XMBC 2.21 Beta

x64 Replacement/Alternative to Microsoft's IntelliMouse application.
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phil
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XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

With the recent release of 2.20, 2.20.1 and now 2.20.2, I figured now would be a good time to open the next beta run.

However this one may be a little different, at least initially. I was all set to build 2.20.3 to fix some more problems, but I have decided, due to the amount of changes, that I need to give a bit of a test run first. The only way I can do that is via the beta channels, but the versioning scheme does not allow for beta's of point/patch releases. So 2.21 Beta 1 may actually become a patch update of 2.20, released as 2.20.3 IF nothing significant is found during testing. Ive been very active in the last few weeks, but my life has caught up with me somewhat and the next 3 weeks or so I will only have a little time in the evenings after work - which probably means I wont get much done to XMBC.

I hope the changes I have made that I was going to put out as 2.20.3 are all working and nothing bad has been introduced, but as I'm not 100% confident (especially after having to release two minor releases to 2.20 already!) I figure this is the next best thing.

Thus, 2.21 Beta 1 will contain no new GUI work (no new translations needed) and hopefully no new bugs but of course, generally I would expect beta versions more likely to contain bugs (and sometimes more serious bugs) - although in this case, I rather hope not (famous last words!).

Changes since 2.20.2:
  • #804 - Modified versions ox XMBC should log the fact, and some strings in the binaries should be protected from modification.
  • #803 - Fixed another Firefox scrolling issue, when remapping to WHEEL UP/WHEEL DOWN. Consolidated scrolling code so they all call the same function to do the window class/style checks.
  • #802 - Add further logging around any call to set cursor speed, also log the cursor speed set in Windows when hooking the mouse (e.g. resume from sleep) to diagnose random cursor speed changes.
  • #800 - Add ability to customise the Enhanced Pointer Precision threshold values used in Windows to affect acceleration (manually editing the XML settings until 2.21)
  • #791 - Further structural changes to try and prevent XMBC from crashing in the audio/volume manager when resuming from sleep, under certain (rare) circumstances.
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, PM me a copy of the debug log file (or post a snippet in a code block here), ideally noting the time that the problem happened... Although now, XMBC will buffer the last 80 significant debug messages and add them to the log when you turn on debug logging, which I hope will mean if you have a problem, you can just enable debug logging, disable it again immediately and the log file should have captured what happened when the problem occurred (before you enabled debug logging!).

Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only a fraction of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!

The two major areas to focus testing are:
  1. Scrolling, especially with "Scroll window under cursor" enabled. Particularly in browsers (Chrome, Edge and Firefox) and Windows UI (Modern/Store apps, like Files and PowerToys). I have re-worked the code completely to have one place to check the window properties etc, rather than copies (of sorts but clearly not 100%) in at least three different places (nightmare!). Going forward it should make things much easier, but there is a chance I have screwed up things that previously have been working (Ive been checking locally for a few days prior, and so far haven't found anything of concern).
  2. Volume management (including changing volume by scroll wheel, simulated keys etc). There has been a rare, but persistent crash happening since I released 2.20 to a small number of users (none of whom have contacted me after sending the bug report!). I've been unable to completely track it down, but a prime suspect evolved throughout the 2.20.x changes as I narrowed it down. So I have reworked the volume/audio management code, particularly across threads, to hopefully squish this crash completely or, if not, provide more information on when, where and why it happens. Incidentally, so far it has only happened for users who also run AVolute SonicStucio3 which I believe is a driver package distributed with some sound cards/motherboard on board audio devices. I am unable to install that package here so I have no idea it it is a coincidence or actually related to the crash!
Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for new beta announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

As there were some things changed that may impact portable mode, I have also built a portable version. I will attache that here rather than add it to the usual download/mirror sites.
XMouseButtonControl 2.21 Beta 1 Portable.zip
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--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
juqkai
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by juqkai »

I recorded the logs of x86 and 64 programs respectively
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

I have just built 2.21 Beta 2...
Like 2.21 Beta 1, another little fix for a bug introduced in 2.20.x

