Release history v2.x

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alex
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Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2003 5:57 pm

Release history v2.x

Post by alex »

Release history v3.x

- v2.9.5 -

- a simpler search syntax has been introduced in addition to boolean wildmats. it is selected by default since it is more suitable for new users and sufficient for many searches; it can always be changed to boolean wildmats in edit menu->properties->search/import when more sofisticated search is needed. Click here for more details.

- when the previous save directory doesn't exist any longer - the browse for folder dialog will now show the closest parent directory which still exists instead of the documents folder (the latter is the default windows behaviour).

- v2.9.3 -

- added option "Mark articles for download sorted by author" in edit menu->properties->general (checked by default). the option will ignore the view sort order and will mark articles for download as if the view were sorted by author in the ascending order.

- added option "Mark flagged" in edit menu->properties->save/unpack->save->saving attachments (unchecked by default). when checked - articles marked for [download&]save will be flagged immediately, thus enabling the user to see/track downloads more easily.

- .rxx rar sets (.rar .r01 .r02 etc) - when marking articles for download the .rar file will be marked for download before the .r00 file (to affect the actual download order the download queue should be sorted by priority, which is the default, not by date unless the download priority is in the "download immediately" range).

- v2.9.2 -

- the remaining par2 files won't be downloaded while the repair is queued / in progress

- when unpack (auto add) is enabled - marking limited volume of par2 files for download and marking par2 as paused is now disabled to prevent insufficient repair data

- when both IPv6 and IPv4 resolutions are available - IPv4 will be chosen for less overhead and compatibility with old proxy software

- v2.9.1 -

- IPv6 support - IPv6 news servers can now be added directly, no more need to use v4 to v6 port proxy

- fixed nzb import through the import folder

- v2.9 -

- added option to delete files after repair in edit menu->properties->save/unpack, "Others files filter".

- for certain nested rared subtitle files - the second level rar will be unrared and deleted automatically.

- collections now toggle when doubleclicking in the search service view.

- nzb export now uses ISO encoding declaration to avoid parsing errors when importing in linux.

- prevented status bar bandwidth calculation over too short time intervals.

- fixed opening several nzb files in windows explorer (priorly ignored all but the last file).

- fixed inability to change unpack RAM usage which was always reset to the default value instead.

- search protocol has been changed for higher uptime when downloading search service configuration.

- v2.8.2 -

- if the "show only files matching filter" in collections option is checked - only the matching files will be affected when the collection entry as a whole is marked for download or download is cancelled.

- those dubious split posts where data starts with the zero part are now handled as well.

- xfeature header compression is not engaged when the news server is localhost - to avoid giganews accelerator bug which they wouldn't fix.

- v2.8.1 -

- compressed headers now can be enabled by method with xfeature code no more hardcoded to a specific provider, given two major companies - highwinds (not all farms) and astraweb adopted the second method as well. the xzver method also works automatically, as conceptually it is better the result is the same, the uniform approach has the advantage it will work for all current and future resellers.

- par2 files which were not needed for unpack are treated like as if they were downloaded and saved - deleting headers, marked read, so if the whole collection has been marked for download&save with proper settings (e.g. default) - after unpack it will be deleted / marked read as well.

other improvements and fixes after user requests (most listed on forum).

- v2.8 -

- long file names of saved attachments are now trimmed to almost maximum allowed path thus improving unpack success rate when the files are corrupted (both UE and Quickpar don't scan misnamed corrupted files for valid data blocks).

- the "Delete incomplete bodies" option (properties->save/unpack) won't be engaged when it will lead to redundant downloads/saves - namely, when downloads reside in the articles "errors" pane and "Retry failed articles" (properties->tasks) is set to some value (not empty). the issue is especially relevant for the "Ignore "No such article" errors" option. Unpack is still able to delete those incomplete bodies and clear the articles from the error pane after repair.

- retry failed articles didn't remember if the user asked for delete headers/bodies or not (so it presumed not, even as unpack would rectify it later).

