m3u extended playlist comments useful?

[adrian]

(24-05-2016 15:48)simoncn Wrote:  The duration in the #EXTINF line is the track duration in seconds. Changing the file format doesn't change the track duration.

It seems like it shouldn't, but I have read that encoders and/or decoders add some silence at both ends, something having to do with frame lengths of the mp3 encoding algorithm. I encountered this as an explanation for why gapless playback may be difficult with mp3. I assume in the end these length values are just used to tell the user how long the play list will last, so errors that are small don't matter.

Quote:If the playlist entry is a file in the MinimServer library, the duration and title are taken from the referenced file, not from the #EXTINF line.

If the playlist entry is another playlist, the title is taken from the #EXTINF line if present.

If the playlist entry is a network URL, the duration and title are taken from the #EXTINF line if present. The [] prefix in the #EXTINF title (if present) is used to provide a stream ID for MinimStreamer and other information about the stream.

Thanks for this detail about how the information is used. It sounds like from MinimServer's point of view, maintaining #EXTINF lines for a playlist of local files is just wasted effort. It also crossed my mind that if I were to change a title or artist for some reason then those #EXTINF lines would need to be updated, another complication of the extended info. I did start wondering about how play lists are titled when browsing and how they show up in the interface---presumably based on file name since there is no metadata to give a name or any organization. Or is it recommended to create one master playlist that lists all the other playlists and use the #EXTINF to give titles for them?