fix: preloader + update notification robustness

- Add full-screen CSS preloader to webapp (fades out when _initApp completes)
- Defer _checkWebappUpdate() to 6s after app init so it does not compete
  with startup API calls (fixes perceived slowness on first load)
- Switch update-check throttle from sessionStorage to localStorage (6h TTL);
  use release published_at instead of version string for comparison, so the
  banner correctly appears when a new release is published regardless of whether
  the tag is a semver or the rolling "latest" tag
- PHP _isLatestVersion(): return true (do not suppress error reports) when
  tag_name is non-semver (e.g. "latest") — was incorrectly blocking ALL reports
- Kiosk checkForUpdates(): show banner only when the release asset actually
  contains an APK for the component; handle non-semver tag by treating it
  as always-update (prevents silent no-op with rolling "latest" tag)
- Scale gateway checkForUpdates(): same non-semver fix; apkUrl now defaults
  to empty and bails out if no matching APK found in assets (prevents 404 install)

api/index.php

@@ -5720,7 +5720,11 @@ function _isLatestVersion(string $clientVersion): bool {
     if ($clientVersion === '') return true; // unknown → allow (don't suppress)
     $latest = _latestReleaseTag();
     if ($latest === '') return true; // no release yet → allow
-    return ltrim($clientVersion, 'v') === ltrim($latest, 'v');
+    $latestNorm = ltrim($latest, 'v');
+    // If tag is not semver-like (e.g. "latest", "rolling") we can't compare
+    // meaningfully, so don't suppress error reporting.
+    if (!preg_match('/^\d+\.\d+/', $latestNorm)) return true;
+    return ltrim($clientVersion, 'v') === $latestNorm;
 }
 
 /**

assets/css/style.css

@@ -68,6 +68,42 @@ body {
     box-shadow: var(--shadow);
 }
 
+/* ===== PRELOADER ===== */
+#app-preloader {
+    position: fixed;
+    inset: 0;
+    background: var(--bg-dark, #0f172a);
+    z-index: 200000;
+    display: flex;
+    align-items: center;
+    justify-content: center;
+    transition: opacity 0.35s ease;
+}
+#app-preloader.fade-out {
+    opacity: 0;
+    pointer-events: none;
+}
+.app-preloader-inner {
+    display: flex;
+    flex-direction: column;
+    align-items: center;
+    gap: 20px;
+}
+.app-preloader-spinner {
+    width: 48px;
+    height: 48px;
+    border: 4px solid rgba(255,255,255,0.15);
+    border-top-color: #4ade80;
+    border-radius: 50%;
+    animation: spin 0.8s linear infinite;
+}
+.app-preloader-label {
+    color: rgba(255,255,255,0.75);
+    font-size: 1.2rem;
+    font-weight: 600;
+    letter-spacing: 0.5px;
+}
+
 .header-content {
     display: flex;
     align-items: center;

assets/js/app.js

@@ -79,19 +79,28 @@ function reportError(payload) {
 // Checks the latest GitHub release once per session and shows a text banner
 // if the running webapp version is outdated.
 (function _checkWebappUpdate() {
-    const STORAGE_KEY = '_evershelf_update_checked';
+    const STORAGE_KEY  = '_evershelf_update_checked_at';   // last-checked timestamp
+    const SEEN_KEY     = '_evershelf_update_seen_ts';      // published_at of last-dismissed release
+    const TTL_MS       = 6 * 60 * 60 * 1000;              // re-check every 6 h (localStorage)
     const now = Date.now();
-    const lastCheck = parseInt(sessionStorage.getItem(STORAGE_KEY) || '0', 10);
+    const lastCheck = parseInt(localStorage.getItem(STORAGE_KEY) || '0', 10);
-    if (now - lastCheck < 3 * 60 * 60 * 1000) return; // once per 3 h per tab
+    if (now - lastCheck < TTL_MS) return;
-    sessionStorage.setItem(STORAGE_KEY, String(now));
+    localStorage.setItem(STORAGE_KEY, String(now));
 
     fetch('api/index.php?action=check_update', { method: 'GET' })
         .then(r => r.ok ? r.json() : null)
         .then(data => {
-            if (!data || !data.latest_tag) return;
+            if (!data) return;
-            const latest  = data.latest_tag.replace(/^v/, '');
+            // Release date-based comparison: show banner only if the release is
-            const current = (document.querySelector('.header-version')?.textContent?.trim() || '').replace(/^v/, '');
+            // newer than the last one the user acknowledged.
-            if (!current || !latest || current === latest) return;
+            const publishedAt = data.published_at || '';
+            const seenTs      = localStorage.getItem(SEEN_KEY) || '';
+            if (!publishedAt || publishedAt === seenTs) return;
+
+            const latestTag = (data.latest_tag || '').replace(/^v/, '');
+            const current   = (document.querySelector('.header-version')?.textContent?.trim() || '').replace(/^v/, '');
+            // If tag looks like a proper semver and they match → no update needed
+            if (/^\d+\.\d+/.test(latestTag) && current && current === latestTag) return;
 
