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MRSS to List (Media, Image or Photos)

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Allison Smith
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We are currently using the MRSS generator to build an MRSS from a network folder. Its been working well, but I'm trying to build a way to make the images random since the same feed is being used on 14 screens in same hallway. I found DynamicPlaylistParser (link below) to parse the MRSS to make it readable as a Media List for random playback. I think it may not be compatible with BrightAuthor 4.6. 

I have the MRSS feed as a Data Feed. Usage is Content for Image List... with the Parser. It doesnt seem to work. 

Does anyone know how to get this working in 4.6, or have any other ideas? 

(http://support.brightsign.biz/hc/en-us/community/posts/209964817-Picture-List-Cycle) 

 

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  • 0
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    ^UD\_$

    If you present the MRSS feed using the BrightAuthor's All Media List state, you could turn on the Shuffle Playback feature, to randomize playback.

    The All Media List state, allows mixing images and videos. If you only need to use images, Image List would suffice.

  • 0
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    Eric

    It turned out MRSS (or RSS) mixing is not supported in the Media List State.

     

    When MRSS did not worked we build a parser according the manual (BrightAuthor manual; http://d.pr/f/Z2kp
    Pagina 56 -> “Populate from data feed”

    (manual; http://docs.brightsign.biz/display/DOC/BrightAuthor+User+Guide?preview=/983082/987860/BrightAuthor%20User%20Guide%20(ver%204.6).pdf)

     

    It turned out by surprise, very recent, that under the hood this was not supported (“Turns out "populate from data feed" feature isn't supported in All Media List state, but is supported in Video and Image Lists.”.

    So some kind of work around is to populate a Video List and a Image list that could do a shuffle by a very not nice way.

     

    The wish to populate the All Media List (with Video AND Images) and shuffle this and to have a normal EndOfList function is filed under ‘Feature Request’.

  • 0
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    Allison Smith

    UD, unfortunately as Eric said the lists dont support MRSS feeds, hence the issue. 

     

    Eric, do you have a parser I could use? 

     

    Thanks

  • 0
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    ^UD\_$

    I'm a bit surprised with what you guys are saying here.

    We have successfully mixed videos and images, fed from BSN Live Media Feed.

    A parser was used, but that was because we couldn't get Tagging to work, so we had to code our own tagging system, based on a custom field in the BSN Live Media Feed.

     

    Let me refresh my memory about that project, and I'll report back.

     

    Allison, can you share your feed's url here?

  • 0
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    Eric

    Hi Allison and Udi,

     

    Well the parser it’s not a loose solution. Sorry for that. We have looked for this, it was not there, and we decided to build something custom.

    We have already have our own CMS solution which generates MRSS.

    In our test environment we have a ‘proof of concept’ running that can either generate MRSS or RSS, on the fly, according to the specs from the manual.

    This will be implemented in our Live environment soon.

    Still people have then to put Video content in a video feed and images in a image feed (which is quite dull) if we want to simulate a All Media List which can shuffle. And the Brightsign program is not a very simple thing to build (but still a good one to copy).

    Still we have then benefits to use it into Video List or Image List like shuffle / enhanced synchronization and more.

    But we are looking very very (very) forward to have a All Media List then can shuffle and has a nice ‘end of list’ function.

     

    @Udi, well what BSN does behind the scenes is sometimes very special.

    Still they confirmed to me (as per last week!), as MRSS did not function prior in Media List, and we build something according the manual, that RSS is not supported either in the Media List although it is stated in the manual.

     

    Mixing of items in our feed is not a problem.

    But there is no way now, as we are aware of, that the player can shuffle this list player side.

    And maybe there is a way but I think then its not an easy way.

    (We can build this shuffle server side but this will cause a huge network traffic. That is not a good idea)

     

    Best regards,

    Eric

  • 0
    Avatar
    Allison Smith

    The URLs are internal so I cant.

    Our process is having line level employees drop photos into a folder. Then with a batch file, they get copied to our internal BSNEE webserver and then the MRSS feed is generated.

    Currently to get randomness on the different screens, the media is copied to 16 different folders, the script randomizes the file names before the MRSS generator runs. The problem is it generates new names each time it runs so the same file gets downloaded multiple times a day and its burning out the SD cards. Thats why I'm trying to collapse this to 1 MRSS feed and then have the players randomize the playback. We are only looking at photos for now, so videos dont matter. 

