Freeware 3D Jukebox WIP

[PilotK7]

Hi all, I'm a newbie here, and about to start building my first CAB

But while i wait for one to become available in my local area, i decided to write my own jukebox app to go on it, I had a look at some of the ones available, and decided that i wanted one a bit more basic, sort of retro style, so i wrote my own.

If anyone would like to take a look at it, then i would be willing to email it to you, and you can do with it whatever you wish, please remember that this is not a completed project but a work in progress, i would love for some of you guys to see what you think, and if you can come up with and ideas ect.

This app is and always will be freeware!

mamejukebox3d@pilotslounge.freeserve.co.uk

[DrewKaree]

P

I've gotten it, downloaded it, and read the "read-me".  Do you want me to post the feedback on the manual here or e-mail it back to you?  

I think posting the read-me here would also help you get other people's feedback.  That way, even if they don't get the software from you, they can at least post on how easy it will be to run based on the manual.  Real-world results may vary, but the manual is usually the best indicator of how easy something will be to set up or at least to compare against something else.

[PilotK7]

I was a bit breif above so i think i should explain a bit more about it.

Basically i wanted to make the interface eye catching, and very easy to navigate with just a joystick and a couple of buttons, what you see above is all you get in the actual jukebox itself, you change the selected album with the left and right cursor keys, the tracks are displayed on a rotating 3d list, just use up and down to rotate it.

Pressing the 5 key adds one credit, each credit allows one song selection, you can select a track by pressing the left Ctrl key.

There is a config app with it that allows you change all sorts of setting...

1. You can change the name of the jukebox to whatever you like.
2. Set the album folder to look for albums.
3. Graphics res. (including 320 x 240)
4. Color depth.
5. Delay between random tracks.
6. And you can change the fonts used for the track/album and Scrolling text.
7. Enable or disable Freeplay mode.
8. Enable or disable VSync.
9. Change textures used on background effect.

Its only designed for use on home arcade machines using MAME ect, it's supposed to hold about 10 - 30 album but there is no actual limit, it could have 1000 albums but it would take you a week to scroll from one end to the other

Each albums must have its own folder inside your selected "Album Folder" and they have to be in MP3 format, each album must also contain an image called "cover.bmp", if there is no cover then the albums own folder will not be displayed! (suggestions welcome )
<edit> Requires at least 2 albums to work (thanks Nightmare)<edit>

PN You will require winrar to extract the program and a decent 3d graphics card.
There is no installer at this point, you just need to extract it to an empty folder.

Project is about 25% complete but quiet stable.

[PilotK7]

Sorry i was just typing this up when you replied

BTW Its not a manual just a little note

What I'm after is an idea of what features people really need, but still trying to keep it stupidly simple to control.

Thanks for your time.

[DrewKaree]

FARK!  I just installed firebird and removed IE and gotta get the plug-in for chat.  I'll post my observations here.  They're quite lengthy for just glancing at the read-me, but I still think you'll find them useful and also be able to give me feedback too.

*edit*
BOY do I sound like a pompous ass, hey!  Don't mean it to sound like that, just think it'll help YOU in creating a better product to have feedback, that's all

[DrewKaree]

I took some notes while reading the "read me"

Of all the jukes I tested, I don't recall any of them requiring album art in .bmp format.  All I remember is having to get them in .jpg format.  More than likely someone will be getting images from the net, and I think .jpg is the standard in this area.  If it's not too burdensome, I think rewriting to accept .jpg instead of .bmp would be the wiser way to go.  Is there a way to write variable sized images into the prog rather
than forcing them to be square?  If NOT, is the "square" shape scaleable i.e. 300x300 or 500x500 or does the prog do that for you?

Also, a rewrite of the "read-me" with perhaps an example of the album folder format is in order to help someone unfamiliar with this process.  I can do this for you and send it back to you, if you wish, to show you what I mean.  

I LO-O-OVE the ability to change the name of the jukebox in the config prog (haven't tried it yet, but SUH-WEET feature) but I think you SHOULD have some way to identify your product.  Doesn't make sense for someone to rename their juke to match their cab and then claim they "did it all".  That just craps on all your hard work.  (BTW, did you add this feature so as to make the juke nameable to an individual's cab?  If so,

*insert Boston accent here*

Yer wicked smaht)

Under "background images" you state "But due to the effect these images need to be seamless" I don't unnerstan....what do you mean by seamless?  If I understand the first part of this section, you can change the background of your juke, as well.  Is that correct?  BTW, nice way to make it "skinnable" without a lot of hard work to make a whole new "skin".

