Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat (November 20, 2008)
Chat Topic: Windows Media Center Expert Zone Chat
Date: Thursday, November 20, 2008
Please note: Portions of this transcript have been edited for clarity.
Introductions:
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Hi, my name is Todd. I am a program manager working on Media Center Extender technology.
Tim Schreck [MS] (Expert):
Hi everyone! I'm Tim, the Media Center SE PM.
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Hi, all, I'm Nick, a developer on Media Center Extender.
Start of chat:
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: On the Music section... What are the chances of getting better metadata for music? The current level is pretty much unusable for Classical (or course, that's true for every media system out there)
A: Are you referring to the album information that is automatically downloaded when you copy a CD to your PC?
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Correct. Or the fields to fill in if there isn't already metadata filled in (such as conductor, composer, soloist(s)
A: Thanks for clarifying. As you noted, collecting a complete set of metadata that covers CDs with lower distribution volume is a challenge that’s pretty much universal with metadata databases (and is a reflection of the tremendous number of CDs released each year). The good news is that the database we use is in part community driven, which means you can submit information for CDs you have that aren’t recognized, so that the next time someone looks for metadata for that CD it will be there.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Feature Request: Can we get search on Recorded TV up to the level that it was on UltimateTV?
A: Are there specific features within search that you’d like to see? If so, please post there here and I can pass them along to the right folks.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: future hits on that query and set them to record. That way you can put keywords in and if they show up a year later, you get the program.
A: That’s in Media Center now :-) If you go to Recorded TV > Add Recording, and then choose Keyword, you can set up a keyword-based recording. In addition to setting up general keywords, you can scope the keywords to only record based upon actor name, director name, title, and more.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: (If you need a PM to spec it out, I'm available :D )
A: :-) We’re always looking for smart and passionate people, so if you’re interested in working on Media Center please check out <http://www.microsoft.com/careers/>
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: One question from a friend, any plans for extending more support for uPnP?
A: We're continuing to look at possible new and enhanced features for Media Center, but don't have anything specific to announce at this time.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Related: Is there a way to view stored keyword queries?
A: Yes - they’re listed under Scheduled Recordings > Series
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: Feature request: Adding a "not" operator to keyword searches. (A way to trim back queries that return the same wrong queries)
Q: Todd: Exactly or "Lotus" but not "Cosby Show" so when I have a tag set for shows on the sports car I can stop getting the Cosby episode "The Dead End Kids Meet Dr. Lotus"A: Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll pass it along.
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Q: The "Lost" AND NOT "Translation" could be handled by "Exact Title Match" but it's harder when it's freeform data or a mix of title and description
A: Agreed. I was having difficulty coming up with a reasonable example. Your Cosby Show example is much better :-)
Daniel (Moderator):
Well we're out of time for today's chat. Thank you very much to our guests who joined us today as well as to our Experts for answering questions. Have a great evening everyone!
Todd [MSFT] (Moderator):
Thanks for joining today’s chat. See you next month!
Tim Schreck [MS] (Expert):
Thanks everyone!
Nick [MSFT] (Moderator):
Thanks, all!
