Team MediaPortal has released a major update of its open-source media center for Windows. MediaPortal 1.7.0 FINAL comes with a number of beneath-the-hood changes that will affect the program going forward, including future plans for a home screen editor within MediaPortal itself.

The new build also promises enhancements to the TV and video On Screen Displays, a new Wake On LAN feature and support for accessing information about video files automatically.

Version 1.7 opens with support for using SkinSettings and Expressions within MediaPortal itself. Team MediaPortal claims that skin designers going forward will be able to do “amazing things”. The developers are already testing an integrated home screen editor that will be available for public preview via Area 51 in the near future.

MediaPortal 1.7.0 adds a new Wake On LAN feature for waking the server.

The new release also has ramifications for developers in that it now separates the core WindowsPlugins (such as My Videos, My Pictures and My Music) into separate, self-contained files. This should make them easier to maintain and update going forward.

One significant fix sees TV recording thumbnails and comskip markers finally being shown properly in both TV and Video Info OSDs (On Screen Displays). Another improvement sees the MediaPortal installer now able to detect the installed version of the LAV filters and TitanExtended, so skipping the installation if a newer version is already present.

One key new feature is support for Wake On LAN – this allows MediaPortal to wake the media server if it’s asleep.

MediaPortal has also improved its MediaInfo code library to scan files for key file information in the background as opposed to only when a file is selected for playback. It’s switched off by default, so consult the Wiki for details on switching it on.

MediaPortal 1.7.0 FINAL is available now as a free, open-source download for PCs running Windows Vista or later.