DVDFab (UI/General) Software Development and Updates made less painful for users

[davecuk]

I WISH, they would make one part of the program less dependent on the other parts. So the front end is effectively a launcher and licence management/check utility for the programs.

This way you can have:

DVD Ripper version 8.1.3.2 QT
DVD Copy version 8.1.3.9 QT
Blu Ray Copy version 8.x.x.x
etc.
...

All handled and managed by the launcher and each with their own settings screen. This way once I find a ripper that works for me I can stick with that version until it doesn't; and if I update and loads of problems, then I can simply roll back to the last version that worked. BUT, if I want the functionality of an updated version of the DVD Copy, then I can update just that part if I want.

Oh god please....it would only take extra disk space.

No someone at this point will chime in and say, oh you can have more than one version, of DVD Fab loaded on the machine. Not so easy, not on my system and I suspect not on loads of others.

I have 2 versions loaded at the moment, but when the next update comes out, I will have to update it, reload my older version for ripping, ignore a reboot request, re-update the newest version, change all the setting and the desktop links. Even then many of the settings don't work correctly on what is not the main version. If I don't the older version simply won't start and gives an error. Then the system is rebooted and fingers crossed that both versions will work, sometimes it can take more than one go to make both work (using QT versions of the software).

[GregiBoy]

Well, I wish that they would implement decent quality control on their releases for a start.

The DVD5 default setting not bein able to be changed in settings is a classic example of very poor QC.

I tend to agree with you though as changes in one module should not affect the other modules but it always seems to happen.

What you have suggested has a lot of merit and makes sense.

[signals]

Different versions of different modules would be a support nightmare and I would suspect is unlikely, some of them use too many common parts. That being said, there are plans to completely re-do the GUI code later this year, hopefully there can be some improvements. It shouldn't be necessary to keep more than one version installed.

[davecuk]

Different versions of different modules would be a support nightmare and I would suspect is unlikely, some of them use too many common parts. That being said, there are plans to completely re-do the GUI code later this year, hopefully there can be some improvements. It shouldn't be necessary to keep more than one version installed.

I think you misunderstand me....

Support is only for current modules, not any historic ones you might want to run if later ones don't suit your needs.

making them use less common parts would actually be far better/easier from a development perspective, code libraries etc.. can of course still be reused where they are the same version, but the Interface/Launcher would handle that side of it and not the specific code itself. monolithic code development is probably a lot of the reason that there are increasingly problems with each new release. Bugs are easier to find and to correct. because they are compartmentalised into a smaller release with ring fenced code. Sure the product might take up slightly more space on disk....but so what, it will work just as well.

In addition when an update to the e.g. ripper module is required, the whole DVD Fab product would no longer need to be released as an update, just a small single module. From a user perspective if something doesn't work a simple rollback can be done. You are also never having to update modules that suit your needs at the time.....updating then becomes a pull process driven by user need.

We live in a world of Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 etc.. all configured hundreds of different ways and running all sorts of software. Just for the windoze development, it must be really hard to release code that works on all platforms and configurations of PCs. Smaller focussed releases simply allow the users to use what works for them and when there is a problem, roll back a module until the developers solve it.....rather than have 2 versions of DVD Fab installed (as I have to) and with one of them remember to keep changing DVD5 to DVD9 and use the other one for ripping because of audio sync problems.

[lzk87]

and what about separate installer?
ex. 1 for DVD ripper, 1 for DVD copy, 1 for BD Copy, etc..

or not?