Combining folders in one database

[santiago102]

Hi,

I have tried to find this in the list but without success, although I suspect it is a comon problem.

I have a sansa clip+.  This has a 32GB extra external memory.  On the player, I have a folder with 430 files (tracks), and on the SD I have another with 272 files.  I have marked both folders in 'Select Directories to Scan'  with a < and then Initialised.  The Settings include random shuffling.

I have managed before to get the screen to show, for example, 1/500, which meant then that all files in both folders (a total of 500 files) were used for the random shuffling.  Great, but I cannot find how to get back to this situation where I sould see 1/702 this time.  Instead I get 1/430 or 1/272.  What should I do to get back to where I was, please, with the two folders merged into one database?  Many thanks.

[saratoga]

By default the database scan all folder and all storage devices. Unless you changed something, that is what you will get.

[santiago102]

Yes, I know but it doesn't here.  What might I have changed to prevent this working properly?

[santiago102]

When I switch on and get the database with 272 files, it plays through these and then immediately goes on to the folder with 430 files.  So the player is reading the SD OK, but just not merging the databases.  I suspect the answer may be in how I select the directories to scan but cannot find out what I should do other than what I have already.

[saratoga]

Are you using the database? It sounds like you're describing the file browser.

[santiago102]

Hi,

Thanks for replying. Yes, I think so.  On switching on, I went to Database (long push) then Select Directories to Scan, then marked with a < the two folders within directories that I want included (the other folders are Audiobooks and Podcasts, which I don't want).  The main Directories are the base Directory and MicroSD1; I selected Music from both.  Then, on closing, the player started to Intialise.  I left it alone for quite a while then closed the player and re-opened it.  Still two separate databases, running from one to the other (after playing track 430 of 430, the next is track 1 of 272 and so on).  I am not sure how random the choice of tracks is, but the player does not hop from one database to the other and back again as one might expect from a shuffle (set to YES).

[[Saint]]

The default behavior is to to exactly as (as far as I parse it) you desire. Consolidate all media from all locations. You don't have to change anything to achieve this. You do not have to select directories to scan manually.

There seems to be some breakdown in communication or confusion  somewhere. You seem to be describing a mixture of behavior from both the file browser and database functions. To be entirely clear, the database and file browser functions ('Database' and 'Files' respectively) are entirely unrelated.

Upon opening the database, you should see something akin to:

Database

• Composer
• Track
• Year
• User Rating
• Recently Added
• ...

There should be no distinction between internal or external storage in the database. You will however see this in the file browser.
A screendump of what you believe to be the database would be interesting perhaps (Settings - System - Debug (Keep Out!) - Screendump; then plug USB to trigger a screen capture and upload to Imgur), as well as a Pastebin of your current config  (/.rockbox/config.cfg).

It would also be very helpful if you reset your settings (Settings - Manage Settings - Reset Settings) and then initialized the database in the expected fashion with no modification by simply selecting Database from the main menu, and then pressing Select when prompted to, and verifying that the behavior you see still exists.

If it is repeatable with either a clean or dirty config, knowing the exact Rockbox version (Settings - System - Rockbox Info - Version) would be interesting also, as well as if the issue persists with either a clean or dirty config when using the most recent development build available to you at the time.

But at this stage I'm putting my money on you thinking that the Database menu entry is just a settings portal to govern behavior of the Files menu entry when in fact the two are entirely unrelated.


[Saint]

[santiago102]

Hi,

I was puzzled about how to do what you ask.  Settings does not have 'System' on normal or long push.    I don't know what Imgur is, so can't send anything to it.  What is Pastebin? (I have clicked on the name and got a webpage but am none the wiser).

However, I have reset my settings and initialised as you describe.  When this was finished, I started the player by clicking on one of the files in the 430 group and th screen said 1/430.  When I clicked on one of the files in the 272 group, the resulting screen said 1/272.  After leaving this for a bit, I went to Playlist Catalog - View Current Playlist and this now has 694 files (not 702, but no matter -I'll find these later.)  Going back to Now Playing, lo and behold 1/694.  So problem solved - many thanks, although i still don't understand what has happened.  Maybe the initialising is slower than I esxpected; the average track is about 15-20 min long (about 40GB altogether).  When I add new files to one or other directory, how will the player automatically include them or do I need to initialise, or update, each time?  I don't want to do resets again as I then lose my theme and that is a pain.  But many thanks, I am grateful to you.