How Amulet identifies media files PDF Print E-mail
General

Amulet identifies these forms of media files:

  • Recorded TV programs, stored in .DVR_MS or .WTV files. The TV program name and information is derived from metadata stored within the file itself.
  • DVDs ripped to your hard disk, stored as VIDEO_TS sub‐folders. The DVD title is derived from a dvdid.xml file inside the folder or from the parent folder name if dvdid.xml is not present.
  • Videos, stored in .AVI, .MKV, .WMV and other files. The video title is the same as the video filename. The series title is taken from the parent folder where the video file is stored.
  • Home Movies, stored as motion‐JPEG .AVI files (most digital cameras record video clips in this format). The title name is taken from the filename, while the collection name is the same as the parent folder containing the video file.
  • Photos and other pictures imported to your hard disk, stored as .JPG, .BMP or .PNG files. The photo collection (slideshow) name is the same as the folder containing the images.

For video and DVD media, Amulet automatically looks up the title in online databases, to identify whether it is a film, TV series, or something else. This determines whether Amulet classifies the item as a Movie, TV Series, or Video in the Amulet user interface.

Below is a more detailed description of how Amulet identifies each video media type:

Movies

  • Anything recorded from TV, where the TV guide metadata identifies it as a movie
  • Any video files or DVD folders where the title gives a successful match at TheMovieDB.org
  • Movies are grouped according to genre, as reported by TheMovieDB.org

Recorded TV

  • Anything recorded directly from TV
  • All files with .DVR‐MS or .WTV extensions
  • Programs are grouped by program title, and according to episode
  • Additional program information is fetched from TheTVDB.com, where available

TV Shows

  • Anything recorded from TV which is identified as episodic in the TV guide
  • Any video filenames containing the phrase S##E##. For example, “House S03E12.avi” is Season 3, Episode 12 of the series House.
  • Any video filenames containing the phrase #x##. For example, “Weeds 2x06.avi” is Season 2, Episode 6 of the series Weeds.
  • The series name is taken as the parent folder name, and not from the filename itself
  • If the series name is present on TheTVDB.com, then additional episode and series information is downloaded, including full episode names where available

Home Movies

  • Any video filename of the form “abcd####”, for example “DSCF1234.AVI”
  • Any video filename of the form ”MOV#####”, for example “MOV00123.AVI”
  • Any video stored using motion JPEG compression internally
  • Videos are grouped according to parent folder name

Videos

  • Any video file or DVD folder not already classified as one of the preceding types is classified as a simple video
  • Videos are grouped according to parent folder name

For convenience, some TV programs may appear twice – once under Movies or TV Shows, and a second time under Recorded TV.