Project MediaPlayerMFD for Orbiter2024 - with YouTube player

[misha.physics]

Do the search results also show Ukrainian on screen? Or do you get just the English (latin) characters and the rest as "???"

I see the correct Ukrainian characters. No any "???".

Please follow this EXACTLY:
1. Open the MFD, press MNU and select YouTube --wait a sec for the YT page to load.
2. Copy this exact link "youtube.com/shorts/ybL21pDWAaU" (without the quotes). Go to the MFD press SRC, paste it in the input box and press enter.
3. While this video is playing, press the NXT button from the right side of the MFD (under V-).

The next short video should load and play by itself. When it ends, the MFD should load by itself the next short form video and so on. (BTW, sorry if the tone of the instructions seems patronizing or condescending. That is not my intention. I just want to be absolutely sure that you are in short form mode when you press the NXT button).

The NXT and PRV buttons in YouTube mode only work for short form videos, so don't expect it to work for normal videos.

It works good as you described. Thanks. Maybe I really wasn't in the short form mode.

Try this: Go to Modules\Plugin and find the MediaPlayerMFD.dll - rename it to VideoPlayerMFD.dll
Enable it in the modules tab.

I renamed it, restearted Orbiter, saw "VideoPlayerMFD" on Module tab, enabled it then disabled it and the module name dissapeared and Orbiter freezed again:

 

[dgatsoulis]

I see the correct Ukrainian characters. No any "???".

It works good as you described. Thanks. Maybe I really wasn't in the short form mode.

I renamed it, restearted Orbiter, saw "VideoPlayerMFD" on Module tab, enabled it then disabled it and the module name dissapeared and Orbiter freezed again:

View attachment 49520

Thanks for confirming and testing that bug again!

I have reworked the "Shorts form mode". In the next version you will enter "shorts\[search term]" to get a query that returns only shorts. Once you play a video from that result list, you go into short form mode and the PRV/NXT buttons navigate the shorts.

I have added sound settings in the CFG page (reverb, stereo delay, 3-band EQ). I have also reworked the YT home page display.
When you load the YT page, you can now use the PRV/NXT buttons to highlight one of the suggested videos and play it with PLY.

The YT search works great and the results render the video title in any language.

The playlist feature is now complete. You can create/edit/play your own playlists of music/videos and a separate playlist handler for just YT videos.

I have reached the end of the features I wanted this player to have. All that is left is to find that bug the hangs the Orbiter Launchpad when disabling/enabling the module and do another pass for any lingering processes at shut-down (I'll perhaps enable a "hard exit" just in case).

Thanks very much for your time and testing. This MFD is going to be so much better because of it.
I'll finish the bug checks, write up the manual and share it when its done, source code included.

One final question. Is it better to include the CEF library in the download ( a couple of hundred MB) or should I just give the dll and media samples (a few MB) and then point the user to the CEF download? The CEF library allows redistribution, so no problems there. I just wonder if a large download size for an MFD is off-putting for the users.

 

[misha.physics]

to get a query that returns only shorts

It would be nice. For now if I search, for example, "shorts gaming" I see many vertical videos and I supposed they're all shorts. But it seems some vertical videos aren't in short mode, since PRV/NXT buttons don't work for them. But it works for other vertical videos.

One final question. Is it better to include the CEF library in the download ( a couple of hundred MB) or should I just give the dll and media samples (a few MB) and then point the user to the CEF download? The CEF library allows redistribution, so no problems there. I just wonder if a large download size for an MFD is off-putting for the users.

Personally, for me it's not a problem in a large download size of archive. I like that everything is together. But you could provide two archives, for example:
1) Module DLL, documentation, local media samples;
2) Library for YouTube.

Just placing it in correct folders, so user can just extract it into the main Orbiter directory.

 

[dgatsoulis]

Addon has been released here:

Special thanks to gattispilot and misha.physics for testing and feedback!