             // Show a dismissible banner at the top of the page
             if (document.getElementById('_evershelf_update_banner')) return;
@@ -105,18 +114,23 @@ function reportError(payload) {
                 'border-bottom:2px solid #fbbf24',
                 'box-shadow:0 2px 8px rgba(0,0,0,.4)',
             ].join(';');
-            const releaseUrl = data.html_url || `https://github.com/dadaloop82/EverShelf/releases/latest`;
+            const releaseUrl = data.html_url || 'https://github.com/dadaloop82/EverShelf/releases/latest';
+            const versionText = /^\d+\.\d+/.test(latestTag) ? ` <strong>${latestTag}</strong>` : '';
             banner.innerHTML =
-                `<span>⬆️ <strong>EverShelf ${latest}</strong> disponibile (stai usando ${current}). ` +
+                `<span>⬆️ Nuovo aggiornamento EverShelf${versionText} disponibile. ` +
                 `<a href="${releaseUrl}" target="_blank" rel="noopener" style="color:#93c5fd;text-decoration:underline">Vedi novità</a></span>` +
-                `<button onclick="document.getElementById('_evershelf_update_banner').remove()" ` +
+                `<button id="_evershelf_banner_close" ` +
                 `style="background:none;border:none;color:#94a3b8;font-size:18px;cursor:pointer;padding:0 4px">✕</button>`;
             document.body.prepend(banner);
-            // Auto-dismiss after 20 s
+            document.getElementById('_evershelf_banner_close').onclick = () => {
-            setTimeout(() => banner.remove(), 20000);
+                localStorage.setItem(SEEN_KEY, publishedAt); // mark as seen
+                banner.remove();
+            };
+            // Auto-dismiss after 30 s (without marking as seen, so it reappears next visit)
+            setTimeout(() => banner.remove(), 30000);
         })
         .catch(() => {});
-})();
+});
 
 // ── Global uncaught error handler ────────────────────────────────────────────
 window.addEventListener('error', function(e) {
@@ -11705,6 +11719,17 @@ async function _initApp() {
     scaleInit(); // connect to smart scale gateway if configured
     _injectKioskOverlay(); // kiosk X / refresh buttons (only when running inside Android WebView)
 
+    // Hide preloader once the dashboard is rendered
+    const preloader = document.getElementById('app-preloader');
+    if (preloader) {
+        preloader.classList.add('fade-out');
+        setTimeout(() => preloader.remove(), 380);
+    }
+
+    // Defer update check: fire 6 s after app is ready so it doesn't compete
+    // with initial API calls and the PHP worker isn't blocked during startup.
+    setTimeout(_checkWebappUpdate, 6000);
+
     // ── Background intervals ───────────────────────────────────────────────
     // 1) Ogni 5 min: ricarica la pagina corrente (scadenze, inventario, ecc.)
     setInterval(() => {

evershelf-kiosk/app/src/main/kotlin/it/dadaloop/evershelf/kiosk/KioskActivity.kt

@@ -699,21 +699,16 @@ class KioskActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
 
                 // Normalise: strip leading 'v' for comparison
                 val norm = { v: String -> v.trimStart('v') }
-
+                // If tag is not semver-like (e.g. "latest") we can't compare — treat as "needs update"
-                val kioskNeedsUpdate = latestTag.isNotEmpty() && currentKiosk.isNotEmpty() &&
+                val isSemver = latestTag.trimStart('v').matches(Regex("\\d+\\.\\d+.*"))
-                    norm(latestTag) != norm(currentKiosk)
-                val gatewayNeedsUpdate = currentGateway != null && latestTag.isNotEmpty() &&
-                    norm(latestTag) != norm(currentGateway)
-
-                if (!kioskNeedsUpdate && !gatewayNeedsUpdate) return@Thread
 
