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[JimH]

23.0.45 has a new interface that merges the old WebGizmo into the new Panel webapp.  There are still some things that don't work, but I think we have the new UI working right.  Good thing, since it was Keenan's last day.  He's going back to school in Wisconsin at the end of the week.

You can see it easily by entering the IP address and port in a browser.  Example:

192.168.0.22:52199

or if you're running on the same machine:

localhost:52199

Navigation is the biggest change.

The buttons are big and tending toward colorful (still changing).  They're intended for a touch interface (phone or tablet) but they work on a desktop as well.

The colors are randomly generated right now.  It's interesting.  I'm not sure it's right.

Video is hit or miss.  I could play recorded TV on the server, but not on the client, for example.

Click on the settings icon to set the location (here or player).

Radio Kiss has an icon on the home screen.  It looks like a 1970's transistor radio.

A couple of people on the main board have questioned the responsiveness of a web app.  This web app is not slow.

So long, WebGizmo.

Thanks, Keenan.  Best of luck at school.  Nice job this summer.

[ferday]

i've been playing with it - indeed i really like the idea, a lot.  good work Keenan and team

i'll find some time to run it through it's paces

[RoderickGI]

I found the changing colour of the buttons quite annoying. I would prefer a fixed recognisable symbol, graphic, or image.

Not having a Stop button is a bit of an issue when playing Videos "There", which means on my TV, I could pause the video but not stop it, which can have some consequences.

Generally a more modem look and feel, and functional. But not earth shattering. Works nicely on my Windows 10 Mobile under Edge. I would like to see it developed further.

[JimH]

I found the changing colour of the buttons quite annoying. I would prefer a fixed recognisable symbol, graphic, or image.

I agree.  Try cycling through them and post a screenshot you like.  I'll do the same.

[dtc]

It looks like the interface was not designed for tablets or phones. What are the plans for mobile devices?

When playing a track using my tablet, the artist and track name are truncated  after just 5 or 6  characters. They look alright on a computer screen, but not on a smaller screen in portrait mode. They should probably be positioned in such a way that they do not have to ever be truncated (within reason).

On my phone, I see more of the the artist and track name, but there is no progress bar or volume bar.

Both my tablet and phone are Android running Firefox.

[dtc]

In MC a search is done within the selected view. In the new Webgizmo, it appears that  a search is done on all the files. It seems like searching should be consistent between the two. Is it a conscious decision to have them perform differently?

I like the idea of having the search on the selected view. It allows you to narrow down the search. I have an album view which contains everything. I can use that if I want a total search. Otherwise, I can search within my classical view, my jazz view, etc. This is all within Audio.

[JimH]

Here are the best colors I could come up with.  They're selected from randomly generated sets.  Not great, but better than cycling through the random sets.

[RoderickGI]

I tried cycling through the colour set options and they just got worse and worse, with many including two very similar colours, or two sets of two, i.e. two reds and two purples, a blue and a green. So, I can't improve on your sample Jim.

I like the first image you posted best. But there is a lot to the Psychology of Color. A better idea would be to look around at some web sites that recommend colour combinations. This one is pretty good: https://designschool.canva.com/blog/100-color-combinations/  Pick the best colour out of six different sets and use that for one button.

I prefer Pastels for the background colour on the icons, as they are less harsh but still quite distinguishable. They also aren't as bright on the screen, so no burn in, or less chance. Most of the existing colours panel cycles through meet that criteria.

[JimH]

dtc,
Thanks for the feedback.  Phones and tablets are mostly working right now, but there are exceptions, as you pointed out.  These will get fixed.

The old WebGizmo name is being replace with Panel.  Some of the views are still the old ones.

[Castius]

This is really coming along nicely.

Here are some of my first thoughts.

• A "back" button next to home.
• Please please please add remote support.
• Thumbsnails seems a bit slow. Video files seem worse

Keep up the great work.

[JimH]

• A "back" button next to home.
• Please please please add remote support.
• Thumbsnails seems a bit slow. Video files seem worse

Thanks.  What do you mean by "remote support"?  You can change where the playback occurs by clicking on the settings button.

[dtc]

• A "back" button next to home.
• Please please please add remote support.
• Thumbsnails seems a bit slow. Video files seem worse

I agree on having a back button. Having to use the browser back button always makes me concerned that it will do something other than just go back within the program.

[A.K.]

I like how it looks in localhost machine, very easy for not-so-tech-savvy users, but I wish album and artist pages were one big continuous page instead of "next" and "previous", which are very slow when browsing larger library.

I noticed when I hit back button in browser or mouse, it goes back to first page. Very frustrating if you are in page 55 of 130 

[DJLegba]

I like how it looks in localhost machine, very easy for not-so-tech-savvy users, but I wish album and artist pages were one big continuous page instead of "next" and "previous", which are very slow when browsing larger library.

One big page would be even slower. But instead of Next/Previous the page should use a lazy load, so it keeps loading as you scroll down.

[JimH]

I agree it can be improved.

[jachin99]

The layout looks really simple, and it looks better to me than what you had before but would it be possible for me to swap out the images for each shortcut?  I know the flat style is probably more modern but I've never been a fan of it. 

[JimH]

Here's what we have for the home page colors now:



Other pages will get an overhaul too.

[RD James]

Can I suggest using darker colors and labels?
I only get labels on two of the categories for some reason, and some of those colors are too light for white icons.

[fatcatsanonymous]

Hi JimH,
is there an way to change the background colors or add background images? maybe develop my own skin for the panel view with css?
Thanks!

[JimH]

Not at this time.  There is a light option in settings.