[help] looking for an ave-like desklet to monitor/control itunes on another pc

yeah, and it's even more complicated than that. here's the deal:

my work pc (wxp) is too slow to have itunes running while i work. so, i moved my library to another pc (w2k3). i then pointed my ibook's (10.4.4) itunes to that new library. i've got speakers plugged into the ibook and those speakers sit in front of my monitor, which is the wxp box. that's the setup, works like a champ. so...

what i'd like to do is be able to have new track popups, album art, and maybe even control of the ibook's itunes via a widget of some sort...or somehting that i don't know what it could be. of course, all these pc's are on the lan at work so connectivity isn't a problem. the only problem is asking the impossible!!

ideas, anyone?

#358035

It can be done... one way that I can think of is building plugin which uses one module that act as server/host on system that runs iTunes, and other module as client/listener on connected systems.

Then maybe u can use this other module to have desired interface.. like avetunes for example.

EDIT : What am I thinking...?? iTunes can broadcast over the network, it already has a bloody network capabilities. Only gripe is it can be used on other system only with iTunes.... If anyone can work around that and build an app that can hack that lock and let other apps use iTunes network interface... Now that's a one to do it.

#358093

thx igo. yeah, well, i'm already using the broadcast, kind of. the problem is, i can't have itunes running on my main pc, it just bogs down too much. that's why i'm looking for a (i'm now officially calling this) "network remote control". ta da!

i was thinking maybe konfab...er, yahoo widgets would be the way to go as it's already cross platform, but i didn't find anything in the gallery.

shouldn't be too difficult for someone with coding skills to write a widget with the parameters 'please enter the i.p. address of the itunes you would like to control' and 'is that a pc or a mac?' (pssst...judge, pcm...i'm talking to you!)

so simple, it almost writes itself!

#358107

Wouldn't it still run itself through iTunes? Doesn't AveTunes, for example, have to have iTunes open to run? I'm likely mistaken, but the widgets I'm familiar with all need to have iTunes running in some manner.

-NC

#358119

NO NO... What I'm talking is entirely different idea. You see... I'm talking about Running a Standalone App instead of iTunes on Client System to recieve Network Broadcast from iTunes on Host System.

That way, this "App" recieves Audio, id3 info (w/ Album Art) from the Host iTunes and Displays it in a nice form... (like widget shows).. just that it won't be a widget but standalone application. The advantage is that it will take lesser memory than iTunes since it won't have to run all other bells n whistels and stuff like iTunes, and just recieve and show job... and offcourse it can be made skinnable.

Now the problem with such app is.... You can't recieve iTunes broadcast in any other app but iTunes only... maybe Apple uses some kinda application identifier or some protection warpper around broadcasting packets. If someone can work around that then our "APP" can recieve and play the iTunes broadcast.

#358133

nc: well, yes, itunes does have to be open. but what i'm looking for/proposing is that the itunes that is open is on another pc.

igo: i appreciate the input, but i feel like you're going off on a tangent. what you're proposing isn't what i have in mind. ultimately, i think you're idea has broader appeal, but all i'm looking for is a way to view track/album info of a remote instance of itunes. the controls would be icing on the cake.

paul, lemme ask you this: what's the difference between hooking into a local instance of itunes vs hooking into a remote instance of itunes? i think there isn't any, except of course getting there and back. hmmm...as i say that in my head, i start to hear how hard this actually might be. well, wait...there's lots of stuff you can send/receive over ip, right? wmi info comes to mind. why not api hooks? (i'm using jargon that i have no idea how to use. how'm i doin'? i might be saying it wrong, but i think you get the idea). funny you should mention i.m. i was actually thinking that maybe vnc would be a good transport. but, if you think this is a big task, obviously, i have to bow to your greater knowledge.

i don't know. i figured something like this already existed and i just didn't know about it. well, folks, you heard it here first!

now i'm just babbling...

#358156

Well.. controls are not exactly what I had in mind for the remote app I was describing.

I had more like a simple Listener Program in my mind. I guess I don't have my way with words..lol. But the app should be simply listening to iTunes running on remote system and display it's ID3 Tags and Album Art.

The same way u do when u connect to another iTunes on ur network with local iTunes and see it's song list, play song and view the info.

