2022.3: Select and play media

[CaptTom (Tom)]

@koying

That can be considered true for the whole media browser, really. HA is not really meant to become a media player, hence the lack of search functionality, by instance.

Thank you for saying that! Based on the title of this thread (and by extension, the intent of this version update) I was beginning to worry that HA might be changing focus.

I’m perfectly happy with HA doing what it does best, and my existing media players doing what they do best. It’s great to have fun tinkering with add-on functionality which pushes the limits, but I do hope the focus remains on core functionality.

[petro]

I use it very rarely, we treat it like an intercom when yelling doesn’t work. However I don’t use the built in more info page because it’s always been too many clicks. Anything you use a lot should be a main page in your UI with buttons (every other control is terrible on mobile).

Something like this is easy to set up (ignoring the complicated look and the stored history)

It requires input booleans for each room, a input_text for your text, and a button that runs the service.

[terryhonn]

How much money would I have to throw at you for you to share the yaml for that card?

[johanb7 (Johan)]

After updating to 2022.3 my Intergration with Plugwise Anna broke. anyone know what happend?

> Logger: homeassistant.components.climate
> Source: components/plugwise/climate.py:114
> Integration: Climate ([documentation](https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/climate), [issues](https://github.com/home-assistant/home-assistant/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3A%22integration%3A+climate%22))
> First occurred: 9:26:32 PM (2 occurrences)
> Last logged: 9:26:32 PM
> 
> * Error adding entities for domain climate with platform plugwise
> * Error while setting up plugwise platform for climate
> 
> Traceback (most recent call last): File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/entity_platform.py", line 382, in async_add_entities await asyncio.gather(*tasks) 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/entity_platform.py", line 614, in _async_add_entity await entity.add_to_platform_finish() 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/entity.py", line 800, in add_to_platform_finish await self.async_added_to_hass() 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/components/plugwise/entity.py", line 77, in async_added_to_hass self._handle_coordinator_update() 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/update_coordinator.py", line 325, in _handle_coordinator_update self.async_write_ha_state()
 File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/entity.py", line 553, in async_write_ha_state self._async_write_ha_state() 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/helpers/entity.py", line 592, in _async_write_ha_state attr.update(self.state_attributes or {}) 
File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/components/climate/__init__.py", line 298, in state_attributes if self.hvac_action: File "/usr/src/homeassistant/homeassistant/components/plugwise/climate.py", line 114, in hvac_action heater_central_data = self.coordinator.data.devices[
 KeyError: None```

[petro]

My entire configuration is attached to my profile. It’s complicated though. You can’t copy paste the Lovelace without heavy edits.

[Gav_in]

This blueprint might give you some food for thought too…

Alexa TTS/Announcement from Lovelace UI and without Nabu Casa (Alexa Media Player)

Send a notification via the Lovelace-UI to your Alexa-Devices. You can create an elements card with an input select and a input text like shown in the picture below. You can specify if the messages should be delivered via “TTS” or “Announce” an which devices should be selectable for the notifications. No Nabu Casa or exposing your HA-Instance to the internet required. [Screenshot 2020-12-26 144026] Requirements Alexa Media Player must be installed. It can be installed from the Home Assistant …

[KennethLavrsen]

Seems the new improved code for Amcrest in 2022.3.5 destroyed as much as it fixed. My logs is now flooded with errors containing something like Error while processing events from Living room camera camera: CommError(HTTPStatusError("Client error ‘400 Bad Request’ for url ‘http://192.168.1.61/cgi-bin/eventManager.cgi?action=attach&codes=[All]’ - I have raised a bug. I just write it here for info for other Amcrest owners.

Update: I have improved but not resolved the situation by firmware upgrade of camera and change of settings in yaml. See Amcrest reports 1000s of errors in log after update to 2022.3.5 · Issue #68272 · home-assistant/core · GitHub where I follow up with my experience.

[YetAnotherDave]

No solution yet… I’m currently at 2022.3.3 I’ll try again later in the month. 2022.3.7? Is there a public release calendar available?

