Rotate the random zoom spot over time, not just per-track

Random zoom position was previously picked once per track (stable via
subsonic_id) and held for that track's entire runtime. Changed it to
rotate on a ~10s cadence based on wall-clock time, still offset by a
per-track hash so different tracks don't all land on the same spot in
the same window. This lets a single long track show off different
sections of its own artwork over time, rather than being stuck on one
spot until the next track starts.

README.md

@@ -24,8 +24,12 @@ app's config when adding it to a device.
 - **Album art zoom** — how far the album art's breathing zoom effect goes
   in: Off, Subtle, Moderate (default), or Strong.
 - **Zoom position** — where the zoom centers on: Center (default), or
-  Random (a handful of preset off-center spots, picked per-track so a
+  Random (a handful of preset off-center spots). Rotates on a ~10s cadence
-  still-playing track doesn't jump between spots on every refresh).
+  based on wall-clock time, offset per-track so different tracks don't all
+  land on the same spot at the same moment — meaning it can change on
+  *every* refresh, not just when the track changes, so a long track gets
+  to show off different sections of its art over time instead of being
+  stuck on one spot for its whole runtime.
 
 ## How it works
 
@@ -55,13 +59,19 @@ app's config when adding it to a device.
   came from testing it set to its own default value and comparing the
   result against itself, which is of course identical either way). The
   "Random" zoom position picks from a handful of preset off-center spots
-  (`ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS`), chosen per-track from `subsonic_id` the same way
+  (`ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS`), kept modest (0.3-0.7 of the image's own bounds,
-  the old corner-selection logic worked, so a still-playing track doesn't
+  not the full 0.0-1.0 range) and verified safe (no black border, even at
-  jump between spots on every `NOWPLAYING_TTL` refresh. Those spots are
+  the strongest 1.7x zoom) via the calibration tool; more extreme corners
-  kept modest (0.3-0.7 of the image's own bounds, not the full 0.0-1.0
+  weren't tested and may not be safe. Which spot is picked rotates on a
-  range) and verified safe (no black border, even at the strongest 1.7x
+  `ZOOM_SPOT_ROTATE_SECONDS` (10s) cadence based on wall-clock time
-  zoom) via the calibration tool; more extreme corners weren't tested and
+  (`time.now().unix`), offset by a hash of `subsonic_id` so different
-  may not be safe.
+  tracks don't all land on the same spot in the same 10s window. This was
+  deliberately *not* made purely per-track-stable (i.e. the same spot for
+  a track's entire runtime, the way the old corner-selection logic for
+  the since-removed Translate approach worked): the ask was to see
+  different sections of a single piece of art over time, which requires
+  the spot to be able to change mid-playback, not just when the track
+  changes.
 
   An earlier version tried to fix a *different* problem — `animation.Scale`
   zooming in asymmetrically toward one corner — by pairing Scale with a

subwave_nowplaying.star

@@ -104,13 +104,22 @@ DEFAULT_ZOOM_LEVEL = "moderate"
 # own 36x36 bounds. Kept modest (0.3-0.7, not full 0.0-1.0) and verified
 # safe (no black border, even at the strongest 1.7x zoom) via the
 # calibration tool -- more extreme corners weren't tested and may not be.
-# Picked per-track (stable via subsonic_id, like the old corner-selection
+# Only used when the "Zoom position" schema field is set to "random" --
-# logic) rather than per-render, so a still-playing track doesn't jump
+# "center" always zooms on the image's own center, exposed as a config
-# between spots on every NOWPLAYING_TTL refresh. Only used when the
+# choice since some covers (e.g. ones with a centered logo or face) read
-# "Zoom position" schema field is set to "random" -- "center" always zooms
+# better with a predictable center zoom than a random one.
-# on the image's own center, exposed as a config choice since some covers
+#
-# (e.g. ones with a centered logo or face) read better with a predictable
+# Rotates on a ~10s cadence (matching ART_ZOOM_DURATION below) based on
-# center zoom than a per-track random one.
+# wall-clock time, not just per-track: a time bucket picks the spot, offset
+# by a per-track hash so different tracks don't all land on the same spot
+# at the same moment. This means the spot can change on *every* refresh,
+# including mid-playback of a single still-running track -- not just when
+# the track itself changes -- so a long track gets to show off different
+# sections of its art over time, which is the whole point of "random"
+# rather than "center". One real limitation: a one-shot `pixlet render`
+# CLI call reads the system clock same as the live server would, so this
+# is still deterministic for a given moment -- it just varies *which*
+# moment you rendered at, same as the live progress bar in _track_progress.
 ZOOM_CENTER_SPOT = (0.5, 0.5)
 ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS = [
     (0.5, 0.5),
@@ -119,16 +128,19 @@ ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS = [
     (0.3, 0.7),
     (0.7, 0.3),
 ]
+ZOOM_SPOT_ROTATE_SECONDS = 10
 DEFAULT_ZOOM_POSITION = "center"
 
-def _zoom_spot_for_track(zoom_position, subsonic_id):
+def _zoom_spot(zoom_position, subsonic_id):
     if zoom_position != "random":
         return ZOOM_CENTER_SPOT
 
-    total = 0
+    track_offset = 0
     for ch in subsonic_id.elems():
-        total += ord(ch)
+        track_offset += ord(ch)
-    return ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS[total % len(ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS)]
+
+    time_bucket = int(time.now().unix / ZOOM_SPOT_ROTATE_SECONDS)
+    return ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS[(time_bucket + track_offset) % len(ZOOM_RANDOM_SPOTS)]
 
 def main(config):
     station_url = config.get("station_url", DEFAULT_STATION_URL)
@@ -266,7 +278,7 @@ def _art_widget(art_bytes, zoom_scale, zoom_position, subsonic_id):
     # toward the bottom-right -- the opposite of the bug it was meant to
     # fix. Since `origin` already does directly and correctly what that
     # Translate was clumsily approximating, this uses `origin` alone.
-    origin_x, origin_y = _zoom_spot_for_track(zoom_position, subsonic_id)
+    origin_x, origin_y = _zoom_spot(zoom_position, subsonic_id)
     top_scale = max(zoom_scale, 1.0)
     zoom = animation.Transformation(
         child = art,