Changes in 2.21 Beta 2:
  • #805 - Fixed a new issue (in 2.20.x) with Activate on Hover which fails to work for certain window types (popup/non scrolling).
  • #791 - Modified some extended debug logging when audio device property changes.
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, PM me a copy of the debug log file (or post a snippet in a code block here), ideally noting the time that the problem happened... Although now, XMBC will buffer the last 80 significant debug messages and add them to the log when you turn on debug logging, which I hope will mean if you have a problem, you can just enable debug logging, disable it again immediately and the log file should have captured what happened when the problem occurred (before you enabled debug logging!).

Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only a fraction of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!

The three major areas to focus testing are:
  1. Scrolling, especially with "Scroll window under cursor" enabled. Particularly in browsers (Chrome, Edge and Firefox) and Windows UI (Modern/Store apps, like Files and PowerToys). I have re-worked the code completely to have one place to check the window properties etc, rather than copies (of sorts but clearly not 100%) in at least three different places (nightmare!). Going forward it should make things much easier, but there is a chance I have screwed up things that previously have been working (Ive been checking locally for a few days prior, and so far haven't found anything of concern).
  2. Volume management (including changing volume by scroll wheel, simulated keys etc). There has been a rare, but persistent crash happening since I released 2.20 to a small number of users (none of whom have contacted me after sending the bug report!). I've been unable to completely track it down, but a prime suspect evolved throughout the 2.20.x changes as I narrowed it down. So I have reworked the volume/audio management code, particularly across threads, to hopefully squish this crash completely or, if not, provide more information on when, where and why it happens. Incidentally, so far it has only happened for users who also run AVolute SonicStucio3 which I believe is a driver package distributed with some sound cards/motherboard on board audio devices. I am unable to install that package here so I have no idea it it is a coincidence or actually related to the crash!
  3. Activate of windows on hover or on scroll - there was an issue found here that I hope I have fixed in 2.21 Beta 2.
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

OK, Here is 2.21 Beta 3, still intended to be released as 2.20.3 when Im happy its good...

Changes since 2.21 Beta 2 (above):
  • #809 - Fixed regression with HOLDMS causing cumulative delays!
  • #808 - Fixed a bug that caused XMBC to be unable to save settings after the folder (that a previously loaded custom profile was in) was deleted.
  • #806 - Fixed the un-installer so it can be run in silent mode with /S
  • #805 - Further fix for Activate on Hover which can still fail in some cases.
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, PM me a copy of the debug log file (or post a snippet in a code block here), ideally noting the time that the problem happened... Although now, XMBC will buffer the last 80 significant debug messages and add them to the log when you turn on debug logging, which I hope will mean if you have a problem, you can just enable debug logging, disable it again immediately and the log file should have captured what happened when the problem occurred (before you enabled debug logging!).

Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only a fraction of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

OK, Here is 2.21 Beta 4, still intended to be released as 2.20.3 when Im happy its good...

There is nothing really new here, but I have spent some time reviewing the code changes since 2.20 to try and establish why some (2?) users are experiencing random crashes, where XMBC just disappears (no sign of the bug catcher/reporter showing). This sort of crash is notoriously difficult to narrow down/find, especially without debug logging (Im still waiting for any debug log around the time that this crash occurs :().
But I have restructured some of the code, and added some more logging in some places that may be relevant.

Changes since 2.21 Beta 3 (above):
  • #791 - Further structural changes/improvements to try and prevent XMBC from crashing. Also try and ensure crash detector picks up crashes and we have no silent crashes!
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, PM me a copy of the debug log file (or post a snippet in a code block here), ideally noting the time that the problem happened... Although now, XMBC will buffer the last 80 significant debug messages and add them to the log when you turn on debug logging, which I hope will mean if you have a problem, you can just enable debug logging, disable it again immediately and the log file should have captured what happened when the problem occurred (before you enabled debug logging!).

Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only a fraction of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
Camicello
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by Camicello »

Hi,

will you also post a portable version of the latest beta 2.21 beta 4 ?

thank you so much

Kam
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

OK if you insist :).
XMouseButtonControl 2.21 Beta 4 Portable.zip
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
Camicello
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by Camicello »

Hi Phil,

Thank you so much for the prompt response.

I use XMBC as a complimentary tool with PowerPro (my long used and still maintained windows tool that allows me full customization).

Now I can finally use mouse 4 & 5 on my Logitech MX Master 3 mouse to their full capabilities.

Cheers
Kam
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

But, out of interest, why the latest beta rather than latest release - were there actually issues in the release that you were suffering?
I don't usually make portable versions of beta's (often because they change frequently) but also because if you really need the portable version you can just extract the EXE and DLL files from the installer build and make your own portable version manually :)).
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
Camicello
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by Camicello »

Hi Phil,

I am using XMBC as home as well as on my work laptop, which due to admin constrains, does not allow regular installations, but portable tools are fine. As I am so used to using this awesome tool, I was hoping to have the opportunity to use the latest beta at home and at work.

Thanks again for such a prompt reply.

Cheers from Canada
Kam
Camicello
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by Camicello »

Hi Phil,

Not sure if these features have been requested in the past, but would you consider to implement :

(1) window Rollup feature that allows to toggle a window to be rolled up/down
(2) window transparency feature that allows to set the translucency of a window on a 0-255 scale

Thank you for any consideration.

Cheers
Kam
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Dolmatov
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by Dolmatov »

phil wrote: Tue Mar 07, 2023 8:10 pm Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for new beta announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!
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phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

OK, Here is 2.21 Beta 5, still intended to be released as 2.20.3 when Im happy its good...

There is nothing new here, but hopefully i have tracked down and fixed the crash that was causing XMBC to disappear with no crash detection. Thanks to 4ster for reporting providing crash dump information - which actually helped and pointed me where to look!

Changes since 2.21 Beta 4 (above):
  • #791 - Found and fixed one cause of crashing new in 2.20.2. This might fix the XMBC disappearing crash!
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, PM me a copy of the debug log file (or post a snippet in a code block here), ideally noting the time that the problem happened... Although now, XMBC will buffer the last 80 significant debug messages and add them to the log when you turn on debug logging, which I hope will mean if you have a problem, you can just enable debug logging, disable it again immediately and the log file should have captured what happened when the problem occurred (before you enabled debug logging!).

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only a fraction of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!

Portable version is here:
XMouseButtonControl 2.21 Beta 5 Portable.zip

Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
User avatar
phil
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Re: XMBC 2.21 Beta

Post by phil »

OK, Here is 2.21 Beta 6, still intended to be released as 2.20.3 when I'm happy its good... I think the particular crash I was looking for has been fixed in beta 5 now!

Changes since 2.21 Beta 5 (above):
  • #810 - Fixed issue with simkey repeat timer resolution meaning delay times under 15ms were unachievable.
As usual, feedback welcome - especially if you find a bug! Any issues/problems, Enable debug logging, make a note of the time the problem occurs and then PM me a copy of the log file (or post a snippet of the last hundred lines or so in a code block here).

NOTE: If you have check for beta versions enabled, you should get notified of a new version and prompted to update in the next day or so. This is the most efficient method (bandwidth wise) as the updates are only ~1/3rd of the size of the full install. Otherwise, you can get the full installation beta HERE. Note that this link will always get you the latest beta version!

Portable version is here:
XMouseButtonControl 2.21 Beta 6 Portable.zip
Please keep this beta thread on topic. It is for announcements and reporting bugs in the current beta, NOT for requesting new features and/or asking about existing (non-beta) functionality!
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
--[ Phil ]--
--[ Administrator & XMBC Author ]--
Logitech G9/G604/M720/MX518, Microsoft Intellimouse, Trust 16341 BT Mouse
Windows 10 x64, AMD Ryzen 5900x, MSI x570 Tomahawk, 32GB DDR4,
nVidia RTX 2070s, Evo 970 1Tb NVME, 2x2TB WD Black (RAID1)
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