History & Changelog
Version 2.18.2 — Live Radio Integration & Site UX Enhancements
April 2026
New
- Added a global live radio status bar in the site header, displaying the currently playing track and providing quick access to the live stream.
- Introduced a dedicated /live page acting as a stable entry point to the YouTube live stream.
Improvements
- Improved overall integration between the website and the live radio system.
- Enhanced user experience by making the live stream more visible and accessible across all pages.
Maintenance
- Minor internal optimizations related to live radio data retrieval and caching in the header.
Version 2.18.1 — Live Radio Stability & Request System Improvements
April 2026
Fixes
- Fixed an issue where the live radio stream could become temporarily silent during track transitions under specific conditions.
- Fixed incorrect waiting time estimates when submitting a radio request during special segments.
Improvements
- Improved overall reliability of live stream transitions between tracks.
- Refined the request scheduling logic to better reflect actual playback order.
- Enhanced accuracy of estimated waiting times for user-submitted requests.
Maintenance
- Internal adjustments to the live radio system to improve stability and prevent edge-case conflicts between special segments and user requests.
Version 2.18.0 — Live Radio Requests & Public Interface
April 2026
New
- Introduced a new Live Radio Requests feature, allowing users to submit playlists to be played on the live radio stream.
- Added a dedicated public interface to search, select, and submit tracks directly from the database.
- Implemented support for custom admin segments, including special titles displayed on the stream overlay.
- Added real-time display of “requested by” and special segment titles on the live stream overlay.
Improvements
- Enhanced the radio system to handle user and admin requests with priority-based playback.
- Improved queue management for smoother integration of requested tracks into the live stream.
- Updated the main navigation menu for better clarity between Soundtrack Requests and Live Radio Requests.
- Refined the UI layout of the page selection menu with a consistent multi-column design.
User Experience
- Added an estimated time before live playback after submitting a request.
- Introduced a daily quota system for user requests with a small tolerance margin.
- Displayed unavailable tracks (already played in the last 24 hours) with clear visual feedback.
Maintenance
- Cleaned up and simplified global CSS by removing deprecated menu styles.
- Internal improvements to the radio daemon for better reliability and extensibility.
Version 2.17.4 — Radio Stability & Music Statistics Enhancement
March 2026
New
- Added a global duration counter for the entire audio library.
- Added a “Radio pool” duration showing the total playable content used by the live stream.
Improvements
- Improved radio stability by preventing problematic tracks from being played.
- The radio now dynamically adapts its playlist to ensure uninterrupted playback.
- Enhanced playlist management to maintain better consistency over long listening sessions.
Maintenance
- Improved internal data handling to keep the system lightweight and efficient over time.
- Various backend optimizations to ensure long-term reliability of the live radio.
Version 2.17.3 — Stream Overlay Performance Optimizations
March 2026
Improvements
- Optimized the live stream overlay to significantly reduce Chromium CPU usage during 24/7 operation.
- Simplified the overlay rendering logic and removed unnecessary animated effects.
- Reduced visual update frequency to improve long-term stability.
- Fine-tuned the video stream settings to lower CPU usage while preserving readability and overall visual quality.
Maintenance
- Reviewed long-running server resource usage for the live radio video service.
- Improved the stability and efficiency of the server-side stream pipeline for 24/7 broadcasting.
Version 2.17.2 — Stream Overlay Enhancements & Visual Polish
March 2026
New
- Introduced a fully dynamic radio stream overlay system.
- Added real-time “Now Playing” and “Coming Next” sections powered by the radio daemon.
- Implemented a live audio progress system with elapsed time, total duration, and progress bar.
- Added a rotating information banner with dynamic messages (e.g. uptime, site info).
Improvements
- Improved overall layout and alignment of overlay elements for better visual balance.
- Reworked cover image handling with smooth fade transitions between tracks.
- Simplified track display by removing inline duration for better readability.
- Enhanced background design with a modern Workbench-inspired gradient for improved visual identity.
Performance
- Optimized visual effects (progress bar, background, transitions) to remain lightweight and stream-friendly at low bitrate.
- Reduced unnecessary visual noise to preserve encoding quality and readability.
Version 2.17.1 — Radio Stability & Backend Improvements
March 2026
Improvements
- Improved stability of the 24/7 radio streaming system.
- The radio daemon now better handles long runtimes and avoids playback interruptions.
- More reliable track sequencing and playback continuity.
Maintenance
- Improved database resilience in long-running processes.
- Added automatic recovery mechanisms for backend connectivity issues.
- Strengthened fallback logic in track selection.
Version 2.17.0 — Live Radio System & Streaming Infrastructure
March 2026 - This update marks a major milestone in the evolution of Amiga Paradise, introducing a fully autonomous live radio system.
New
- Introduced a fully automated 24/7 live radio system powered by a custom audio daemon.
