Release Notes 2006-07

12.0.45 (7/31/06)

1. Changed: "Documents" tree item is no longer shown in the same row as audio, images, video.
2. Changed: Tag window better handles files with empty name or date fields.
3. Changed: Action Window header text stays centered even with an uneven number of buttons on each side.
4. Changed: When copying from a thumbnail list to the clipboard, the text component is empty. (instead of showing column headers with no data)
5. Optimized: Improved performance when dropping or pasting large numbers of files into a list.
6. Optimized: Improved speed when dealing with large playlists.
7. Fixed: Long lists of thumbnails would be slower than expected during scrolling.
8. Changed: When scrolling in a list with thumbnails that aren't built, thumbnails will get built top-down instead of bottom-up.
9. Changed: Minor UI tweaks in DirectShow player (contex menu rearrangement, dialog control resizing etc.).
10. Fixed: Library backup / restore dialogs would lock the database while visible -- causing a possible hang of the application.
11. Fixed: In the Tag Action Window, clicking a rating while another field was being edited could cause a crash.
12. Changed: If only one file that couldn't play in Playing Now, Media Center would loop playback until there were 3 consecutive playback errors.
13. Fixed: Videos that failed to load weren't being properly handled.
14. Fixed: Stoppping a video (or playing a new video) right when a video was loading could cause a dead-lock.
15. Changed: MP3 decoder was using debug code -- causing slowdowns compared to MC 11. (in Audio Analysis, etc.)
16. Fixed: Creating a Virtual Device that pointed to the same location as files imported into Media Center could cause import to import duplicates.
17. Changed: New tree control used in MC 12 wouldn't scroll / auto-expand during drag-n-drop.

12.0.44 (7/28/06)

1. Changed: Video Priority filter is no longer used.
2. Fixed: MPC encoder was not installing properly.
3. Fixed: Any thumbnail list with more than one file that used the same thumbnail could cause a crash.

12.0.43 (7/27/06)

1. NEW: MPC encoder included with build.
2. Fixed: Associating with protocols (like pcast://) would not always work / stick properly.
3. Fixed: When an auto-complete tree tooltip was showing, a double-click wouldn't properly start playback.
4. Fixed: Video thumbnailing could stall out on some files.
5. Fixed: Possible video thumbnailing crash.

12.0.42 (7/26/06)

1. Fixed: Playing a WMV video would cause MC to unnecessarily flag the file for a tag write.
2. Fixed: Accessing the automation SDK from an external program was not working properly when the player was not running first.
3. Fixed: Sometimes album analysis could be too ambitious, causing slowdowns during import.
4. Optimized: Improved the speed of the album analyzer. (calculated album gain, mix albums, etc.)
5. Fixed: OSD did not work for TV playback.
6. Fixed: OSD without a time limit did not work.
7. Optimized: Improved thumbnail building speed.
8. Changed: "Set Display" menu only appears for playback types where there are more than one choice.
9. Changed: Added a Tools menu (top-left icon) to "Display" Action Window.
10. Changed: Theater View does an "Open" on an item when pressing 'Enter' and play when pressing 'Space'. (right-click or use menu keyboard button to see menu)
11. Changed: Mouse wheel in Theater View always operates the list of items. (instead of using the focused section)
12. Changed: Shortcuts for forward and back weren't working in Theater View. (mouse buttons / backspace, etc.)

12.0.41 (7/24/06)

1. NEW: Thumbnail list drawing is fully thread parallelized resulting in nearly a 2x speedup on dual-core machines. (and 10-15% speedup with Hyper-threading machines)
2. Fixed: License restore could fail in some cases.
3. Changed: When a trial expires, the countdown "Continue" button is no longer shown.
4. Changed: Links that show up on thumbnails no longer clickable until they fully fade-in. (to avoid accidental clicks on selection)
5. Changed: Reworked QuickTime initialization and cleanup code.
6. New: MC can get thumbnails for certain QuickTime formatted video podcasts.
7. Changed: Thumbnail lists show tooltips. (unless they're thumbnails of groupings)
8. Changed: Tooltips do a better job of sizing to wide-screen style images.
9. Fixed: Installer would show duplicates in the file association list.
10. Fixed: Skin Manager's task bar icon wouldn't look as good as expected.
11. Fixed: In the Tag Action Window, switching pages while editing a list-type field could leave an edit control visible.

