Thumbnails in Explorer but not Zune?

gjw · 01-24-2008, 10:01 AM

Does the Zune software use a different method of choosing the video thumbnails than Explorer?

When I drag movies (all WMV) into the Zune software most of them display the same thumbnail that showed in Explorer but a few just show a black screen. Not a blank screen like no thumbnail was generated but a black screen like it just picked a different dark section of the movie (like maybe between the studio logo and the actual start of the film).

This same black thumbnail then gets synced to the Zune itself.

Again, all my movies are WMV, all were generated by the same conversion program, and all of have been metatagged using dSHARPiE so that they categorize correctly but only a few of them have this thumbnail problem. Everything else is normal and the thumbnails in Explorer are fine.

Anyone know why this might be or how to fix it?

Man. · 01-24-2008, 10:07 AM

I dont think you can change the thumbnail as its encoded into the wmv file.

--If you can obtain the thumbnail file you can change the thumbnail very easily.

I remember for the psp there used to be a .thm file which you could change to jpg edit the pic and change it back to .thm

gjw · 01-24-2008, 07:16 PM

I think it might be possible to embed a thumbnail into a WMV but that is not the method that Windows Explorer uses to display them.
Explorer actually generates the thumbnails by scanning the video when first accessed and selecting a particular frame.
If no frame is selected within 7 seconds, Explorer will give up and display a generic icon.
Perhaps the Zune software has a different timeout because while most of my vids show the same thumbnails as Explorer, a few show the black thumbnail or a completely different thumbnail.
As an example, the Explorer thumbnail of Return of the Jedi is a scene from Jabba's palace while the Zune thumbnail is the 20th Century Fox Logo.
Alternately, the thumbnail for Goodfellas is the same in both programs.

Dizzy · 01-25-2008, 09:01 PM

Thumbnails for videos on before the update to firmware 2.x are going to be black. To get a different thumbnail, simply resync

01-24-2008, 10:01 AM	#1 (permalink)
gjw Zewbie Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 3 Reputation: 10	Thumbnails in Explorer but not Zune? Does the Zune software use a different method of choosing the video thumbnails than Explorer? When I drag movies (all WMV) into the Zune software most of them display the same thumbnail that showed in Explorer but a few just show a black screen. Not a blank screen like no thumbnail was generated but a black screen like it just picked a different dark section of the movie (like maybe between the studio logo and the actual start of the film). This same black thumbnail then gets synced to the Zune itself. Again, all my movies are WMV, all were generated by the same conversion program, and all of have been metatagged using dSHARPiE so that they categorize correctly but only a few of them have this thumbnail problem. Everything else is normal and the thumbnails in Explorer are fine. Anyone know why this might be or how to fix it?

01-24-2008, 10:07 AM	#2 (permalink)
Man. Supreme Zune God Support Team Zune Freak Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 1,205 Reputation: 82	I dont think you can change the thumbnail as its encoded into the wmv file. --If you can obtain the thumbnail file you can change the thumbnail very easily. I remember for the psp there used to be a .thm file which you could change to jpg edit the pic and change it back to .thm __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

01-25-2008, 09:01 PM	#4 (permalink)
Dizzy Joe the Plumber Moderator Ultimate Zuner Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 6,732 Reputation: 357	Thumbnails for videos on before the update to firmware 2.x are going to be black. To get a different thumbnail, simply resync __________________ Stop activity immediately if you feel short of breath, faint or dizzy, experience chest pain, or profuse perspiration. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

01-24-2008, 07:16 PM	#3 (permalink)
gjw Zewbie Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 3 Reputation: 10	I think it might be possible to embed a thumbnail into a WMV but that is not the method that Windows Explorer uses to display them. Explorer actually generates the thumbnails by scanning the video when first accessed and selecting a particular frame. If no frame is selected within 7 seconds, Explorer will give up and display a generic icon. Perhaps the Zune software has a different timeout because while most of my vids show the same thumbnails as Explorer, a few show the black thumbnail or a completely different thumbnail. As an example, the Explorer thumbnail of Return of the Jedi is a scene from Jabba's palace while the Zune thumbnail is the 20th Century Fox Logo. Alternately, the thumbnail for Goodfellas is the same in both programs.

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