"controls"
they're fine for me, but you're working on a way to change 'em.  Good idea, as someone may wish to remap them according to their cab's needs

"known system requirements"
There was a thread that listed the minimum requirements to play mp3's, and it's WAAAAY low,
somewhere in the 300 Mhz range.  If you're running
something that old, you prolly don't wanna shell out for a 3d card (even tho it's pretty cheap now) for this purpose.  IIRC, I don't believe mame requires a 3d card.  I know, I can hear it now - "why WOULDN'T you have at LEAST a G2 card in your machine" - but if you write the prog to be the least resource-intensive, then more
folks can give it a whirl.

Just to give you an example, I'm building a straight juke with a 500 Mhz proc in it JUST for mp3's.  I don't have a
3d card in this thing because all I've got to do is get ANY album art (which IS NOT 3d) onto the screen, therefore, I don't want to have to shell out another $15 to add in an old video card just to view the effects when other juke progs will work without a 3d card  Also,
what if a graphics card won't fit into someone's
cab/juke for WHATEVER reason?  Something to take into consideration.

I say all that to give you some insight into why I don't think that should be a req, and to ask if there's some way to shut down the effects (i.e. make the effects switchable on/off), or perhaps think about writing the same prog without the effects.

All in all, even though it wouldn't run, and I couldn't test it out tonight, it looks as if it has real promise.  I like the pic you have of the interface, and the images in the .rar you sent me are pretty cool too.  I dig the ability to photoshop some new backgrounds and the "skin without being a skin" changable options you have built in.  I'll let you know how it runs when I am able to test it.

I hope I haven't just crapped on your birthday cake and instead you found this to be helpful, otherwise, just tell me to blow it out my cakehole!  

[PilotK7]

Jpg Good idea, i haven't really used to many of the other jukes, i had a look at there screenies and thought most of them looked to computery, i wanted a more arcade feel, so i didn't know what format they used, but allowing jpg will be very easy to implement! Cheers m8

As i said a bit earlier the "manual" is only really a temp' note, it will be replaced with HTML files, and will go into greater depth on how to use the app, but i suspect that the way this app is installed ect will change alot before then.

I will have to come up with a proper name for the app, at the moment its called "MAME Jukebox 3D" but i can't use this because its got nothing to do with MAME, and i'm sure they won't want there name all over it

I intend to leave it so that the person playing the cab only see's the name that has been chosen, this was supposed to be the name of your cab, but it can be anything you want.

Under "background images" you state "But due to the effect these images need to be seamless"

By seamless image i mean its tilable, each edge matchs up with its opposit edge to make a seamless pattern.   I plan to add lots of different types of background effects for you to choose from  

"known system requirements"

The cab that i am building doesn't just play MAME arcade games but also modern 3d pc games, if people have decided they don't need 3d on there machine then they will not be able to use this app.  Most games nowadays use 3d, if people want to be able keep there machines upto date then people will start using 3d cards more and more.   This app uses DirectX 3D with no 2d at all, with so many 2d gui driven apps out there is it so wrong to have a 3d one as well?

<edit>
I understand that you are building a Juke only machine, and that you don't require a 3d card, but i suppose this app is aimed more at an arcade feel rather than to emulate an actual jukebox. (have i posted this in the wrong thread?  )
<edit>

Thank you for your time and interest drewkaree, your input is just what i'm here for

Anyway i work from 12pm to 1am GMT, so i will not be able to respond to anyone until after 1/2am GMT.

[PilotK7]

Demo can now be downloaded from here...

http://mysite.freeserve.com/3djuke/index.htm

BTW it now does support jpg format

[DrewKaree]

did you get the e-mail I sent you with the album/file format addendum?  I didn't know if it made sense, but that's the way I saw it written up somewhere on this board.  

Someone wasn't getting how the Artist/album/songs format was supposed to work and their juke wasn't loading up any of their music

[Brad Lee]

(note: i don't have any 3d on my work PC, so these are more suggestions than review stuff)

If an album doesn't have a cover.bmp/jpg in its folder, does it just show nothing, or is there a default "missing" pic, or can you specify an image to use?

From the screenshots, it looks like it only shows the current album on the screen. Left & Right cause it to move to the next or previous album. Could you put smaller, possibly semitransparent, images of the next & previous albums to either side of the current image/list?

oOo <- where the small o's are the next/prev covers, and O is whats displayed already? Then depending on how it's actually scrolling the albums, it could grow to full size and full opacity as it gets to the center

I'll check it out tonight on my regular machine, looks pretty decent though

[DrewKaree]

Pilot, one thing that just smacked me upside the head as I was reading the page in my tag line:  I just realized your ReadMe was written in Word.  Not everyone uses it.  I've attached it in .txt format for you to add.

