Is here any way to hide Search & Channels from the main menu ? I NEVER use those and they just get in my way... A setting to customize the menu would be great, but thats just the ultimate dream... :D
Some skins have ablity to Show/Hide different things including channels, Help, Power etc
The ultimate setting to cusytomize the menu is to create your own skin for plex.
But otherwise try Simplex - as it puts an empahsis on Movies and TV shows and works on Rasberery Pi.
https://forums.plex.tv/topic/92576-simplexe-for-plex-home-theater-by-inbox/
You then need to use WinSCP or Putty to copy the unzipped skin folder into
/storage/.plexht/addons
read more at:
Thanks. I previously used PlexAeon which is my all-time favorite, but sadly, not supported in Rasplex (or the skin doesnt support rasplex - whichever).
The relatively new and default skin "Plex" is pretty neat and kinda got used to it.
I will give Simplex a try... Thanks again.
Thanks. I previously used PlexAeon which is my all-time favorite, but sadly, not supported in Rasplex (or the skin doesnt support rasplex - whichever).
It's not a matter of support by or for RasPlex.
It's the new PHT versions, which RasPlex is based on, that have changed the skin API in a radical way, thus breaking compatibility to ALL skins except 'Plex'.
Some few alternate skins have been updated so as to maintain compatibility with the latest PHT versions, but even those skins have lost some of their abilities due to the changes of the PHT skin API. (Mainly the ability to choose ViewMode settings individually for different list levels, such as Shows / Seasons / Episodes .)
Best regards: dlanor
It's not a matter of support by or for RasPlex.
It's the new PHT versions, which RasPlex is based on, that have changed the skin API in a radical way, thus breaking compatibility to ALL skins except 'Plex'.
Some few alternate skins have been updated so as to maintain compatibility with the latest PHT versions, but even those skins have lost some of their abilities due to the changes of the PHT skin API. (Mainly the ability to choose ViewMode settings individually for different list levels, such as Shows / Seasons / Episodes .)
Best regards: dlanor
The skin supports PHT, but I believe, it's just too complex for the raspberry to load... The skin itself it's actively developed and gets updated to keep up with the changes in PHT.
The skin supports PHT, but I believe, it's just too complex for the raspberry to load... The skin itself it's actively developed and gets updated to keep up with the changes in PHT.
Yes, it has been pretty well supported, but not very recently.
I just downloaded what claims to be the most recent version of PlexAeon, and the main folder inside that package was last updated on the 24th of December last year, which is long before several subsequent PHT releases. The then current version was PHT 1.0.7, and the current version now is 1.0.12, so that was 5 versions ago.
The skin API has undergone continuous changes during late PHT development, and unfortunately it is in the last few PHT versions that the old ViewMode handling has been completely broken. So no alternate skin is fully compatible with that new method. It works correctly only for the new default 'Plex' skin.
As for the skin being too complex for the RPi, you may well be right about that. It was designed for use on a full-scale PC.
Too much eye-candy will be a heavy load for any relatively 'weak' CPU+GPU combo like the RPi.
Even so, I will give it a shot later today, just to see what happens on my own RPi setup.
Best regards: dlanor
The skin supports PHT, but I believe, it's just too complex for the raspberry to load...
As promised in my earlier post I've now tested the PlexAeonPHT skin myself, both with PC PHT and with RasPlex on my RPi.
Contrary to what you say I had no problem loading the skin, though its size did make it a slower process than for some other skins.
As usual when installing alternate skins for RasPlex I did it by first using SMB to copy the skins (I tested others too) into one of the shared folders, and then I used 'Putty' to SSH into the RasPlex shell and there use the "mv" command to move the skin folders into "/storage/.plexht/addons/", after which I rebooted. And in the next session I was able to activate the new skins.
The excessive use of eye-candy effects makes the PlexAeonPHT skin rather slow and thus unpleasant to use with RasPlex, and they probably contributed to one crash that occurred in navigating between some rather large library sections. It's not a bug of total incompatibility though, as I was able to enter the same section later (after reboot) without a repeat of that crash. All in all, this skin seems a little too demanding for practical use with RasPlex, though the experience may improve somewhat if you change settings to minimize costly graphics effects.
However, use of any alternate skins seems very awkward with the current release candidate of RasPlex, since it restores the original default skin at every reboot, making persistent use of any alternate skin impractical. That will have to be changed for the upcoming stable release.
Best regards: dlanor
As promised in my earlier post I've now tested the PlexAeonPHT skin myself, both with PC PHT and with RasPlex on my RPi.
