English > Feature Suggestions

A few changes i'd like to see

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Happy2k:
Things i'd like to see changed/added:

1) "Discard"-button when creating new database
2) Faster IMDb fetching
3) Remove whatever check PVD does when ticking a folder in scanning mode, or add a "Cancel"-button
4) Add custom field when popup occurs for when IMDb fetching
5) Use [movie title].jpg as poster

Explained:
1) File -> New. This gives you a popup saying "Save As.." - its not asking if you want to save or not, its telling you. No save = no new database. Current solution: Exit PVD, delete MOVIES.PVD, open PVD.
2) If possible, a faster fetcher would be awesome. Maby in conjunction with themoviedb.org - which could be used for HQ posters aswell.
3) When you want to scan folders for movies/series, PVD does some check when you tick off a folder - if you accidently ticks off "Desktop", then you are.. well, its best described with a quote from Full Metal Jack: ".. in a world of shit." All your drives, all network drives - everything seems to get scanned. No cancel available - program locks up until its done a few years later. Current solution: Open up Task Manager -> Kill viddb.exe
4) Currently, if PVD isnt sure what over it is, you can choose from a list or skip. With a custom field, you could input the IMDb code yourself, so you wouldnt have to go search for skipped movies later on.
5) Shouldnt be too hard to add this feature. If a picture is located in the same folder as the file, and if its named the same as the movie - then automaticly accept it as the poster for the movie. If no poster, then option for search IMDb/other. All my movies are named [movie title] - 720p.mkv, all posters are named [movie title].jpg. In a matter of seconds, all posters could be added - would be awesome!

Just a few things i've noticed as a new user of PVD 8) These are not critical in any way - simply small stuff that would make the use a bit easier.

rick.ca:
1. I don't understand. You either indicate a name for the new database, or cancel. You get either a new database, or are returned to the one your were in. What's the problem?

2. Nostra commented on this here. Also, the discussion in that thread raises the question of whether better mutli-threading is feasible. And if it is, whether the effort would be worth the resulting improvement in speed. My updates take about 5 seconds per movie (that's 720 per hour). What is it you're doing that requires better performance than that?

3. There already is a cancel button.

4. I suppose, but where are you going to get the URL? If you already have it, it would have made more sense to add it to the record first (and not use NMM, if that's what you're referring to). If you don't already have it, it doesn't make much sense to hold up an update of multiple movies while you look it up. Skip it, add the URL to the record when you've got it, and update the record.

5. I save a poster beside my movies, but I see no value in this. There is a method of adding all such images to a new database (using the IMGbyID utility). Once this is done, then surely PVD is going to be used to add posters—and those are going to be saved in the database. Maybe what you really need is something to write those back out to the file system. I believe that's also possible using an export template.

nostra:
5 (everything else is very goof explained by Rick): Maybe you just need to turn off the option "Save images in database file". If you do this all the images will be stored in folders specified in Preferences -> Folders using the format title.jpg

Happy2k:
Rick:
1) aha.. thought the "save as" was for the current database.

2) Yep. Again, its not something thats critical, but something that would be nice.

3) Nothing is working when it does the checking. Doesnt matter how many times you press "cancel" - it keeps scanning for whatever its doing.

4) If a popup occurs, and there's no correct suggestion from PVD - then you can manually go search IMDb, grab the link and fix the index of that movie right away. When you've had a run in silent mode, and are gonna fix all the skipped ones, then you might aswell fix what needs to be fixed, instead of skipping it again.

5) I know there's IMGbyID - but why do you have to use a tool for this? Should be something that PVD could handle by itself. I dont need to export the posters - i add those to the folders manually. Lets say i've made a decent database, but for some reason want to start on a fresh database - i then have to do the tidious job of using IMGbyID once again. If PVD could just grab it directly from the folder, then i wouldnt have to do anything at all.


nostra:
Isn't it needed to link them to the database? Because, if i manually add a poster, it will name it: title_ID.jpg
It does not load any posters by itself from the specified folder - thats what i need it to do :)
(prefer if it would just take the posters from the same folder as the file is located in)

rick.ca:

--- Quote ---3) Nothing is working when it does the checking. Doesnt matter how many times you press "cancel" - it keeps scanning for whatever its doing.
--- End quote ---

You must be referring to the first phase when the folders are being read, rather than the second when the data is being processed. The second phase can be interrupted. But I have to wonder, having made the mistake of telling the program to scan your entire HD, are you really likely to do it again? If you do, I think having to wait or terminate the program is a suitable consequence. ;D


--- Quote ---4) ...When you've had a run in silent mode, and are gonna fix all the skipped ones, then you might aswell fix what needs to be fixed, instead of skipping it again.
--- End quote ---

Good point. There should be a way of adding the correct URL via the confirmation dialog. A nice companion feature would be a link to the IMDb advanced search page. Both could be presented at the bottom of the dialog with the captions, "Search for more..." and "Paste correct URL here"—so the purpose of both would be clear.


--- Quote ---5) I know there's IMGbyID - but why do you have to use a tool for this?
--- End quote ---

Because it's a one-time requirement, and only needed by those who happen to have poster in that form. Once posters are in the database, such a function is unnecessary. In the unlikely event you needed to "start a fresh database," you would simply export the images "by ID" and export the movie titles along with their ID's so both can be imported into the new database. IMGbyID would then work without any fuss.

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