Get Iplayer for Windows

[dinkypumpkin]

On 21/09/2011 23:52, Christopher Woods (CustomMade) wrote:
>> Given that get_iplayer is such a hassle to maintain for
>> installation on Windows wouldn't distributing say an
>> Ubuntu+get_iplayer package for e.g.  VMplayer be worth looking at?
>
> Whoever does take over Windows duties does take on a responsibility. I
> suspect the majority of the Windows userbase is comprised of silent but
> largely happy users (like myself until I joined the list a while back).
> However, their technical skill level I would bet is probably a way below
> that of Linux&  Mac users when it comes to commandline fiddling. VMPlayer's
> a little... Excessive... For an iPlayer download script don't you think?
> It's more than slightly penalising us Windows users just for our choice of
> OS.

It is tempting.  Make that REALLY tempting.  Trust me when I say that an 
Ubuntu+get_iplayer package would be much less hassle to put together and 
test.  However, I think a VMplayer solution could introduce its own 
headaches.  For one thing, we'd be pushing the target audience onto a 
new OS that, by definition, they're not necessarily knowledgeable about. 
  Sure, the process could be reduced to a cookbook of sorts, but we'd 
still be putting get_iplayer into an unfamiliar box for Windows users. 
Plus, we'd be introducing another dependency (and potential source of 
problems) in the shape of VMplayer.  I think that puts the entry barrier 
a bit higher than an average Windows user would rightfully expect. 
Also, we would have to take on the process of maintaining helper 
applications, at least for the near future (mainline repos lag behind), 
though luckily Jon Davies currently fills that role in the Ubuntu 
universe with his PPA.  At the moment we can still utilise the Windows 
builds of helper apps provided by other developers.  Not nearly as good 
as proper package management, but essentially free.

Alternative solutions aside, I think I have removed most of the 
headaches involved in supporting the Windows installer:

- The installer build process is now completely automated.  If you want 
to change the installer script itself, then of course you need to learn 
something about NSIS, but there is help for everything else.
- The installer can (and should) now be built completely in Windows. 
Nothing but batch files and pre-packaged software, all the way down.
- The installer build and deployment process is now documented, so 
hopefully the relevant knowledge won't get lost again.
- All of the helper applications can now be updated by the installer 
without the need to distribute a new build (get_iplayer itself could 
always be updated dynamically).

I hope - touch wood - that we won't need another Windows installer for a 
while, or at least not a major release.  I won't abandon the current 
installer completely, as long as I'm around, but I'm not willing to put 
any more development or testing effort into it beyond the current 
release, which was the gist of my earlier response on this thread.