Lopster

2005-08-19
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Software + OpenNap >

https://sourceforge.net/projects/lopster/
http://lopster.sourceforge.net/

An OpenNap client.

Astoninshly-capable. I loved this program so much. It introduced me to music and especially introduced me to good code on Linux.

  • 2016-12-30 - The author confirms the project is inactive.

In my final days of its use, the author wasn't really working on improving the version I fell in love with and was leaning towards a rewrite. Of course the rewrite involves certain fundamental design and interface differences which will make it mandatory that it sucks. Sigh.

Table of Contents [hide]

2009-06-23 note ∞

It requires some UI declunkification to make it more fully useable, but it's exceptionally capable as it stands. Certain feature additions may well make it an obvious category-killer in the future.

A lot of this has to be gone through and compared to cvs. Many ideas have already been integrated, and some are specifically not going to be integrated.

Lopster Server List ∞

To refresh Lopster's server list from Napigator, right-click on your server page, and choose "Refresh" and it will grab the disorganized crap off of Napigator.

I might get around to posting my own server list. It's really unfortunate that for a long time Lopster would automagically destroy one's server list with the update. I still dislike the way it handles the list.. bleh.

Firewall settings ∞

  • Open up: 6680:6699/tcp
  • UDP is not necessary.

  • Also forward the ports from the firewall to the appropriate internal network IP. Open up any internal firewalls as necessary.

2009-07-19 - 1.2.2 ∞

smart install libgtk+-devel

During make, I get:

-I/usr/lib/glib/include -I/usr/include  -I/usr/include/glib-1.2 -I/usr/lib/glib/include -D_REENTRANT    -g -O2 -W -Wall -D_GNU_SOURCE -c log.c
log.c: In function ‘close_logs’:
log.c:151: error: lvalue required as left operand of assignment
make[2]: *** [log.o] Error 1
make[2]: Leaving directory `/home/user/lopster-1.2.2/src'
make[1]: *** [all-recursive] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory `/home/user/lopster-1.2.2'
make: *** [all-recursive-am] Error 2
[1]    9831 exit 2     make

I'm not hacking the code to fix this stuff.. sigh.

2009-06-23 - (version not recorded) ∞

This used to be in the repository. I'm disappointed that it was removed.

./configure gives:

checking for GTK - version >= 1.2.0... no
*** Could not run GTK test program, checking why...
*** The test program failed to compile or link. See the file config.log for the
*** exact error that occured. This usually means GTK was incorrectly installed
*** or that you have moved GTK since it was installed. In the latter case, you
*** may want to edit the gtk-config script: /usr/bin/gtk-config
configure: error: GTK is required!

A long time earlier - (version not recorded) ∞

  • Ok, where is the downloads folder? I hunt around and find that it's ~

Ancient Notes ∞

(keep in mind that Lopster 1.x is now ancient)

2003-12-30 - cvs ∞

  • Be able to browse the users files without reference to directories.. as with WinMX.. be able to view the total list of files and only files.

    • This is an issue from early 2002! Sigh.

2003-11-24 - cvs ∞

  • Automatically kick people who download too fast, if they are listed as dialup.

2003-08-25 - cvs ∞

  • Be able to export one's server list.

"Older Notes" - (version not recorded) ∞

(old?)

  • in search menu, can't tab to 'go' button.
  • chat tab, server tab is stuck at the top not the bottom
  • be able to add any new file to the 'incomplete' list for auto searches
  • record the originating servers as well as the username for imported DLs etc
  • perhaps x -- left click an object, then right-click elsewhere, it selects two options, not the one
  • have a function to download only from certain ping levels (like certain bitrates)

  • bug - cannot set user's # of files limit properly, it stalls / queues them

cvs -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.Lopster.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lopster login
cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.Lopster.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lopster co lopster

To set it only once:

export CVSROOT=":pserver:anonymous@cvs.Lopster.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/lopster"

Then, either:

cvs co lopster

or:

cvs up lopster
  • I figured out how to remove an autojoin
  • TekNap can download filenames with question marks.
  • Be able to define things based on people's user levels.

  • Add time-of-day throttling and number of user caps etc.

