointer.  
  
  
  
Thanks

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![fuglu01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/2bfe46/32.png) [@fuglu01](https://forums.plex.tv/u/fuglu01)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/6 "2009-09-23T19:11:54Z")

</div>

I patched the Plexaeon skin:  
  
Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_MainMenu.xml (added EyeTV button with Plex.ActivateWindow call)  
  
Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_Backgrounds.xml (EyeTV main menu backgrounds)  
  
Plexaeon/language/English/strings.xml (“EYETV” string)  
  
  
  
  
  
Patch is attached.

```auto

<br />
cd ~/Library/Application\ Support/Plex/skin/Plexaeon<br />
patch -p1 < ~/Plexaeon_eyetv.txt<br />

```

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![mcai3db3](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/mcai3db3/32/695_2.png) [@mcai3db3](https://forums.plex.tv/u/mcai3db3)\
**Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 9:58am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/7 "2009-09-24T09:58:17Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> Plex.ActivateWindow(MyPrograms,EyeTV) should also work (if you've added EyeTV to Plex's Applications menu) :)

  
  
Is there a way to add a plugin application to the main menu?  
  
Basically, I want my main menu to be Music, Pictures, Movies, TV Shows, iPlayer. Nothing more. Hints and/or tips?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![slover1011](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/slover1011/32/83139_2.png) [@slover1011](https://forums.plex.tv/u/slover1011)\
**Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 3:27pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/8 "2009-09-24T15:27:58Z")

</div>

Thanks for posting these tips. I have a quick question that I was never able to resolve:  
  
  
  
Once you get EyeTV running, how do you actually force a quit such that Plex returns? I’m using a Harmony Remote and was never able to get this to work (short of breaking out the keyboard to quit).

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ipguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed8c4c/32.png) [@ipguy](https://forums.plex.tv/u/ipguy)\
**Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/9 "2009-09-29T19:11:38Z")

</div>

hey fuglu01   
  
  
  
are you able to post a plex/eyetv video on youtube please  
  
i’m really interested in moving to plex for my media center needs but am worried about eyetv integration

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![fuglu01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/2bfe46/32.png) [@fuglu01](https://forums.plex.tv/u/fuglu01)\
**Post date:** [October 7, 2009, 4:48pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/10 "2009-10-07T16:48:47Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> hey fuglu01   
>   
> are you able to post a plex/eyetv video on youtube please  
> i'm really interested in moving to plex for my media center needs but am worried about eyetv integration

  
  
just have a look at [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQhSlPX7anA&feature=related) youtube vid.  
i just added an "EyeTV" next to "Movies", "TV Shows", "Pictures" etc.  
if you hit the "EyeTV" button plex shuts down and eyetv opens up. after closing eyetv plex is launched again. just like opening eyetv via "Games".  
nothing special

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![convergent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@convergent](https://forums.plex.tv/u/convergent)\
**Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 11:27pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/11 "2010-03-18T23:27:56Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> just have a look at [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQhSlPX7anA&feature=related) youtube vid.  
> i just added an "EyeTV" next to "Movies", "TV Shows", "Pictures" etc.  
> if you hit the "EyeTV" button plex shuts down and eyetv opens up. after closing eyetv plex is launched again. just like opening eyetv via "Games".  
> nothing special

  
  
  
Interesting. Can you let me know how you are controlling EyeTV while in it. It looked like you were just changing channels up and down. I haven't seen how to do that driving it from a Harmony One.   
  
Rather than closing EyeTV and opening Plex, or Closing Plex and opening EyeTV, I am trying a different approach which looks cleaner to me... but I'm wondering if I can control it more "push button". I start EyeTV and make it fullscreen by default so that is my "steady state" of the Mac Mini. Its kind of what you'd expect when you turn on the TV, and it is also going to allow EyeTV to record whatever it wants. Using Remote Buddy, I launch Plex when I want to go into it. It quiets EyeTV and Plex seems to work fine. I have Remote Buddy disabled on the Menu key in Plex so that I can't accidentally launch something with Plex still going. When I want to go back to EyeTV (or anything else), I Quit Plex, and it just closes and you find EyeTV already running fullscreen under it. This seems to transition looking cleaner to me.   
  
