nobeefstu Posted January 2, 2003 Report Posted January 2, 2003 Happy New Year ... to ALL !!!As promised ... I have recently uploaded my AutoPlayer... a belated Holiday Gift from me to you.Available from Beechbrook Cottage Site :http://beechbrook.com/pte/AutoPlayer ... plays your Shows in a chain-link ... in a unique player-style interface. Extremely easy and fast to use. 8 Shows to a Link Group4 Groups2 Link ModesFull Screen LoadingAuto Play or Menu Play SettingsAuto Play any single groupError Checking during Set-Up and Playmore ... much more Note: AutoPlayer incorporates AutoLink functions ... but it is vastly different than my AutoLink V2 program also available. AutoPlayer has limited features if used on CD media whereas AutoLink V2 doesnt. Please read all use and faqs to fully enjoy this utility. Give it a Spin !!!Hope you all enjoy Quote
Truelight Posted January 2, 2003 Report Posted January 2, 2003 Stu.....I'd really like to like this program...but....I -HATE- programs that insist on installing in a directory they specify. I am very careful what I place directly off my root directory. I prefer to have ALL my programs under C:\Program Files The fact that your program wants to live in C:\AutoPlayer bugs me.I don't understand why the program requires the PTE .exe shows to be copied into C:\Autoplayer\Shows. These files already exist on my hard drive...making another copy of them (and some are very BIG) only doubles the amount of space they take up on my hard drive.I tested the program with 3 shows loaded in a group. I started the first show, but then rather than watch the whole thing, hit Esc to exit. I then saw a "Loading" icon come up that would have continued forever if I'd not hit Esc again. Then, sometime later, a "Compiled AutoIt v2.64 script" message appeared which indicated that I'd have to press the WinKey a few times to activate shows that might be left in the link sequence..." Huh??What is it about Esc - quit that this program doesn't understand??I never did get the previous AutoLink program to work right - it exhibited much the same behavior. Programs that do things "behind the scenes" and that won't quit when I want them to make me nervous. WinKey? I've never used this key before and really don't know what it's even good for.I like the concept of AutoPlay/AutoLink. The user interface is beautiful too. But when programs do quirky things on my PC, I get rid of them rather than wonder if they are gonna cause other grief.Like I say...I really -do- want to like this program, but it just hasn't earned my confidence. Sorry... Quote
nobeefstu Posted January 2, 2003 Author Report Posted January 2, 2003 Rick Im sorry to hear your experience with AutoLink and AutoPlayer have been so unsuccessful as I recall our previous contacts ... however , many Users have had great success with AutoLink. As answer to some of your questions as to my way of setting up things:If upon Reading all the FAQS and other information splayed about the menu interface you will have noticed the KNOWN ISSUES ( yellow color text):-Autolink and AutoPlayer will not work in FOLDERS such as : C:\Program Files ( This folder you have mentioned has spaces within it naming ... my FAQS states this often, as it not possible to function in those or any locations with " name spaces" at all.-Autolink and AutoPlayer "will work" in any DRIVE ROOT and not just C:\Autoplayer\Shows . I have selected the ROOT as to avoid the above FOLDER naming conditions ... SPACES ... and as to avoid more USER errors.-AutoLink and AutoPlayer Abort function : Basic info about how to stop a LINKED program run: When you normally play your Show ... you must ESC to close that Show. However if running in AutoLink ... ESC only closes your Running Show ... not the LINK between all the Shows. Therefore you MUST hit ESC agian ... and it must be during the LOADING window between the SHOWS ... otherwise your only closing the SHOW and not ALL the SHOWS. Remember here ...they are all LINKED together as a GROUP not as a single Show ... so hitting ESC just once isnt going to work. -The WINKEY is a key (hot key) function to bring up any Shows (minimized to taskbar) that may not have been fully flushed out the LINK during ABORT. This is a just another "precautionary" function to make sure all Show Links have been cleared out and closed after an ABORT has been performed.-Copying and not Moving a Show was to assure all Users their ORIGINAL Shows are left safe and secure. If they clear,remove or delete something in AutoPlayer ... its GONE. I think alot more users would be happier with their COPIES gone and not their ORIGINALS.- As for your LOADING ISSUES of LINKED SHOWS ... you may have your XP setup running serveral background processes. The LINK detection to LOAD the next LINK fails due to these processes interfering somehow. I have only had very few comments about failure rate ... only from XP and ME. I suspect its all in the PC setup the USER has configured. I also mentioned users using ACTIVE DESKTOPS ... This may cause failure also.So again, Rick, Im sorry with your unpleasant experience with AutoPlayer.Maybe one day XP users will enjoy all the programs we all like to use.Happy New Year Quote
Truelight Posted January 2, 2003 Report Posted January 2, 2003 Stu..Thanks for your detailed reply. Forgive my "tone" in the previous note...no doubt my frustration at seeing a good tool and then not being able to make it work right. I think these must be XP issues as you discuss which are the heart of the problem. I'm curious... what OS are you using when you design these programs?- Rick Quote
nobeefstu Posted January 2, 2003 Author Report Posted January 2, 2003 RickI use W98 on my main processor ... as its been near almost flawlessly free of troubles for me. Thru the years of using W98 I have learned to know the ins & outs of this OS like the nose on my face . .. so I will stick with W98 till iam forced to upgrade to a newer version. Right now, Im more afraid of XP cause I cant fully dig into it guts and tweak and control it the way I want it to ... XP may give you lots of options ... but it wll not let you take control ... its too smart a system for its own good and doesnt fit into my current needs. Quote
LumenLux Posted January 2, 2003 Report Posted January 2, 2003 Thank you Stu for the gift. I look forward to using it.Thank you Stu and Rick for the conversation. I learn far more in reading this forum than I do when I am searching for specific info in a time of need. XP (now on a family machine here) has intrigued me and your brief views are helpful. Quote
boxig Posted January 3, 2003 Report Posted January 3, 2003 Stu,Thank you for this great utility.It was educating to read your explanaion to Rick. Quote
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