Music – Page 2 – I Think, Therefore I Rant!

RANT! Software doesn’t know best- it should be stupid

By admin | June 15, 2007 | Comments 1 comment

I despise software that thinks it knows best! I want it to be smart enough to know what to do no matter where I put it or where its data resides.

Why do software companies think they know where to put stuff? I hate it when the install of the software doesn’t allow me to put the application on the hard drive that I choose (it is rarely the C drive that it likes). Software programmers that don’t ask where to install should be FIRED and their software should be THROWN INTO THE BIT HEAP!

I also don’t like it when it tells me where to store my data. Sometimes, I want it in My Documents and sometimes I don’t. If I know I am going to back up that data then I want it in My Documents. If I am not going to back it up, I don’t want it in My Documents. Apple is really guilty of this with their iTunes software (don’t ever let them manage your music – it will be lost forever).

While I am at it, here is a good reference to show how to change the location of your My Documents. I didn’t know how to do this until a friend showed me.

Software developers – YOU NEED TO BE SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW YOU DON’T KNOW EVERYTHING!

I am done with this topic for now but I reserve the right to rant more on it someday.

Here is some related reading for you to enjoy:
RANT! Music formats should get along – 1 of 2
RANT! Music formats should get along – 2 of 2

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RANT! Music formats should get along – 2 of 2

By admin | May 4, 2007 | Comments 0 Comment

So why don’t iPods support WMA and similarly, why don’t other devices support AAC (Apple’s format)?

The why is simple. WMA is the format that many companies (e.g. Yahoo) use in their stores to sell music. WMA is developed by Microsoft and it is a competitor. Is it a better sounding format? For the most part, no it is not – the formats are essentially tied in audio capability for the average listener and the average audio speakers.

So it is a competitive issue. Apple makes the best device on the market with something like 90% market share. They don’t like Microsoft, so they don’t play nice to Microsoft. It definitely is not a revenue issue for selling songs on iTunes since at 99 cents per song, Apple isn’t making a lot of money on the songs. They do make a bunch of money for every iPod that is sold though.

They can still have iTunes be the pre-eminent way of managing your audio and video collection by supporting WMA. I even bet there is code within Cupertino somewhere that has iTunes playing WMA.

Hey Apple: Allow WMA on your iPods!! This doesn’t make any business sense! And while you are at it, allow other companies to license AAC to play on their devices – once again this will promote your iTunes product and store.

I am done with this topic for now but I reserve the right to rant more on it someday.

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RANT! Music formats should get along – 1 of 2

By admin | April 28, 2007 | Comments 3 comments

I will dedicate my first rant to one of my least favorite things to deal with and try to circumvent: music formats.

I spend a lot of time listening to audio. I drive a great deal in my car so I regularly hook up my iPod to my car stereo to listen to music, audible books, and podcasts. I have owned a lot of different portable music devices over the years and the iPod is by far the best designed. At its basic level, it supports AAC, MP3 and WAV format. It doesn’t, however, support WMA. Why?

Why can’t all portable audio devices play all formats? Why can’t my iPod play WMA? Why can’t my daughter’s Creative Zen play AAC?

This makes no sense.

Tag: Music