    I'm not a coder so making the parser has been difficult for me. 

  • 0
    Avatar
    Lyndon

     

    While old brightauthor did not support standard mrss feeds in lists, the new one should. If it's broken in the general media list widget, then that sounds like a bug. I'll see if we can duplicate. 

     

    There is a feature request in for end of list feature. I was only able to accomplish it for a customer by making a couple changes to a brightauthor autorun. Unfortunately that means the change would only work for that autorun's specific brightauthor, but I was able to send a zone message at the end of the list to you could then do something different in the project when the list ended. 

  • 0
    Avatar
    Allison Smith

    Lyndon,

     

    In order for MRSS to be selected in any of the lists, the Data Feed has to be setup as Content for Image List, Video List, Audio List. Then when added to a list nothing happens. If I set it as MRSS Feed, it doesnt show up as a Data Feed in the lists. 

    I can use the data feed as a Media RSS Media, but dont get the randomization option. 

  • 0
    Avatar
    ^UD\_$

    "Then when added to a list nothing happens"

    We had seen such behavior, with large videos files. Nothing would show, before all assets have downloaded.

    Just for troubleshooting, can you test with say 3 images only first? That way, download would be completed quickly.

  • 0
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    Lyndon

    Ok, I believe I've seen this actually, now that you mention. I have a bug logged about videolists not starting after the log says all files have been downloaded. I'll try and track down the bug. 

  • 0
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    Allison Smith

    Lyndon, any update about this issue?

  • 0
    Avatar
    Lyndon

     

    Ok, what I've found is that the standard mrss format isn't supported when using the populate option,  If you're using a dynamic playlist from the bsn account, then it works fine. There's been an open request for standard feeds to be supported.

     

    In the interim, if you have control over the format of the mrss feed, you can generate it in the following way and it will then work:

     

    Put the url in the description tag, not just under the media tab. 

     

    The following is an image only batch file that generates an xml file with the tag in the description field, and that works fine using the populate widget option. You'd have to use something like this until there's a change in how standard mrss feeds are processed by brightauthor. 

     

     

    @ECHO OFF &SETLOCAL
    SET BaseUrl=https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3480052/Content/mrssgenerator/
    SET TimeDisplayedONScreenInSeconds=2
    SET refreshfeedTimeinMinutes=3
    SET /a GUIDNum=%random%*1003/32767+1
    SET year=%date:~-4%
    SET month=%date:~3,2%
    SET day=%date:~0,2%
    SET hour=%time:~0,2%
    SET min=%time:~3,2%
    SET sec=%time:~6,2%
    SET "header1=<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>"
    SET "header2=<rss version="2.0" xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/">"
    SET "header3=<channel>"
    SET "header4= <title>Batch Custom Image MRSS template for BrightSign Players</title>
    SET "header5= <link>%BaseUrl%ImageMrss.xml</link>
    SET "header6= <generator>Image MRSS Generator Batch File</generator>
    SET "header7= <ttl>%refreshfeedTimeinMinutes%</ttl>
    SET "footer1=</channel>"
    SET "footer2=</rss>"

    (
    SETLOCAL ENABLEDELAYEDEXPANSION

    ECHO(!header2!
    ECHO(!header3!
    ECHO(!header4!
    ENDLOCAL
    FOR %%a IN (*.jpg) DO (

    ECHO( ^<item^>
    ECHO( ^<title^>%%~nxa^</title^>
    ECHO( ^<description^>%BaseUrl%%%~nxa^</description^>
    ECHO( ^</item^>

    )
    SETLOCAL ENABLEDELAYEDEXPANSION
    ECHO(!footer1!
    ECHO(!footer2!
    )>ImageMrsspop.xml
    ENDLOCAL

  • 0
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    Allison Smith

    That worked, thank you. FYI I found that if a filename has a space in it, the player wont process it properly. Once it was renamed it worked properly. 

  • 0
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    Petit Benjamin

    Hello,

    Digging an old post.

    Trying to use a "All Media List" node with Data Feed. I did format the feed with URL in Description as stated.

    Feed is working in Video List and Image List. But when I try to mix Image and Video and use All Media List it doesn't work...

    Any update. Using good old Brightauthor 4.7 on 8.4 OS.

    Thanks,

    Ben

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