Thursday, September 26, 2013

Video Library with MediaMonkey and SQLite

Um einen Überblick über meine mehr als 1000 Videos zu behalten habe ich folgenden Plan:

1. Metadaten - Tagging derVideos
Die Beschreibung der Videos (Spielfilme, Fernseh-Dokus etc.) soll nicht in einer separaten Video-Datenbank erfolgen, sondern als "Tags" in den Video-Files selbst.
Aus dieser Primär-Information in den Tags selbst kann ich dann mit geeigneter Software auch schöne Oberflächgen und ggf. Datenbanken als Sekundär-Information aufbauen.

Ein solches Tagging wird vom Video-Container-Format MP4 bestens unterstützt.

Deswegen habe ich alle meine Videos auf MP4 konvertiert (alt: AVI, DIVX,....).
Video-Codec: AVC High@4.0 1500 bps
Audio-Codec: AAC 160 bps

2. Vewaltung der Videos: MediaMonkey
Mit MediaMonkey 4.0.3.01476 kann ich meine MP4-Videos wunderbar verwalten, soll heissen:

  • Ergänzen und vereinheitlichen der Tags
  • Suchen anhand von Tag-Inhalten (Titel, Regisseur, Schauspieler,...)
  • Synchronisieren der Video-Tags mit einer SQLite-Datenbank

3. Die INI-Datei: "MediaMonkey.ini"
Befindet sich im Ordner:

  • c:\users\xxx\AppData\Roaming\MediaMonkey

Dort habe ich im Abschnitt [System] den Ort der MediaMonkey-Datenbank verändert:

  • DBName=D:\var\MediaMonkey\MediaMonkey.db

Dann kann ich leichter mit der Datenbank "spielen"

4. Die MediaMonkey-Datenbank
Die MediaMonkey-Datenbank "MediaMonkey.db" ist eine SQLite-Datenbank und steht standardmäßig auch im Ordner:

  • c:\users\xxx\AppData\Roaming\MediaMonkey

Ich habe sie verlegt auf den bei meinen Computern üblichen Ort für solche Daten (s.o.).

Nun kann ich diese SQLite-Datenbank auch auf Reisen mitnehmen (z.B. iPad) oder leicht in die Cloud stellen (z.B. DropBox) und mit irgendwelchen SQLite-Apps darauf zugreifen um z.B. gezielt nach bestimmten Videos zu suchen....

SQLiteStudio

Mit dieser Windows-Software kann ich (ohne MediaMonkey) auf die Datenbank mit SQL-Befehlen zugreifen und auch Views definieren...

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Friday, May 31, 2013

Reasons to Jailbrake my Apple iPad: Watching Videos

My usage scenario

This week I had again a little discussion with my colleagues about our iPads (everybody has it).

I complained that I could not view my recorded videos via an USB stick on the iPad during air travel. Which means spontanously copying 3 videos in the early morning onto the USB stick, jump into the taxi cab and up to the airport. I can do this with my Android tablet from Acer, which has a normal sized USB host jack.

My colleague said: you can do this easily with your iPad if you buy a "iPad Camera Connection Kit". The kit contains one adapter for USB and one adapter for SD cards and costs EUR 29.--

Next day I bought that "iPad Camera Connection Kit" It did not work exactely that way:

My experiences with the Camera Connection Kit

1) If plug in a (normal USB 2.0 stick (flash memory), if constantly says: "your device consumes to much power" - (apples says the USB connection is designed to connect to cameras) --> "Gerät kann nicht benutzt werden. Das angeschlossene USB-Gerät benötiigt zu viel Strom."

One of my USB sticks worked with the Apple camera connection kit: Hama 16 GB consuming 100 mA Kinston 1GB using 140 mA did not work TrekStor 4 GB using 200 mA did not work CnMemory 16 GB using 480 mA did not work From the internet I heard the TransCend JetFlash500 32 GB will use only 100 mA -----> I will try that

2) If I use the SD-adapter it works in principle - meaning no power problems, but....

