The '<n> albums' sort order (again)

[DavidHB]

Sorry I couldn't get back sooner. We have a family wedding coming up, and it's starting to take over my life ...

(12-09-2013 09:42)simoncn Wrote:  I think you will be very happy with your purchase!

Thank you; at this moment, you are a better judge of that than I. If UPS tracking is to be believed, that will change tomorrow; experiment and preparation will give way to implementing the new system. I shall probably do some learning with that before starting any more hares.

Quote:The browsing performance of MinimServer is noticeably faster than Asset when both are running on the same hardware. I think this is probably because MinimServer is optimized to hold all the data it needs for browsing in memory.

It seems that, in settling on MinimServer for my initial experiments, I chose better than I knew However, while speed is important, it is MinimServer's range of capabilities that is most significant for me. Chief of these for me is its straightforward installation and reliable running on my NAS. I would now strongly advise anyone wishing to set up a high quality streaming system to invest in a decent NAS on which to run the server.

Quote:I think the best approach for this would be to create a new section of the forum named something like "Tutorials". Each thread in this list would contain an embedded tutorial document in the first post, followed by discussion. The creator of the thread would be able to update the embedded tutorial document as and when they want. Regarding best practice guidance, I can only suggest that you create a "first draft" document with a format and content that you think is helpful, then put it out there for user review and comment. The users will not be slow to suggest ways to improve it!

I should be happy to try this. My first test subject might be the use of MP3Tag to batch produce 'surname first' fields. This, as discussed above, is apposite on this forum (1) because it is a task many MinimServer users will need to undertake routinely, and (2) because at present it seems to be only partially and a bit haphazardly documented, even on the MP3Tag forum. The 'clever' bits are (1) having separate MP3Tag actions for the 'one last name' and 'one first name' cases and (2) using filters to define batches of files that can be dealt with in a single action, and also to identify files where action is needed. But, before I do this, I think I might spend some time with the Akurate

On a more general point, having started reading audio-related forums only recently, I am struck by one quite marked difference from their counterparts related to digital photography. Serious photographers are usually greatly interested in (and often argumentative about) the concept of 'workflow', that is the chain of connected actions and processes running from pre-shoot preparations to presentation of the finished image(s), and usually involving a number of different pieces of hardware and a range of software applications, from a range of producers. By contrast, the concept of workflow seems to be almost absent from the audio-related discussions (though they are often interesting and informative in other ways). Nevertheless, the creation and maintenance of digital music libraries is (quite obviously) a workflow, and it typically involves making hardware and software items from different producers work together as a coherent whole. I am starting to think that the key component of the library workflow is the data structure, and, by extension, the server software which presents that structure to the rest of the system. If that is the case, this forum would be a good place for workflow-related discussions, if anyone else is interested, that is ...

Quote:How did you close UPnPlay? If I close it by using "force quit" from the Apps menu or by powering the tablet off and on, it restarts at the top-level browse menu. If you are "closing" it by switching to a different app, this doesn't actually close UPnPlay but just leaves it runnng in the background. When you switch back to it later, it will resume exactly where it left off. I have confirmed this behaviour with version 0.0.82.

My experience with 0.0.82 is pretty much the same. There is a 'quit' option in UPnPlay, though the app (in accordance with Andoid standards, I believe) continues to have a background presence unless you force it to stop in Settings/Apps (which I think is really just for troubleshooting).

David