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[Ezeltje]

Owing to the way my home LAN is set up, I tend to use the amuleweb interface more than amule itself, and I had been looking forward to trying the new PHP-ized version in v2.1. Having compiled 2.1 a day or so ago, I have now had a chance to play with the new amuleweb a bit, and here is an initial reaction:
Pros

• it is better at remembering its cookie. The previous version kept prompting me to re-enter my password at random intervals.
• it seems marginally faster at rendering pages
• kad searches, but while I can appreciate the theoretical advantage of p2p searches, the precise utility viz a viz local/global server searchs in terms of results escapes me.

Cons

• No way of filtering searches on file type. This makes searches for titles with common words or searches for subtitle files very cumbersome.
• Search results no longer highlight in a different color files already in your library. This is a real nuisance when you are trying to find a different version  a file than the one you have.
  
• Likewise, the current downloads page has also lost its very helpful color encoding of each file's download status/progress. Sure, the statistics are displayed, but they are less effective than the color bars for getting a quick overview.
• No longer access to the system log. This was very useful.
• (Animated) icons on the main menu instead of plain English links. Who thought this was an improvement?

I understand the nature of open source development is such that additional functionality is only added to a program like amule if someone volunteers to code it. But why was functionality from v2.0 removed?

All things considered, the new amuleweb is not a real improvement (although I may change my mind if kad searches prove more useful).

[thedude0001]

Originally posted by Ezeltje
I understand the nature of open source development is such that additional functionality is only added to a program like amule if someone volunteers to code it. But why was functionality from v2.0 removed?

Well, it was not like lfroen took the old webserver, added PHP functionality and removed the features you're missing but he started to write the new amuleweb from scratch That's why some things are still missing that are present in the old amuleweb.

About Kad searches: The whole Kad network was designed to be working alongside the regular server based ed2k network or replace it (for example if most countries ruled that running an ed2k server was illegal in their boundaries or if the servers were all so overloaded that you needed real luck to get onto one). The first was quite possible some time ago, the latter was catually happening when I started to use the ed2k network about two years ago. The situation has since become better after lugdunum tweaked the performance of the servers a lot (when I started using emule the biggest servers could only take some tenthousand or maybe a hundred thousand users, not the >1 million Razorback2 can take today)...

[Ezeltje]

Thanks for your explanation. Presumably lfroen will re-incorporate the missing functionality in due time. If I could program PHP, I would help him.

As for the kad searches, in theory it is equivalent to doing a global search via the servers, no? In practice, doesn't it depend on all the edonkey network clients supporting the kad protocol? Any idea of what percentage this is at the moment?

[thedude0001]

Well, the webserver is still written in C++, only the templates switched to PHP. I have no idea what percentage of clients actually *use* the Kad network. Most of them should be capable to use it since older clients are kicked out of the big servers more and more. Talking about my little perspective about ~85% of the clients connected to my amule are emule v.40+ and therefor Kad capable. That of yourse doesn't mean that Kad is actually enabled & running on them...

[gooddude]

This PHP is ultra fast  8o
I had a problem when a list of shared files grows. I had to wait for 10s of seconds or more, just to open a bloody page. Like I was using dial-up. And now   I'm happy.

[Ezeltje]

Now I understand why I don't see a progress bar for the dowloading files (there is a column for it): Amuleweb can't find the relevant gifs to generate the bars. Having booted amule from the command line, I notice a lot of error messages from amuleweb in the terminal window:

Code: [Select]

09:10:51 AM: Error: can't open file '/usr/local/share/amule/webserver/php-default/black.gif'
(error 2: No such file or directory)
There is a whole series of them pertaining to GIFs of different colors. They seem to be displayed each time amuleweb refreshes. A perusal of that directory indicates that they are indeed not present.

[lfroen]

Ezeltje: you must be reffering new "php-default" template. This template was designed by me and as such reflects my understanding "what is good".
You still can access original templates "default" and "chicane" giving -t to amuleweb or specifying it in amule's preferences.
Now, to the cons:

Search results no longer highlight in a different color files already in your library. This is a real nuisance when you are trying to find a different version a file than the one you have.

Too bad if I missed this. Will fix.

Likewise, the current downloads page has also lost its very helpful color encoding of each file's download status/progress. Sure, the statistics are displayed, but they are less effective than the color bars for getting a quick overview.

If you missing colored download progress bar - something broken in your build or setup.

No longer access to the system log. This was very useful.

Original templates have it. Since I don't find it usefull - php-default did not provided it.

(Animated) icons on the main menu instead of plain English links. Who thought this was an improvement?

I did. Picture always better that words (IMNSHO).

But why was functionality from v2.0 removed?

Nothing removed.
If you don't like my template (which is no surprise - I don't pretend be great web designer): either use "default"/"chicane" or take your favorite HTML editor with PHP support and change pages as you please.
Power to scripting !

[Kry]

Power to not deciding the users will want exactly your needs and setting a default that is incomplete in their eyes!

lfroen, let's change the default for next release kthx.

[lfroen]

lfroen, let's change the default for next release kthx.

ok

[Kry]

Mind is not about liking or not, is about features

[Ezeltje]

Originally posted by lfroen
If you missing colored download progress bar - something broken in your build or setup.

Well, as I mentioned above, amuleweb complains about missing GIFs. It appears that sudo make install does not install them. As a result, amuleweb is unable to display the bar graph, although it reserves a column for this on the upload/download page.

I fixed this manually with this command:

Code: [Select]

sudo cp -uv *.gif ./aMule-2.1.0/src/webserver/default
/usr/local/share/amule/webserver/php-default/ After restarting amule & amuleweb, the progress bars are now properly displayed.

Picture always better that words (IMNSHO).

Ahhh, this is not really the forum to discuss the validity of such a sweeping statement, but suffice to say that in the narrow context of human-computer interface, the issue is that suggestiveness of the particular icons. Of the eight icons now on the main page, only three are particuarly obvious: the up/down, stats, and exit icons. The configuration icon is effective only if you have seen a similar icon used for setting preferences in other programs. As for the others... that tiny donkey head superimposed on a computer... I have to stare closely at it to see what it is. It is much easier to look at the status line at the bottom of the browser window to see what pages those icons are linked to: amuleweb-main-search, amuleweb-main-servers, amuleweb-main-shared. In such cases, the image is a hindrance rather than a help.

[lfroen]

Ahhh, this is not really the forum to discuss the validity of such a sweeping statement

Why not, is something wrong with the forum ? This forum is good for "generic-purpose" discussion as any other

but suffice to say that in the narrow context of human-computer interface, the issue is that suggestiveness of the particular icons

Oh, this is so match correct ! The problem is, however, that I can't draw my own icons. Neither I can afford to hire someone professional to do that. What can I do - search the web for ready-made icons and be carefull not to violate copyrights.
So, may all your remarks about "unsuggestive" icons stand - there's nothing I can do about it.

There's however one issue you ignored: translation. Besides english (which is not my mother language) there're other languages in the world. You don't have to translate icons whether they're good or not.

[Coronas]

Originally posted by Ezeltje

Originally posted by lfroen
If you missing colored download progress bar - something broken in your build or setup.

Well, as I mentioned above, amuleweb complains about missing GIFs. It appears that sudo make install does not install them. As a result, amuleweb is unable to display the bar graph, although it reserves a column for this on the upload/download page.

I had the absolutely the same problem, here's a diff.
cu

[stefanero]

if I remeber correclty you need to have

gd installed and libpng, then amuleweb will generate them automatically. but you need to have that installed before you compile amuleweb. then it works.

[Coronas]

Edit 20060204: Remove speculation.