Contrary to what you say I had no problem loading the skin, though its size did make it a slower process than for some other skins.
As usual when installing alternate skins for RasPlex I did it by first using SMB to copy the skins (I tested others too) into one of the shared folders, and then I used 'Putty' to SSH into the RasPlex shell and there use the "mv" command to move the skin folders into "/storage/.plexht/addons/", after which I rebooted. And in the next session I was able to activate the new skins.
The excessive use of eye-candy effects makes the PlexAeonPHT skin rather slow and thus unpleasant to use with RasPlex, and they probably contributed to one crash that occurred in navigating between some rather large library sections. It's not a bug of total incompatibility though, as I was able to enter the same section later (after reboot) without a repeat of that crash. All in all, this skin seems a little too demanding for practical use with RasPlex, though the experience may improve somewhat if you change settings to minimize costly graphics effects.
However, use of any alternate skins seems very awkward with the current release candidate of RasPlex, since it restores the original default skin at every reboot, making persistent use of any alternate skin impractical. That will have to be changed for the upcoming stable release.
Best regards: dlanor
If you test skins alot it's easier to add the following in your "samba.conf" under Configfiles
[Addons] path = /storage/.plexht/addons available = yes browsable = yes public = yes writable = yes root preexec = mkdir -p /storage/.plexht/addons
I tried "Simplex" but it doens't have support for some features (filters) or those are oddly implemented... I'll stay with the default Plex skin. Maybe customize it a bit to hide Search & Channels... (if only I can figure out how....)
If you test skins alot it's easier to add the following in your "samba.conf" under Configfiles
[Addons] path = /storage/.plexht/addons available = yes browsable = yes public = yes writable = yes root preexec = mkdir -p /storage/.plexht/addons
Thanks for the tip, I'll try that.
I tried "Simplex" but it doens't have support for some features (filters) or those are oddly implemented... I'll stay with the default Plex skin. Maybe customize it a bit to hide Search & Channels... (if only I can figure out how....)
You can try, but there is one negative consequence of doing so, as proven by the 'Night' skin which allows moving 'Search' to the side menu. People who use that feature sometimes end up with PHT launching without any meny focus. This is because PHT assigns initial menu focus too early in the launch sequence, before establishing contact with PMS, so at that time no proper sections have been added to the main menu, leaving only the "Search" entry as a possible candidate for GUI focus. So if that entry is not present in the main menu the focusing fails, and the menu then remains unfocused even after it has been populated with the PMS section entries.
Edit:
Slight problem: The file "samba.conf" does not exist in "Configfiles", so adding anything to it is not possible.
I do have a file named "samba.conf.sample", but like the name implies it is just a sample. Additions to it have no effect.
Also, at each hard reboot this sample file reverts to the original content (apparently copied from "/usr/config/").
After thinking about it for a while I tried making a copy of the sample file, renaming it to "samba.conf" and editing that one, which had the intended effect of adding to the RPi SMB shares visible on my PC. Thanks again for the tip, as this will make future skin installs and updates much simpler to perform.
Best regards: dlanor
Thanks for the tip, I'll try that.
You can try, but there is one negative consequence of doing so, as proven by the 'Night' skin which allows moving 'Search' to the side menu. People who use that feature sometimes end up with PHT launching without any meny focus. This is because PHT assigns initial menu focus too early in the launch sequence, before establishing contact with PMS, so at that time no proper sections have been added to the main menu, leaving only the "Search" entry as a possible candidate for GUI focus. So if that entry is not present in the main menu the focusing fails, and the menu then remains unfocused even after it has been populated with the PMS section entries.
Edit:
Slight problem: The file "samba.conf" does not exist in "Configfiles", so adding anything to it is not possible.
I do have a file named "samba.conf.sample", but like the name implies it is just a sample. Additions to it have no effect.
Also, at each hard reboot this sample file reverts to the original content (apparently copied from "/usr/config/").
After thinking about it for a while I tried making a copy of the sample file, renaming it to "samba.conf" and editing that one, which had the intended effect of adding to the RPi SMB shares visible on my PC. Thanks again for the tip, as this will make future skin installs and updates much simpler to perform.
Best regards: dlanor
Whoops. Sorry, I forgot to mention the renaming of the sample file. There are many hidden/unknown tricks in the OpenELEC. I just found a way to change the initial splash screen. I'll have a separate thread on this.
Regarding the "search", you are right. I know that when sometimes there's no network connection and/or PMS is not available all is see is "Search". I guess I'll have to live with it. Maybe one day it will be fixed...
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