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+--- Thread: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers (/showthread.php?tid=358519)
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - Klojum - 2020-12-31
(2020-12-31, 00:46)djbloc Wrote: To install please follow the installation instructions on Github.
I just read the installation instructions of the Github page of your add-on, and noticed the How much does it cost? section. As a head up, be aware that if you start to involve monetary payments in whatever form for your Kodi add-on, point 2.2.1 of the Kodi forum rules (wiki) will become applicable.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - Lunatixz - 2020-12-31
What's going on here... You created a plugin to sync watched status, but it requires Private correspondence, future website registration and there is the potential to charge for the plug-in?
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but something is sketchy here....
What makes zero sense to me.... syncing watch status and resume points is already possible through the correct way of running multiroom Kodi. ie. MySQL.
If you don't run SQL, there are tons of other free solutions.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - Lunatixz - 2020-12-31
Guess this answers the above...
https://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=351229&pid=2918884#pid2918884
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2020-12-31
There is no intention to be sketchy. I'm happy to answer questions
As you pointed out @Lunatixz this follows the poll thread earlier in the year.
As with a lot of things there are numerous ways to get the job done. I've had my fair few frustrations with a MySQL solution, from it not storing certain tv shows because the metadata doesn't fit into the field size, having to upkeep another service as well as the occasional hangs which suddenly (and seemingly at the worst possible time) makes all the kodi devices stop working.
If you have a solution with MySQL that works for you then this add-on won't add much (certainly not in it's current state)
It's aimed for those people who are looking for more of an "out of box" solution or maybe less comfortable setting up things like MySQL.
To address the other comments
Quote:...but it requires Private correspondence...
It doesn't any more. That was at the proof of concept stage.
Quote:future website registration
This add-on uses a cloud based service to securely route messages between your kodi devices. Like Trakt Add-on, TVShow Time Add-on and pretty much every app installed on my TV it requires activation to link those devices together.
If the add-on is popular then a website to self-activate will be created.
Quote:potential to charge for the plug-in?
There is no intention to charge for the add-on. In a world where "free" is synonymous with your data being harvested, aggregated and sold off I would prefer a service where privacy is respected and data isn't sold off. This add-on protects your privacy. It's not linked to social media, it's not aggregating data on what people are watching and data isn't sold to third parties. I like to be upfront and state openly if the service was to prove popular then it would need to be on a sustainable basis.
The benefits relative to other free solutions include:
- Doesn't require MySQL to be installed or set up
- The home screen is automatically refreshed - no need to reload skin to see what has changed
- It doesn't require manual synchronisation
- It can handle different file paths across different kodi devices
- It can handle synchronisation of TV episodes or Movies that are not in TMDB, TVDB etc. This is pretty essential if you use .nfo files.
So not an add-on for everyone but hopefully some may find it useful.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2020-12-31
(2020-12-31, 01:25)Klojum Wrote:(2020-12-31, 00:46)djbloc Wrote: To install please follow the installation instructions on Github.
I just read the installation instructions of the Github page of your add-on, and noticed the How much does it cost? section. As a head up, be aware that if you start to involve monetary payments in whatever form for your Kodi add-on, point 2.2.1 of the Kodi forum rules (wiki) will become applicable.
Thanks for the heads up @Klojum. This is quite a way off from that scenario yet.
I appreciate the rules and clearly a line needs to be drawn however if the scenario changed I would welcome guidance from Team Kodi as in my mind this wouldn't be dissimilar to subscription services like Disney+ or Trakt VIP.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - Lunatixz - 2020-12-31
IMO, there are MANY development options for you that DO NOT impact user privacy and DO NOT have overhead costs. ie user cloud services (ex. Dropbox API) or local network sql, csv database.
For reasons I can only assume to be monetary you chose the path that requires fees. Which again IMO, in this case is not in good spirit with the forum.
You are comparing your code which provides redundant Kodi features to Disney a content provider, and Trakt a metadata service; both of which are standalone services. Which bare no relationship to the Kodi plugins created to access their services. Whereas your service is the Kodi plugin... and not a website or meta service.
Maybe this project started with good intentions however has fallen flat? If I were you I'd rethink your method of syncing data to remove overhead costs...
Happy new year!
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - jmh2002 - 2021-01-01
Some aspects of this addon seem interesting for some use cases. Not having to use mySQL and "not requiring kodi devices to be powered on 24/7 (It will remember changes to the video library for up to 14 days)" particularly so in certain cases where a device maybe be temporarily away from the home network and/or not connected to whatever is being used as the video database.
Since I started using Kodi many many years ago I have been using mySQL and it's mostly proved reliable despite it's certain known requirements and issues.
I also use Trakt which is great for TV Shows and Movies, and have dabbled with Emby too while entertaining the possibility of moving away from mySQL but the biggest issue with most of these other services is that they do not work for YouTube, which I use extensively, or the myriad of other video addons such as are listed here: https://kodi.tv/addons/browse?keyword=&category=1172&author=&sort=title+ASC
One question that should be addressed if you want the use of this addon to be widely adopted is longetivity - because the centralised database of a user's watched videos is pretty important. As I mentioned I've been using Kodi + mySQL for more than 10 years - I'd hate to switch to your addon and find that in 3 months it has been abandoned...
So in the interests of clarity, as well as 'fixability' if necessary by another developer sometime down the road, using an open public cloud/api (or the users own local network) may be viewed as more positive, and as more reliable.
For me personally an addon like this would be great as I often have Kodi devices that travel with me outside of home for both short and long periods, so not needing to be always connected to a central database would be a big benefit.