Also, please take a look at it before adding it.  It's that "amended" version I sent you, and I'm also not positive I cut/pasted EVERYTHING, so proof-read it.

[PilotK7]

@drewkaree

did you get the e-mail I sent you with the album/file format addendum?

Sorry mate i haven't had that one.

@Brad Lee

If an album doesn't have a cover.bmp/jpg in its folder, does it just show nothing, or is there a default "missing" pic, or can you specify an image to use?

At the moment if there is no cover available then the album is not used, but i think i should add a default "missing" image!

Could you put smaller, possibly semitransparent, images of the next & previous albums to either side of the current image/list?

This could be added, or even as an option in the config. N1 Brad

[DrewKaree]

Sorry, forgot to attach the read-me with the last post.  Here ya go.  Remember, proofread it.  My take on your Album/File hierarchy may be completely off.

[PilotK7]

Thanx drew I've had a look at it and added it to the download.
Have you managed to see it working yet m8?

@Brad Lee

Hows this...  I've added it as a option in the config  

[DrewKaree]

NP on the file.  I haven't had a chance to try it yet, access to a puter with a 3d card is at my brother-in-law's and he doesn't do mp3 (insert GASP here).  

I'll be taking several programs there to test out your stuff, as your screen shots seem VERY interesting.

Good idea @ Brad for the next album cover preview idea, and good implementation.  To add to it, since it's gonna definitely be 3d, how about 3d text for the header of the current album playing OR have the album art rotating (spinning?), perhaps confined to a CD Shape?  

[PilotK7]

I'll be taking several programs there to test out your stuff

Make sure you download the latest version  

I have been playing around with 3d text, and i think it slows down the rendering too much, especially when you have to create the meshs in realtime.   The text system I'm using at the moment applies a texture with the text on it to a 3d mesh, sort of like a piece of paper, this allows me to bend or deform the text anyway i want without to much cpu usage, but it is still 3d.

I like the idea of putting the cover art onto a "3D CD" (if i understand correctly).  My only problem with that is how to map the texture onto to mesh, without the image being deformed or cutting out the middle of the cover where the hole in the cd is, ideas ne1?

Maybe this would work if you could get an image of actual cd print?

<edit>
There is a little bug with the new album display when the juke selects a random track  , but that wont take long to sort out.
<edit>

[DrewKaree]

I did a little Googling and came up with a few pages.  Not sure what prog you're using, but mebbe the theories will translate

Also, I am working on a "seamless" image for you.  I'll read back to see what size it needs to be.

Check out these pages:
http://www.3dcafe.com/asp/tutorials/max/expressions/expressions.asp

and

http://graphicssoft.about.com/library/tuts/bltut5a.htm

Hope those help

[PilotK7]

There are loads of free seamless textures here
http://www.grsites.com/textures/

BTW any image size would be okay, but it's best to keep them square.

[DrewKaree]

I was gonna give the "seamless cow" tutorial I found a whirl....see how easy it is to Photoshop.  I'm checking out that site you recommended right now.  Thanks

Are those links I gave kinda what you're looking for?

[PilotK7]

Great links mate, but the main problem is mapping the album art to the top of the cd, for example if you put a real cd on top of its cover, you'll see how much of the image will be lost in the mapping (all four corners and a big hole in the middle)

Mind you a shiney cd would look great as different background or something


I feel abit guilty for clogging up BYOAC's forum, so i added one to the download site, its cheap (FREE ) and tacky, but it will do for now.

[Nightmare03]

If you need somewhere free and ad-free also, to maybe set up a site for the jukebox you can use my host, just get a .tk domain for free...

[crashwg]

A little option that should be easy to implement would be support for scrolling 10 (more or less, whatever) albums at a time.  That is of course if it doesn't already have that (i haven't checked out your program yet) and what controls are already used.

[edit] Just had a brainstorm.  Lol, just kidding, it's not that good of an idea...  You could use P2's joy stick to do the multiple album scrolling.  For instance:
Left    =    -10
Right  =    +10
Up      =    -100
Down =    +100

This way, it wouldn't take a week to get to the album you are looking for, and you could have an infinite amount.    [/edit]

[housenm]

Yes, a good scrolling feature or overview of albums, would be nice.
Don't know if it's feasible in a low res, but been looking for a good low res
jukebox prog.
Your screens look very good, still need to try it though.