General Settings

Tools > Options > General

Interface

• Make Inactive Mini-Me Transparent: If this option is checked and you are running Windows 2000 or XP, the mini-me player will be displayed transparently when it is no longer the active application.
• Minimize to System Tray: If this option is checked (default), the program will be added to the system tray when minimized, and otherwise it will be placed in the task bar.

Importing & Tagging

• Automatically Import Files into Media Center: Whenever you play a file associated with the program, that file will be imported (it will be added to the "Recently Imported" Playlist and filed into the various folders, including Artist, Album, etc).
• Store tags in external sidecar files if the file type does not support tagging
• Update Tags When File Info Changes: If this option is checked (default), tags will be updated when changes are made in the library.

Online Metadata

This is new in V14 and some settings from other categories have been moved to here.

• Allow automatic CD lookup/submission: This is on by default (but can be changed upon installation). It allows Media Center to use an on-line database (YADB) to get artist, title, track, credit, and other information about the CDs you play, and populate the various Media Center fields accordingly. Those fields will also be saved to the files themselves if you have enabled ID3 tag saving. The YADB service is free and automatic.
  Note: It seems data is also sent to the database, but this has to verified by the developers.
• Disc lookup capitalization: How the titles should capitalized:
  • Original from database
  • Title case: ???
  • Upper case every word
• Submit cover art changes to online database: If you associate a new picture with your tracks as cover art, this image will be uploaded to the online database.
• Submit song ratings to recommendation system: Your song ratings are uploaded to the online database.

Shell Options

• Enable Shell Integration: If this option is checked, Media Center will be added to the standard file context menus, which appear when you click the right mouse button on a file icon in Explorer or Desktop. For more information see Shell Integration.

Behavior

• Double-click: Replace Playing Now (all): Click on this to change the default behavior of double-clicking on a file or an item in the organization tree.
  • Replace Playing Now (all): This is the default setting. Double-clicking on an item in the content pane sends all items in the content pane to Playing Now, with the single-item you clicked on set to play first. For example, if you did a search for name=flower, and you double-click on a single file in the result list, the entire result list will be added to Playing Now, with the song you clicked on playing first.
  • Replace Playing Now (single): Double-clicking on a single file in the content pane sends the file to Playing Now.
  • Add to Playing Now (to end): Double-clicking on a single file in the content pane adds the file to the end of the Playing Now playlist.
  • Add to Playing Now (play now): Plays the file immediately, and adds it to the Playing Now playlist below the currently playing song, thus preserving the playlist's original order.
  • Add to Playing Now (play next): Adds the file in the Playing Now playlist as next to play.
  • File Properties: Opens the File Properties pane if it is hidden.
• Jump on Play Behavior (audio/video): This determines what happens when you select to Play files.
  • Full Screen (if has display): This is the default setting. When you play an image file, it opens in full screen mode.
  • None: When you select Play, the screen remains the same.
  • Playing Now (always): Jumps to the Playing Now screen when you Play a media file.
  • Playing Now (if has display): Displays the Playing Now screen only when you select to play an image file.
  • Playing Now (if multiple files): Displays the Playing Now screen if two or more media tracks are selected for playback.
  • Full Screen (always): Displays what you play in Full Screen mode.
• Play button: This setting determines how Media Center reacts when the Play button on the Player Window is selected:
  • Play visible files: Selecting the Play button sends all files in the content pane to Playing Now. If a file is highlighted, it will play that file first.By default, the program starts playing as soon as Playing Now has content. You can change this behavior by unchecking "Start playing files added to Playing Now"
  • Play Playing Now: Plays the current Playing Now playlist.
• Previous button: The previous button can be set to always play the previous track, or it can be set to "CD player style" (default) in which case it will seek to the beginning of the song.
• Resume playback using bookmarks: Determines whether Media Center obeys Bookmarks stored in the Library.
• Show stop button: If checked the typical stop button is shown on the UI, otherwise it is hidden.
• Start Playing when files added to Playing Now

Advanced

• Allow multiple instances to run at one time: If checked you can start multiple Media Center application windows. This setting is off by default (double clicking the program icon again will just jump the to the active window).
• Clear Playing Now on exit: Will not remember what you played last.
• Clear Recently Imported and Recently Ripped on exit:
  • Remove old tracks: When you exit the program, only the tracks from the session before this one will be cleared. In the end you will always have the tracks from your last import session in these playlists.
    Note: This behavior is not confirmed yet.
  • Remove all tracks: When you exit the program, the playlists will be cleared. They will be recreated the next time you import files.
  • Leave all tracks: To keep the Playlists as they are.
• Media Key Mode: This setting controls the Media Keys at the top of modern keyboards. The default setting (automatic) should work, but if you are having difficulties, toggle through the other settings here.
• Reset all confirmation messages...: Whenever you are asked for a decision, you can opt to be not asked again. Use this setting to reset this and you will be asked again the next time.
  • Features: ???