  • There used to be a way to set afk, and some other stuff in the chat window.. ungh.. removed?
  • Be able to have a search already in progress, and in the search panel, using the exact name information but changing other things, be able to call up a duplicate search window with the different specs.. either that, or redo the current search with the updated information. (be able to change from 'temporary' to 'save+search at login'
  • The ejection system to have 'always allow upload' is really harsh! I should be given the option to have downloads finish before letting them in the queue.
  • Be able to properly ban networks, and not have them automatically moved around when i refresh the server list.
  • I noticed Lopster would allow someone through who I just checked the info on with the right-click menu.. very strange.
  • damned dark blue text isn't visible on the black background!
  • /afk is broken?
  • How do I rename a file as it's being downloaded?
  • Keep track of how frequently I use servers - number of connections, duration, last date of connect etc..
  • If I move an active server, the number of active servers etc is not updated. be able to show port on servers list.. be able to edit individual servers etc..
  • Stop leashing all the servers to that 'refresh list' function.. eesh. be able to give higher priority to people who download certain songs.. either by directory or by regular expression.
  • Keep track of the last 'x' number of people who had a file I am searching for. Keep that info alongside the search. Prioritize those people who I've actually connected to, to keep them in this list longer..

  • Be able to ban certain clients: drumbeat

    • sgop appears to be hesitant to implement such a thing, fearing user abuse and thereby making Lopster disreputable.
  • Wait until after I've sent my mp3 list to a server to do searches on that server.. some servers complain about it.
  • [implemented] - Be able to do searches in my own library
  • Be able to "search library" for certain files I'd like to look into downloading.. I don't like the built-in duplicate searching at all.
  • Be able to do it at any time for any file, not just during a download.
  • Be able to search servers.
  • Adding one's own server is clunky. If one adds a server to a network which already exists, the network should be automatically moved to where the user is when they added the item. Possibly just warn them and give them the option.
  • It's annoying to have to individually protect my favorite servers from being shuffled around by that refresh list function.. ungh, I have the feeling that this function ends up dropping perfectly working servers just because they're not on napigator.
  • Cannot properly add servers.. be able to <F2> and edit stuff..
  • Be able to set a priority for people on my hotlist, or people I've got a (recent?) browse for.
  • Be able to do a hotlist file search and pull up a list of all partial matches

  • [implemented] - Be able to have a view mode which only shows [new] files in a hotlist search

viewing someone's files like so:

  • artist name

    • album one
    • album two

I'd like to be able to download artist name / album two, keeping album two in a subdirectory underneath artist name, without downloading the first album as well.

  • Hotlist and previously browsed people should share the same description.
  • Be able to doubleclick on a hotlist name to bring up their browse. Have a setting to optionally auto-refresh the browse if they are online.
  • I've noticed that if I browse a person, and download stuff directly.. then disconnect and reconnect, I cannot download some of their files. I believe this is because their server isn't caching their entire collection.. be able to do another direct browse to automatically grab songs previously attainable from a person's direct browse.
  • In the string lists, cannot scroll left/right to display long strings, like afk messages.
  • Auto retry 1000 seconds if a file is queued isn't long enough..
  • Be able to not use "always allow upload", but "priority +x" on users.. that way I could give greater priority to elites / moderators or friends etc without necessarily giving them the power to eject people and download right away.
  • Be able to search string lists
  • Why search a new download that I have just searched for? There is duplication of effort there..

  • Keep track of what servers my flisted buddies have connected to. Give me the option to connect to them too.

