Slideshow Mode

Turn Shoebox into a digital photo frame for displaying your family archive.

Overview

Slideshow mode automatically cycles through photos in your archive, transforming your screen into a dynamic display of memories. Perfect for family gatherings, personal enjoyment, or leaving on display like a traditional photo frame.

Getting Started

Basic Usage

1. Select Detail format (optional): Double click in the Media Detail pane
2. Start Slideshow: Press Space
3. Enjoy: Photos will auto-advance every 5 seconds

The slideshow:

• Automatically enters Photo Frame Mode (hides UI for full-screen display)
• Shows only photos (skips videos and audio)
• Loops continuously through your collection
• Preserves your metadata display preference

Stopping

• Space: Pause/Resume slideshow
• Escape: Exit photo frame mode completely
• ↑ Up / ↓ Down: Stop and return to manual navigation

Controls

Speed Adjustment

Control how long each photo displays:

• ← Left: Decrease speed (faster cycling)
• → Right: Increase speed (slower cycling)
• Range: 1-30 seconds per photo
• Default: 5 seconds

Finding Your Speed

Start with the default 5 seconds. For quick browsing, try 2-3 seconds. For contemplative viewing or displays, use 10-15 seconds.

Direction

• Backspace: Reverse direction
  • Forward (→): Follows sort order top-to-bottom
  • Backward (←): Follows sort order bottom-to-top

Playback Mode

• Ctrl+Shift+R: Toggle Random/Sequential
  • Sequential: Follows your current sort order (Date, Person, etc.)
  • Random: Picks photos randomly, avoiding recently shown items

Random Mode

Random mode tracks visited photos to avoid repetition until all have been shown. Once the collection is exhausted, it resets and starts over with a fresh shuffle.

Photo Frame Mode

When you start a slideshow, Shoebox enters Photo Frame Mode:

• Navigation column hidden
• Header bar hidden
• Photo expands to full window
• Face tags automatically hidden
• Metadata display optional (your preference)

Metadata Display

Before starting your slideshow, choose how much metadata to show:

• Double click: In the Media Detail pane to select
• Collapsed: Shows Description, people, location, date
• Expanded: Show link, collections, accession, Edit Media button etc

Your choice persists throughout the slideshow.

Visual Indicators

A subtle overlay in the top-right shows slideshow status:

• ▶: Playing forward
• ◀: Playing backward
• 🔀: Random mode enabled
• ⏸: Paused (window lost focus)
• 5s: Current speed

Keyboard Shortcuts Tooltip

When you first enter photo frame mode, a tooltip displays available controls. It fades after a few seconds but can be recalled if needed.

Auto-Pause

The slideshow intelligently pauses when:

• Window loses focus (you switch to another app)
• Computer goes to sleep

It automatically resumes when:

• Window regains focus
• Computer wakes up

Screen Saver

During slideshow, Shoebox prevents display sleep/screen saver activation so the show stays visible. If you want the screen to sleep at night, stop the slideshow or adjust your system power settings.

Use Cases

Family Gatherings

1. Connect laptop to TV
2. Filter to recent events (use Sort control at bottom of window for Date)
3. Start slideshow (Space)
4. Set comfortable speed (8-10 seconds)
5. Enable random mode (Ctrl+Shift+R) for variety

Daily Photo Frame

1. Create a collection of favorites (see Collections)
2. Load the collection
3. Start slideshow
4. Set slow speed (15-20 seconds)
5. Use sequential mode for familiar rotation

Quick Archive Review

1. Sort by new items (use Sort control at bottom of window for Date)
2. Start slideshow
3. Fast speed (2-3 seconds)
4. Sequential mode to catch every photo
5. Stop (↓) when you see something interesting

Presentations

1. Create a collection for your presentation topic
2. Sort appropriately (use Sort control at bottom of window)
3. Start slideshow
4. Set presentation speed (6-8 seconds)
5. Use sequential for predictable flow

Tips & Tricks

Combining with Filters

Before starting a slideshow:

1. Apply filters to narrow selection

   • Choose Collection: To limit the show to only items in a collection
   • Limit: Select Limit to only show items in the selected collection

2. Choose sort order

   • Use the Sort dropdown at the bottom of the window for sequential mode

The slideshow respects these settings.

Multi-Monitor Setup

Drag Shoebox to your secondary monitor before starting the slideshow for a dedicated display while you work on the primary screen.

Creating Themed Slideshows

1. Create a Collection for your theme (birthdays, vacations, etc.)
2. Load that collection
3. Start slideshow

See Collections for how to create and manage them.

Pro Tip: Create multiple collections for different moods or occasions, then switch between them for instant themed slideshows. Great for holidays, birthdays, or specific family members!

Troubleshooting

Slideshow Won't Start

• Check filters: Press Ctrl+Shift+P/A/V or use the Photo/Audio/Video checkboxes to filter
• Verify selection: At least one photo must be in the current view
• Window focus: Click on the Shoebox window first

Photos Not Advancing

• Check speed: Speed may be set very high (30s). Press ← to decrease.
• Random exhaustion: If in random mode with small collection, might seem stuck. Press Ctrl+Shift+R to switch to sequential.
• Window blur: Check if window lost focus (indicator shows ⏸). Click window to resume.

Slideshow Exits Unexpectedly

• Pressing ↑ or ↓ stops the slideshow and returns to manual navigation
• Escape exits photo frame mode
• Both are intentional behaviors for quick exit

Have ideas? Open an issue on GitHub!

Related Features

• Keyboard Shortcuts - Complete shortcut reference
• Collections - Create themed photo sets
• Metadata - Rich context for your photos