The Minimal Jukebox Database
The "Jukebox Database" is a collection of files designed for efficient access by the Apache HTTP server. It is re-created whenever albums are added to the jukebox. Wherever possible the database holds pages in HTML format ready to be displayed immediately on the remote control screen. Obviously HTML format is possible only for fixed pages whose content doesn't change as the jukebox is used. The album cover art files are also ready for display in JPEG format. The other pages (variable pages) are generated by the CGI programs whenever they are requested from the remote control. The CGI programs use data files in the database, and other sources of information, to compose those variable pages.
The tables below describes the contents of the sections of the jukebox database. The "Number of Files" column shows the extent of the database on our jukebox (906 CDs) at the time of writing, for illustrative purposes.
An illustration of the tabs area of the remote
control display, for quick reference| Display files in the database | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Database Section |
File Format |
Number of Files |
Used In |
Comments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| home | HTML | 1 | Home tab | The main section of the Home page is always the same but the statistics at the bottom are calculated by the converter. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| index | HTML | 3980 | Index tab | The most common type of Index page is a list of artists, albums, etc, with the same initial letter. Index pages for consecutive letters are combined wherever possible, but not where this would result in the appearance of a vertical scroll bar. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| details | HTML | 2363 | Details tab | There's one Details page for each album and one for each classical piece that isn't a complete album. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| newcomers | HTML | 2 | Newcomers tab | The Newcomers page shows the 40 most recently added albums. There's a list view and a cover art view. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| covers | JPEG | 813 | Player window Details tab Index tab ("Cover view") |
There's one cover image for each album. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Data files in the database | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Database Section |
File Format |
Number of Files |
Used In |
Comments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| albumdata | TXT | 768 |
Player window Queue tab Recent tab Lucky Dip tab Search tab |
There's one file for each album. Each file lists artist, title, or track information (etc). The file is designed for CGI programs that have the pathname of a music track and want to find out information about that track and the album it's from. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| luckydip | TXT | 4 | Lucky Dip tab | There's one file for each Lucky Dip category (pop albums, pop tracks, short classical pieces, long classical pieces). Each file lists the pathnames of the albums or pieces from which the Lucky Dip selections are made. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| search | TXT | 4 | Search tab | There's one file for each Search category (pop albums, pop tracks, classical albums, classical tracks). Each file lists the album and track titles to be searched, along with the pathnames of the related music files. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The HTML pages in the database, and those generated on demand by the CGI programs, contain links to other HTML pages in the database and to other CGI programs. It's these links that allow the user to easily navigate round the database. All the HTML pages are designed for a screen size of 800x600 pixels. The Database Converter is designed to generate HTML files for a variety of remote control formats (including PDA 240x320 and PC 1280x1024), but currently only the 800x600 format is in use.
