2011-01-04, 19:58
Little post to reminds XBMC users that the Advanced Launcher is not an emulators frontend and so it will never have all the functionalities that other emulators frontend or roms managers have.
Advanced Launcher, is an applications launcher. That's mean that it can start any kind of applications not just game or emulators. Compared to the old Launcher version, the Advanced launcher has the possibility to use scrapers to get data, informations and images from Internet to improve and media information display into XBMC. Actually the included scrapers are effectively mostly oriented for console, PC or arcades games. But in the future, scrapers for other kind of media content could be added.
This is an example of a totally different application of the Advanced Launcher : Comics Viewer.
This is the starting page of the Advanced Launcher. Here games or games platforms are replaced by comics series or collections with title of the series, author, release date, comic genre and series description. This is the corresponding launchers.xml code :
Comics are under .cbr and/or .cbz formats (renamed .rar and .zip archive files). For the linux application I'm actually using qcomicbook which has a simple command line support. Configuration of the application (fullscreen at start, display of the pages, etc...) is made and saved directly from the application GUI. .cbr and .cbz files are used as roms. This is how they are displayed when we select a serie:
Here games/roms are replaced by comics books with title of the comic, publisher, release date, comic genre and description. This is the corresponding launchers.xml code :
You can actually , all of you, do this with the actual Advanced Launcher version. Creation of the comics collection is more longer than for games because there is no dedicated scraper. As you see you can do this with comics, but you maybe will be able to do this this any kind of other medias. So this is the main reason why the Advanced launcher will never be just an emulator frontend.
Advanced Launcher, is an applications launcher. That's mean that it can start any kind of applications not just game or emulators. Compared to the old Launcher version, the Advanced launcher has the possibility to use scrapers to get data, informations and images from Internet to improve and media information display into XBMC. Actually the included scrapers are effectively mostly oriented for console, PC or arcades games. But in the future, scrapers for other kind of media content could be added.
This is an example of a totally different application of the Advanced Launcher : Comics Viewer.
This is the starting page of the Advanced Launcher. Here games or games platforms are replaced by comics series or collections with title of the series, author, release date, comic genre and series description. This is the corresponding launchers.xml code :
Code:
<launcher>
<name>Sambre</name>
<application>/usr/bin/qcomicbook</application>
<args>"%rom%"</args>
<rompath>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/</rompath>
<thumbpath>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/thumbs/</thumbpath>
<fanartpath>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/fanarts/</fanartpath>
<romext>cbr|cbz</romext>
<platform></platform>
<thumb>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/thumbs/T00.jpg</thumb>
<fanart>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/fanarts/sambre.jpg</fanart>
<genre>Historique</genre>
<release>1986</release>
<publisher>Yslaire</publisher>
<launcherplot>Très sombre et mélancolique, Sambre nous raconte l'histoire d'une famille bourgeoise rurale du XIXe siècle et plus particulièrement celle de Bernard Sambre, épris de Julie, une jeune vagabonde aux yeux rouges que sa famille exècre au point de les porter au rang de superstition. Les destins, les esprits et les corps s' expriment, se croisent et se blessent. Nul ne peut échapper à son destin ...</launcherplot>
<wait>true</wait>
<roms>
...
Here games/roms are replaced by comics books with title of the comic, publisher, release date, comic genre and description. This is the corresponding launchers.xml code :
Code:
<rom>
<name>La Guerre des Sambre - Hugo et Iris - Tome 2</name>
<filename>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/La Guerre des Sambre - Hugo et Iris - Tome 2.cbr</filename>
<platform>Action Max</platform>
<thumb>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/thumbs/lgds t02.jpg</thumb>
<fanart>/home/gwenael/Desktop/BD/Sambre/fanarts/lgdst02.jpg</fanart>
<genre>Historique</genre>
<release>2008</release>
<publisher>Glenat</publisher>
<gameplot>La Guerre des Sambre est une collection de romans d'amour, dont la série principale, Sambre, conte l’histoire de Bernard et Julie, et continue aujourd’hui avec celle de leurs parents, Hugo & Iris. Automne 1830 : Alors que son père, à l’agonie, le réclame, Hugo Sambre vient, soir après soir, à la salle Le Peletier admirer Iris, l’actrice principale de La Muette de Portici, dont les yeux rouges l’attirent comme un aimant. Iris est l’incarnation vivante de ses plus folles théories, l’aboutissement de ses recherches sur La guerre des yeux… Un soir, il décide de l’aborder… Avec Hugo et Iris, Yslaire revient sur la jeunesse d’Hugo Sambre, le père de Bernard Sambre, sur sa passion funeste pour Iris, mère de Julie. Scénariste et metteur en scène, il confie le dessin de cette histoire à deux jeunes prodiges, Bastide et Mezil. Chaque histoire se décline en un cycle de trois albums qui sera écrit par Yslaire et dessiné par un dessinateur différent. Chaque cycle peut se lire séparément, comme une oeuvre exceptionnelle, ou comme un chapitre d'une folie amoureuse qui traverse les générations…</gameplot>
</rom>