Everyone familiar with XBMC knows that the original XBMC Aeon skin by djh_ was a landmark. It raised the bar for everyone considering the development of new XBMC skins. Eventually, because of Aeon, users got used to XBMC skins being capable of things that previous skins never delivered. Or dreamed of. That’s how ahead of time that skin was. Because we don’t live in a perfect world, original Aeon skin quickly got outdated. The main problem was that the original Aeon skin was unable to run on top of the most recent XBMC Dharma. Over the time, a lot of the so-called skin mods appeared, giving new life to an otherwise outdated skin. Not a single Aeon mod had that “wow” factor the original had. Until now!
Aeon MQ 2 Skin Main Menu
Breathtaking, right? Let me just say this right now: Aeon MQ 2 skin by MarcosQui is even better than the original Aeon. There! Said it! It’s my opinion, I know. I’m writing, you’re reading. Deal with it!
The Aeon MQ 2 skin comes packed with great functions, again raising the bar to new XBMC skins. Below is a heads up on some of the coolest stuff.
Three working modes. Find the one that suits you best.
- Compact Mode, for the fastest media browsing experience. Only available items in the main menu can be customized. Choose this one if you’re the drop-and-forget kind of media aficionado.
- Normal Mode, for a balanced experience between customization and browsing speed. Experienced users should go with this one. Allows for 7 menus and 35 sub-menus customization.
- Full Mode, for crazy users only. Seriously guys. Be warned that you are going to spend more time setting the skin than enjoying your media. Allows for 35 menus and 310 (dude, really??) sub-menus customization. Browsing can become heavy and slow.
Customize, customize, customize!
- Change menu bar style and last added icon: three different types available and eleven colors. That’s 33(!) different looks. I’m sure we’re going to see a lot more. Trust me. XBMC users are never satisfied.
- Full support for add-ons: Apple Movie Trailers, Youtube, TVTunes, Cinema Experience, CULyrics, LRCLyrics, XBMC subtitles, you name it!
- Exclusive updater to provide small corrections quickly and conveniently. No need to re-download the complete skin.
- Besides Darkness default theme, 6 other theme combinations are available: Theme Light with Digital Art, Cold Colors or Warm Colors. Theme Dark gets the same combinations. You can find more information and resources on the Aeon MQ 2 Official XBMC thread.
Aeon MQ 2 official changelog, kinda
New Aeon MQ 2 skin features, according to MarcosQui
- How to use the skin. Detailed instructions for compact, normal and complete modes
- View modes. Banner and Banner2 for TVShows
- Media Case views with Blu-ray, HD-DVD and others
- Media control with CdArt support
- Information for photographs
- Extra Side Menu improved
- Media Info Fullscreen mode improved
- Support for Poster, Logo and Clearart for TVShow seasons
- Flagging of audio language (thanks to zaz.tmp)
- Fanart seasons now supported
- Support for Polish translation, including fonts (thanks to nhsman)
- MiniPlayer Main Menu to use with a mouse
- MiniPlayer Info accessed by the key ‘M’ on any screen to use with a mouse or keyboard
- Exit button Power Off. XBMC exits and shuts down the system. Find it in the Shutdown sub-menu
- Mouse support for audio and video menu layout: new buttons for audio and Random Repeat
- Mini Menu to help navigation in the Main Menu
- Weather data for 4, 7 or more days with Weather.plus
- …and too many fixes to list!
Adding Aeon MQ 2 to XBMC skins
Note: Please read everything before proceeding. Make sure you understand every step first. I’m not responsible for any loss of content or messed up systems.
- Go to XBMC Plugins Unofficial Repositories page
- Read that page. It contains important information regarding XBMC repositories
- Download Aeon MQ 2 repository file
- Save the file to a location accessible by XBMC add-ons manager
- Start XBMC and go to System >> Add-ons >> Install from zip file
- Browse to the folder where you saved the file and select xbmc.repo.aeonmq.2.zip
- Restart XBMC to make it aware of the new repository
- Go to System >> Add-ons >> Get Add-ons >> Repo AEON MQ >> Skin and hit Enter on Aeon MQ 2
- A pop-up screen awakes. Choose install Aeon MQ 2 skin
- XBMC will ask you if you want to activate the skin. Obviously, answer yes
Kudos to MarcosQui and all the people who helped making this great skin a reality.
