AniDB Applet DEV

Goal

A very simple to use Java Applet which is directly integrated with the AniDB website and enables users to easily add files on their local harddrive to their AniDB mylist.

Requirements

• Extremely simple user interface
  • Usage should be as intuitive as possible for novice users
  • No options which are unlikely to be of interest to a large majority of users
    • Advanced mode for everything else
• Tight integration with the AniDB website
  • Directly available via a link in the AniDB navbar
  • No additional login/authorisation
• Use of the UDP API, see: UDP_API_Definition
• Sun Java plug-in 1.5 compatible
  • Targets: Firefox and Opera (latest versions) on Windows, Linux, MacOS
• Open Source

Possible Implementations

Suggestion 1

Wizard style interface with 4 dialogs.

Dialog 1 - Directory selection

Allows the user to select the file or directory which should be scanned for new files.

• Short two sentence introduction to applet
• File/Directory selection element which allows selection of a file or directory (with ctrl/shift also multiple elements)
  • optional: support drag and drop of files/directories under windows
• Buttons
  • Advanced Mode (jumps to different UI for advanced users, not specified here)
  • Next

Dialog 2 - Hashing

Hashes the selected file or all media files located within the selected directories (or their subdirectories...) and identifies all files via a FILE command of the UDP API. No mylist modifications are made at this point.

• One sentence explanation of current activity
• Directory/Name of currently processed file
• Progress
  • Per file progress bar
  • Overall progress bar
• Some statistics
  • i.e. files already hashed, files left to hash, size, speed, time elapsed, estimated time left, ...
• Buttons
  • Back
  • Next (deactivated while hashing)

Dialog 3 - Identified files

Displays an overview of all hashed files to the user together with their current status. This page/phase does not interact with the UDP API.

• One sentence explanation
• Tree or list view of hashed files and their status
  • Unknown / Known / Already in mylist
  • Optional: right click context menu in tree/list view, i.e. to remove a file/entire (sub)directory from the list
• Checkbox: "[ ] Rename known files according to AniDB naming scheme"
  • Using AniDB profile title language settings for selecting anime and episode title
• Buttons
  • Back (jumps to dialog 1)
  • Next

Dialog 4 - Adding Progress/Finished

Executes the actual mylist adding via the UDP API. Initially displays the progress of the adding process and later displays an "All done" message.

• One sentence explanation
• Overall progress bar
• Some statistics
• All done message after all known files which weren't yet in the users mylist have been added
• Buttons
  • Back (jumps to dialog 3, handling of already partly executed actions is undefined)
  • Restart (jump to dialog 1, clear file/directory selection)