- Added real-time streaming to YouTube using a dynamic web-based overlay.
- Implemented a continuous playback system with seamless track transitions (no gaps or latency).
Improvements
- Replaced the previous OBS-based setup with a headless streaming pipeline for improved stability and reliability.
- Streaming now runs independently from any graphical environment (no VNC or desktop required).
- Automatic restart of the stream after crashes or server reboot.
Maintenance
- Server environment cleaned and optimized for long-term unattended operation.
- Reduced system dependencies by removing unused graphical components.
- Improved overall performance and resource usage during continuous streaming.
Version 2.16.5 — User Audio Options & Playlist Playback Improvements
March 2026
New
- Added user audio player options in the dashboard.
- Users can now choose whether playlists loop when the last track finishes.
- Added selectable audio output modes: Stereo 100% (original), Stereo 75%, Stereo 50%, and Mono.
Improvements
- Audio player preferences are now saved per user and automatically reused across all player pages.
- Updated the main software page player, the custom playlist player, and the popup player to respect the selected playback options.
- Improved listening comfort for headphone users by allowing reduced stereo separation without modifying the original audio files.
Maintenance
- Added safe fallback handling for missing or empty audio option values.
- Kept the new player settings compatible with the existing playlist system and current site architecture.
Version 2.16.4 — Photo Caption Support (People Pages)
February 2026
Enhancements
- Added support for photo captions on People / Groups pages.
- Caption now displayed under profile photos on people.php.
- Admin interface updated to manage photo captions directly.
Maintenance
- Minor internal adjustments to support the new field in insert/update operations.
Version 2.16.3 — Box Art Illustrators (New gamedetail field)
February 2026
- New: Updated the Software Detail Page to display a new “Box Art by” section, with clickable links to illustrator profiles.
- Maintenance: Updated the admin workbench to support the new field.
Version 2.16.2 — Threaded Comments & Notifications Expansion
January 2026
New
- Threaded comments are now available on News posts, with full replies support (including replies to replies).
- News comments now trigger notifications:
- Admins are notified when users post new comments on news.
- Users are notified when an admin replies to their news comments.
- Admins are notified when users reply back to admin news comments.
- Admin “Comments Management” now includes a dedicated section for News comments, alongside title page comments.
Improvements
- The dashboard menu system was consolidated to ensure consistent section navigation across all dashboard panels.
- Notification indicators were extended:
- Dashboard “Notifications Log” can now display a badge when new events are available.
- Admin menu can display a badge for new comment activity.
- Notifications are now reliably cleared when users/admins open the relevant comment sections, including News comment threads.
Maintenance
- Adjusted the notification logs retention scheduler to prevent unintended log wipes and preserve recent entries.
- Database integrity improvements for threaded discussions (better handling of parent/child comment relationships).
- Minor internal cleanup and safety checks across comments + notifications endpoints.
Version 2.16.1 — Threaded Comments (Replies)
January 2026
New
- Users can now reply directly to existing comments, including replies to replies, enabling real discussion threads.
- Visual indentation and subtle background variations were added to clearly distinguish comment hierarchies.
- New comment replies now trigger real-time notifications for the concerned users.
- Administrators are notified of new comments posted on title pages.
Improvements
- The comments system was internally refactored to support threaded conversations without affecting existing comments.
- The Notifications Log now displays both user and admin notifications in a unified view for administrators.
- Notifications are automatically marked as read when visiting the relevant sections (comments, admin pages).
Maintenance
- Minor internal cleanup and adjustments to ensure consistency between comments, notifications, and dashboard indicators.
Version 2.15.0 — Notifications System & User Requests Improvements
January 2026
New
- Added a real-time notification system for user requests (admin replies & new requests).
- Notifications are now displayed directly on the user avatar and relevant dashboard/admin sections.
- Introduced a persistent Notifications Log in the user dashboard to keep track of past events.
Improvements
- Notifications are now automatically marked as read when visiting the related section.
- Dashboard navigation now supports direct links to specific sections (URL anchors).
- Improved reliability and consistency of request-related notifications across the site.
Maintenance
- Internal cleanup and refactoring to prepare the notification system for future features (comments, news, etc.).
Version 2.14.0 — User Requests System
January 2026
- Added a new Request system allowing users to submit soundtrack requests and report missing tracks.
- Requests can be created, edited, and tracked directly from the user dashboard.
- Each request displays its current status (Pending / Approved / Rejected) along with any admin reply.
- Requests are reviewed manually by the Amiga Paradise team.
- Improved dashboard navigation with clearer request history and status indicators.
- Internal admin tools were updated to handle request review and moderation.
Version 2.13.0 — Dashboard, Admin & Server Monitoring
January 2026
- Added a new Account Info section to the user dashboard (account creation date, masked email, account status, daily download quota usage, favorites, playlist tracks, comments, and ratings).