12.0.40 (7/21/06)

1. Changed: German language translation updated.
2. Changed: Digital TV signal strength is represented as a percentage for known HDTV devices, instead of absolute numbers. For unknown devices it is still represented as an absolute number.
3. Changed: Recent Playing Nows are no longer shown in handheld sync playlist list.
4. Changed: Handheld sync playlist list isn't all expanded by default.
5. Changed: Library Manager could not be shown while some background tools were working.
6. Optimized: Improved performance of thumbnail lists.

12.0.39 (7/20/06)

1. Fixed: Switching a thumbnail list to details could result in an empty list being shown.
2. Fixed: Media Center would fail to load a blank library.
3. Fixed: Browsing input plugins with Plugin Manager did not work properly.
4. Fixed: Switching between sharing plugins could cause a crash.
5. Fixed: Video thumbnail building would not build a thumbnail if a previous thumbnail had been built on basis of an image file on disk, and the local image file no longer existed.
6. NEW: Skinning engine supports custom hit boxes for certain skin items. (implement by adding a 5th image to a skin item that defines the hit area)
7. Fixed: It was possible to highlight multiple control buttons at once with the Noire skin.
8. Changed: Removed manual vs sync mode selection -- instead just pick playlists if you want syncing.

12.0.38 (7/19/06)

1. Changed: Renamed "Configure Debug Logging..." to "Logging...".
2. Changed: Removed images from installer Express / Custom selection screen.
3. Optimized: Several more startup optimizations.
4. Fixed: A few issues related to the threaded loading system.
5. Fixed: Views with stacks could be much slower to load than expected. (introduced a build or two ago)
6. Fixed: Auto import could do a UI update after external folder changes even if they didn't change anything in the library.
7. Fixed: Pressing enter on an image to go to fullscreen and then pressing enter again to return would leave the keyboard focus stranded.
8. Changed: (Experimental) Added code to clear media events queue in DirectShow thumbnail grabber and DirectShow playback tester.
9. Fixed: Library Server would miscount the number of open connections, preventing access.
10. Fixed: Streaming Quicktime media could not be played.
11. Fixed: List selection while holding shift+down arrow would unselect everything once reaching the end of the list.
12. Fixed: Visualizations could run very slowly. (introduced in build 37)

12.0.37 (7/18/06)

1. NEW: New highly threaded loading system, providing much faster program start times.
2. Fixed: "Detach Display" command could fight with other commands in the same menu.
3. Changed: Detaching the display while in Display View will bring the program back to standard view.
4. Changed: Changing display options would reattach a detached display.
5. Fixed: Using a detached display in fullscreen could cause the main application to also lock to a maximized state.
6. Changed: Updated TLB for use with VB6.
7. NEW: Revised the "Detach Display" system to work nicely with multiple detached displays from different zones. (so you can watch TV detached while browsing images in a different zone, etc.)
8. Fixed: When choosing a child of view scheme and then expanding a different media type, the tree wouldn't logically update.
9. Fixed: Media Editor transforms were not working.
10. Fixed: The CD Baby and Audio Lunchbox services weren't getting installed.
11. Fixed: HTTP Pipelining was not working for content without a length. This broke (at least) Library Server, maybe other things.
12. Changed: Updated thumbnailing engine for improved performance. (thumbnails will need to be rebuilt)
13. Fixed: HTTP Server was sending files without content length.
14. Fixed: Marquee selection in icon lists of small icons could work incorrectly.
15. Fixed: WAV input plugin got included in the build, causing WAV playback to fail.

12.0.36 (7/17/06)

1. Fixed: Thumbnails with no thumbnail text could cause a drawing crash in some cases.
2. Optimized: Substantial speed and memory improvements in lists with thumbnails. (thumbnail lists or details lists with album-icons)
3. Fixed: Importing Jpeg files added a space and comma to the places field (when there were no IPTC city state & country tags)
4. Fixed: Importing WAV files did not get duration and bitrate data.
5. Fixed: WAV files could not be converted to other types (showing "Unsupported Type").

