Embla was designed to work both as a base for a hub, and for a client. It uses the MINA library for the network I/O part and Simple Logging Facade for Java for the logging part. This gives Embla a solid part to base on. On top of that , here are some key features that I found while looking over it:
- no need to worry about running ADC from scratch, Embla has all the functions required to get parameters, set parameters, command contexts and so on
- no need to make Tiger hashes or anything, Embla supports them all with a single command, even non standard SHA1 extension
- no need to implement extensions, Embla has almost all the known extension there are for ADC
- on top of all, it even supports NMDC !
Also, the readme for the compile process is very poor: it says you need MINA and SLF4J, but not even the place where to paste them, one needs to look in the build scripts to see where they should be.
A plus though, is that there is a sample program called embla-demo which exemplifies a connection to a hub. This example is the start point for a developer wanting to use Embla, because there is nothing else.
ADCPortal test conclusion is: Embla is a very powerful tool for the developers that makes the creation of hub or client with the least effort and time. The lack of documentation is the biggest minus and I think that's the reason it's keeping developers away from using it.
I think the advice we can give is obvious.
We want to thank Cyb for the effort he has put in Embla and we wish him good luck with his projects and hopefully improvement.
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