Any fix for "enqueue files"-bug?

[BlackWolf]

hi there,
first, since this my first post here, let me say: thanks for developing one of the greatest applications I ever used in my entire life.

Now to my post itself: I was wondering if there is, by now, any fix for the "Enqueue files in playlist when in one instance mode"-bug, which means that this option just isn't saving (or, to be specific, it is overwritten every time you start vlc).
I think this bug exists since 0.8.7 and though I absolutly love vlc player it's starting to really annoy me, since I can't add anything to my playlist without VLC stopping my current playback.

Will this bug be fixed in 1.0 (just tried the nightly built but it doesn't seem to be)? Or is there any work-around?

Thanks a lot

PS: I noticed that in 1.0, the "Embedded video"-setting doesn't seem to work, so the video is always displayed in an extra window. Just wanted to let you guys know, don't know if this is intentional or anything.

[TheScribe56]

Now to my post itself: I was wondering if there is, by now, any fix for the "Enqueue files in playlist when in one instance mode"-bug, which means that this option just isn't saving (or, to be specific, it is overwritten every time you start vlc).

I've worked in tech support my whole career and one thing I've learned is that if what's supposed to work, doesn't ... try something that isn't supposed to work and see if it will.

Based on that premise, I reinstalled (but I doubt that's necessary) then checked the box to allow only one instance and saved it. That took. Then I checked the box for "Enqueue when only one instance" is allowed, but instead of saving it, I just clicked cancel. Works like a charm. Now I see "Add to VLC players playlist" and "Play in VLC." Both of which I didn't see before.

Can't promise it'll work for everyone, but it's been working for me.

[BlackWolf]

hi, thanks for the response.
sounds like a fluke to me, but I'll give it a shot. which version did you use? some nightly build or just 0.9.8?

thanks

[TheScribe56]

hi, thanks for the response.
sounds like a fluke to me, but I'll give it a shot. which version did you use? some nightly build or just 0.9.8?

9.8a. I've been stting up my new "Christmas computer" and have found all sorts of curious things with Vista 64, so I came here to see if there was an answer to this problem. Realized that others were having it and there appeared to be no solution, so I just tried a few things and voila. It's been working through reboots and shutdowns, but now I'm supertitious about ever hitting the save button again

[magowiz]

This trouble of "enqueue" option not being saved is becoming dated, and surprisingly not addressed.

It has nohing to do with Vista: I have the same problem using VLC with WinXP, also after upgrading to VLC 0.9.8a

Notice that surprisingly the help caption that appears when you move the mouse pointer over the option's checkbox is written in english, not in te selected language (Italian, in my case). So I guess that might mean that the option's id fails. Anyhow, it didn't work, and still won't work. The option is simply ignored and never saved.

[BlackWolf]

@scribe: thanks, but didn't work for me unfortunatly. I'm surprised it works for you because normally, vlc overwrites that option every time you start it. I added the line that enables that option manually to the vlc config file, but every time I start vlc it gets overwritten.

@magowiz: yeah, I guess that after 0.8.6 the id of that option was changed but the vlc settings dialog has not been updatet to the new id since then - don't know why. if maybe we knew the correct id of that option we could manually add it to the vlc conf, but I don't know how to find that.

[BlackWolf]

I just found the fix! at least for me!
Go to your registry:

Code: Select all

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\VLC.avi\shell\Play\command

there will be a (Standard) Key with a value that goes something like this:

Code: Select all

"C:\Program Files (x86)\VLC\vlc.exe" --started-from-file "%1"

you have to add --playlist-enqueue to it so it looks like this:

Code: Select all

"C:\Program Files (x86)\VLC\vlc.exe" --playlist-enqueue --started-from-file "%1"

and save. from now on, if you double-click and .avi-file (note that the path you went to includes VLC.avi!) it will be enqueued to your playlist and not start playing right away. unfortunatly you have to repeat this for every other filetype you want to use that way (so go to VLC.mp4 to change mp4-files for example). but maybe it helps. finally I can add stuff to my queue by double-clicking again!

oh btw: that registry path is from windows 7, but I assume it works the same for older versions of windows

[magowiz]

It's over one whole year, and two versions, that this bug is being reported and not fixed. A simple research on google will show that this trouble affects not only the Win version, but also others.

Why is it so difficult for the developers' community to deal with this? Maybe we should report to somebody else instead of writing in this forums? Any suggestions?

[Rémi Denis-Courmont]

The fact that the option is not saved is very much on purpose. The consequences of allowing to save this option are much worse from usability perspective. I prefer ten reports that you cannot enqueue file, than one thousands that VLC does not play files at all. If you put the option in the command line, as outlined in this thread already, it works fine.

[magowiz]

The fact that the option is not saved is very much on purpose. The consequences of allowing to save this option are much worse from usability perspective. I prefer ten reports that you cannot enqueue file, than one thousands that VLC does not play files at all. If you put the option in the command line, as outlined in this thread already, it works fine.

I acknowledge your choice, but then I must comment that:
a) a message saying "WARNING! THIS OPTION SHALL BE RESET TO DEFAULT VALUE UPON RESTART" should be added close to the setting, so I and other hundreds of users will not lose days wondering why the heck the option keeps resetting.

b) You may say now that automatic enqueuing is not pratical. Yet, videolan in its old verions allowed to do that. I remember it working great for years: I would click on this, this and that song, and then that other, and over and over again, and then I would simply let the software play the sequence. Clicking on several files is much, much more immediate than right clicking an choosing "Add to queue". If it was working fine in older versions, why changing this option while letting the option's checkbox in the parameter?

c) If you confirm that a solution can be worked around by manually modifying the registry of file associations, then you agree that saving this option CAN be useful (as it used to be in previous VLC versions). Then why not letting a well documented option, with plenty of instructions, be saved?

thanks

[Rémi Denis-Courmont]

The whole point is that this option should be set from the command line and not from the configuration file.

[colordrops]

A large percentage of people using a UI based application will not be aware of config vs command line settings. As a software engineer of 15 years and a casual user of VLC even I was unaware the some of the "Interface Settings" options in VLC were actually command line only. I've always been extremely flustered as to why some settings in VLC stick and others don't across instantiations, and now I know why. Why put one checkbox (allow only one instance) next to another (enqueue files when in one instance mode) and a save button below them that only works on one of them? It doesn't make sense. There are three alternatives:

• Make it actually save its state across instances
• Remove it from the Interface Settings dialog
• Move it to another part of the app, maybe "temporary settings", that will not be confused with those that save across instances

The current functionality is not in line with any acceptable user interface design standards. I've never seen it anywhere, and it is completely counter-intuitive.

That being said this is an amazing application and this is a relatively minor problem, but one that is annoying enough to register an account and post about.

- Colordrops

[Rémi Denis-Courmont]

The option used to work, until the work-around was added, but by that time the UI part was omitted. Im the VLC 1.0.5, the option will be removed from the preference dialog.

In VLC 1.1.0 the root cause of the bug is fixed, so the work-around is lifted and the option should work fine.