12.0.35 (7/14/06)

1. Changed: Large value edit boxes for lyrics, bios, etc. have a vertical scrollbar.
2. Fixed: Up, down, page up, and page down didn't work in large value edit boxes.
3. Changed: When editing a large value (lyrics, etc.) all the text is no longer selected by default. (easier to read and harder to erase by accident)
4. Fixed: When editing the filename in the Tag Action Window, it could be scrolled too far to the left.
5. Fixed: The generic view scheme icon had an extra grey shadow on its right side.
6. Changed: Improved error reporting in the File Conversion tool.
7. Fixed: Wav file support was broken.
8. Fixed: Wav file with non-ASCII characters in file name or path could not be played.
9. Changed: The Action Window "Drop Here" image is now with all the other art in the Default Art folder.
10. Optimized: Reworked how Action Windows update / resize. (please report any strange behavior)
11. Fixed: List type fields in the Tag Action Window could show boxes after them.
12. Changed: "WAV", "AU" and "RAW" files are no longer played with wav input plugin. They are played through DirectShow instead.
13. Fixed: IPTC headers could cause a crash in some cases.
14. Changed: Reworked how toolbars draw their backgrounds to improve performance and fix occasional "grey background" bug.
15. Fixed: Automation TLB file not working in VB programs because of Boolean date type conflict.
16. NEW: Added ability to "Detach Display" to right-click of display. (please test for interaction with fullscreen resolution, screensavers, Theater View, etc.)
17. Fixed: IPTC keywords were coming through comma delimited instead of semi-colon delimited.
18. NEW: Player includes new default "Noire" Theater View skin.

12.0.34 (7/12/06)

1. NEW: iPod type (nano, 3g, 5g, etc.) is more robustly determined. (fixes Apple update bug that deletes SysInfo, etc.)
2. Changed: When an unknown iPod type is found, MC will warn the user and not continue trying to use the device. (instead of assuming it's an old iPod)
3. New: Improved error reporting in DX video playback engine.
4. Fixed: DX video player engine still tried to access VMR9 color control when VMR9 failed to connect.
5. Fixed: Memory leaks in PlaybackEng when exception occurred.
6. Fixed: Audible Podcasting, extension was set to mp3 and thus failed to play.
7. Fixed: Type library file not registered correctly. Caused automation problems.
8. Changed: Unknown devices (with drive letters) default to WMDM instead of drive-style to allow protected WMA to work.
9. NEW: Handheld views will show an image of the device being used.
10. Changed: When viewing a handheld, queued files now show above files already on the device.
11. New: Better exception handling in DX video playback engine.
12. Fixed: DirectShow video playback crashed on some computers.
13. Changed: Reworked how fields are shown for the Tag Action Window.
14. Changed: The "Format" page of the Tag Action Window no longer has a list header. (uses page header instead)
15. Changed: Added vertical scrollbars to Tag and Burn Action Window pages. (let us know if other pages could use scrolling)
16. NEW: Reads IPTC info from JPEG images.
17. Fixed: The Tag window could crash when trying to show fields that no longer existed. (from a library clear, etc.)

12.0.33 (7/10/06)

1. Fixed: Removing an MJMD tag from an image that had other unknown appid blocks after the tag could cause an issue.
2. Fixed: Starting the player in display view by double-clicking an image or video on the desktop with the startup location set to "Playing Now" would show an empty display.
3. Fixed: It was not possible to remove the last tag in the Action Window's tag list.
4. Fixed: In-place editing a list-type field in a pane wouldn't work properly.
5. Fixed: Clicking the "Back" button in the tag window wouldn't properly save changes.
6. Changed: The "Tags" menu on the Tag Action Window allows addition / removal of all tags. (including read-only fields)
7. Changed: Reworked library options to make user fields easier to see.
8. Changed: Skins can provide a custom search text selection colors instead of using the system colors. (see Noire for a sample)
9. Changed: When a list is empty because of a user search, it will show "no search results".
10. NEW: Added auto-complete type tooltips to tree to show truncated values on mouse-over.
11. Fixed: In video player VMR9 filter was not cleaned up from DirectShow graph when it failed to connect.
12. New: Added "nsv" extension to "DX Video playback" types (experimental).