#358182

okay, i see what you're saying. you're talking about an alternative app to itunes for playing shared itunes libraries over a network. that's a neat idea, but won't help me. dammit, igo! this is about me, man! MY thread, MY needs. ME ME ME!!!

i suppose the only difference between what i'm talking about and what you're talking about is that i don't want or need the audio stream part. i already got that worked out for myself. i just want the data part.

(did i mention 'me me me!!'?)

#358215

I'd have a solution ready if there were only two PCs involved. Macs pass my knowledge.

Why not run iTunes on the w2k3 and remote control it from wxp?

After all the questions boils down to:

Where do you want your popups / remote control? On your lame work PC?

Scenario for this:

Have both wxp and w2k3 in the same domain.

Install same version of iTunes on both.

a) Redirect iTunes COM server object on wxp with dcomcnfg.exe to w2k3

run any widget you like, it will work if the same user is logged in on both.

Edit widget of your choice

where it reads:

CreateObject("iTunes.Application")

to

CreateObject("iTunes.Application", "W2k3ServerName")

Might not work with Konfab/YWE

hth,

herd

#358243

wow, that's pretty interesting, and i think it will work. it's a tad beyond my knowledge base, but looks easy enuf. i'll let you know...

thx!

edit: okay, so, for point "a)", here is where i point to my server, yes?:

then for "", i'm not sure where to edit that. it's not in the skin.ini. are we talking about hacking ituneswidget.dll?

#358265

For , hacking iTunesWidget or iTunes50 docklet is not an option.

Maybe you have a SysStats / AveScripter config or Konfab or Kapsules widget whose source you can patch.

Its a very interesting issue and I'm definite to include this in my iTunes50 docklet!

#358629

man, i could do this if it were pc to pc but with the mac involved i dont really know what i could do because i dont really know what to use in place of the com interface in windows. i think ill give it a shot with some of the script ive already made but beond windows i dont know what i can do.

#358836

i can eliminate the mac from the equation, i just need a longer speaker cable. that would work just swell for me. i'm only using the mac as a controller, anyways.

so gentlemen, start your engines...

#358869

To clarify the DCOM solution:

On the server, edit the settings on the security tab so that e.g.

the user 'Domainshmengie' (or 'W2K3shmengie' or 'WXPshmengie' ) has the right to remote access/create the iTunes component. Never enter the values manually but select them from the lists.

The best would be that user 'shmengie' has an account on 'W2K3' and logs in on 'WXP' with exactly that account.

On the client, uncheck 'run the application on this computer' and check 'run the application on the following computer', click browse... and select the W2K3 server. If there is no server but the local XP workstation, WXP is not trusted by the 'Domain' hosted by 'W2K3' and we can't use DCOM here.

This DCOM thingy will never work on peer-to-peer networks where there isn't any domain master (must be Windows NT/2K/XP/2K3 server edition or a Linux server with proper Samba install) which knows and trusts the clients/servers. (domain membership for both client and server is a must)

If all these hurdles are taken, you can enjoy a safe and if you want encrypted remote control of any COM server. I doubt that you can show album art, because the widgets generally tell iTunes to save the artwork to some hard coded paths that now reside on W2K3...

If it never works and you are confident about the security of your network, you can degrade 'authentication' to 'none', turn XP's built-in firewall off (for your local subnet) - I don't have a domain controller at home for testing so I just tried to recall jobs I did in the NT4 days...

hth,

herd

#358873

cool, thx herd. i'll give it a shot when i get back to work on tuesday.

(btw, i till use your itunes50 docklet. can't see ever using anything else. how's that scrolling text feature coming along? )

#358888

Scrolling text is so lame on both AveDesk and RKLaucher that I say: Forget it.

At least there is a limit text implemented that comes in handy for radio stations.

Another thing I have added and going to release soon:

Detect whether the screensaver is on or the workstation is locked and pause/resume playback accordingly

#358910

so i started on my little desklet when i ran into a little bump i need some help with, when i call the new COM("iTunes.Application") php-cgi seems to want to run its own "user" of itunes in its own little world. meaning it wont work with my current itunes setup, i need to exit itunes and let it launch its own instance of itunes by itself, and this can be quite annoying. i was just wondering if anyone knew what was going on here. as of progress ive got most the php work done i just need to build the desklet. oh and i was wondering if anyone knew how to make like a one run exe file that automaticly runs the server and all without need for configuration. it would make it allot easyer for the end user. thx for any help on my little problem.