- in header properties available parts sometimes were stated as "all" even as the partial is incomplete.

- v2.7.3 -

- when a partial contains duplicate parts mark read after saving attachments will mark all parts read instead of only parts with bodies, so the whole partial will appear marked read as well. it is useful when the user chooses to just mark headers read after save without deleting them.

- it was found out (there is no official documentation) that giganews accelerator also compresses output of one nntp command used to get newsgroup list, so given the way the giganews compression is implemented (changing connection mode and not the NNTP commands like in the standard approach) care had to be taken about [kept alive] connections which were previously used for header tasks.

- the ignore "no such article" errors (properties->save/unpack, save) option which was disabled since v2.6 when duplicate file names were set to skip or rename is now again up to the user since as a rule it will work smoothly enough. the rest of logic added in v2.6 is still retained preventing unnecessary saves on retry when there is nothing new to save.

- fixed bug when corrupted par2 files (with recovery blocks damaged) could rarely cause verify failed error after repair.

- v2.7.2 -

- scheduler settings have been extended from half year to one year ahead, the time intervals now don't depend on windows time zone/day saving time sattings.

- unpack pane now shows in the status column how many blocks are needed for the par2 set become complete / repairable.

- when single post contains duplicates - at most one file per search service instance will be marked for download, not everything.

- if newsgroup needed repair - it will be now saved immediately after repair to avoid data loss.

- fixed rare problem when UE could download more par2 files than needed because of losing track of some data files in the download queue.

- v2.7.1 -

- added view filters for search service results, including the initial filter - the latter can be set along with more newsgroup like options in edit menu->properties->newsgroups where the "search service" entry has been added at the top below the default entry.

- for newly downloaded headers powerpost so-called "threading mode" (when threads enabled - every file in a post appears as the reply to the first file) will be neutralized by stripping references, so enabling threads and text replies in binary groups will make more sense; to bring older headers to the same pattern - reset the newsgroup and redownload headers.

- the program start is now more antivirus scan friendly as to sharing violations, although excluding UE settings/data directories from antivirus scan may make things run faster in general.

- find dialog bar code for search results was accidentally disabled since adding collections for search results.

- various small fixes and enhancements with further improved stability.

- v2.7 -

the release concludes improvements regarding database operation on higher header volumes, addressing header bandwidth on faster connections, x64 version and Windows 7 adjustments which had place starting with v2.6.

- missing (auto) menus have been readded to the advanced submenu in newsgroups view when relevant.

- removed SEARCH: and NZB: prefixes when importing headers. the .nzb suffix truncated when auto creating directory out of nzb file name.

- final touches on v2.6+ features.

- v2.6.3 -

- improved code which keeps UE responsive during newsgroup load/unload, it now also allows newsgroup navigation with keyboard and expanding/collapsing collections or threads; if UE is being closed when the operation in progress it will exit when it is safe instead of ignoring the attempt. fixed a problem with the code when context menu opened earlier could allow unsafe operations.

- fixed issue with a spam post subject which could cause rare one time error on loading a newsgroup.

- reset headers while the newsgroup is not loaded wasn't effective for non-compact binary newsgroup types (e.g. import).

- refined error handling for higher reliability.

- v2.6.2 -

- more responsiveness when loading/unloading newsgroups, UE can now be moved, resized, minimized, existing open windows can be switched / items selected with the mouse. it is especially useful in windows 7 which won't update application window until the application is able to perform those actions.

- added proper UAC manifest in the 64 bit version, so the 64 bit version will now have the same native look in windows 7 or vista as the 32 bit version.

- improved save error notifications/handling. e.g. UE will now open the task manager, will switch to the save pane, select the topmost item and will show a better formatted error message. also file errors when opening / saving attachments from the article view or with the play option won't suspend the save queue.

- other enhancements, small code fixes and 64 bit version project settings / windows 7 adjustments.

- v2.6.1 -

- removed the last header download bottleneck with the new v2.6 arrangements after testing the program on a major usenet provider farm with the direct gigabit connection to the news server.