So the question is, rather than "exiting" Plex to go back to EyeTV, could I create a main menu choice in Plex that says EyeTV (or Live TV or whatever) that actually just quits Plex? This would in effect take me back to EyeTV with this setup.  
  
Also, is there any better Harmony control available for EyeTV to use the whole remote using Remote Buddy? Just curious because using just the Menu button and direction arrows is kind of a drag and not very "wife friendly".

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![subtledoctor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@subtledoctor](https://forums.plex.tv/u/subtledoctor)\
**Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 3:03pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/12 "2010-03-30T15:03:51Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> So the question is, rather than "exiting" Plex to go back to EyeTV, could I create a main menu choice in Plex that says EyeTV (or Live TV or whatever) that actually just quits Plex? This would in effect take me back to EyeTV with this setup.

  
  
This should be easy; rather than creating a new menu item, you could just edit the existing "quit" item. In /Users/[\*username\*]/Library/Application Support/Plex/Skin/[\*your skin\*]/720p/home.xml, find the entry for the "Quit" menu item... it should be toward the bottom and look something like this: 

```auto

   <item id="8"><br />
    <description>Quit</description><br />
    <label> $LOCALIZE[....] </label><br />
    <label2> $LOCALIZE[....] </label2><br />
    <onclick> ... (etc)

```

  
  
Edit those two "localize" lines to look like this: 

```auto

    <label> EyeTV </label><br />
    <label2> Quit to </label2>

```

  
  
Then in the menu, it should say "Quit to EYETV." In the main menu, the is the small text, and the is the big text -- at least in Mediastream... I haven't tried any other skins.  
  
If you want to go further and change the background image, etc., I don't know how to do that, but I'm sure it could be done.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![zedzed1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/bb73d2/32.png) [@zedzed1](https://forums.plex.tv/u/zedzed1)\
**Post date:** [December 31, 2010, 6:53am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/13 "2010-12-31T06:53:13Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> I patched the Plexaeon skin:  
> Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_MainMenu.xml (added EyeTV button with Plex.ActivateWindow call)  
> Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_Backgrounds.xml (EyeTV main menu backgrounds)  
> Plexaeon/language/English/strings.xml ("EYETV" string)  
>   
>   
> Patch is attached.  
>   
> 
> ```auto
> 
> <br />
> cd ~/Library/Application\ Support/Plex/skin/Plexaeon<br />
> patch -p1 < ~/Plexaeon_eyetv.txt<br />
> 
> ```

  
  
I want to patch this file to plexaeon9. I don't get it to work. Can somebody help me? I think that the bron code of the patch file must be changed for plexaeon9. I don't know how to do.  
  
Thank you

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![joesoes](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/joesoes/32/1658_2.png) [@joesoes](https://forums.plex.tv/u/joesoes)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2011, 2:14am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/14 "2011-01-23T02:14:43Z")

</div>

I can’t get it to work either with plexaeon9. I guess i should use the terminal to apply the .txt?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jdloftis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6de8d8/32.png) [@jdloftis](https://forums.plex.tv/u/jdloftis)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2011, 4:29pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/15 "2011-11-17T16:29:18Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> I patched the Plexaeon skin:  
> Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_MainMenu.xml (added EyeTV button with Plex.ActivateWindow call)  
> Plexaeon/720p/Includes\_Backgrounds.xml (EyeTV main menu backgrounds)  
> Plexaeon/language/English/strings.xml ("EYETV" string)  
>   
> Patch is attached.
> 
> ```auto
> 
> cd ~/Library/Application\ Support/Plex/skin/Plexaeonpatch -p1 < ~/Plexaeon_eyetv.txt
> 
> ```

  
  
I'm a noob to Plex and I'm having some difficulty trying to accomplish what fuglu01 did with his aeon skin hack. Would someone be kind enough to post the code modifications that would be required in each of these files:  
  
Includes\_MainMenu.xml  
Includes\_Backgrounds.xml  
strings.xml  
  
  
I'm using the Plexaeon9 skin.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jdloftis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6de8d8/32.png) [@jdloftis](https://forums.plex.tv/u/jdloftis)\
**Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/16 "2011-11-18T14:22:30Z")

</div>

> [@](#):
>
> I'm a noob to Plex and I'm having some difficulty trying to accomplish what fuglu01 did with his aeon skin hack. Would someone be kind enough to post the code modifications that would be required in each of these files:  
>   
> Includes\_MainMenu.xml  
> Includes\_Backgrounds.xml  
> strings.xml  
>   
>   
> I'm using the Plexaeon9 skin.