  • Too many pending searches on some servers.
  • Chat window - there is a horizontal bar which can be moved down. This space doesn't appear to do anything. Maybe it was meant to be tied into the above window?
  • Be able to auto-retry cancelled. When I have lopster cancel a file because it went below a certain speed, try back later.. especially if I'm not downloading the file from anyone else!
  • Be able to highlight based on a regexp - rack, but not track.. etc.
  • If I'm a regular chatter in a room, mark the tab red as if I had unread messages or as if I flagged a keyword to be displayed.
  • ctrl-tab to move between tabs? not just alt-a/alt-s
  • alt-a/alt-s doesn't work when the chat tab is separated.
  • Coloring doesn't happen right when the chat tab is separated.
  • Right-click menus are already user-definable! ack, I forgot!
  • Hmm.. I was using hotkeys and one of them exited lopster. fun.
  • For transfers, have a finished tab.
  • Be able to have just one server not use winmx emulation, not an entire network!!
  • Be able to turn off winmx emulation on the fly, and not disconnect/reconnect.
  • Alongside the horizontal bar in the chat window (reported?), have lopster automatically pull up any previous logs since the last read mark, on a new session!
  • Confirmed that lopster doesn't handle not having hdd space.. when it copies the now complete tempfile a good partition to the destination dir, it just dies (0 length). keep the temp file in these cases.
  • Be able to search within my queued/searching/etc files. Attach this to the download duplication check.
  • Hmm.. when the chat tab is highlit red, I'm forced to go to the chat tab to clear it.. instead of flipping to the separated chat page where it's from.
  • Allow page up/down in the chat window.
  • Be able to have lopster send 'x' file requests, if more than one is downloaded at once, abort and locally queue.. or something.
  • When downloading, if there's only one user being downloaded from, don't have an expandable entry.
  • Provide a quick function to not delete, but 'zero' a file.
  • Scan for dead files needs to be cleaned up - make the button "close" after it's done. Give a message that no files to be rebuild when it doesn't find anything.
  • Be able to move files around from the library manager. Heck, link to sfm or something cool and make it a full-blown file manager plugin.
  • Be able to show the date last modified for files.. add a new column.
  • Lopster doesn't display extended characters properly (accented stuff, <cr> etc). Be able to assign a specific font to the chat windows too.
  • Is winmx queue emulation for getting myself queued in, or allowing others to queue to me. Allow the user to set these individually.
  • The remotely queued message is wrong.. it doesn't display the number of files ahead of the person.. but some value describing the number of active downloads currently being done.
  • Even when I set my max downloads and downloads per person to 1000, I still get files locally queued.
  • Add a universal "winmx emulation on/off" button/function... and be able to toggle it for the people I'm queuing to / current searches etc..
  • Have a column to record the time a hotlist person was last on.
  • It doesn't look like lopster disconnects from servers when the user exits lopster.
  • Add a column in downloads for 'single source mode' files.
  • I cannot 'open' some mp3s from the upload list, even though they're there and they're fine.. I'm not sure if it's a filename.. it could be a very long directory string.
  • A file which has lots of hits for being searches for will never be downloaded..
  • Cannot sort accesses statistic by #, only size.
  • I can use 'f' as my hotkey to force a download.. even though it's not an option in the inactive downloads' right-click menu.
  • Be able to also have a column displaying how many files a server thinks I'm sharing.
  • Cannot sort the browses in the hostlist.
  • Have messages automatically queued when sent to a person who is offline.. then have it sent when they are found to be back online..
  • Only colour the brackets around a username, not the name.. since browns and blues are very difficult to see for some people.
  • Be able to have friend's chatter highlit a certain way.
  • Have lopster pull up all unread stuff from logs on restart
  • Be able to show more when people locally browse
  • Understand symbolic links and don't reload the associated files / dirs from scratch if they're already loaded! Heck, don't load confirmed duplicates up...
  • Have a chat page-specific character limit. Some people want to keep a lot of some channels (maybe motd etc)
  • Be able to have lopster lump together closely timed requests such that if
  • One user request one file, then waits a couple of minutes and requests
  • Another, the second file will be queued right up behind the first even
  • Though other people might have gotten in the queue.
  • Have auto-afk set when the lopster window is unfocused!
  • Don't show join/part messages for ignored users.
  • Be able to set friends to always show up on join/part - either hotlisted or "always allow upload"
  • Lopster's search pane: top right should be clickable to focus on the lower part.
  • The pattern name should sort with case-insensitivity
  • All sort types should also be "unsortable" - I hate accidentally sorting something and forever mucking up the previous order.. the order of last-added.

  • Add a "network name" to the available columns in download/upload. It would be nice to be able to see that and sort by that since i had moderator status available in some cases.. helpful for banning leeches or inviting or whatnot.