- addressed giganews bug - giganews server sometimes returns wrong information about the starting point of the group header range pointing to an empty space instead, the workaround provides better chance for v2.6 quick retention option to work.

- added option to stay minimized when opening an nzb file by doubleclicking; other minor refinements and fixes based on user feedback and running statistics.

- v2.6 -

this release is a major revision of internals targeting the volume of headers the program can handle and further improving reliability.

- 64 bit version has been released. in the 64 bit version the database is allowed to grow beyond 4GB if the system has more than 4GB RAM which is managed by separate code. as to memory heap because the code is 64 bit it doesn't have inherent memory limitations of a 32 bit process.

- former per group 4GB cnt.dat file size limit which restricted the volume of headers to about 160M header per group has been now removed.

- prevent header overload option has been removed and replaced with much more elegant solution without using the standard allocation heap, in part 32 bit version has more space to go before nearing the system 32 bit process memory limit, also any header load will be dealt with in all scenarios without RAM usage spikes.

- quick retention option in properties->general (enabled by default), for new newsgroup or after headers/header range have been reset - unless server article numbering is seriously broken - the program will find the right retention and will start downloading the right headers after short time.

- added option in properties->general (disabled by default) to keep small article bodies in separate files. it is recommended if the user tends to leave downloads in the database without saving them for years, since then the program will be able to regenerate all downloaded article bodies even if all the rest of the files in the UE database "Bodies" directories have been lost.

- more rigorous checks on the program start and more detailed errors when the file system on the UE database partition is corrupt.

- the program now fully supports 64 bit header range instead of 32 bit (not actual right now, but may be the case with the "boneless" group in around 1.5 to 2 years).

- a number of user requests have been fulfilled.

- many other code and some inteface refinements.

- v2.5.2 -

- auto collections implemented for search service results. like in newsgroup view they can be shown/hidden with the the "show auto collections" toolbar button. if you prefer to see collections by default - set "edit menu->properties->newsgroups, the topmost default entry, collections" to "auto&custom". the collection related settings in edit menu->properties->general are effective for the search service view as well.

- added the option to define SSL protocol used during SSL session in properties->general.

- v2.5.1 -

- added compressed headers support for the giganews server eliminating the need in their accelerator. the efficiency and principle are exactly the same as the standard xzver compression, but due to a less nntp-friendly design it is unlikely to be a standard - therefore UE checks for "giganews" in the server name to avoid querying other providers with the command they don't support and to safeguard against the potential clash with giganews accelerator. thus all known varieties of header compression are now supported directly: standard xzver, astraweb xzver and giganews accelerator. support compressed headers option in edit menu->properties->general should be checked (it is default) for any header compression to work.

- server bandwidth counter in the servers pane is now shown in GB when relevant.

- when posting - bandwidth counter in the status bar was fluctuating around the right value instead of just increasing.

- added detection of per group cnt.dat overflow when the file size reaches 4GB

- fixed small problem with unpack when very few par2 file packets could be skipped when parsing par2 file while saving it

- v2.5 -
the release concludes compression and performance related developments which had place since v2.4.

- header bandwidth limit in "properties->tasks", when set, is now applied to the actual data bandwidth to supply headers with constant speed whether the connection is compressed or not. from other side, the general bandwidth limit, as it was redefined in v2.4, limits the raw bandwidth to leave fixed bandwidth for other applications, so compressed data can be downloaded at maximum speed.

- "properties->tasks->headers tasks->prevent overload" wasn't connected to xzver/xzhdr compression code which could lead to excessive memory usage when connection with compressed header tasks was faster than incoming headers processing speed. please note that the prevent overload option should be checked (it is default), but its parameters may be adjusted to fit best for given system performance.

- fixed xzhdr rescan code for the cases of non-compact binary groups.

- v2.4.9 -

- header and search service decompression code has been optimized for speed.

