Am demoing Fyler...

[thebutler]

Just installed the demo (v1.0.4) to see what it's like in use. I read (skimmed.!) through the User Guide and decided there was quite a lot to this app, that I might like.

However, my first 'stumble' was when I right clicked on a (video) file and chose 'Get Info' from the menu. There was very little detail (results) in the window that pops up - nothing in the Metadata Tab at all.!

Ok, was pretty surprised at that, but perhaps am expecting too much..? Do I need to set up any special Preferences first perhaps.?

For example and by contrast, theres a ton of very important detail returned when using the free 'Media Info' applet (that installs and can be launched directly within the Right-click menu on any file).

Anyway, I know there's a ton more to explore with Fyler.! Meantime, just wanted to get others' experiences... Looking forward to any responses.

(PS:- also running RC Pro v4.4.3)

[musicdevelopments]

Hi thebutler!

Thanks for your post!
It should display all metadata like this from an mp4 file:



Parsing most audio and image formats are built in, but for video an external tool is used (ffprobe from ffmpeg). I suspect ffprobe.exe is not found, or cannot be executed on your PC. I cannot think of anything else. Can you try to enter an absolute path into Settings / Helpers / ffmpeg location? Will you locate ffprobe.exe (it should be C:\Program Files\Fyler1.0.4\bin\ffprobe.exe) and execute it from cmd.exe?

Thanks,
Attila

[thebutler]

Hello Attila

Well, the screenshot is much more like I was expecting.! I saw similar in the User Guide and thought I have to be missing a trick somewhere...

Anyway, I'll have to try what you suggest in a few days - am away from the machine now, travelling.

Thanks for the quick response.!

thebutler

[BluGenes]

Also, I found it works best if you set it run as Admin too.. You would have to search on how to do that, I forgot exactly what I did..

[thebutler]

Finally getting round to trying these suggestions out.!

Thanks Attila - defining the ffmpeg path as you advised, did the trick for most video files now. However, except it seems for *.m4v format files. There is no metadata detail displayed. Using MediaInfo applet on the same file performs perfectly (see attachments).

Fyler_v105_m4v file metadata tab.jpg

MediaInfo_m4v file.jpg

Other file formats of mov, avi, mp4, WMV all work well now in the GetInfo dialog. Haven't tried any mkv files yet.

Second, I see that when the 'GetInfo' dialog is still open and you launch another app, it will load behind the GetInfo dialog i.e. the 'GetInfo' stays on top. Probably that's intentional; useful I'd guess on 2-screen setups, but just seemed a little odd when on single screen. Maybe just something to live with...

Third, that big blue info window (snapshot image) that pops up when you hover over a file - it would almost be better than having to click to the 'GetInfo' dialog IF it was a dynamic, scrollable thing.!

Alas, as soon as you move the mouse cursor over it (trying to see if it would scroll), it disappears.! As it is, it's of limited use. Can it be turned off.?

Fourth, the 'GetInfo' metadata tab would benefit greatly I believe, by having the displayed data split into sections/categories (i.e. General, Video, Audio) much the same as MediaInfo does. Right now, there's no control as to how the list is ordered (it seems). It's just a jumble of fields..!?

This tab also currently opens very small and always has to be expanded/re-sized to view anything useful. Could this be improved.?

Have a look at MediaInfo to see what I mean about the sections/categories of data displayed; it's free.! (https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo). Makes things much more user friendly to see/find at a glance what detailed info you need to know...

Finally, and as I've said before, I know all of this is only one, small aspect of the power of Fyler's capabilities.! I've barely touched the surface...

Maybe it will turn out that I just use MediaInfo instead for this type of task in future (it is easy and very convenient on a right-click access/action anyway). However, there is much more to find out in Fyler.!

So meantime, I shall explore further and looking forward to seeing the other benefits you mentioned coming soon, in another thread.

[musicdevelopments]

The fix is easy: you need to add "*.m4v" to the video formats handled by the video metadata and content extractors. Open Settings / Extractors:



You don't even have to restart Fyler, just reload the folder with the m4v files.
You are right about making groups for the metadata.
The pop-up help for video files is a huge list, and it annoys me too. Either it should be disabled, or only a few items should be displayed for the user.

Fyler was developed as a more efficient alternative to Windows File Explorer.
v1.0.5 was uploaded a few days ago, please use the latest update.

Thanks,
Attila

[thebutler]

Thanks again Attila - ok bingo.! That's good news.! A case of me reading the User Guide a little more carefully perhaps...

Agreed about the pop-up help - if it could be made to only show a set number (few) of important settings and users could get to choose which ones, that might just be perfect.!

What about the opening size of the metadata tab - could you think about that in a later edition perhaps.?

And yes, I am already definitely using the latest v1.0.5 edition (d/loaded over the weekend)

[thebutler]

Got v1.0.6 installed now - thanks for the update.!

The pop-up help data limit is welcome - though sadly still of limited use. I see that it's just a snapshot of the first 10 fields from the 'Get Info' Metadata tab. My suggestion:- could these fields in here (Metadata Tab) have the ability to be re-ordered (by dragging.?) to our choosing.? (would benefit both areas).

It's neat how turning the fields icon at left blue, enables that fields appearance as a column in the main file list view.

Also finding useful throughout:-
1. Tab Sets
2. Previewing MIDI files
3. Column presets
4. Custom Icons
5. Quick preview with ffplay

[musicdevelopments]

Thanks for the feedback!