  • In the search tab -- why display the tab if it doesn't have a matched item?
  • Be able to connect multiple times to a server in order to share a very large collection.
  • Be able to bump up people in the queue if they're requesting files from 'x' directory. (like my favorites)
  • Be able to have others only queue up two files at a time.
  • Be able to throttle someone's download from me based on the speed that I can download from them.
  • I can connect to more networks than I can display with the popup bar by clicking on the toolbar at the bottom.
  • Show the folder a file will be downloaded into, in the downloads queue list etc.
  • Add a search function to the server panel so I can find things by certain ips or names etc.
  • Be able to automatically remove servers which remort that they require registration for login
  • Be able to limit the number of downloads based on the amount of available bandwidth.. so if I have 3 downloaders and they're going slow.. automatically accept another.
  • Have the option to not be forced to join a channel!
  • Be able to specify that a server is not to be searched on.. so I can connect to servers and only share and not search or download if I wanted that. I'd want to specify this for WPNP so I don't have duplicate people lingering around.. I think.
  • Cannot disconnect an entire group
  • The afk function was bugged and not sticking.. was turning off to easily.
  • Be able to search the banned users list or strings lists.
  • "Always allow upload" is now allowing ALL queued files to be uploaded at the same time.. bad bad!!
  • In the download pane, change "time left" to "time", since it's also using the total amount of time it took a file to be completed.
  • If Lopster receives 'filename too long'.. mark which filenames are too long. If I cannot share a certain number of files, label that server with that info.
  • If Lopster receives 'invalid nick', re-log in with a new nick. Allow the user to provide a list, and optionally increment a number before/after or in the middle of a string the user provides.
  • If the ignore list is too large, be sure to ignore it on the Lopster side and not the server side. Heck, just ignore on the lopster side, since sometimes I wouldn't want a user to know they've been ignored.

  • Someone with a ?user? userlevel managed to skip ahead in my download queue. I've seen this several times! [ 1 ]Mac Nap 1.0 [860]

Be able to auto-attempt to register my nick when I log onto a server:

/msg :1 nickserv register

And Lopster could remember which servers it's attempted, and which have responded to the request.

  • People who queue up more than 'x' songs.. automatically attempt a direct browse with them to determine if they really are sharing. Perhaps even auto-download something random to test.
  • Add a function to track down duplicate servers in the server list.. so that I stop getting the duplicate nick errors.
  • Should state the upload speed after uploads are completed. Should state the download speed even from downloads which have been aborted or lagged out or whatever. It's nice to know.
  • Have a 'speed threshold'.. if you are downloading at 'x' speed, don't download from another person unless it downloads at 1/2 of 'x' within 10 seconds. If the primary download slows down, and the other downloads used to go faster.. then retry connecting to those secondary downloads.
  • Don't download from people who disconnect from their networks. Be able to have them as a user priority.
  • Record BOTH sides of a conversation! arg!
  • The "file is not there" message should say it's automated.
  • Send out explanation messages for blocking people? - say it's automated
  • Be able to automatically paste colour. Be able to paste in b&w still.
  • Check for duplication by checking IPs and the names/ips of linked servers etc etc
  • Need to know the port of servers I'm connected to, or servers that exist in my server list.
  • Even when away, should say which server messages are coming from. Should also log which servers messages come from.
  • Enhance /reply so that it can track down multiple previous replies.
  • A user is a leech if they disconnect from their network and only download from me.. treat them the same as users with 0 shared files.
  • If a duplicate login is detected, it would be nice to be able to track down which server connection caused that, so I can decide if I want to ban lopser from logging in there.

  • Be able to have admin / elite / whatever userlevel of person be bumped ahead in the queue

Lopster notes:

  • Add a function to send a message to all people currently uploading / etc.. so that, say, I could tell them all that I had to reboot.
  • Be able to highlight multiple servers to connect/disconnect/whatever.. also include control-click functions.
  • Cannot customize the download list unless a download is in progress.
  • The "clear entries older then 30 days" has never worked.
  • If I have a LOT of servers which I'm connected to.. I cannot click on the server button and view them all.. the listing of servers scrolls off the screen.
  • Be able to specify how many servers will be connected to.

  • It would be interesting to have lopster try to connect to the occasional extra server and put that in the list of connected servers and disconnect from the worst of the connected servers.