But as mentioned both here and in other posts there are some caveats to how the addon is structured at the moment. However with some thought this might be able to be improved significantly.
Anyway, just my 2 cents for the moment.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2021-01-18
Happy new year @Lunatixz!
This project isn't driven for monetary reasons. Far from it. It based on something I use at home and thought it might be useful to other users of Kodi who might not be comfortable with setting up mysql etc.
I accept there are multiple ways the backend could be done. I happen to re-use what I'd learnt and developed from other projects.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2021-01-19
(2021-01-01, 11:04)jmh2002 Wrote: Some aspects of this addon seem interesting for some use cases. Not having to use mySQL and "not requiring kodi devices to be powered on 24/7 (It will remember changes to the video library for up to 14 days)" particularly so in certain cases where a device maybe be temporarily away from the home network and/or not connected to whatever is being used as the video database.
Since I started using Kodi many many years ago I have been using mySQL and it's mostly proved reliable despite it's certain known requirements and issues.
I also use Trakt which is great for TV Shows and Movies, and have dabbled with Emby too while entertaining the possibility of moving away from mySQL but the biggest issue with most of these other services is that they do not work for YouTube, which I use extensively, or the myriad of other video addons such as are listed here: https://kodi.tv/addons/browse?keyword=&category=1172&author=&sort=title+ASC
One question that should be addressed if you want the use of this addon to be widely adopted is longetivity - because the centralised database of a user's watched videos is pretty important. As I mentioned I've been using Kodi + mySQL for more than 10 years - I'd hate to switch to your addon and find that in 3 months it has been abandoned...
So in the interests of clarity, as well as 'fixability' if necessary by another developer sometime down the road, using an open public cloud/api (or the users own local network) may be viewed as more positive, and as more reliable.
For me personally an addon like this would be great as I often have Kodi devices that travel with me outside of home for both short and long periods, so not needing to be always connected to a central database would be a big benefit.
But as mentioned both here and in other posts there are some caveats to how the addon is structured at the moment. However with some thought this might be able to be improved significantly.
Anyway, just my 2 cents for the moment.
Thanks for the thoughts @jmh2002
I haven't tested with video add-ons, not being a big user of them myself, so if you do test it please let us know if it works or not.
Good question about longevity - there are certainly no plans to abandon in 3 months! It's worth mentioning it uses the JSON API to update Kodi so database can be easily backed up and restored if needed - nothing would be lost.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - jmh2002 - 2021-01-28
(2021-01-19, 00:01)djbloc Wrote: Thanks for the thoughts @jmh2002
I haven't tested with video add-ons, not being a big user of them myself, so if you do test it please let us know if it works or not.
Good question about longevity - there are certainly no plans to abandon in 3 months! It's worth mentioning it uses the JSON API to update Kodi so database can be easily backed up and restored if needed - nothing would be lost.
Initial testing seemed to indicate that it's not working with Video Addons. Do you not even use YouTube for example?
What method are you using to track the played items? Are you reading the Video Database?
IIRC Video Addon items appear under "files" in the Kodi MyVideos database.
Having Sync Watch Status actually sync all the items played is essential for this addon to be able to replicate mySQL's functionality.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2021-01-28
(2021-01-28, 02:22)jmh2002 Wrote: What method are you using to track the played items? Are you reading the Video Database?
It's listening to the VideoLibrary.OnUpdate notification and then pulling details from the Video Database using the JSON API.
While using full debug logs can you watch something to completion in YouTube plugin and share? From the logs I should be able to see the Kodi notification (if any).
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - jmh2002 - 2021-01-28
Ok, I'll run some tests.
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - TCCalvin - 2021-02-08
This initially appeared to be exactly what I was looking for as I don't like the slowness of a MySQL central DB (MariaDB was a lot faster but had it's own issues).
What's putting me off is the need for storing data in the cloud, is it not possible to run locally rather than feeding info back remotely?
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - jmh2002 - 2021-02-11
(2021-02-08, 20:17)TCCalvin Wrote: What's putting me off is the need for storing data in the cloud, is it not possible to run locally rather than feeding info back remotely?
Interesting, because one of the reasons I like the general idea of this addon is particulary because it stores the data in the cloud and doesn't require a local server.
Also "not requiring kodi devices to be powered on 24/7 (It will remember changes to the video library for up to 14 days)" could be particularly useful in certain cases where a device maybe be temporarily away from the home network and/or not connected to whatever is being used as the video database. This could be because of travel, or maybe just because you went out for the day or weekend and watched some content during this time.
Now it would be nice if my own cloud server was used instead (my account of google drive, dropbox, etc) but if some type of local server is required I might as well just run mySQL (which I do) or Emby / Jellyfin, Plex, etc.
Although unless something has changed, Emby and Plex don't sync watched and resume status for YouTube, which I use extensively, or the myriad of other video addons such as are listed here: https://kodi.tv/addons/browse?keyword=&c...=title+ASC
RE: New sync watch status add-on - Looking for testers - djbloc - 2021-02-13
(2021-02-08, 20:17)TCCalvin Wrote: This initially appeared to be exactly what I was looking for as I don't like the slowness of a MySQL central DB (MariaDB was a lot faster but had it's own issues).
What's putting me off is the need for storing data in the cloud, is it not possible to run locally rather than feeding info back remotely?
Sorry for the delay in responding, it's been a busy week...
It's not possible to run locally with this add-on. The use of the cloud is only to route messages between your devices. Data is not permanently stored in the cloud and those messages are sent & received over encrypted connections.
If you are comfortable with Trakt, this is similar but more lightweight solution specifically for Kodi.
If you want a purely local solution then I'd suggest MySQL/MariaDB is the way to go.