Plex is the core of why I set up Debbie. Plex is a user interface to easily see all your media. Normally, all the files are just stored in folders on my computer and it is, to be short, ugly. It makes it hard to decide and find what to watch looking through so many files. Plex can make some bland files look like this.
Or with different clients or devices it can look like this
This is all in comparison to what my folder structure looks like
It does this by determine what the show or movie is based on the file name and pulls data from other internet sources such as IMDB or TheTVDB to put it into the interface. Also this is also why it is important to have Sonarr and Radarr to be able to rename the files into clear names so it is easier for Plex to match the files with a movie or show
Additionally, what Plex is able to do is play any media almost anywhere. For example, lets say I have a 1080p mp4 movie that I want to watch on a device that does not support mp4 files. Plex will be able to determine which format type is best for that client and will live convert the file to what is best. Additionally, it can also change the quality of the video to suit the client’s internet speed (example, converting a 1080p video into 480p). This is all done in the background and can be done with one click of a button in the Plex interface. This process of changing file types is called transcoding and is not done magically, it requires processing power. That is why I built Debbie with dual Xeons. They are not clocked very fast, but have a lot of processign power, so it can handle multiple people watching at the same time.
My favorite feature is also how easy it is to share my library with others. With one invite link, other users are able to join my library and watch from their own devices. But best of all, it’s completely free! The core functionality to watch media on all your devices is free with no ads. You can, however, pay for some premium features such as downloading or watch on mobile but it is completely not necessary. I did purchase a premium lifetime subscription to support the developers and get some of those premium features since I use it so much. The premium features can also be shared with other family members so I thought it was worth the buy.
Tyler's Life 