A: As a solo developer managing Ubernappy, moderation is difficult. Requiring a valid Patreon pledge helps ensures a manageable and responsible user base, helping maintain the service's quality and prevent misuse.

A: Possibly. If you need access and can prove you need it for demonstration, educational and historical purposes as well as preservation efforts, I'm happy to arrange an account without the need for Patreon pledge, please have a look at the Education page for more information.

A: We could, but that would be unfair as people would be paying to enrich the classic napster experience by sharing files while users who are enjoying that enriched experience by just downloading would get it for free.

Client Compatibility and Connection

Q: Which Napster clients are compatible with Ubernappy?

A: Ubernappy is compatible with all versions of the original Napster clients and, although untested, any other Nap clients that support the Napster protocol. You can connect using clients like Napster 2.0 or later versions.

A: To connect using Napigator, make sure you selected the correct version of Napster you are using during its installation. After that open Napigator, click the "File" menu, then clik "Manual Connect" and then, in the dialog, type www.ubernappy.com in the hostname and 8888 in the port. After clicking "OK", Napster should open and be able to connect to Ubernappy.

A: From their website: "ucanet is a project which aims to provide a network/web ecosystem for retro computers that is separated from the modern web. ucanet is powered by an alternative-root DNS server, with a completely fresh set of domains you can register.". Ucanet allows accessing Ubernappy via the www.napster.com domain, which allows you to use the Napster clients without the use of Napigator. It also has the advantage of letting the Napster clients to load the client specific web pages that were available under www.napster.com/client. You can learn how to set it up in the installation page on their website.

A: You can find all versions of the Napster client for both Windows and Mac in the download section. Other compatible Napster clients can be obtained from third-party sources. Once downloaded, follow the installation instructions provided by the client software. For more information refer to the Help section fo the website.

Account and Content Management

Q: How do I create a user name on Ubernappy?

A: Due to the need to have a Patreon pledge, you cannot create an account in the Napster client. You must instead go to Account and, after login into your Patreon account, you'll see a registration form where you can create an account which you'll be able to use with the Napster clients.

A: Not at the moment, if you really need your user name changed, please contact me at hello.eric.experiment@gmail.com.

A: Yes but currently not via the client or the website, please contact me at hello.eric.experiment@gmail.com if you want to have your account terminated.

A:TheEricExperiment is a bot client that is always connected to the server and has files available for download so people who access it can still experience the service when there are no users online.

A: Yes! I can make your music available for download via the TheEricExperiment bot client. Send me a message on hello.eric.experiment@gmail.com so we can organize that.

Usage and Troubleshooting

Q: Why are my downloads from TheEricExperiment so slow?

A: When you log into Napster, you can select an internet speed, if you download something from TheEricExperiment, that speed will be simulated by that client. If you selected a slow dial-up speed, that's the transfer speed you will have. If you want downloads to be faster, makes sure to set your speed to something faster or to Unknown.

A: A firewall is a security mechanism that may block your connection to Ubernappy. If you encounter connection issues, make sure your firewall settings allow your Napster client to communicate through the appropriate ports.

Project Background

Q: How did you get the information needed about the Napster protocol to build this service?

A: There's a Nap server called OpenNap that has been built by reverse engineering the Napster protocol while it was still available. OpenNap has documentation and the source code available for analysis, which I used to understand the protocol and implement my own server.

A: I did initially, I managed to compile and run it on a modern 64-bit Linux install. I then built a layer of interception of messages between OpenNap and the clients to do the login and Patreon verifications. But after a while I noticed that the code was getting complex and, given that OpenNap is built in C and the code is from the early 2000's, I came to the conclusing that building my own server from scratch would be easier to maintain. Especially because I already have a lot of the Napster protocol implemented so I could intercept the messages.

A: Eventually I do want to do that, but right now the server code is tightly coupled with the website, database and Patreon code and it will require me to separate it from them so it can be used by anyone.