Lobby QR toggles if SSID/Password populated

Solved problem: guest arrives, scans the QR code on the (Apple) TV, but cannot or will not install the Joustine app. We want them to use a web browser, but the guest needs to be on your WiFi to do so.

Now, if you have populated the SSID/Password fields on an Apple (or Windows) device hosting Joustine, the lobby QR code alternates between a joustine.com/join/ code and a join-WiFi code. By following one, then the other, anyone can join the game with a web browser, never needing to type in any URL or WiFi password.

This is NOT a feature enabled by default. Joustine does not know your SSID or password. It is entirely optional: leave both fields empty and Apple devices still find each other over Apple's own peer-to-peer networking and over Bluetooth.

Such a feature might sound inappropriate for home use… either you want to share your WiFi and password with your guests, or you don't. And many would not.

But it is also possible to be setting up a hotspot for the sake of gaming, or to have a semi-permanent Joustine installation — say on a big screen at a pub, or at a venue where kids play games. In either such situation the venue's WiFi and password is already an open secret.

There is a fuller description on the privacy page.

One room, one host

Previously it was assumed no two streaming boxes would ever compete to host, and that letting Apple TV take top priority solved the problem… well, we currently own three Apple TVs at our house.

Now clients continue to see Apple TV as top dog, but whichever Apple TV has hosted the longest will continue to host, and all others (including non-Apple set-top boxes) will display the IP address of the host, making it clear which devices are not hosting.

Clients help other clients find the true host. This applies to PC/Mac hosting, and also handheld device hosting. (5.04 represents a lot more testing hardware scattered around our house.)

2 "iPhone" devices

Since iOS 16 a phone will not tell an app its name — every iPhone introduces itself as "iPhone". Joustine had been using that name to tell devices apart, which works beautifully until two phones are in the room, at which point it is a coin flip. Devices are now identified by the installation itself, so two identical phones are two different players.

Improved responsiveness

LEFT RITE FLAP command delivery was tested on real hardware across different protocols, and such testing has resulted in better protocol choices.

Also an old A8 Apple TV was acquired (the pre-4K black Siri Remote model) and Joustine now has optimizations for old Apple hardware.

Quick attract demo exit

Joustine running its demo could eat the first flap-to-join tap in a way that exited to the lobby but didn't assign any player to it.

Information Panels

Review of the information panels, and their sequencing from left of Level One.