TVTool 9.5

 

TVTool 9.5 introduces a number of new features, improvments and important bug fixes. Especially the infrared part has been changed a lot. With the new options TVTool supports more infrared remote controls than the leading IR program from a competitor :-). An overview of the changes:

 

 

 

The position for the secondary device can be selected

If you are working with multiple monitors you are probably aware of the dilemma. After coming back from TV mode the secondary device is set back to the default position on the right side of the primary screen. This problem is solved now in version 9.5. Now you have the option to select the position of the secondary output device for TV and monitor mode (resp. work mode and entertainment mode).

 

 

After enabling this option on the left side you can select one of eight positions. By pressing the apply button the secondary device is moved to its new position instantly. The buttons in the corners move the monitor so that the upper resp. lower borders are aligned with the upper or lower border of the primary device. This should be the most important positions, which are relevant practically. If there is demand for other positions these will be integrated in future versions

 

Toolbar fix

If you are working with toolbars you might have noticed that they get transparent when changing nView modes. To avoid this a special function has been added. Thanks to Holger W. for the hint and the source for this option!

It looks like that without the fix:

 
normally
after changinge mode
toolbar fix

 

 

Brightness adjustment for Conexant chips

The adjustment possibilities for the Conexant TV chips BT868, BT869 and CX25870-75 have been completed, so that the brightness can be adjusted via TVTool directly now. Internally this is done by adjusting the amplification factor for the luminance and the chrominance channel:

 

 

 

Screensaver and energy settings are disabled on the fly now

So far the screen saver and the energy settings for the monitor resp. TV were changed only, when the entertainment mode (TV mode) was enabled. But mostly one got aware of the screen saver about 10 minutes after the movie started while sitting in front of the TV. You had to switch back to monitor mode and and then to TV mode to get rid of the screen saver or the power off setting. Now these options are disabled directly if you check the option regardless if you are in work or entertainment mode. Additionally they are disabled when the entertainment mode is entered.

 

 

The infrared configuration can be saved

 

 

The support for the Sconi, the TVTool infrared receiver, has been improved a lot. The whole configuration can be saved to a text file now. Shortly we will publish complete config files for the most important player like Zoomplayer or BSPlayer on the homepage. All you have to do then is to load the file and assign a button on your remote control to each command you want to use, that´s it.

The command fields have been replaced by drop down lists. It´s not necessary to type in the commands anymore, this makes it much more comfortable to set up the IR configuration:

 

 

In some cases TVTool was a bit unsure which code has been received for some special remote controls. The received value jumped a bit up and down. To avoid that the option 'Narrow bandwith' has been integrated. This enhances the selectivity of the IR routines and the codes are received perfectly again.

Other remote controls send a fixed code before they drop the actual button code. To make these RCs working with TVTool the function 'Skip IR commands' was added. This makes TVTool skip a number of commands before it processes the real value.

If that wasn´t enough some manufacturers like Philips added toggle bits to their IR code. So if you press the same button of your remote twice TVTool will receive a different code. But that´s no problem anymore. Now there is the 'Eliminate Toggle Bit' function. Just enable this option and press the same button twice. TVTool will learn which bits toggle and will eliminate them in the received codes automatically.

All these options makes it possible that TVTool supports almost every remote control available (except Bang&Olufsen devices). The tool supports more RCs now than the well known IR-program 'Girder'!

 

New command line parameters: /zoom, /resize/, /sendi2c xx xx

/zoom: opens and closes the zoom window

/resize: The last active resize mode will be activated, it affects the

  • 1. player window which was started with the context menu function
  • 2. application which was defined on the timer tab
  • 3. the program which is in foreground currently

/sendi2c xx xx: This makes it possible to send an I2C command to the TV chip directly. The first XX stand for the register address, the second XX for the value which shall be written to the register. Both must be in hexadecimal form, like:

/sendi2c b8 03

  • Note: Changing of registers can make the PC freeze instantly. This command line option should be used by professionals only!

 

Info message when soundcard is selected with hotkeys

If the active sound device is chosen with the programmable hotkeys you will get a message like this:

 

 

So the user is aware of the current output device all time. Note: Most applications use the sound device which was active when the program was started. Later changes do not affect running programs!

 

Fixed Bugs:

  • Image position for Conexant chips optimized: The beginning and the end of the video signal has been adjusted for the Conexant chips again. So you should get any missing pixels at the left or right border of the image on the TV screen.
  • 720x480 Modus for Philips chips SAA7104 and 7108A corrected: Some bugs made this mode unusable in the last versions. These have been fixed now and it should work properly again.
  • Force TV detection optimized: TVTool will show a check mark only anymore when this option is really active. For example it gets inactive when a new driver has been installed or when it was disabled in the driver itself. These changes are processed now and you will always see the real state in the user interface of TVTool
  • Switching back to monitor on GF2-MX and GF3 fixed: Partly one got a black screen when switching back to monitor mode on these cards. This bug has been fixed and you can switch as often as you want again.

 

So, that´s it for this year with new features. But the help file is still coming! In the course of the week it should be finished. Really! :-)

The newsletter is sent tonight. The fullversion can be downloaded in the member are on the homepage. The userdatas have not changed since version 8.

That´s it! Have fun with TVTool!

(c) JB 2003