Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum

Main => Software Forum => Topic started by: BMOC on April 04, 2015, 10:11:33 pm

Title: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: BMOC on April 04, 2015, 10:11:33 pm

I've just setup my Mala cab to randomly play videos from the video snaps folder where I have over a hundred videos.  But I have to say that it doesn't seem to be as random as I would expect.  Certain videos play with a very high frequency.  Has anyone else experienced this?

I realise of course that if it's truly random then there is a chance that certain videos will appear to be playing more frequently by chance alone, but I feel quite certain that this isn't my imagination, though I leave room for the possibility that it is.

Title: Re: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: behrmr on April 04, 2015, 10:32:52 pm

I didn't like the way it worked either.  I set windows screen saver to the blank screen saver.  Then when Mala starts I started a background winbatch (you could do ahk) script that waited for the blank screen saver window to appear.  When that happens I sent some joystick moves to Mala.  That way Mala is always showing a different preview.

Code: [Select]

' Allow Windows to be exited with no warning
IntControl(12,1,0,0,0)
'Allow quiet termination:
IntControl(12,4,0,0,0)

cnt = 0
defaultString = "{DOWN}{UP}{DOWN}{UP}{UP}{UP}"
While @TRUE
cnt = cnt + 1
if cnt > 5 then
KeyString = DefaultString
cnt = 0
else
KeyString = "%KeyString%{DOWN}"
End If
WinWaitExist ("Blank Screen Saver", -1)
If WinExist ("MAME") <> @TRUE Then
If WinExist ("MaLa") Then
SendKeysTo ("MaLa","{DOWN}{UP}{DOWN}{UP}{UP}{UP}")
End If
End If
End While



Title: Re: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: BMOC on April 04, 2015, 11:02:58 pm

So when you say you didn't like the way it worked, you also found it to be non-random?

So what your solution does is scroll the game list around every minute or so (however long it takes for the screensaver to initiate)?  That's clever.

However I do like having full screen video going when the cab is not in use.  I don't actually have video previews in my menu, just screen snaps, I've only downloaded the video snaps specifically for this purpose.  I want the multi-game equivalent of a normal attract mode.

Title: Re: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: behrmr on April 05, 2015, 10:35:12 am

I just didn't like the full screen previews.  I prefer to have the machine sitting at the frontend but didn't want it to sit endlessly on the same game selection.

Title: Re: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: BMOC on April 05, 2015, 07:57:47 pm

Ahh, I see.  Yeah they don't look fantastic on a proper arcade monitor, since they are of course not displaying the correct game resolution.  Bit blurry.

Title: Re: Mala screen saver mode - Random video selection?
Post by: thomas_surles on April 07, 2015, 04:28:59 pm

Reminds me of the shuffle on my phone. Always picks the same handful of songs.