[mythtv-users] reprise: improve frontend usability: working with a slick remote

Stroller linux.luser at myrealbox.com
Wed Mar 28 14:52:56 UTC 2007


On 28 Mar 2007, at 14:05, Phil Bridges wrote:

> On 3/27/07, Stroller <linux.luser at myrealbox.com> wrote:
>
>> I also like this idea. I don't see the point of 30+ buttons on a
>> remote, when you already have the TV available to use as a UI.
>>
>
> What do I do if I have the display off because I'm using MythMusic?

Ummm... well, as much as I'm glad you've illustrated the importance  
of choice, what can you use 30 buttons for when listening to music?

The left-right-up-down & play-pause buttons ought to be enough for  
skipping forward through the playlist a track or two, zooming ahead  
through the instrumental sections and adjusting the volume.

Hamony owners will now trounce me by explaining how their remotes  
have genre buttons labelled "country", "western", "jazz" and "trance"  
which appear contextually only when music is played, but I don't see  
how the 26 "skip", "freeze frame", "teletext", "red", "blue",  
"green", "yellow", "radio", "VCR" and 0 to 9 buttons could be _fully_  
utilised without an on-screen display.

Better to have the menu button on the 6-button remote bring up the TV  
if you need to edit the current playlist or adjust the graphic  
equaliser. A "done" button in MythMusic could blank the screen out  
again as you wish.

I am not saying that this paradigm should be imposed on all users,  
just that choice is good. I guess one way to support the Microsoft  
SideShow remotes might be to write a utility that can use the screen  
as a web-browser. That way users could use MythWeb to customise the  
control layout on the screen as they wish <http://www.mythtv.co.nz/ 
mythtv/remote/index.html>.

Stroller.




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