[Deluge] #3494: improved usability for thin client with intermittent connection to daemon
Deluge
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Reporter: brainchild0 | Type: feature-request
Status: new | Priority: minor
Milestone: needs verified | Component: Unknown
Version: 2.0.0 | Keywords: thin-client, gui
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I run the graphical interface as a thin client connected to a remote
daemon. The details of my configuration are that the system running the
graphical front end is a laptop with intermittent connectivity to the
local area network on which the daemon is available. Sometimes the laptop
is disconnected from a network, or is connected to another network, from
which the daemon is unreachable, due to routing and firewall
considerations.
The current design of the user interface does not offer strong usability
for cases of intermittent connection to the daemon.
In particular, following are two observations:
1. If a connection to the daemon is unavailable when the front end
launches, and if the front end is configured to connect automatically
(i.e. "Auto-connect to selected Daemon"), then the application opens the
Connection Manager and displays an error message in a popup dialogue box.
2. If the connection to the daemon drops after the front end had made a
connection, then the connection remains closed until the user opens the
Connection Manager and attempts to reconnect, at some times also needing
to refresh (using "Refresh" button) the daemon status indication.
Manual interaction of both kinds imposes a cumbersome and unnecessary
burden on users in scenarios such as the one described.
A more friendly set of behaviors would be as follows:
* Attempt a connection to the daemon at application startup, but request
no interaction from the user if the connection is not available.
* Whenever a connection is not active, whether it has been made but then
dropped, or had not been available since application startup, periodically
poll for availability, at intervals which may be quite frequent,
especially during times when a connection had only recently been lost.
These behavior might occur when the existing mode mentioned above has been
activated, or some other new mode to be added.
Requested is a set of enhancements of such kind to support silent and
automatic handling of scenarios of intermittent availability of a
connection to the daemon.
Generally, the benefit of a thin client is optimal by supporting
monitoring and control when desired by the user and available through the
connection, but imposing minimal burden for the user at other times.
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Ticket URL: <https://dev.deluge-torrent.org/ticket/3494>
Deluge <https://deluge-torrent.org/>
Deluge Project