dpsleep

#359361

so i started on my little desklet when i ran into a little bump i need some help with, when i call the new COM("iTunes.Application") php-cgi seems to want to run its own "user" of itunes in its own little world. meaning it wont work with my current itunes setup, i need to exit itunes and let it launch its own instance of itunes by itself, and this can be quite annoying. i was just wondering if anyone knew what was going on here. as of progress ive got most the php work done i just need to build the desklet. oh and i was wondering if anyone knew how to make like a one run exe file that automaticly runs the server and all without need for configuration. it would make it allot easyer for the end user. thx for any help on my little problem.

dpsleep

A webserver indeed runs as its own 'user' and in its own security context - some aren't even allowed to access the desktop of the logged on user. Itunes's COM implementation stresses on a so called 'local server' and has no notion of different user credentials. Check your php-cgi documentations if it's allowed to interact with the logged on users desktop and if it allows you to 'impersonate a client'. I don't think there is a sound solution but I may be wrong.

hth,

herd

#359421

I am not sure if it will help but some of you might find it interesting: http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?sto...27466&lsrc=osxh

#359498

hmm, i kno i had it working before, i just re-installed windows so i had to re-install my server. ill go thru my php.ini file and see if i can find anything in there. i have php talking to itunes though so i can veiw song titles change songs and veiw artwork, onlt crappy thing is the whole it running its own itunes...

oh and i might make a version for mac if i can figure it out. but i dont have a mac so ill have to use the ones at school most likely and well, those are just restricted as hell..

#359669

To clarify the DCOM solution:

On the server, edit the settings on the security tab so that e.g.

the user 'Domainshmengie' (or 'W2K3shmengie' or 'WXPshmengie' ) has the right to remote access/create the iTunes component. Never enter the values manually but select them from the lists.

The best would be that user 'shmengie' has an account on 'W2K3' and logs in on 'WXP' with exactly that account.

On the client, uncheck 'run the application on this computer' and check 'run the application on the following computer', click browse... and select the W2K3 server. If there is no server but the local XP workstation, WXP is not trusted by the 'Domain' hosted by 'W2K3' and we can't use DCOM here.

This DCOM thingy will never work on peer-to-peer networks where there isn't any domain master (must be Windows NT/2K/XP/2K3 server edition or a Linux server with proper Samba install) which knows and trusts the clients/servers. (domain membership for both client and server is a must)

If all these hurdles are taken, you can enjoy a safe and if you want encrypted remote control of any COM server. I doubt that you can show album art, because the widgets generally tell iTunes to save the artwork to some hard coded paths that now reside on W2K3...

If it never works and you are confident about the security of your network, you can degrade 'authentication' to 'none', turn XP's built-in firewall off (for your local subnet) - I don't have a domain controller at home for testing so I just tried to recall jobs I did in the NT4 days...

hth,

herd

well, here's the thing...

looks like even if i configure all this (which i have), my local xp box still wants to open itunes , which kinda ruins my whole Master Plan. (mwah -hah-hah!!) unless, of course, i did something wrong, which is inconceivable!

so, what i did was: make the dcom changes. then, i added an avetunes desklet. then, i tunes opened on my local box. then i stopped. is this the behaviour you were expecting? i was hoping that the dcom thing is like: "oh look, an avetunes desklet. i better open itunes. hey, wait! windows tells me that itunes is on that computer over. well, i'll just open that one then, and use avetunes to control that itunes." anyways...

it's great that all you brainiacs are thinking about this. thx to all for their time and input. and keep thinking!!

#359851

Sorry I can't help you at this issue.

If you tweaked correctly, on XP the key LocalServer32 under:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTCLSID{DC0C2640-1415-4644-875C-6F4D769839BA}

should be renamed to _LocalServer32 (note leading underscore).

Then, if your XP isn't member of the domain, running iTunesWidget should fail after a while.

If the user that logs on to XP doesn't have enough privileges to launch iTunes on the 2003 Server, running iTunesWidget should fail fastly.

In the real world of corporate networks, doing things like this succeeds out of the box - but it can fail if iTunes itself wasn't well coded. Meanwhile I'm preparing a peer-to-peer solution with TCP/IP sockets programming for all those maroon cartoon fans out there. I hope you can open a (configurable) port for your LAN to the purpose.

hth,

herd

#360100

well i got everything working again. itunes opens normally and all. now all there is to do is build the desklet.

#361303