FreeDV Reporter 'Msg' column width resets to stored width every time a station leaves a net (stops modem).

[barjac]

Platform

Linux

Platform Version

Mageia, Ubuntu & Windows

FreeDV Version

Happening in original Windows RADE version and latest git RADE1 in linux

Steps to Reproduce

Join a group/net with the reporter filter set to track frequency.
Set the 'Msg' column width so the 'Last Update' column is within the screen width.
Wait for a station to leave and note that the 'Msg' column width more than doubles.

EDIT:
On further testing I have realized that it actually returns to the width that was set on a previous program close, which explains why this has not been reported previously. Most stations probably don't adjust the column widths, especially if they are using high aspect ratio screens.

Expected Behaviour

During a session the 'Msg' column width should not change other than when manually adjusted by the user, even if a non-default config setting has been saved.

Actual Behavior

I have been seeing this sudden increase in 'Msg' column width apparently happening at random, but only today managed to track down how to reproduce it for a bug report.

With six stations in the net today and with some specific testing after the net with different operating systems we managed to reliably reproduce it as above.

Additional Comments

No response

[tmiw]

Tagged as our handling of bugs may change moving forward.

[Tyrbiter]

Some time ago there was a lot of work done on the reporter column widths and behaviour aimed at smaller screens, is this something that was missed or is it something that always was a bug but was not noticed?

[tmiw]

Some time ago there was a lot of work done on the reporter column widths and behaviour aimed at smaller screens, is this something that was missed or is it something that always was a bug but was not noticed?

Unsure. I looked into it a little bit and I think the fix is simple but given the recent PLT discussion I don't feel it's appropriate to create a PR for it right now.

[Tyrbiter]

I'd say that perhaps get the devel2 version out the door, as we have enough +1 reports and then there's an option to have a new git branch that @barjac can build as he's probably most sensitive to this particular issue.

I think this would significantly move things forward.

[tmiw]

I'd say that perhaps get the devel2 version out the door, as we have enough +1 reports and then there's an option to have a new git branch that @barjac can build as he's probably most sensitive to this particular issue.

I think this would significantly move things forward.

I'll have to think some more. In the meantime, maybe if there's a set of instructions on duplicating this without needing to rely on others that would be good to have as part of the discussion (I'm able to spin up a separate Reporter server for this sort of testing.)

[Tyrbiter]

I think @barjac can provide a sequence to follow to make this happen.

[barjac]

Yes I will do it tomorrow as I need to repeat it to be sure that I get it right ;)

[barjac]

Some time ago there was a lot of work done on the reporter column widths and behaviour aimed at smaller screens, is this something that was missed or is it something that always was a bug but was not noticed?

I have been seeing this for a long time, so probably the latter.
I could not pin down a way to reproduce for a report until now.
It has been an ongoing annoyance!

[barjac]

How to reproduce without other users involved:
Start an instance of FreeDV (call it A - your local station), set it to an odd frequency not in use anywhere and set tracking to freq.
Start the modem.
Check that the reporter is showing this instance reporting.
Make the Msg column abnormally wide.
Stop the modem and stop the program.
Start the program and modem and check that the wide Msg column was saved and has returned.
Arrange A's main window at the top of the screen with its reporter below it.

Start a second instance of FreeDV (call it B), and set it to the same freq with reporting on.
B does not need a reporter showing on the screen.
Start modem on B and check it is showing on reporter A and that the wide Msg is still wide on A
Put FreeDV B at the bottom of the screen.

Now we have a screen like:

Drag in the width of the Msg column to something normal. e.g.:

Now stop modem B (station leaving net :)

Msg column returns to the saved wide width on Reporter on A (local station)

I hope that helps! :)

Slightly /OT but...
Why is the STOP button greyed when the modem is running?

[Tyrbiter]

Why is the STOP button greyed when the modem is running?

It's not greyed, it's showing it as depressed, click Stop to release the button.

[barjac]

Surely if it's already depressed it should have stopped.

The label says 'Stop' so it should look the same as the label that says 'Analog' which was also depressed to change from Analog to Digital.

I could agree with you if the label did not change and simply toggled, so the grey indicated that 'Start' was active.

When the label is changed the button is not a toggle. It is ready to activate the function on the label.

The bug here is the grey background which remains AFTER the modem has started and 'Stop' appears.
The 'depressed' background is OK during any delay of the start process but should go away when the label changes the button function to a 'Stop' button.

[tmiw]

I recommend creating another bug/feature request for the Stop button. I don't recall it being a toggle button ever being an issue for people, though, but it's possible that it was and no one mentioned it until now.

[Tyrbiter]

I don't think that the current operation is a problem, it's a simple on-off button, active when depressed, inactive when released. The caption tells you what it will do when clicked.

[barjac]

I recommend creating another bug/feature request for the Stop button. I don't recall it being a toggle button ever being an issue for people, though, but it's possible that it was and no one mentioned it until now.

Yes, people just accept the shortcomings of the GUI and 'get used to it' rather than trying to do something to improve it.

I just realized that the Analog/Digital button does indeed have the same issue.

I have had to help several people to understand the Analog/Digital button in the past because they read the caption as the status and assume that is the mode that is currently active, rather than the reverse.

Perhaps rather than a grey background this would work:
Make Start/Stop button background amber when Stopped and green when running.
Make Analog/Digital background amber when in analogue mode.

I have been caught out more than once when accidentally left in Analogue mode, so an amber warning that the the modem is stopped or analogue is active would be very useful.

If the tooltip could indicate the current state of the A/D button that would help to remove the button label confusion that I have seen new users encountering, usually before they have actually decoded anything.

OK I will create a new feature request along the above lines.

[tmiw]

I think the required fix is pretty minimal so I'm going to go ahead and implement something really quick. If it ends up being more involved, I'll send it back to triage.

[tmiw]

OK, I believe this should be resolved in #828 based on my testing. Feel free to give this a shot and let me know. 👍