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Episodes are streamed even when downloaded locally
This is a continuation of the issue that was created in our F-Droid repo: https://github.com/podverse/podverse-fdroid/issues/51
(We consolidate all mobile app Github issues into this podverse-rn repo)
Hello! Thanks for looking into this.
Using Podverse 4.6.8 on a Motorolla G Power 2020 (XT2041-4) running Android 11
I'm not able to reproduce this issue on iOS...it seems to be playing downloaded episodes. Will try Android next.
@trev-dev I was not able to reproduce this issue on Android for Google Play or F-Droid either...I tested with v4.6.9, but I don't think there was a fix between v4.6.8 and 4.6.9 that could explain this...
@trev-dev I know you said that you already deleted and reinstalled the app, but could you try wiping the app data first from within Android app storage settings, then deleting and reinstalling the app? We did have a storage migration issue between 4.5.x and 4.6.x that broke a lot of functionality for Android users.
Also, was there a specific podcast or episode you were listening to when you had the issue? One theory I have is that the hashed file name we are saving is too long, which would cause saving the file to storage to fail. We have a limit on the hash length which we thought was safe for all platforms...but maybe the length we chose does not work universally like we hoped. https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/blob/develop/src/lib/hash.ts#L15
I'm going to mark this ticket as needs reproduction. I'm at a loss at the moment for how to diagnose and debug this...if anyone can help with steps to reproduce or provide some advice on how to debug this would be a top priority for me to fix.
Update: I tested with Android 13, so maybe this is specific to Android 11 and below?
@trev-dev this Stack Overflow answer recommends using 127 characters as a max file name...but the answer is from 2013.
I'd try just changing our hash helper to limit to 127 characters...but I think that might break downloaded file references currently on people's devices. If we can confirm that file name character limit is actually the issue, then I could work on migrating to the reduced length file name hash.
I know you said that you already deleted and reinstalled the app, but could you try wiping the app data first from within Android app storage settings, then deleting and reinstalling the app? We did have a storage migration issue between 4.5.x and 4.6.x that broke a lot of functionality for Android users.
Not a problem. I wiped out the app, re-installed, re logged-in, re-setup my downloads folder on my SD card. I then made damn sure all the episodes I queue'd were pre-downloaded before going for a walk today. The app used ~200Mb of data. I'm actually over my data limit for the month now, so no more testing until november :/
How may I get you a manifest of my shows?
Ok so update: I turned mobile data off and went for a walk. After my episode ran out of buffer the player stopped.
I tried to resume and it would not work.
I reloaded the app, still won't work.
Cleared the cache, no dice.
The app is smart enough to only show me downloaded episodes bit when I try to play one, it circles and shows a red warning sign.
This unfortunately makes Podverse useless for me.
I will keep my subscription for a while just in case this gets sorted. I will be moving on to something that will play over the several hours of chores I need to do
@trev-dev thanks for your thorough testing and detailed report, and sorry again for the trouble :[
Ok there are 2 variables I have not tested recently with downloaded episode playback 1) Android 11 and below, and 2) SD card playback.
I'll try to install Android 11 on a device with an SD card and do some debugging.
I still haven't been able to reproduce this issue. I'm wondering if it could be related to device settings rather than app logic (check if storage is enabled for the app in device settings?).
We actually haven't had other reports of this issue to my knowledge. I'm sorry @trev-dev ,while it's a huge disappointment for your use-case, I'm going to de-prioritize it (unassign me) because I can't actually work on it until I can reproduce the issue.
I of course haven't been using the app. I've given podverse full privilege to use data/power as it needs to. I have re-installed the app and will attempt to use it without SD card storage and report back here.
Update. I have stuck to my internal storage and avoided the use of my SD card. I cannot say for certain if it is the app, my cheap Motorolla device or the SD card itself that's causing issues, but my data usage is at a modest 28Mb after 2 hours of listing off my wifi network.
This may be unique to me at this point, but I recommend testing with SD card storage if you have not done so already. I can take Fountain off my phone now. Thanks!
@trev-dev thanks for the update!
I'm going to update the title of the issue since it sounds like we can narrow it down.
Possibly related issues. Seems like a lot of problems with our Android 11 SD card handling @kreonjr
https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/issues/1004 https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/issues/1461 https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/issues/1314 https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/issues/1005
There is a long-shot chance this might be fixed in v4.12.0.
https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/pull/1651
If it is isn't fixed, then it might be worth re-testing after https://github.com/podverse/podverse-rn/issues/1611 is finished.
Unfortunately the SD card handling is still pretty mysterious to me...
Just an FYI my phone started having other problematic behaviors such as freezing/restarting.
I fell back to my good ol' Blackberry Key 2 LE. The thing is stuck on Android 8. I stuck my same SD card in the blackberry, told Podverse to put my shows on said card. I have not had a problem with data usage for about a week.
@trev-dev sorry to hear about your phone, but glad to hear Podverse is working on Android 8! That is honestly a surprise to me lol.
There is one other major fix we need for Android stability. We're hitting a 6MB storage limit with podcast metadata we store on device, and when that happens it causes all kinds of chaos. Anyway if the problem resurfaces for you, one possibility is it's related to the 6MB limit. #1611
Since you're not running into the issue anymore I'll close it. If the bug happens again please let me know to reopen it.