12.0.32 (7/7/06)

1. Changed: "Video playback settings" and "DirectShow playback settings" have been combined into "DirectShow audio/video playback settings".
2. Fixed: "Locate On Disk (inside Media Center)" would not always properly show the newly selected folder.
3. Changed: Clipboard "Paste" is now implemented in the tree.
4. Changed: Playlist groups have a "Send To" menu. (for play, email, etc.)
5. Optimized: Tree right-click menus show much faster, even for playlist groups that contain 100's of child smartlists.
6. Fixed: Occationally audio is played out during thumbnail building for videos.
7. Fixed: Burning data CD/DVDs action window "discs required" number (before burn starts).
8. Fixed: Burning data CD/DVDs, incorrectly rejects 2nd disc for being smaller than the first burn disc.
9. Fixed: Certain malformed video files (avi file with only audio stream for instance) could cause video thumbnail grabbing thread to hang.
10. Fixed: Certain video decoders could cause video thumbnail grabbing threads to crash when multiple threads ran simultaneously.
11. Fixed: TV engine restarted on channel change.
12. Fixed: On "DirectShow Audio Video Options" dialog radio buttons in "Aspect Ratio" and "Audio Renderer" were not separately grouped (checking a button in one group unchecked the checked button in another).
13. Changed: Renamed "Tag Info" to "Tag".
14. NEW: Many "Tag" window changes and improvements.
15. Fixed: Album artwork was not being properly sent to iPods.
16. Changed: Improved support for extended iPod database fields like sample rate, date modified, etc.
17. Fixed: Media Center wouldn't properly recognize an iPod after unplugging it and plugging it back in during the same session.
18. Changed: Device view "Sync Now" button changes to "Transfer" when files are queued and the device is not in sync mode. (instead of warning about not being in sync mode on click)
19. Changed: After a background import finished, it would too aggressively update the UI.

12.0.31 (7/5/06)

1. NEW: Aspect Ratio options for Video playback are available on Video Playback Options dialog, in addition to context menu.
2. Fixed: For certain file types sometimes video was displayed in an detached "ActiveMovie" window.
3. NEW: "Delete Files" confirmation dialog now displays the number of files to be deleted in the confirmation text.
4. Fixed: Send To items Email and Upload could use the wrong files when invoked from Display View.
5. Fixed: UI components that weren't visible (while in Display View, etc.) could still respond to some keyboard shortcuts.
6. Changed: The "Display" Action Window is less aggressive about reshowing itself.
7. Optimized: Starting playback of something that will jump to Diplay View operates more quickly.
8. Changed: Shell extension / command line imports include all supported file types. (instead of using file types from last "Add Folder")
9. Fixed: Shell extension imports were not working.
10. Changed: Clicking the "Play" link on a file in Playing Now would reset Playing Now to only that song.
11. Fixed: Thumbnail style lists would not properly update after a drag-n-drop reorder.
12. Fixed: Text colors for buttons with skin effects applied could be incorrect.
13. Fixed: Panes would not properly redraw when a selection was made that caused them to become empty.
14. Fixed: Searching (or using the tree / panes) for a list style field with empty values didn't work properly.
15. Changed: Grouping values of numbers that are all the same no longer say "avg". (i.e. year for an album is "2006" instead of "2006.0 avg")
16. Optimized: Improved performance when dealing with list-style fields in several areas of the program.
17. Fixed: Color Controls behave incorrectly when Video Playback Options dialog was left on during video track changes.
18. Optimized: Greatly increased the load performance of the "Tag Info" window.
19. Fixed: The Tag Info window could cause a crash when being invoked on a view with no files.
20. Fixed: When zoomed into a list style field in the Tag Info window, clicking around would show black painting artifacts.
21. Fixed: Tag Info window could crash when zoomed in on a list-style field and pressing F5.
22. Fixed: Clicking around on a list-style Tag Info window could show a message about making changes even if no changes were to be made.