Orb³

[ReD]

I think criticism is a developers best tool. The ultimate goal of developing a client is user appreciation. If you dont accept and listen to user criticism then you move further and further from this goal.

I love to read a users comments on my projects, it helps me improve and get an ideas of how these users think about my projects.

Developing my protocol and client, i originally was not panning on leech prevention in any way, i got lots of criticism and suggestions now i will be implementing these such features. because of criticism you move forward.

just my opinion.

As I mentioned there were a few errors in the sample UI I posted. One of which is the fact there is too much eye candy going on which causes the experince of actually searching and getting your files to be lost in the fog.

Yeah i find that a very graphical intense UI always distracts me from what im doing, My intensions maybe one thing then ooo look they are really nice graphics, then forgot what i origionally wanted to do.

[ReD]

Originally posted by Ethen Lastly how does the UI effect performance of the app.

Graphics in a program require them to be loaded into the memory, if there are too many graphics loading through your program it causes mem usage to rise. This is my expierience with VB but with other development languages it may not be as bad.

If your using the graphics in your program then in VB they are loaded with your program even if they are not used.

[Mowzer]

Thank your for the lesson, I am glad you kept it short

"Lastly how does the UI effect performance of the app." Sorry that statement I made didn’t exactly equate to the common sense I am so fond of dishing up.

The statement was meant not literally, but in a figurative point, one of the third questions one should be asking of any good UI.

I could have worded it allot better. Like Is the UI effecting the performance? for example.

As I mentioned earlier I agree allot with what your saying regarding an app and its UI. Good points all around.

I took a peak at your app on your site. Sphere P2p looks like it has been developing nicely congrats on the network.

As for the client. Well, I wont use words like Impressive, Wow, Cool, or Holy kazowie. Well maybe Holy Kazowie awful.

"majority of users will be looking for an app that resembles windows. For ease of use."

There’s nothing wrong with that, and allot of other windows applications strive and achieve the same effect. But please don’t over do boring.

It looks more like a Networking configuration tool which would probably cause some users to fall asleep.

Even just adding a for example say a dent style to the icons would live-in it up a bit.

The other big point is you mention ease of use, but I think you have a programmer notion of ease of use for people who know how to boot into Linux. (Glad to see a Linux version on the go. Thats a good thing, and it doesn't need to look jazzy in any manner because linux by nature of its users, each and every package is has a certain aura of clean looking.)

As for relatively new users with a hard drive full of music, Congrats on sending the learning curve through the roof.

Terms like "Node class", "Sockets", and "CPU" look scary to some. At least provide a definition on mouse roll over or split the interface into a simple or advanced modes.

There’s mention of a profile feature "This will allow the software to be used by many different people. Each person can have a profile each with its own settings, services. Profiles wll be password protected and passes encrypted. The Admin of network using profile feature has 'Admin access' so he/she can set default family filters. This is perfect for families using the software who have Children."

Go dead simple but not dull. Just highly useable. Most parents simply let the internet baby sit their kids. Those that do sit down to set monitorization software or features often walk away in frustration.

Anyway, looking forward to seeing the final product. Remember your not making another Kazaa or Napster. Your building your own file sharing app, which might end up being the next step in p2p evolution. So be sure to make it a good one.

[kento]

lol, red you asked for it...looks like you got it: criticism/feedback etcetera...but at least ethen seems to know what he's talking about.

good luck on furthur developing your client and network.

greets,

kento

[TankGirl]

Congratulations, SWATProteus & alphabeater - the project is obviously advancing nicely and there is always room for a new nice OpenNap client.

Ethen's UI advice and links are good. A cool, intuitive and functional UI can make a big difference to the user experience of any software, and it is good to play with different styles and ideas.

- tg