- fixed small problem with astraweb part of the decompression code (rare wrongly reported uncompress error in the end of header download when in fact there was no error).

- uncompress error message made now short since it is now evident the compression commands on the server side are implemented flawlessly for both diablo and astraweb versions.

- v2.4.8 -

- this version has xzlib headers compression (xzver/xzhdr nntp commands) enabled by default. instead of per server xzlib checkbox now there is a single check box in edit menu->properties->general->compressed headers. the reason for initially per server option was lack of readily available specs - as it has been found out now - there are two different implementations of those commands. there is astraweb version (Astraweb only) and diablo (Joe Greco) version, e.g. currently employed by highwinds (UNS and Newshosting), performance is about the same, but the latter version will eventually prevail as more elegant. UE now supports both versions transparently. the trend is providers disable SSL zlib support and rely on users to use xzlib capable clients instead for header compression, because such compression is significantly less CPU time intensive on the server side. UE is still able to download headers in the regular slow way from non-supporting providers (Giganews, Powerusenet etc.) without the need to change any settings. when server supports compressed headers, either through SSL zlib or xzver/xhdr commands - it means header tasks are typically completed 3-5 times faster. the higher uncompressed data bandwidth is shown next to the raw bandwidth in the status bar.

- v2.4.7 -

- for those users who want to download headers as fast as possible - added option "properties->tasks->article tasks->don't start article tasks when header tasks running". it allows to download headers in the shortest possible time by fully utilizing available bandwidth for headers only without the need to temporarily set article tasks to zero manually. the option is not enabled for default, users can enable it at their discretion.

- the "database deswapping" option introduced in v2.4 in "properties->general" has been revised, since the system default swap performance appears to be adequate even with the higher volume of loaded headers. thus it has been replaced with simpler check box disabled by default and now found by different name as "properties->general->limit swapping, lock DB pages in memory". if you have enough RAM not needed by other applications you can increase UE responsiveness by checking the box.

- added tolerancy in reduced fragmentation code (v2.4.5) against antivirus file scanning (AVG in particular).

- controls mainly in properties->tasks rearranged for better convenience.

- v2.4.5 -

- eliminated screen flicker when updating/scrolling header list in newsgroup, search and task manager views which could be noticeable e.g. for low end graphic cards / onboard graphics, large monitors or when using remote desktop. the solution is faster and more efficient than the older code, so it is better for all uses; when using remote desktop over a slow connection the viewing experience is now particularly more pleasing to the eye.

- the disk fragmentation growth has been greatly reduced, if you start with unfragmented partition, the UE database partition fragmentation due to UE operation will now grow at much slower rate.

- v2.4 -

v2.4.1 - higher allowed db allocation limit which may be relevant for x64 systems with at least 4GB RAM.

v2.4.2 - corrected typo in displaying not compressed bandwidth in the status bar. search service code revision for higher retention complete.

- the version is compiled with large address aware option, but - more importantly - other changes has been made including borrowing code from search service functionality to handle larger volumes of headers. with 4GB RAM on x64 system the loaded portion of the database can now grow three times more comparing to previous versions and for 32 bit systems with /3GB switch enabled the program is now able to load twice more.

- added "database deswapping" option in edit menu->properties->general. the option basically keeps UE database (allocated&reserved) commited into memory. to revert to older behaviour - empty the number in the option edit field and press ok. the trade-off is between the possibility of increased swapping to bring UE back to life after e.g. a period of inactivity and releasing memory taken by UE for use in other applications.

- revised options in edit menu->properties->kill filters to filter out spam more effectively. apart from formerly the only "mark deleted" behaviour, the "discard completely" option has been added which effectively prevents headers from entering the database alltogether. also "ignore kill filter" option disables kill filters without the necessity to detach them from newsgroups to temporarily allow all headers in.

- crossposted filter has been added in properties->kill filters which allows to filter out headers crossposted to more than certain number of newsgroups.

