Platform Setup

The Dester client is a cross-platform application for browsing and streaming your DesterLib media collection. This guide covers platform-specific setup and development.

📱 Supported Platforms

Available Now

• Android - Phones and tablets (SDK 21+)
• iOS - iPhone and iPad (iOS 12.0+)
• macOS - Desktop application (10.14+)
• Linux - Desktop application (Ubuntu 20.04+)
• Windows - Desktop application (Windows 10+)

In Development

• Android TV - TV interface with remote control support
• Apple TV / tvOS - Native TV experience

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Flutter SDK 3.9.2 or higher
• DesterLib API server running
• Platform-specific development tools (Android Studio, Xcode, etc.)

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/DesterLib/desterlib-flutter.git
cd desterlib-flutter

# Install dependencies
flutter pub get

# Generate code
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

# Run the app
flutter run

Server Configuration

On first launch, configure your DesterLib API server:

1. Open Settings → Server Configuration
2. Enter your server URL:
   • Local: http://localhost:3001
   • Network: http://192.168.1.XXX:3001
   • Remote: https://yourdomain.com
3. Save and the app will connect automatically

🏗️ Architecture

Tech Stack

The client is built with Flutter, providing native performance across all platforms:

• Flutter SDK - Cross-platform UI framework
• Riverpod - State management
• go_router - Navigation and routing
• media_kit - Video playback
• OpenAPI - Auto-generated API client

Project Structure

lib/
├── main.dart              # App entry point
├── app/
│   ├── router.dart        # Navigation configuration
│   ├── theme/             # App theming
│   └── providers.dart     # Global providers
├── features/              # Feature modules
│   ├── home/              # Home screen
│   ├── library/           # Library browsing
│   ├── media/             # Media detail pages
│   └── settings/          # Settings and configuration
├── shared/
│   ├── widgets/           # Reusable UI components
│   ├── utils/             # Utility functions
│   └── providers/         # Shared state providers
└── api/                   # Generated API client

🎨 Features

Media Browsing

• Browse movies and TV shows
• Search functionality
• Filter by genre, year, rating
• Sort options
• Grid and list views

Video Player

• Smooth streaming playback
• Playback controls (play, pause, seek)
• Volume control
• Fullscreen support
• Playback speed adjustment
• Subtitle support (coming soon)
• Audio track selection (coming soon)

Watch Progress

• Automatic progress tracking
• Resume from where you left off
• Mark as watched/unwatched
• Watch history

Settings

• Server configuration
• Theme selection (light/dark)
• Playback preferences
• Cache management
• About and version info

🔧 Development

Contributing

See the contributing guide for development setup.

All contribution guidelines (commits, versioning, etc.) follow the main DesterLib standards documented in this site.

Building for Release

Android

# APK
flutter build apk --release

# App Bundle (for Play Store)
flutter build appbundle --release

iOS

# Build for iOS
flutter build ios --release

# Open in Xcode for deployment
open ios/Runner.xcworkspace

Desktop

# macOS
flutter build macos --release

# Linux
flutter build linux --release

# Windows
flutter build windows --release

Testing

# Run all tests
flutter test

# Run tests with coverage
flutter test --coverage

# Run specific test file
flutter test test/features/player_test.dart

Code Quality

# Analyze code
flutter analyze

# Format code
dart format lib/

# Run linter
flutter analyze --fatal-infos

🎯 Roadmap

Current Focus

• TV Platform Support - Android TV and Apple TV
• Subtitle Support - SRT, VTT formats
• Audio Track Selection - Multiple audio streams
• Offline Downloads - Save for offline viewing

Future Plans

• Chromecast - Cast to any TV
• Picture-in-Picture - Watch while using other apps
• Widgets - Quick access shortcuts
• Multi-User Profiles - Separate watch history
• Parental Controls - Content restrictions

📱 Platform-Specific Notes

Android

• Minimum SDK: 21 (Android 5.0)
• Target SDK: 34 (Android 14)
• Uses ExoPlayer for video playback

iOS

• Minimum version: iOS 12.0
• Uses AVPlayer for video playback
• Requires Xcode 14+ for building

macOS

• Minimum version: macOS 10.14
• Requires code signing for distribution

Linux

• Tested on Ubuntu 20.04+, Fedora 36+
• Requires GTK 3.0

Windows

• Minimum version: Windows 10
• Uses Windows Media Foundation

🐛 Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

Can’t connect to server:

• Check server URL is correct
• Ensure API is running (docker compose up)
• Check firewall settings
• Try using IP address instead of localhost

Video Playback Issues

Videos won’t play:

• Check internet connection
• Verify video codec support
• Try different video file
• Check server streaming configuration

Buffering issues:

• Check network speed
• Adjust video quality in settings
• Check server performance

Build Issues

Flutter build fails:

# Clean and rebuild
flutter clean
flutter pub get
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs
flutter run

Platform-specific build issues:

• Android: Check SDK version, update Gradle
• iOS: Update Xcode, check provisioning profiles
• Desktop: Check platform dependencies installed

📚 Resources

• Client GitHub Repository
• Flutter Documentation
• Riverpod Documentation
• media_kit Documentation
• Effective Dart

💬 Support

• GitHub Issues
• GitHub Discussions
• Main DesterLib Discussions