MinimServer complexity (was Configuration Backup)

[DavidHB]

(29-09-2014 08:29)simoncn Wrote:  I agree with most of what you say with one reservation: I would like the out-of-the-box user experience with the default MinimServer settings to be comparable to that of the more limited DLNA systems that you have described. I'm aware of a few aspects where this isn't yet the case and I'm working to address these. Any suggestions for things to add to this list would be welcome.

As I look back, I don't recall that getting MinimServer working with the defaults was any more difficult than working through the ReadyNAS settings to activate ReadyDNLA. Of course I needed to install both Java and MinimServer itself, but these installations were entirely straightforward. More recently, when I set up the Kazoo server, it did not seem to be noticeably easier than getting MinimServer going. In the case of both of these servers, however, it quickly became apparent that they were less configurable and lacking in features compared to MinimServer. I have never been tempted to use them other than experimentally. So whatever deficiencies in MinimServer you are referring to have not been a concern to me.

I did wonder whether, if a 'backup and restore settings' feature were implemented, this could be used to give MinimServer pre-built standard sets of settings (I am assuming that the settings would be saved as a simple text file). Alternatively, users could share settings files on the Forum. That way, a new user who wanted to support, say, a library of classical music, could have default settings which were more directly linked to his or her needs. This approach would also be useful for the terminally non-technical user who gets a friend (or a dealer) to set up their system. What I don't know is whether this idea could work without creating further problems downstream.

David