  
  
Okay, I was able to successfully add a button for "EyeTV" in the main menu but I still can't get my applescript to run when I click on the EyeTV button. Here's my EyeTV button and associated onlick action which is supposed to launch the script named "runeyetv.applescript":   
  

```auto

<item id="25"><br />
	<description>EyeTV</description><br />
	<include>BackgroundVarsEyeTV</include><br />
	<label>31022</label><br />
	<onclick>Plex.Runscript(runeyetv.applescript)</onclick><br />
	<visible>Skin.HasSetting(eyetv)</visible>

```

  
  
My "runeyetv" script is written as follows:  
  

```auto

if application "EyeTV" is running then<br />
        tell application "EyeTV"<br />
                activate<br />
                play<br />
                enter full screen<br />
        end tell<br />
end if<br />
<br />
if application "EyeTV" is not running then<br />
        tell application "EyeTV"<br />
                activate<br />
        end tell<br />
end if<br />
<br />
if application "Plex" is running then<br />
        tell application "Finder"<br />
                set visible of process "Plex" to false<br />
        end tell<br />
end if

```

  
  
If I run the script from Finder, it works fine so that doesn't seem to be the problem. I can also successfully use onlick action for 

```auto

Plex.ActivateWindow(MyPrograms,EyeTV)

```

to launch EyeTV but it doesn’t provide the seamless transition I’m trying to accomplish. Any help is appreciated.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![artdept](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/artdept/32/3320_2.png) [@artdept](https://forums.plex.tv/u/artdept)\
**Post date:** [December 25, 2012, 4:42am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/17 "2012-12-25T04:42:45Z")

</div>

I found this via search. Wanted to share my solution.  
  
  
  
In the end, I used this modified script. It kills PlexHelper before reactivating Plex so to make Plex search for the remote again (Plex will loose control of the remote otherwise).  
  
  
  
on run  
  
tell application “Plex”  
  
quit  
  
end tell  
  
tell application “EyeTV”  
  
activate  
  
end tell  
  
  
  
repeat  
  
if application “EyeTV” is running then  
  
delay 1.5  
  
else  
  
exit repeat  
  
end if  
  
end repeat  
  
tell application “Terminal”  
  
activate  
  
delay 2  
  
do script “killall PlexHelper”  
  
delay 2  
  
quit  
  
end tell  
  
tell application “Plex”  
  
activate  
  
end tell  
  
end run

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![falco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8797f3/32.png) [@falco](https://forums.plex.tv/u/falco)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 11:19am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/18 "2013-01-23T11:19:54Z")

</div>

thanks artdept for sharing your solution.  
  
But maybe you could add how your changes on the MainMenu xml files look like? I’m not able to add something to the main menu.  
  
If I add

```auto

<item id="25"><br />
        <description>EyeTV</description><br />
        <include>BackgroundVarsEyeTV</include><br />
        <label>31022</label><br />
        <onclick>Plex.Runscript(runeyetv.applescript)</onclick><br />
        <visible>Skin.HasSetting(eyetv)</visible>

```

  
  
to Includes\_MainMenu.xml, nothing happen in Plex's Aeon Main Menu  
  
Thanks Chris  
  
edit: okay I have to add these change in the right folder (skin.plexaeon). :P  
  
But another question is, if I activate the "Programs" tab in settings no section called "Programs" appears in the Front menu. Is there another switch where to turn this section on?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/3X/2/a/2acb9765406f63293d357b4ec509ec39aa28f2ad.png) [@system](https://forums.plex.tv/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 8:31pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/eyetv-in-main-menu/2585/19 "2019-12-20T20:31:01Z")

</div>

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