Hi.

I am new to the ProntoNG (love it) and this forum. I have searched the messages and the FAQ but have not found an answer to this question.

I have a ProntoPro7000 (3.8.14) using PPENG 2.1.4.0.

I have been setting up an "IR Codes" page for every device and setting up my GUI pages with links to the "IR Codes" page (as I learned from some of the posted pcf files). However, for the page with buttons for specific TV channels, I would like to set it up as IR Codes from the Universal Database so that I could simply copy that page to all of my devices with TV tuners and not have to re-program every channel to the corresponding device's IR Codes page.

However, it seems that I can only get one IR code per macro. For example, the macro for channel 18 is (obviously):

IR Code - IR Code from the Universal Database - Digit 1
IR Code - IR Code from the Universal Database - Digit 8

When I try to put this in, PPENG insists on making both macro steps identical (i.e. both "Digit 1" or both "Digit 8", depending on the last one I changed). Inserting delays or other macro steps in between does not help.

Is this behavior universal or am I doing something wrong? Am I stuck using links to device-specific IR Codes pages?

Thanks.

Eddie

Never seen this problem before Eddie. Should be able to put any combination of IR codes, delays, jumps and links to other buttons in a macro. Explain a little better how you are entering your data to your macros might help someone answer you better.

Good luck,
Mark

Hi Mark.

I have an icon for channel 18 with the following macro steps:

Link to TV - IR Codes - 1
Link to TV - IR Codes - 8

This works perfectly. I make a copy of the icon, delete these two steps, add an IR Code for Digit 1, then add an IR Code for Digit 8. At this point, the "Actions" tab displays:

IR Code
IR Code

Downloading to my remote and pressing the button sends the TV to channel 88. If I double-click on either code to see its properties, they are both Digit 8.

Glad to hear that this is not normal. If this is completely unheard of, I will try the desperation reboot/re-install.

Thanks.

Eddie

That's a known bug but I thought it was fixed. You can't use multiple database codes in the one macro.

However, you should not set up your config this way. You should have a separate device where you put buttons for each code and use a database or learned code on the button.

Then on your main page where you want to set up a button for channel 18, link to the 1 and 8 buttons in the separate page.

This makes it very much easier when you eventually replace equipment.

I concur. Thats they way I do it. Set up a "Digits" page with each button being one digit with the IR code from the Universal Database. Then the channel icons are macros that link to the Digits. So for BBC1 on Sky I link to Digits-1, Digits-0, Digits-1.

Regards,

Thanks for the information.

So, if I set up the channel icons with links to a "Digits" page, I am going to have to setup macros for 100 channels for each TV/DVR I have. I guess it's part of the setup process, but I was hoping to create a channels page once and cut/paste it to all the relevant devices.

Eddie

Set up a page with one button for each button on your original remote that you ever want to use, including the digits 0 to 9.

Now set up your 100 channels. For each of these e.g. channel 18, link to the codes page
- Link to 1
- Delay
- Link to 8
The delay is important, especially if you want to have the same digit twice such as 22.

If you want to have a second link to channel 18 on a different page, such as a favorites page, do NOT put the links to 1 and 8. Instead link to the channel 18 button already set up.

If you get a new cable box with a different remote, you only have to re-code the digits 0 to 9 (and the other buttons from the remote), then everything will still work.

Thanks for helping me with this. I guess I am not explaining the situation clearly.

I have done what you said and have a "Digits" page with the IR codes and a "Channels" page whose macros link back to the "Digits" page for my living room TV. Now, I would like to have the same "Channels" page for the TV in my bedroom. I would also like the same "Channels" page for my DVR tuner.

If I cut/paste that page into the other devices, the links remain pointed towards the "Digits" page of the living room TV. I am trying to avoid having to reprogram each channel button macro to each device's "Digits" page (both TV's, the DVR, etc...). It's not an impossible task, just checking to see if there is an easier way.

Thanks.

Eddie

Save a copy of your file. Delete everything that is not needed for the channels and digits. Save this to a DIFFERENT file name. Open your original file and then merge the stripped down new file into your existing file. This will give you your original channels and digits macros as well as a new copy of the channels and digits macros. The new macros will point to the new merged device. I think this is what you are trying to accomplish and I hope I explained it well enough. FYI, you will have a new Home device as well at the bottom, you can just delete this. I would change the name of the device in the file you are going to merge to make the links easier to follow.

I have never used the database codes but I have done the same thing with learned codes many times.

TECHNICAL Note!
IR Database - Differences between DB Code and Specific DB Code

Since the original release of the remote, if you are using IR database codes, even though the software allows you to put more than one code in an Action List, sometimes, only the first, or last (i can't recall), will be used.

This is because when a Database code is selected and the Device currently specifies matching 'Equipment' and 'Codeset', the resulting XML format stores the 'DB Code' with the Item and not in the Item's Action List. As a result, even though multiple codes may appear, only the first or last is executed. I know this is confusing but after a few tries and digging through the ConfigEdit.XML files during early beta testing, I noticed that things were awry and identified the issue.

The workaround is to set the Device's User Database properties to something other than the target 'Equipment' and 'Codeset' you desire, then add the User Database codes to the Action List(you must specify 3 entries: Equipment, Codeset, and Function).

What you should now notice is that the codes are then labelled 'Specific DB Codes' rather than just DB codes. What this does is to put an entry into the Item's ActionList versus storing the DB Code in the Item(button) itself.

To avoid all this confusion, My suggestion for best practice is to learn all your keypad codes to buttons and don't use the IR database. But, to workaround this problem, you must build buttons that link to the problematic keypad buttons as suggested above and not try and specify multiple User Database IR Codes in a single action list.

My apologies if this post is indeed confusing. If so, print it out and sit down in front of PENG/PPENG and follow the steps. Hopefully then it will make sense.

Happy Pronto'ing.

It makes sense and is a good workaround, though, I agree it is easier to just learn the codes yourself. It usually just takes a few minutes and you know which buttons do what you're not relying on labels that may not be correct.

Thanks for the clarification. I think I have a workaround, combining some of the suggestions.

1. Create a device called "Channels" with two pages: "Digits" with the buttons from the original remote (or specific DB codes) and "Buttons" with the channel icons with macros linking to the "Digits" page.

2. Copy-and-paste the "Channels" device as many times as needed.

3. Take one copy, rename the whole device to match one of your other devices (e.g. "TV", "TiVo", or whatever device you want to import the channel buttons to). Now, the macros on the "Buttons" page link to "TV - Digits" instead of "Channels - Digits".

4. Edit the 10 digit buttons to match the destination device (TV).

5. Move the two pages to the destination device.

This way, you avoid having to re-link all 100 channel icons to the digits of each device.

Thanks for all the help.

Eddie

Eddie,

I must admit that I've been down with sinus infection and my head is pretty cloudy. I think your solution will apply for you. But you should remember that once you create your digits panel, you typically will only need 1 copy of it, that is, unless, like you say, you want to have a set of channel icons pre-linked to digits lying around for the purposes of merging into a new PCF.

Remember that linking buttons is now quite easy. From the button to which a link needs to be created, simply Alt-Shift-Drag onto a new button and, voila!, a link will be added in the drop-target's action list.

This is definitely one thing that we begged for when beta testing. Philips obliged. Thank you very much. Now, If I could just get an Alt-Shift-Drag from a page to add a jump, I'd be in heaven.

Lyndel