                 // Find APK download URLs in release assets
                 val assets = json.optJSONArray("assets")
-                var kioskApkUrl = KIOSK_DOWNLOAD_URL
+                var kioskApkUrl = ""     // only set if the release actually contains the APK
-                var gatewayApkUrl = GATEWAY_DOWNLOAD_URL
+                var gatewayApkUrl = ""
                 if (assets != null) {
                     for (i in 0 until assets.length()) {
-                        val a = assets.getJSONObject(i)
+                        val a    = assets.getJSONObject(i)
                         val name = a.optString("name", "").lowercase()
                         val url  = a.optString("browser_download_url", "")
                         if (name.contains("kiosk") && url.isNotEmpty()) kioskApkUrl = url
@@ -721,15 +716,29 @@ class KioskActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
                     }
                 }
 
+                // Kiosk needs update: APK is in release AND (non-semver tag OR version mismatch)
+                val kioskHasApk = kioskApkUrl.isNotEmpty()
+                val kioskNeedsUpdate = kioskHasApk && currentKiosk.isNotEmpty() &&
+                    (!isSemver || norm(latestTag) != norm(currentKiosk))
+
+                // Gateway needs update: installed AND APK in release AND (non-semver OR mismatch)
+                val gatewayHasApk = gatewayApkUrl.isNotEmpty()
+                val gatewayNeedsUpdate = currentGateway != null && gatewayHasApk &&
+                    (!isSemver || norm(latestTag) != norm(currentGateway))
+
+                if (!kioskNeedsUpdate && !gatewayNeedsUpdate) return@Thread
+
                 // Build message and choose primary download (kiosk takes precedence)
                 val lines = mutableListOf<String>()
                 var primaryApkUrl = ""
                 if (kioskNeedsUpdate) {
-                    lines += "🔄 Kiosk $currentKiosk → $latestTag"
+                    val label = if (isSemver) "$currentKiosk → $latestTag" else latestTag
+                    lines += "🔄 Kiosk $label"
                     primaryApkUrl = kioskApkUrl
                 }
                 if (gatewayNeedsUpdate) {
-                    lines += "🔄 Scale Gateway $currentGateway → $latestTag"
+                    val label = if (isSemver) "$currentGateway → $latestTag" else latestTag
+                    lines += "🔄 Scale Gateway $label"
                     if (primaryApkUrl.isEmpty()) primaryApkUrl = gatewayApkUrl
                 }
                 val message = lines.joinToString("  •  ")

evershelf-scale-gateway/app/src/main/kotlin/it/dadaloop/evershelf/scalegate/MainActivity.kt

@@ -427,10 +427,10 @@ class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity(), BleScaleListener, ServerEventListener
                 val latestTag = json.optString("tag_name", "").ifEmpty { return@Thread }
                 val current   = try { packageManager.getPackageInfo(packageName, 0).versionName ?: "" } catch (_: Exception) { "" }
                 val norm = { v: String -> v.trimStart('v') }
-                if (norm(latestTag) == norm(current)) return@Thread  // already up to date
+                val isSemver = latestTag.trimStart('v').matches(Regex("\\d+\\.\\d+.*"))
 
                 // Find scale-gateway APK in release assets
-                var apkUrl = APK_DOWNLOAD_URL
+                var apkUrl = ""
                 val assets = json.optJSONArray("assets")
                 if (assets != null) {
                     for (i in 0 until assets.length()) {
@@ -442,7 +442,13 @@ class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity(), BleScaleListener, ServerEventListener
                         }
                     }
                 }
-                val msg = "⬆️ Scale Gateway $current → $latestTag"
+                // Only show banner if the release actually contains our APK
+                if (apkUrl.isEmpty()) return@Thread
+                // If semver tag matches current version → already up to date
+                if (isSemver && norm(latestTag) == norm(current)) return@Thread
+
+                val label = if (isSemver) "$current → $latestTag" else latestTag
+                val msg = "⬆️ Scale Gateway $label"
                 runOnUiThread { showNativeUpdateBanner(msg, apkUrl) }
             } catch (_: Exception) {}
         }.start()

index.html

@@ -50,6 +50,14 @@
 </head>
 <body>
 
+<!-- ===== APP PRELOADER (hidden by JS once _initApp completes) ===== -->
+<div id="app-preloader" aria-hidden="true">
+    <div class="app-preloader-inner">
+        <div class="app-preloader-spinner"></div>
+        <span class="app-preloader-label">🏠 EverShelf</span>
+    </div>
+</div>
+
 <!-- Top Header -->
 <header class="app-header">
     <div class="header-content">