- SSL zlib capable servers as before are designated with the yellow lock image at the left bottom corner of the server icon, SSL zlib incapable servers are designated now with light grey lock (to show the lack of ability to compress SSL traffic), since the former color scheme (yellow / dark green proved to be misleading).

- header compression XZVER/XHDR commands. edit menu->properties->servers, xzlib check box, on per server basis. the option has the same effect as SSL with zlib enabled which UE already supports. the only known provider which implements those commands in the working fashion is astraweb. astraweb users are recommended to check the box for the astraweb server since astraweb seems to have SSL zlib option disabled, at least sometimes. Highwinds (usenetserver / newshosting / ngroups / easynews) users, as it stands for now, shouldn't enable this option since highwinds implementation on the server side is buggy and UE will return "Uncompress error", but also highwinds servers have zlib enabled within SSL so highwinds users get the same compression anyway when using SSL. and, finally, servers like giganews (power usenet et al), as to now, don't support either zlib or xzlib, thus checking the xzlib box for such servers will have no effect, since e.g. UE will just try XOVER if XZVER has been not recognized by the server.

- compressed bandwidth is now shown separatedly from actual bandwidth, following it and shown in parentheses. apart from making the compression apparent to the user - the feature is also useful for bandwidth limiting - the user set bandwidth limit is applied to actual bandwidth leaving exactly so much bandwidth as the user needs, and not to the accelerated compressed bandwidth which is variable and unpredictable.

- search service code being revised towards supporting higher retention.

- some other changes, improvements and fixes.

- v2.3.1 -

- the version features new UE extractor which is able to restart UE; when updates are available - from now on UE will point directly to the extractor.

- search service configuration error messages were revised for clarity for the case when web access must go through proxy.

- fixed a problem with clearing a single part rar file which in the same time was queued for unrar.

- v2.3 -

- when UE exits because of very low space, instead of exiting silently a low space message box is now displayed with an option to restart after freeing more disk space manually.

- in properties->tasks, relative chance to run a slider is added which can be either in "save" or "unpack" position, thus giving preference to save or unpack tasks, which may be useful for very fast connections when the program is able to download attachments faster than to save them and the user wants to unpack immediately. the default is the "save" tasks having preference because of better utilizing system file cache resulting in faster save.

- subscribe to newsgroups option was added in search results view and from non-regular group views (import, xpat types of groups and virtual groups containing at least one group of those types). thus it is more easy to use search in finding relevant groups of interest.

- size left now also shown when download speed is zero.

- if a removable drive which is the save destination has been disconnected - UE will suspend the save queue.

- unpack "auto add" entry has been removed from the main menu as too drastic option, it can now only be accessed through properties.

- as running quickpar autorepair concurrently is certainly not recommended and cannot be handled completely, if quickpar did autorename misnamed files - UE won't overwrite them, but rather will give a rename error.

- auto collection grouping has been improved by handling additional non-standard cases, those kinds of posts formerly separate now are included into a collection.

- for new installs the default "save all" and "save queue" every x min in properties->general has been changed from empty (option not in use) to 90 min and 30 min respectively.

- refined code synchronizing unpack panel content with actual files on the program start; other unpack internals code refinements

- fixed a problem when in few cases collection size >4GB wasn't shown correctly

- when sorted by size or lines sometimes entries around >4GB collections were in wrong order

- composite filter consisting of other composite filters is now working properly

- v2.2 -

- recent folders entry has been added to the unpack main menu, the toolbar and modified&custom browse for folders dialogs.

- ssl code has been recomplied with zlib code to enable zlib compression for zlib aware servers which may increase header download speed. zlib aware ssl servers are shown with yellow lock and the rest with dark cyan lock on the server icon.

- article tasks now are optionally disengaged from disabled servers. the option is enabled by default, properties->tasks, disengage article tasks from disabled servers. it prevents stuck pending tasks waiting for disabled servers to become reenabled.

- when download becomes repairable and there are pending tasks on disabled servers or servers with maximal number of tasks set to zero - unpack will take over instead of waiting for the user-incapacitated servers.

