Is it possible to hide a device or a macro from the drop-down list?
Making a device a template will hide it but will also not allow a jump to its panel - so it really does not help. While you can burry multiple panels inside a single device - so as not to have an additional one show up on the drop-down list, you loose the capability of assigning hard key actions separate and different for each panel.

So the quesion is, can you hide a device or a macro ?
Is there a workaround for that ?

In my CCF, I have only One "Virtual" Device (in reality I have 7 diferent devices). All Panels are hidden. They are labeled as TV1, TV2, DVD, X-10, Switch, etc . . . each Panel for each Device starts out with that designation (ie; TV1-Main, DVD-XPort, VCR2-Codes, etc).

This way I don't have any Scroll Arrows -AND- I don't have anything "recognizeable" in the Device Drop-down. My Device Name is a 'period', which shows up on the Pronto Device List as a small box with an X in it. And if it is pressed it does virtually nothing but leave you on the same Panel you are on already.

All Panels/Buttons either jump you to where you want/need to go to next or don't jump at all, as the case may be.

There are three Tabs across the top of each Panel:
1) WATCH - which drops down a menu allowing you to switch between devices , taking into consideration where you are at the moment and where you have selected to go to next. These are the Workhorse Panels, they do all the Power ON/Off, Input Switching, etc). Very important here to start off in a KNOWN STATE.
2) "CURRENT DEVICE NAME" - which lets you switch between each Panel within the device you are using at the moment.
3) CONTROLS - which lets you go to any other device's Main Panel, in case you are "doing 2 things at once" and need to temporarily switch to another device's controls.

My Home Icon's .bmp is a box the color of the rounded ends of the Home Icon, so it ends up looking like a little grey "pill" that doesn't draw much attention to itself, and hence doesn't get pressed too often.

#3 can potentially cause sequencing problems, but there are ways it could be "protected" from "unauthorized" use but still be available to those who have the need for it and the knowledge to correct the sequencing.

Sounds complicated, but works very smoothly, despite having a Toshiba DVD (TOAD).




Mike Randall's Big Button CCF
(click to download)
It's not really "pretty", it's got Big Buttons for Big Fingers and not much else. A tabbed design with 7 actual devices, combined into one virtual device with all panels hidden, everything jumps you to where you need to go next. One tab allows you to access the main panel for each device if needed. Home page is a borrowed Matrix BMP with access to a clean screen and a couple of “hidden” buttons that activate- deactivate an X-10 Security Camera after everything else is shut off. Includes panels with all Panasonic codes, downloaded from the files section.
DVD: Toshiba SD2200
Lighting: X-10 IR543
Switch: Emerson EVS4000
Television 1: Panasonic CT-27624A
Television 2: Sony KV-9P1T20
VCR 1: Sansui VHF6010B
VCR 2: RCA

MIKE

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Mike,
I understand exactly what you did. Unfortunately
this configuration with multiple panels under one "virtual" device does not allow using different hard keys assignments for each device.
What I am looking for is a fully configurable device, which will not show up in the drop-down menu.

BTW, I do not think that BIG buttons are not "pretty". I think it is much more functional. Yes, a nice background has a "oh so cool" effect when you show off your Pronto, but I believe it is the usability day-to-day, that is much more important.

Foo: you cannot hide devices, but you can "camouflage them". The Pronto accepts any name for a device, even any number of spaces. so if you name your device " " and you put it at the end of the list no one will tend to press it