[petro]

New major releases come the first Wednesday of every month. New beta’s come the last Wednesday of every month. Minor builds in the middle come whenever a fix occurs, i.e. no schedule.

[nickrout]

@YetAnotherDave

No solution yet… I’m currently at 2022.3.3 I’ll try again later in the month.

Neither of you will find a solution unless you post an issue on github.

[mhanley05]

Late to the party, as always. I just have a couple questions why isn’t there a way to give each entity a unique ID. Ex: Generic Cameras .
Then take other individual entities to make a device? For example a motion detector for the camera. It seems like groups but they don’t have the same attributes you can give devices.

[nickrout]

Because you haven’t written it.

[Sergeantpup]

Beautiful clarity and expectation setting. Thank you!

[finity]

Is there any way to get the previous display for the input_x entities back again?

here is an input_datetime in an entities card:

and here is an input_select:

the labels of the entities are almost useless especially on the input_datetime entity. There’s way too much space taken up by the selections at the expense of the actual entity identification. And nothing lines up so it just looks pretty wonky.

[cyn]

I set up a picture elements card as a decluttering card using multiple state-labels to fix the ugly display of all my dates after installling 2022.3 It took a while to clean this up but it looks so much better now.

[finity]

do you have example code I could look at?

[cyn]

Sure thing

This is my decluttering card

default:
  - top: 30%
  - col1: 19%
  - col2: 30%
  - col3: 56%
  - col4: 70%
  - entity_text1: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_text2: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_date1: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_date2: 'input_text.space'
  - margin-top: -1.5em;
  - margin-bottom: -1.5em;

card:
  type: picture-elements
  image: /local/icons/transparentLine.png
  show_header_toggle: false
  style: |
    ha-card { margin-top: [[margin-top]]
              margin-bottom: [[margin-bottom]]
            }
  elements:
    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_text1]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col1]]'
        max-width: 1px
      hold_action: none
      tap_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_date1]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col2]]'
        max-width: 1px
      hold_action: none
    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_text2]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col3]]'
      hold_action: none
      tap_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_date2]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col4]]'
      hold_action: none

and this is how I call it

    - type: custom:decluttering-card
      template: template_datetime
      variables:
        - entity_from: 'input_datetime.fan_br1_starttime'
        - entity_to:   'input_datetime.fan_br1_stoptime'
        - to: 50%

I have a second card just for times

default:
  - top: 50%
  - col0: 10%
  - col1: 39%
  - col2: 60%
  - col3: 70%
  - col4: 89%
  - margin-top: .55em;
  - margin-bottom: .5em;
  - entity_date1: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_text1: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_date2: 'input_text.space'
  - entity_text2: 'input_text.space'

card:
  type: picture-elements
  image: /local/icons/transparentLine.png
  show_header_toggle: false
  style: |
    ha-card { margin-top: [[margin-top]]
              margin-bottom: [[margin-bottom]] }
  elements:
    - type: state-icon
      entity: '[[entity_date2]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col0]]'
      hold_action: none
      tap_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_text1]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col1]]'
      hold_action: none
      tap_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_date1]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col2]]'
      hold_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_text2]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col3]]'
      hold_action: none
      tap_action: none

    - type: state-label
      entity: '[[entity_date2]]'
      style:
        top: '[[top]]'
        left: '[[col4]]'
      hold_action: none

[finity]

thanks for that.

I’ve never used the decluttering card so I’ll see if I can figure it out.

do you have link to the transparentLine.png file?

and (sorry to keep bothering you about it) would you mind posting a screenshot of the result so I can see if the result is something that will work for me before digging into the decluttering card?

seems like a lot of work just to clean up a bad UI design choice.

[GrizzlyAK]

Fantastic update guys! Lots and lots to love here. I may have to actually start using the automation UI, as it has become to* powerful to ignore any longer. Also, I may have to finally figure out how to best implement Media Players in my setup now, especially cameras. That last part I’ve really been dreading…

Thanks for all of the hard work and effort that you put into this release, and all the ones before. Home Assistant rules!

[avd706]

Works for me.