- proper prompts are given when disabling a server will affect article tasks or when there are no active destination servers for the group so marking for download doesn't result in any action.

- compact binary groups are now much friendlier with threads enabled as to threaded binary (mal)posts (a weird posting mode in power post), when marking for download if an entry is moved into a thread - the thread is automatically expanded, so it doesn't look like the entry disappeared from the view.

- create folder prompt is now optional (edit menu->properties->general->miscellaneous).

- a number of other improvements.

- v2.1 -

- par2 repair performance has been greatly increased, on average repair is now noticeably faster than quickpar and it is at least marginally faster than quickpar on any repair even without taking into account quickpar pre-repair stage.

- added option to associate UE with par2 files (properties->unpack->associate with par2 files).

- repair is now optionally multi-core, but because the optimized repair code is so fast and may saturate memory bus even with one core - press the question sign button near the option in properties->unpack->multi-core repair to learn how to check whether it is really needed.

- manual add files to unpack pane option has been refined (unpack context menu->add), in additon to former add files option - par2 files with related files can be added with or without scan for misnamed with optional forcing reload of already listed files for the case they were changed outside UE.

- reload exact files option in (unpack context menu->advanced) to e.g. reload par2 set and its data files as they are listed in the unpack pane without choosing par2 file through open file dialog in add option, useful when e.g. files were changed outside UE.

- added recent folders entry in the unpack context menu to show recent save / unrar folders with clear all option to clean up the menu, it allows to easily locate folders even after all files were cleared from the unpack pane.

- par2 menu has been added. par2 zero file can be now optionally downloaded first (checked by default), they can be downloaded with the highest priority (unchecked by default) and the rest of par2 files can be marked for download last (unchecked by default given their download is postponed anyway). when queue is sorted by date the download par2 zero files with the highest priority is recommended.

- unrar password can be now set almost anywhere, e.g for par2 set, it will propagate to rar files or rar set after they have been downloaded given the associated par2 set, which is useful along with the par2 download with highest priority option so unrar password can be set well in advance before downloading any rar files.

- collections both auto and forced with size previously displayed as >4GB are now shown outright with the exact size (not only in properties) and can be sorted by it.

- when associated with .nzb files UE will now feature its own distinct .nzb icon, but you need to reassociate UE in properties->general, associate with nzb files for the change to take effect.

- other changes including a number of subtle refinements of unpack behaviour; links to forum/email support were added in the help menu.

- v2.0 -

Unpack feature has been introduced which can handle par2 verifying / repair / joining of split files, unraring with subsequent cleanup with customizable degree of automation. No additional utilities are needed, the program is still contained in the single executable.

for details see http://www.netwu.com/ue/help/unpack.htm and the help button in edit menu->properties->save/unpack, the bottom help ( "? >>" )button in the middle of the properties pane.

by default full automation mode is activated, all can be customized in edit menu->properties->save/unpack.

several non-unpack related changes added to v2.0 like shell open/explore mode in properties->general; few small issues with pre-unpack code fixed e.g. not remembering the last current import group in the search service bar.

as to search service we may expect higher uptime after a module has been added to constantly monitor the server state and notify if a connection lost or a server computer went down.

Attention: please note that launching pre v2.0 versions will empty the v2.0 unpack pane in the task manager, since it is sharing string file with prior versions so the unpack related data in the file will be lost leading to discarding the rest of the unpack pane content.

v2.0.1 - includes several organic refinements of unpack behaviour as postponing download of subsequent par2 files (instead of setting/relying on download queue order), applying save attachments settings when discarding download/save tasks (e.g. unneeded par2 files) instead of deleting bodies, plus a couple of fixes, almost all after constructive user feedback.

v2.0.2 - added "open with" and "open in editor" unpack context menu entries in the advanced submenu, "show password" for unrar password dialog is now perstistent as it was intended to be; introduced in v2.01 features needed small additional article tasks <-> unpack sync refinement.

Release history v1.x
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