SQL playlist plugin - newbie questions

[TRSPR128]

I've been searching the forum but couldn't find an answer, so please excuse me if this was asked a hundred times before. Just trying out Squeezebox server/Squeezeslave/iPeng to see if I like it more than iTunes/Apple remote on the iPad.

Is there any way to create criteria-based SQL playlists from iPeng (or the Logitech Squeezebox Controller app, as it were)? I've found "Dynamic Playlists > Random songs from album" and the like in the context menus, but I can't for the life of it find a way to do what I can on the server (Extras > SQL Playlists > Create new playlist > ...). Kind of defies the purpose of the plugin if this weren't possible ... why would I want to leave iPeng and go to the server in Safari?

Also, I'm running both Squeezebox server and iOS in Spanish. The standard menus and screens appear in Spanish, but the SQL playlist menus and screen don't. They're in English and just look carelessly tacked on. Bug or feature?

Thanks for clarifying
Thomas

[garym]

I've been searching the forum but couldn't find an answer, so please excuse me if this was asked a hundred times before. Just trying out Squeezebox server/Squeezeslave/iPeng to see if I like it more than iTunes/Apple remote on the iPad.

Is there any way to create criteria-based SQL playlists from iPeng (or the Logitech Squeezebox Controller app, as it were)? I've found "Dynamic Playlists > Random songs from album" and the like in the context menus, but I can't for the life of it find a way to do what I can on the server (Extras > SQL Playlists > Create new playlist > ...). Kind of defies the purpose of the plugin if this weren't possible ... why would I want to leave iPeng and go to the server in Safari?

Also, I'm running both Squeezebox server and iOS in Spanish. The standard menus and screens appear in Spanish, but the SQL playlist menus and screen don't. They're in English and just look carelessly tacked on. Bug or feature?

Thanks for clarifying
Thomas

not sure about iPeng, but you can certainly create criteria based SQL playlists within Logitech Media Server, WebGUI. And then *use* these with iPeng, etc.

[TRSPR128]

Thanks Garym,

Already found that out, as I said above, but it's the "one-stop-shopping" from iPeng (or something similar) that I'm after.

Thomas

[erland]

It's only possible to edit and create new playlists via the web gui. It's the first time I hear a request to do it via iPeng so I think most people are happy with doing all modifications via the web gui and just using the playlists via iPeng.

[TRSPR128]

Thanks Erland,

Surprises me that this has never been asked for, you really have killer functionality here otherwise. Normal playlists can be created from any controller, so it didn't even occur to me that this might not be the case for SQL playlists. And I'd rather not use the uuuug-ly server web GUI on the iPad.

Why was I asking for this? Looks like I'm outgrowing iTunes, so I'm searching for something functionally as close as possible to Sooloos (which of course plays in a totally different price league). Squeezebox plus the SQL and Custom Browse plugins looked very promising.

Regards
Thomas

[erland]

I suspect most people doesn't change their playlists in SQL Playlist that much, so that's likely why the demand haven't been higher so far.

To get a good integration with iPeng I'm afraid it will mean that iPeng will have to have a specific GUI for SQL Playlist plugin which will also make it a bit more complicated as it's not something I can just do by myself in the plugin I also need to involve pippin to do the stuff on the iPeng side, at the moment I don't think that's something that will happen in the near future. With a generic user interface I'm afraid the user experience will be even worse than with the current web gui and that's also why I haven't focused on doing something regarding this so far, to make it good it has to be a GUI specifically designed for SQL Playlist plugin.

[garym]

I suspect most people doesn't change their playlists in SQL Playlist that much, so that's likely why the demand haven't been higher so far.

To get a good integration with iPeng I'm afraid it will mean that iPeng will have to have a specific GUI for SQL Playlist plugin which will also make it a bit more complicated as it's not something I can just do by myself in the plugin I also need to involve pippin to do the stuff on the iPeng side, at the moment I don't think that's something that will happen in the near future. With a generic user interface I'm afraid the user experience will be even worse than with the current web gui and that's also why I haven't focused on doing something regarding this so far, to make it good it has to be a GUI specifically designed for SQL Playlist plugin.

agree, I set up numerious SQL playlist templates, etc. and then simply use them in conjunction with dynamic playlists within ipeng. I could be wrong, but I'm simply wondering if the OP doesn't fully understand how the SQL templates/playlists fit in with dynamic playlists, etc. Again, I could be entirely wrong here....

[erland]

It is possible to create playlists that takes parameters, for example look at the ones in the "Dynamic Playlists/Random/For selected" menu.
With these it's possible to ask the user for a value before playing the playlist and this also works in iPeng.

For example select "Dynamic Playlists/Random/For selected/Random songs in genre" and it will ask you for a genre before starting to play the playlist.
The playlists that takes parameters is also possible to launch from the context menu, in the above page by hold touching on a genre in iPeng to open the context menu and then selecting "Dynamic playlists/Random songs in genre".

For the simple cases, this makes playlists that needs to take a single parameter or two usable also from iPeng.

[TRSPR128]

Erland,

Understand the implications. Makes me want to learn how to create plugins and fiddle around a bit if I find the time.

[QUOTE=erland;710548]It is possible to create playlists that takes parameters, for example look at the ones in the "Dynamic Playlists/Random/For selected" menu.
With these it's possible to ask the user for a value before playing the playlist and this also works in iPeng.

Tried this in iPeng and Squeezebox Controller, and at least it takes me one step closer to what I want ...

Thanks for responding

Regards
Thomas