- Improved dashboard readability with better spacing and row styling in the new account table.
- Enhanced download management by switching from file-count limits to a fair bandwidth-based daily quota, with accurate logging per user.
- Refreshed parts of the admin interface for better usability and maintenance workflows (technical adjustments).
- Performed routine server maintenance, including a kernel upgrade and system reboot to ensure the server is fully up to date and stable.
Version 2.12.0 — Dashboard & Documentation Improvements
January 2026
- Refactored the dashboard into independent sections for improved maintainability and future expansion.
- Improved the internal dashboard structure to prepare for upcoming features.
- Added a new Dashboard Help page explaining how to use favorites, playlists, profile settings, and account features.
- Introduced a “What’s new?” section on the dashboard home, displaying the latest changelog entry.
- Centralized and cleaned up the FAQ, removing outdated information and aligning it with current site features.
- Improved navigation consistency and fixed minor layout inconsistencies across pages.
Version 2.11.2 — Download Improvements
January 2026
- Improved music downloads: archives are now generated on demand instead of being stored permanently.
- Reduced storage usage by removing the need to upload and maintain duplicate ZIP files.
- Added clearer error messages when a download cannot be prepared.
- Improved user navigation by jumping directly to the Downloads section when an issue occurs.
Version 2.11.1 — Documentation & Layout Improvements
January 2026
- Added a public History page documenting the evolution of Amiga Paradise.
- Improved layout consistency across static pages (FAQ, legal notices, external resources).
- Fixed minor CSS issues affecting page alignment and responsiveness.
- Updated footer navigation to include direct access to the History page.
Version 2.11.0 — Infrastructure & Stability Improvements
October 2025
- Migration of the website to a dedicated server.
- Improved overall performance and reliability.
- Better handling of emails and notifications.
- Security and stability enhancements.
- Preparation for long-term maintenance and future growth.
Version 2.10.0 — Administration & Maintenance
September 2025
- New administration tools for site management.
- Improved user management features.
- Enhanced download statistics and activity monitoring.
- General maintenance tools to help detect and prevent data inconsistencies.
- Foundation work for future moderation features.
Version 2.9.0 — Security & Quality Improvements
September 2025
- Improved protection against abusive or invalid actions.
- Safer download system.
- Better validation of user inputs across the site.
- General cleanup and reliability improvements.
- Improved handling of edge cases and data consistency.
Version 2.8.0 — News System
August 2025
- Introduction of a news system.
- Public news pages with structured content.
- Comment support on news articles.
- Moderation tools for administrators.
- Unified visual integration with the rest of the site.
Version 2.7.0 — Community Features
August 2025
- User rating system for software entries.
- Per-user ratings with abuse prevention.
- Display of average ratings.
- Comment system on software pages.
- Reporting and moderation tools.
Version 2.6.0 — Playlists
July 2025
- Custom playlists for registered users.
- Ability to add and remove tracks.
- Drag-and-drop reordering of playlist tracks.
- Playlist playback directly on the site.
- Playlist management from the user dashboard.
Version 2.5.0 — User Dashboard & Profiles
July 2025
- Personal user dashboard.
- Profile customization.
- Avatar selection.
- Favorites system for:
- Software
- People
- Groups
- Developers / Publishers
- Real-time updates when managing favorites.
Version 2.4.0 — User Accounts & Authentication
July 2025
- User registration and login system.
- Email confirmation during registration.
- Password recovery via email.
- Extended login sessions (“remember me” feature).
- Role distinction between regular users and administrators.
Version 2.3.0 — People, Groups & Credits
July 2025
- Dedicated pages for people and groups.
- Developer and publisher listings.
- Clear association between software and its creators.
- Improved credit visibility (composers, groups, studios).
- Visual previews when available.
Version 2.2.0 — Audio & Media Features
June 2025
- Integrated audio player.
- Multi-track playback for supported entries.
- Dynamic playlists generated from available audio files.
- Improved handling of missing or incomplete media.
- More consistent audio presentation across the site.
Version 2.1.0 — Database & Navigation
June 2025
- Centralized database browsing system.
- Alphabetical navigation.
- Category-based browsing (games, demos, cracks, music disks).
- Sorting and filtering options.
- Dedicated detail pages for each software entry.
Version 2.0.0 — Project Relaunch
June 2025
- Complete reboot of Amiga Paradise.
- New codebase and modernized architecture.
- Unified dark theme.
- Reimport and cleanup of historical data.
- Public reopening of the website.
Version 1.0 — First Public Release
2011 – 2022
- First online version of Amiga Paradise.
- Public software database.
- Early focus on games, demos and scene groups.
- Gradual growth until the project went offline.
Project Origins
1997
- Beginning of the Amiga Paradise project.
- Initial goal: preserve, document and archive Amiga software and music.
- Long-term personal project before going online.