3) The iPad screen now shows me the contens of my SD card, but not all the contents, but only file types Apple wants to play with....e.g. .jpg .mov .m4v .mp4 ....

4) Filenames must look as if they come from a camera i.e. 8 characters including numbering e.g. IMG_001.JPG DSC_011.JPG P1234567.JPG P1234568.MOV P123456X.JPG

4) You then have to import the files form the SD card into the iPad, which means: copy i.e. it takes time and space (much if videos) and it means that the files are copied into the closed space of a certain application (Foto App) that Apple has decided these types of files must go.

My conclusions

The iPad import takes some time to recognize all eligible files on the SD card. This can be confusing, because sometimes a certain file is not shown. but when you try it once more it does show up in the "to be imported" list.

The iPad import looks only into the DCIM folder, other folders are ignored (?)

Files need to be renamed into non-descriptive 8 character names

The iPad import ignores file types like: .mp3 .avi

The iPad import copies the files to: /var/mobile/Media/DCIM ==> this takes time and eats-up precious iPad storage

 

Jailbreake & iFile

iFile has build-in viewers for fotos, videos etc.

If you want to use different Apps for viewing, you can copy your media files to the wanted application. Or you can put shortcuts there. Example to follow...

SD Cards work very well with the Camera Connection Set, but this Adapter is restricted to One SD Card at a Time, consequently you can Not copy Files from one SD Card to an other- Say in Order to do back-ups of photos durring a vacation or so.

The USB adapter of the Camera Connection Set offers in Prínciple more Flexibility, since you can Plugin a USB Hub....but such an USB hub needs to be "active" meaning powered by at least 2.1 Amp....

 

AcePlayer

has: E3DE36E4-2781-4B9E-B698-9D7748922BFB

Put your videos into the subfolder "documents"

CineXPlayer

has 926AE9Fe-8D65-40E2-A719-B492305C22D2

Put your videos into the subfolder "Documents"

SongBird

xxxx

 

 

 

 

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Saturday, July 21, 2012

iPad vs. Android Tablets

I have both, an

  • iPad 2 ( Display 2048x1536)
  • Android 4.0 Tablet: Acer Iconia Tab A500. (Display WXGA 1280x800)
  • Android 4.0 Tablet: Asus Transformer Pad Infinity TF700 (Display 1920x1080 "Full HD")
Vergleich iPad vs. Android Tablet
iPad Android Tablet Comment
Very easy usage ++ (-) personal taste
Stylish appearence (e.g. thin etc) ++ + Asus is equally thin
Display resulotion ++ ++ I personally could live with 1280x720 HD
Charging with 5V (via USB power adapter / PC / external battery) + -- importatnt for mobile usage
Icons per Screen 20+4 56 ridiculous iPad restriction, but not decisive for me
USB-Host- for external devices (flash drive, card reader, 3G,..) -- ++ I love USB flash drives to quickly interchange my large video files
Open file system (E.g.: One video file stored on the device can be played by different Video-Apps installed) -- ++ I want to try (and even use in parallel) different Apps for the same purpose i.e. working with the same files
Support of Adobe Flash within the Web Browser -- ++ My QNAP NAS has a flash-based Web interface. This can be used on Android "as is". Wheras on iPad I need an extra App (if available)
Quantity of usefull Apps ++ + Android is getting much better, but iPad is unbeaten

Durch das konsequente Abschotten gegen Industriestandards, die das Nutzen von vorhandenen Lösungen per Standard-Architekturen (z.B. Web-Browser mit Adobe Flash, externe USB-Geräte,...) ermöglichen, ist Apple gezwungen für jedes und alles eine individuelle propieträre Sonderlocke als "App" anzubieten. Womit die Chance besteht, eine eigenlich über Standards mögliche Funktionalität in propietärem Gewand "schicker" darzubieten.

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