  • Add a feature such that the more a person shares, the higher they are in the priority list.
  • Make the different priorities of downloader a different colour?
  • Make an auto-register function.
  • Maybe somehow allow people who want to resume higher priority?
  • Be able to have preferred server, just like there are user upload preferences.. be able to have those preferences also allot bandwidth percentages.. so if I have everyone at 1 and 'always allow upload' at 2, those people get 2x the bandwidth, if available.
  • Perhaps try to block two spam names trying to download the same song at the same time?
  • Add a column in the uploads tab for servername.
  • It is difficult to reply to a message if AFK was on, because it doesn't properly remember where the user was. Also, pay special attention to how /msg will act, because servers get deleted and added all the time, so the basic #: won't work. Assign a name to the server, so I don't mistakenly reply to a user on another server.
  • How does it split up the bandwidth? I've found that when I have a lot of downloads, slower people go even slower.. maybe gear things such that it cuts speed from the faster users and lets the slow users go as fast as possible.
  • Have timeouts on banned users.. to clear them after some time.
  • Have Lopster keep an eye out.. if I ban someone, and they pop back up, even under another name from another server.. attempting to download the same file, and continue at the previous spot.. ban and kick them too.
  • Add a function to re-sort the uploads page by order received.. so I can sort by, say, name, then re-sort in the original queuing order.
  • I think server splits can cause lopster to crash.
  • Have /reply also add in the server name. Careful, as this shifts around.

  • If a file can't be shared.. virtually truncate the name, and share it as that truncated name. Ask the user what length is good.

Typos:

[15:25] »»» [n/a] could no add <oldNAP.d2g.com> to your hotlist!
=>
[15:25] »»» [n/a] could not add <oldNAP.d2g.com> to your hotlist!
[17:20] »»» [n/a] Someone else tries to login with your Nick
=>
[17:20] »»» [n/a] Someone else is trying to log in with your Nick
  • Add a favorites list for servers
  • Don't blindly disallow my connecting to multiple servers in one server group. Check to see if they are actually linked. Add in code that will disconnect duplicate entries on that network.. -- that is, if I connect to two servers, and they later connect to eachother.. auto-disconnect from one.
  • You could altogether remove the arbitrary groupings in that auto-generated list.. and just connect from top to bottom based on whatever sorting method is in use (number of users, of files, gbs etc..). With each successful connect, poll that server for connected servers and remove other connected servers from it.
  • Have favorite servers always connected to first. Optionally, have some feature-- if I connect to a server, and it is networked with a server that is one of my favorites, keep trying to log into the favorite.. when successful, then disconnect from duplicate servers on that network.
  • Allow duplicate servers in the favorites list.. that is, allow the user to have servers which will connect to the same network. It is their chose. Make a note when the servers connect to the same network.. optionally have lopster disconnect from all servers on a network except for the server which is higher in the favorites list.
  • Advanced functions which filter out duplicate users.. users who are connected to multiple servers.. that would be nice. However, you must be able to determine which of the servers that user is on is the best.. fastest, or allows more songs to be shared.. or allows a person to browse more of the users files. Maybe just check favorites server list.
  • Add a feature to have the whois information put into a chat window.. I want to be able to do multiple whois' and have them all displayed.
  • auto-afk after a certain amount of inactivity
  • If in afk, don't spam that "you are in afk-mode" crap.. just remove the user from afk mode.
  • Need to handle sending messages much better.. some sort of ICQ-like interface.. a little top-down list of usernames, or something.
  • Maximum number of concurrent searches -- update for multiuser:
  • Per server, and global. It is per server now. Say so.
  • When I request to leave a chatroom.. don't delay and wait for the server ok.. kill the window.
  • Add a maximum number of servers to connect to.. function.

  • The limit for large files function is screwed up.

2016-12-29 - Project apparently abandoned ∞

https://sourceforge.net/projects/lopster/ says there was an update 2014-05-10 but I see no changes to files, tickets, etc.

I see some activity not too long ago, but that's to files which are ancient.

Checking sgop's (Markus Lausser) user profile, Lopster shows activity .. but it is any activity from anyone, and not just official project activity.

There has not been recent activity on the project's tickets:

  1. https://sourceforge.net/p/lopster/feature-requests/

  2. https://sourceforge.net/p/lopster/bugs/

The forum is dead.

As another of his projects is recent, I tried contacting him through sourceforge.

donating might be a way to get his attention. However, as it lists an email address (sgop mnet-online de) I will try emailing that too.

2016-12-30 - The author confirms the project is inactive.

Footnotes

^ 1 Mac Nap

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