We added some very nice new features to the skin engine. However, some of these changes do require that skins are updated to work properly with 1.2.0.

The list of skin related changes between 1.1.x and 1.2.0 can be found on the related wiki pages in our new wiki. Although the new wiki is not quite ready for public beta testing, we wanted to provide our skin designers and testers advanced access to the updated documentation for the 1.2.0 alpha release.

There is no need to register or login to browse our new wiki since it is only available for browsing at present.· We will be issuing a news release about the wiki once it is ready for public beta test.

Skin designers should keep track of the new wiki pages regarding any additions we make as we are still in the process of documenting the many new skin features.
Videos Enhancements:

Deda has taken our Videos feature to a whole new level. He has added several new features, as well as speedups and bug fixes.

These changes will upgrade your videos database. After the upgrade, the database will no longer work with older MediaPortal versions. This is an important consideration when testing 1.2.0 Alpha.

These changes are already fully documented on the Video Database 1.2.0 page in the Configuration section of the new wiki.

Note: Users of the FanArt Handler Extension have to wait for a new, 1.2.0 compatible version.
Smooth Video Playback:

Owlsroost has spent the last few months on enhancing the video playback of MediaPortal. The result of his work is now part of 1.2.0 alpha. Check it out!
Speedup:

We made several significant changes which improve the overall responsiveness of MediaPortal.· In some cases you will see response times reduced by over 50%. See if you can spot them!
Other changes:

* [Feature] #2977 we now support TV-Cards from Digital Devices
* [Fixed]#2926 No instant switch to prev/next channel after resuming a paused live TV
* [Fixed] #2975 Setup fails to replace files during upgrade
* [Workaround] #2926 - MediaPortal can now work without MediaInfo.dll
This workaround will help users to play files which cause a freeze of MediaPortal on playback start due to a bug in MediaInfo
* [Fixed] #3089 My Music: Retrieving Artist Info / Album Info is no longer working
* [Feature] #3016 Closed Captions support for DVD
* [Fixed] #2600 when deleting an item, focus jumps to beginning of the list
* [Updated] #3102 updated MediaInfo.dll to latest build - old version could crash MediaPortal with some *.ts files

Complete list of changes:

Please have a look at our changelogs for a complete list of changes:

* Changelog: MediaPortal·
* Changelog: TV-Server
* Changelog: Installer - DeployTool

Installation Notes:

Extensions:

* Before you install 1.2.0 ALPHA - make sure you disable or remove incompatible versions of the extensions (plugins & skins) you use.
* Incompatible plugins will not work and could stall MediaPortal completely (you need to wait for the author to update the plugins)
* Incompatible Skins will throw a warning when you start MediaPortal (you need to wait for the author to update the skin)

MediaPortal 1.1.0 installation present:·

* The installer will allow you to simply "upgrade" to 1.2.0 ALPHA.

After the Installation/Upgrade:

Upgrades and first time install:

* Please reboot your PC after the installation/update has finished. This might not be required, yet we recommend it.

Report Problems and Support:

* If you think that you found a bug, then please post a detailed report in our 1.2.0 Alpha Development Forum.

Upgrades:

* Please visit "MediaPortal Configuration > General Section" and change the "log verbosity" to "Debug". This is required for bug reports.
* Also go to "MediaPortal Configuration > Videos -> Database" and update your grabber scripts

its contains

-EmuNation4.1.0.21
-vPlug2.4.5
-WinCSC_1.4.0.2579
-SoftCSAPlugin2.40
-s2emu1.28.1
-Hadu CCCam DVB plugin beta0.125
-DCW-plugin
-HaTy Client Ver 2.6.0
-Acamd 0.6.1.8
-Mbox gbox plugin

-temporary workaround for OSCAM servers (see "OSCAMWa" option, and all the comments for it) added as a possible option,
-possibility to have only EMM active added (see "EMMAlone" option),
-the maximum number of providers per nodes has been increased to 40,
-possibility to update more than one card (i.e. node) of the same CAID for EMM purposes added,
-bug fix for nodes with too many providers,
-transparency for Monitor and Server Infos windows added (see "UseTransparency" option for more details),
-"IgnoreProvFor" option now also used for EMMs,
-providers are no more checked for Betacrypt CAIDs (ECMs and EMMs). So, you can remove your "IgnoreProvFor=1702" or "IgnoreProvFor=1722" option lines if you wish,
-bug fix for BetaCrypt EMMs process,
-bug fix concerning the DCWsOneServ option,
-bug fix for the emulator nodes recognizing,
-modification for the non standard CCCam servers and the corresponding "NonStd" option: it's now supposed to work automatically (see "NonStd" option for more details),
-bug fixes concerning different particuliar cases when several servers are in use,
-bug fix for incorrect behavior of server connections when the plugin is deactivated,
-bug fix because current ECMs were not sent immediately when a new server is activated (if several servers are active and at least one is OK),
-by default value has been changed for the MaxConnections and MaxECMPIDs options. You'll have to manually modify your current Hadu.ini file, if you plan to use these new by default values,
-number of active CCCam servers at the same time no more limited to 6 (but still limited to a maximum of 64 CCCam servers, active or not active). Set the new by default values for the MaxConnections and MaxECMPIDs options, if several servers are in use,
-bug fixes for a possible improper re-connection when the disconnection has been provoked externally (network and/or distant server),
-bug fix for Viaccess "long" ECMs (for TNTSat mainly),
-size for Monitor and Server Infos windows now also saved into Hadu.ini (if changed by the user) when pushbutton "OK" is pressed. Furthermore, the size of the columns for the different lists of these windows is now also saved,
-it's now possible to sort the nodes list into the Server Infos window for some columns,
-reject of null DCWs (processed as 'No decoding'),
-some other bug fixes and minor enhancements.