2/3/2003

Welcome to The PC Jukebox!!

After your evaluation, if you would like to purchase the full version of the program and unlock it to your entire music collection, please visit www.thepcjukebox.com and click on the Purchase button.  When payment is received, you will receive a registration code that, once entered, will unlock your entire music collection.

To setup The PC Jukebox on your computer, please refer to the text document entitled 'The PC Jukebox Installation - READ FIRST!!.txt' located in the same folder as this document.

Once The PC Jukebox has been successfully installed and set up on your computer, you are ready to begin listening to your music.  While much of the operation of The PC Jukebox is pretty straightforward, there are some hidden tips and tricks that can add to your enjoyment of the program, if you know where to find them!!  Here is a description of some of the more advanced features of The PC Jukebox.


1.  Random Mode

Clicking on the 'Random - Off' button will put The PC Jukebox into Random Mode.  The display on the button will change to 'Random - On' and the button color will change to green.  If there currently are no songs in the queue, The PC Jukebox will select a song at random and begin playback immediately.  If, however, there are one or more songs in the queue, The PC Jukebox will continue to play those songs in order until the queue is empty.  Once the last song has completed, The PC Jukebox will again select a song at random and begin playback.  While in Random Mode, songs can still be added to the queue as normal.  Once the randomally selected song has finished playing, The PC Jukebox will continue to play songs from the queue, again until it is empty.  In this manner, a user can select a few songs and then let The PC Jukebox take over, so the music never stops!!


2.  Party Mode

Party Mode simply hides the Restart Song, Pause, and Next Song buttons.  This will prevent your guests from skipping other's songs in an effort to get to their own selections.  The PC Jukebox can be put into Party Mode by clicking the 'Advanced...' button on the setup screen, then checking the 'Party Mode' checkbox.

But what if the program is already running and you want to take it out of Party Mode (or put it into Party Mode if you forgot to originally)?  This is the first hidden trick.  Simply click in the small area directly below the Maximize/Minimize/Close buttons on the main screen.  There is no indication that you should click here (otherwise it would tip off your guests and defeat the entire purpose!!).  A popup window will appear allowing you to turn Party Mode on or off.  Simply click the Party Mode checkbox on or off and close the window.  The Restart Song, Pause, and Next Song buttons will appear or disappear based on your choice.


3.  Now Playing Screen

The Now Playing Screen is just a slightly more attractive view of The PC Jukebox while a song is playing.  Think of it like a screensaver as it will appear after roughly 30 seconds of user inactivity while a song is playing.  Clicking anywhere on the screen will bring you back to the original view.  

To enable the Now Playing Screen, click the 'Advanced...' button on the setup screen, then check the 'Now Playing Screen' checkbox.  Again, if you would like to change your choice once the program is running, simply click in the small area directly below the Maximize/Minimize/Close buttons on the main screen.  There is no indication that you should click here.  A popup window will appear allowing you to turn the Now Playing Screen feature on or off.  Simply click the Now Playing Screen checkbox on or off and close the window.  Your choice will be saved.


4.  Remove Song

What if there is a song listed in the queue that you would like to remove to make sure it does not play?  This can easily be done.  Simply highlight the song in the queue and the 'Remove Song' button will appear.  Click on the button and the song will be taken out of the queue and all others below it will be moved up one.

There are 2 circumstances in which this feature will not operate however.  The first is by selecting the top item in the queue.  Since this is the song that is currently playing it cannot be removed from the queue.  The second is if The PC Jukebox is in Party Mode.  If this feature was enabled in Party Mode, all of your guests would be able to remove songs from the queue, completely defeating the purpose of Party Mode!


5.  Put Song At Top Of Queue

Now, what if there are a bunch of songs queued up but you really want to hear YOUR song next?  This hidden trick is for you!  Once you click on the song pushbutton that you would like to hear, you are presented with a yellow confirmation box asking you if you would like to add the song.  Clikcing the 'Yes' button will add the selection to the bottom of the queue.  However, BEFORE you click the 'Yes' button, if you click in the very lower right hand corner of the window, it will expand downwards and 2 options will be presented.  There is no indication that you should click here.  That's what makes it a hidden trick!  Selecting the option to add the song to the top of the queue will guarantee that your selection will be played immediately following the currently playing song.


6.  Display Time Remaining

While a song is playing, the elapsed time is constantly updated in the lower right hand corner of the main yellow rectangle.  To display the time remaining in the current selection, simply click the time display. The display will change to red and now display the time remaining.  Click again to return to the time elapsed display.  The Now Playing screen will also show the timer in the mode of the main screen.


Hopefully these added features will add to your level of enjoyment with The PC Jukebox.  If you have any ideas or suggestions for future enhancements to The PC Jukebox, please do not hesitate to send an email to suggestions@thepcjukebox.com.

Again, if you would like to purchase the full version of the program and unlock your entire music collection, please visit www.thepcjukebox.com and click on the Purchase button.  Once payment is made, you will receive a registration code that, once entered on the setup screen, will open the program up to your entire music collection.

Thanks again for using The PC Jukebox!!