IPTVplayer/TV Player WPF/WPF-BUILD.md

WPF Build Instructions

Overview

This is a Windows TV Player application built with .NET WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation) targeting net8.0-windows.

Prerequisites

System Requirements

• Windows 10 Build 19041 or later (or Windows 11)
• Visual Studio 2022 17.0 or later with:
  • .NET desktop development workload
  • Windows Forms development tools
  • XAML tools

Development Setup

• .NET 8 SDK or later
• Visual Studio 2022 or JetBrains Rider

Installation

Clone and Open Project

cd "TV Player WPF"

Restore Dependencies

dotnet restore

Building

Build for Release

dotnet build --configuration Release --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0

Build for Debug

dotnet build --configuration Debug --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0

Build for Distribution

dotnet publish --configuration Release --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0 -p:PublishProfile=FolderProfile

Running

Run from Visual Studio

1. Open TV Player WPF.csproj in Visual Studio
2. Press F5 to start with debugging
3. Press Ctrl+F5 to start without debugging

Run from Command Line

dotnet run --configuration Debug --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0

Run Published Application

# After publishing
./bin/Release/net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0/publish/TV Player WPF.exe

Project Structure

TV Player WPF/
├── ViewModels/           # MVVM ViewModels with INotifyPropertyChanged
│   ├── MainViewModel.cs  # Main window logic
│   ├── PlayerViewModel.cs
│   ├── SettingsViewModel.cs
│   └── ...
├── PlaylistWorker/       # M3U and EPG parsing
│   ├── M3UParser.cs
│   └── M3UInfo.cs
├── MainWindow.xaml       # Main UI
├── VideoPlayer.xaml      # Video player UI
├── Assets/               # Application resources
│   ├── AppStyle.xaml
│   └── Images/
└── TV Player WPF.csproj  # Project file

Configuration

Playlist Settings

The application loads playlists from configured URLs:

• Default M3U URL: Configured in TVPlayerViewModel
• EPG URL: Extracted from M3U file or set in settings

To change the playlist:

1. Go to Settings in the application
2. Enter the M3U playlist URL
3. Save settings

Settings are persisted in AppData.

Application Settings

User preferences are stored in:

%localappdata%\TV_Player\settings.json

Key Features

MVVM Architecture

• Proper separation of concerns with ViewModels
• Data binding through INotifyPropertyChanged
• Commands for user interactions

Error Handling

• Comprehensive exception handling with logging
• User-friendly error messages
• Debug output for troubleshooting

Resource Management

• Proper disposal of resources
• No memory leaks from subscriptions
• Clean shutdown sequence

Performance

• Asynchronous network operations
• Lazy-loaded playlist data
• Caching of EPG information

Keyboard Shortcuts

• Escape: Exit application
• Backspace: Go back/navigate
• F11: Toggle fullscreen
• Arrow Keys: Navigate UI

Registry Settings

The application may create registry entries in:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\TV_Player

These include:

• Last played channel
• Window state and position
• User preferences

Troubleshooting

Application Won't Start

1. Check .NET 8 is installed: dotnet --version
2. Verify Windows version: winver (must be 19041+)
3. Check event viewer for errors: eventvwr.msc

Playlist Download Fails

1. Check network connectivity
2. Verify URL is correct
3. Check firewall settings allow outbound HTTP/HTTPS
4. Check Debug output for detailed error

Video Won't Play

1. Verify stream URL is valid
2. Check network connection to stream server
3. Verify media format is supported
4. Check sufficient bandwidth available

Performance Issues

1. Check Task Manager for CPU/memory usage
2. Disable hardware acceleration in settings if available
3. Clear EPG cache and reload
4. Close unnecessary background applications

Development

Debug Logging

When running in Debug configuration, detailed logs are sent to Output window in Visual Studio.

Enable more detailed logging:

1. Open Debug > Windows > Output
2. Select "Debug" from dropdown

Code Organization

• ViewModels: Business logic and state management
• Views: XAML UI definitions
• PlaylistWorker: Network and parsing operations
• Assets: Application resources and styling

Common Tasks

Add New ViewModel

public class MyViewModel : ObservableViewModelBase
{
    private string _property;
    public string Property 
    { 
        get => _property;
        set => SetProperty(ref _property, value);
    }
}

Handle Exceptions

try 
{
    await FetchPlaylistAsync();
}
catch (HttpRequestException ex)
{
    Debug.WriteLine($"Network error: {ex.Message}");
    // Show user-friendly error
}

Publishing

Create Installer

Use Visual Studio Setup Project or:

dotnet publish --configuration Release \
  --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0 \
  --output ./publish

Then package with your installer tool (NSIS, WiX, etc.)

Self-Contained Deployment

dotnet publish --configuration Release \
  --framework net8.0-windows10.0.19041.0 \
  --self-contained \
  --output ./publish-standalone

This creates an executable that doesn't require .NET runtime installed.

Performance Optimization

• Use Release build for distribution
• Enable ReadyToRun: -p:PublishReadyToRun=true
• Enable PublishTrimmed: -p:PublishTrimmed=true (advanced)
• Use PublishAot for maximum performance (requires additional testing)

Version History

See CHANGELOG.md for detailed version information.