How can I get WMP 11 to index a field in the "Library" window that it does not currently index (as it does with generes, albums, etc. when entered in the "Search" pane)?
I have edited the "Custom 1" tag in the the wmploc.dll file using Resource Hacker to read "Other Performers" (in the same way one can edit the genre list). The problem is, the "Search" feature only indexes a limited number of fields chosen by Microsoft -- and the "Custom 1" isn't among them -- YET.
Is there a particular file -- a *.dll file, perhaps -- that tells WMP what fields to index? I just know this has to be defined somewhere ... I just wish to alter it slightly, so that I can easily access other musicians involved with a song.
This way, I can search my collection not only for a musician's main body of work, but also for songs they helped with for other artists, such as backup vocals, additional instruments, etc.
What I'm trying to do, for instance, is to "Search" John Lennon and retrieve:
-- his solo work
-- his work with the Beatles
-- Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds by Elton John with John Lennon singing background vocals
-- his John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band work ...
-- any other songs in the collection he composed
Right now, according to WMP11, my collection "Search" only shows all of the first and last of the items. It will retrieve some of the middle three items, but only if he was a composer (such as the Elton John song). But it will not pull up items he performed on merely because he was a performer.
I'm mostly into music. Can you imagine the value to a movie collector if you could designate the fields to index? Directors, scores, set designers, special effects crew, etc. The value is incredible, but Microsoft is tying our hands. I was a librarian for nearly 20 years. One should be able to provide better indexing and access to a music collection.
Although some of this can be done with the "Contributing Artist" field, it is impractical to list more than one name or band because MS Plus! for Windows uses the "Contributing Artist" field contents for labelling CDs.
Any suggestions?