USER INTERFACE LANGUAGES:

You can change the language of the user interface of EMDB to several different languages via the general tab of the Options dialog.

SAVING YOUR DATA:
No need to save your data. All changes will be saved automatically.

BACKUPS:
NEVER use import / export to backup your EMDB data!!! The export is intended to move your data to another application. It does not contain the complete content of the database. Always use the special Backup feature in the options dialog.

AUTOMATIC BACKUPS:
EMDB automatically creates a backup of your data . By default this done every week. The backup is located in the folder EMDB is installed in and is called ‘backup.dat’. The previous one is called ‘previous_backup.dat’. You can restore a backup using the Restore button in the Backups section of the Options dialog. When installing a new version also a backup is created: it's called backup###.dat were ### is replaced with the previous version.

FILE LOCATIONS:
EMDB stores its data (database, thumbnails, automatic backups, configuration file) in the same folder it is installed in. An exception to this is when you are running Windows Vista or Windows 7 and installed in the Program Files folder (the default location of the installer). In this case the database, thumbnails and configuration file will be stored in an EMDB folder in your Documents folder. The HTML output will by default be exported to your Documents\EMDB\HTML folder.

PORTABILITY:
EMDB is fully portable. All settings and data are stored in the folder you installed EMDB in. For this you MUST install outside of the Program Files folder. You can copy or move the folder to another location on your hard drive or e.g. a memory stick. All data will be kept and all settings will be remembered. EMDB will run directly from the memory stick on any compliant PC (see requirements).

MAIN WINDOW:
The main window of EMDB consists of a toolbar to access most used functions, a list showing all movies and a movie info panel showing a lot of info about the selected movie including a thumbnail of the DVD cover if available.

The list can be expanded to get a better overview. This causes the Movie Details Panel to disappear. You should use the arrow button just below the list for this. You can always bring back the movie info using the same arrow button.

Main Window in Full List mode.

The arrow button to Hide or show the Movie Details Panel...

Main Window in List mode with Movie Details Panel...

Using the View Mode Button you can toggle between the Bookshelf and List Mode views, both with or without the Movie Details Panel.

Main Window in Bookshelf mode...

You can resize the main window by dragging the 'gripper' on the bottom right of the window or reposition the window by dragging the caption. You can also use the minimize and maximize buttons on the top right. The position and size will be remembered when you close the application.

MAIN WINDOWS SHORTCUT KEYS:
You can use the keyboard to quickly access some of the features in the main window:

MOVIE THUMBNAILS:
The thumbnails from IMDB are rather small and are usually a film poster or the front of the DVD case. EMDB is designed to use larger thumbnails in the format of a full DVD case insert. These images are available via a lot of websites. In the [Links] section are some great ones listed. You should download the images and use the Browse button in the Add / Edit Movie dialog to select them. EMDB creates a copy of the thumbnail. The original image is not needed afterwards to display the thumbnail when the movie is selected.

Wall-E thumbnail from the IMDB website. (original size)

Wall-E thumbnail created from a DVD insert. (original size)
 

THE TOOLBAR:



The toolbar contains buttons to access the most common actions.

Add Button:
Clicking this button opens a dialog were you can enter new movies.

Edit Button:
Clicking this button opens a dialog were you can edit the currently selected movie or just view its data. You can edit multiple movies at once by selecting them in List mode using the default windows Ctrl-Click (expanding the current selection) and Shift-Click (making a new selection from the previous selection util the new selected line).

Delete Button:
Clicking this button deletes the currently selected movie. A confirmation dialog is shown before deleting. The delete button is disabled by default to prevent accidental removal of movies. It can be enabled in the Options Dialog. You can also delete multiple movies at once by selecting them in List mode.

Play Button:
Clicking this button launches the default mediaplayer and starts the movie if the file location is entered in the location field and the type is one of the supported types (all common types like *.avi, *.mkv, *.wmv, *.iso, *.vob, ...)

Search Button:
Clicking this button enables you to make a selection of your movies based on different criteria e.g. part of the title, actors, director, genre or a combination. The result will be shown in the main window. You can go back to the full list using the Filter -> Show all movies option.

Filter Dropdown Button:
Clicking this button shows a menu were you can filter your movies on several criteria: Loaned, Seen, WishList, TV Series, SD / HD (standard definition / high definition). The result will be shown in the main window. You can go back to the full list using the Filter -> Show all movies option.

Print Button:
Clicking this button shows a dialog were you can print several different lists like All movies, Loaned Movies, a specific range of movies, current Search Results.

Export Button:
Clicking this button shows a dialog were you can export your movies to HTML (e.g. to put them online or on a smart phone), Excel (comma seperated value format) or plain text.

Online Help:
Clicking this button opens this web page in your default web browser.

Options Button:
Here you can set many, many things to change the appearance and functionality of EMDB.

View Mode Button:
Toggles between List mode and Bookshelf mode

Exit Button:
Closes EMDB. All data is saved. All settings are remembered.

MOVIE LIST:

The list shows all movies in the database. Select a movie from the list to view more info. You can select which columns are displayed in the OPTIONS dialog. The width of the columns can be changed by dragging the separation markers in the column header. The sorting can be changed by clicking on the column header of the column you want to sort on. Clicking again reverses the sort order. Double clicking the movie opens a new window showing all data of the movie. Here you can also change all items.

MOVIE DETAILS PANEL:
Here the data of the currently selected movie is shown. To view all data use the Edit button or double click the movie in the list.

LOAN SYSTEM:
The loan system enables you to keep track of people loaning your precious movies. You can enter the name of the person who loan the selected movie in the edit box. The current date is automatically added to the right of the edit box. The changes are saved automatically. When a movie is returned, just select the movie and hit the [Return] button. If you loan multiple movies you just have to type the name once. When you select the second loaned movie and using the [Loan] button the previous used name is reused. You can use the [Loan History] button to view the loan history of the selected movie.

ADD / EDIT MOVIE DIALOG:
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OPTIONS DIALOG:
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