tv library "cache" folder
Something I didn't mention earlier - in previous efforts at this software I've used different ways to capture the metadata from the files, from "do it every time" (very slow) to "hold it in a file" (becomes out of date quickly and needs refreshing).
What I've done with this version is to create a hidden folder called "cache" in each folder that you browse using the application - this folder contains an Access database with the metadata in it which is populated first time you access the folder, and it also contains thumbnails for the video files in the folderl, created the first time you access the folder too.
Each subsequent time you access the folder, the contents of the folder are checked against the database to see if the files already exist in the database - if they do, the metadata is retrieved from the database; if not, the metadata is retrieved from the file and then stored in the database.
If anything goes screwy where you can't see a file in the folder in the app when you would expect to, delete the cache folder and it will get recreated next time you navigate to the folder. Also, you'll need to do this if I need to change the database structure - simple enough job, at the root level of the folders, search for "cache" and delete the folders that are found. I'll put a note on the install that this is required if we ever get to that point.
Cheers,
Andrew
Update: What this also means is that your Media Center needs to be able to write to the folder where you have the video files you want to show in "tv library" - if it doesn't have access, the app should fail semi-gracefully, by loading the metadata each time rather than caching it in the database.