Support Request

[davidagbr]

Hi,

I sent a support request due to OrangeCD no longer being able to access information on Discogs. Even after sending a reminder, the only response I've received was the automated response sent on April 11th.

Any chance of response in the near future?

David

[andrei_c]

Hi David,

Do you still experience problem with Discogs in latest version (6.5.3.19427)?

Andrei

[davidagbr]

Yes, the problem only started with the latest build. Amazon search functions correctly.

[davidagbr]

Andrei, I'm still waiting for help with this!

[andrei_c]

David,

I am working on another update.

Discogs is phasing out yet another part of API in coming weeks, and the update would be necessary to continue any access

Andrei

[davidagbr]

OK, and roughly how long before this update is available?

[davidagbr]

Back in 2011, you posted (in this post; http://www.firetongue.com/boards/showthread.php?7835-Is-there-a-future-for-OrangeCD):

"Unfortunately there are bigger problems than just obsolete UI.

Storage mechanism used in OrangeCD needs refresh. The infamous Norton Antivirus problem is one example where it fails to keep up with modern requirements.

In past few months I've been working on new modern, cross-platform, SQL-based storage engine that would simplify extending OrangeCD to Mac OS X and fix few other long-standing issues (multiple images per album, etc.) Unfortunately this work is still very much in progress and far from being usable.

So there's currently two branches of OrangeCD source code: one is from November 2010 with some additional fixes made in between. The other is very unstable due to its new database engine. There is also a backlog of unsolved issues that need to be done in old branch (mostly bugs reported through this forum) before these two branches can be converged. I hope this explains the hiatus of last 8 months.

At this point I see no other solution as to stop working on new database engine and resume frequent incremental updates as it happened in 2009-2010.

Which means annoying Norton issue and some other problems will not go away for some time

Andrei"

As there hasn't been "frequent incremental updates", does this mean that you have been resumed work on the "new modern, cross-platform, SQL-based storage engine" that would presumably resolve what you describe as an "obsolete UI", in order to bring Orange CD up to date.

Or, as I fear is more likely, you continue to merely cobble together makeshift fixes to what is becoming an increasingly "obsolete" piece of software (which in your own words of three years ago, "fails to keep up with modern requirements"!!).

While many users remain satisfied with OrangeCD as it is, my recent problems with the software have highlighted several issues:

1. Lack of updates
2. Lack of development
3. Lack of support

None of which is particularly encouraging for established users, let alone likely to encourage new users to stump up $34.95 for a copy!

As a long time user of OrangeCD (of at least 11 years), I find the current situation quite worrying. If OrangeCD is (at it pretty much appears to be) "dead in the water", at what point would you suggest that a loyal user such as myself cuts their losses, and migrates to an up-to-date (and supported) program.

I would very much like to hear your thoughts on this Andrei, and provide some details for the future of OrangeCD (if you perceive it as having one).

David

[davidagbr]

Just downloaded and installed OCD 6.5.4 - new build, same problem - I'm still not able to download information from Discogs.

[Jazz_North]

Just downloaded and installed OCD 6.5.4 - new build, same problem - I'm still not able to download information from Discogs.

Don't think this is an OCD problem. Downloading from Discogs works just fine for me. I am not sure what you are unable to find, but this is the difference between the search that I get from OCD and the one that I get when searching within Discogs itself. The OCD search will only find entries where the "Artist" or "Composer" field in Discogs matches (or includes) the entered search term. The search from within Discogs itself is broader in that it will also find entries where the search term is not the artist, but is included in the entry. For example, Alexei Grynyuk is a young classical pianist, with two albums under his name. Neither of these are in the Discogs database (which isn't very good for classical recordings) and so OCD returns a "not found" message when searching for him in Discogs. However he is the pianist on some tracks on two different Nicola Benedetti albums that are in the database and so Discogs returns these two entries when searched directly from Discogs itself. That said, I would never use the search term Alexei Grynyuk to search for these entries from OCD, but would use Nicola Benedetti. And, happily, doing an OCD Discogs search for Nicola Benedetti returns these two entries (and several others).