View Full Version : What i would like in 2.1
jameso
05-26-2003, 12:39 PM
I have a 15 gig iPod and have, in an act of procrastination, decided to write a little (well, not so little) wishlist that i would like before 3.0
1. Be able to control the iPod over fire wire with iTunes (or apple script?) and have output for the sound thru the Line Out on the dock (if u have a dock)
2. Better handling of notes, there is currently a 4k and a 1000 note limit on my iPod with firmware 2.0
3. eBooks? apple have embraced, people are reading noted on the iPod, why can't i read my book from my pod on the bus?
4. "Power saver" mode when its not running on power from an external source, if only for the backlight
5. the Hold button on the iPod should all so override any backlight settings as well because at the moment if you use the remote it will activate the backlight
6. A play queue, we need something better than the "on the go" style dynamic playlist that we have now.
7. The ability to sort not only your library by Artist and so on but also be able to do the same on your PlayLists
8. Ok, this is not just firmware but we all know about the record feature in the Debug menu, why not open the way for an audio in maybe over the dock port or headphone port.
9. We need to be able to write Games and other small apps so our iPods are not just limited by the minds of those at apple. Please let us know more apple
Now i know most of this is just fantasy stuff but i consider every thing possible with out a hard ware add on or mod (not counting 8 of course) but then again i don't know all that much. This is my wishlist, any more ideas people?
I really, really want to be able to write games or programs. It would be nice if it were like the TI calcs..where you program in BASIC, so then I could figure it out, but otherwise it'd still be fun to download other people's stuff. It has so much potential--a huge HD and music playing capabilities. You could make a hundred-hour RPG with background music and it wouldn't even dent your capacity.
sraphim
06-20-2003, 11:40 PM
You all are right about many of these things. Truly, the capability is already there, but Apple has decided (for whatever reason) to prevent us from doing such things. They keep their plans at close guard, so there will be very little, if any, detail revealed to us, the users.
iPod (as proven from the games that it has now) has enough processing power to use applications that require a significant amount of processing time ( "parachute" has a number of sprites and particle effects moving at once without slowing down), and has enough space for both the storage (the HD) and the execution (the 32mb internal memory) of programs. I don't care if I have to write all the games in assembly. Upon further investigation from documentation from PortalPlayer's site (the provider of the core MP3/AAC decoder that the iPod uses), there are 2 processors built into a single chip, both are 90Mhz. That's a lot of power for any handheld device.
From the specs, it seems that the iPod's audio procesor, the PortalPlayer PP5002D_C, is capable of recording(as demonstrated by the system test), AND is capable of both decoding and encoding MPEG3. This means that the only thing keeping the iPod from recording to MP3 is the firmware! If Apple would only write a few hundred lines of code into the next firmware revision, then we're set.
All of these rather "far out" things that we are hoping for are really not that far out after all, but are quite possible considering the iPod's hardware, however, it must be considered that it's under the control of Apple, and any features would have to be under their consideration. Perhaps, if you want a quicker solution than waiting around for Apple to make releases, you should check out Linux on iPod, avaliable at http://ipodlinux.sourceforge.net/. It's still at a very early stage, but if this thing succeeds, then Apple might have something to keep up with (or send cease and desist letters to).
sraphim
06-20-2003, 11:45 PM
Oh, by the way, today, firmware version 2.0.1 was released. It's no 2.1, but it's a step there. All it essentially does is add in USB2 functionality, with some relatively minor improvements. So far, there's still no support for recording, programs, all that good stuff... *sigh*
bb_dg
06-22-2003, 10:55 PM
this is one thing that i would really like to see, a feature that turns off the screen when its not being used, like maybe turn the screen off when the hold feature is activated. that would save battery life, not sure how much, but it might extend it for a few hours.
vkeks05
06-23-2003, 02:31 PM
Turning off the screen will not add a few hours...
briankeys
06-24-2003, 11:08 AM
I dont think your eyes will thank you for focusing on a tiny screen to read a book for hours on end...
What I think might be interesting, would be to have a screen where you can see which songs are cached in memory..
Maybe a transitional effect between songs? Cant ever get enough tasteful eyecandy :)
primortal
07-09-2003, 04:31 PM
how about the ipod sending an audio warning (via the headphones) when the ipod is about to turn off cause the battery is drained. Along with the ability to turn this feature on/off. Nothing ####es me off more is listening to a song and it goes dead and you here a few clicks as the ipod shuts off.
schuss
07-13-2003, 12:35 PM
Originally posted by primortal
ow battery warning
how about the ipod sending an audio warning (via the headphones) when the ipod is about to turn off cause the battery is drained. Along with the ability to turn this feature on/off. Nothing ####es me off more is listening to a song and it goes dead and you here a few clicks as the ipod shuts off.
ooooh, i like that one! that would be really slick. my wireless phone does it...! and it's not running a dual 90mhz proc... ;)
i would really like to see the notes reader take on more uses. give it the ability to view pdf files, gifs and jpegs, and more complex html (with tables) so it could truly be a reference tool. that's the one part of my palm i'm missing (besides tetris and dope wars!) is carrying maps, diagrams, and other references with me - and it's not like there's a lack of storage space! :cool:
Maybe
07-15-2003, 10:14 AM
A search by name. Inserting the name of the song
Unixmonkey
07-16-2003, 03:22 PM
Saving On-the-go playlists would be awsome.
Also, if I have some files tagged "Aphex Twin", and some tagged "Aphex Twin " (notice the spaces), they should show up in the same menu.
I also think the backlight shouldn't be quite so bright, I'd like a more "Indiglo" brightness. You can see great, and it shouldn't blind you at night, and battery life would probably be extended. I don't think it is necessary to double as a flashlight.
ephraim
07-16-2003, 04:42 PM
If you have some files tagged "Aphex Twin" and some tagged "Aphex Twin ", you should fix your tags.
Unixmonkey
07-17-2003, 12:55 AM
Originally posted by ephraim
If you have some files tagged "Aphex Twin" and some tagged "Aphex Twin ", you should fix your tags.
Wow, that's completely helpful. You think? :rolleyes:
I am fixing my tags, thing is, it is a pretty long process since MusicMatch supertagging is less than reliable, and I am having to fix a large number of my files by hand. I've been doing a little a day for the past month and a half.
torchedlh
07-17-2003, 01:31 AM
get a better tagging program. MMJB sucks.
ephraim
07-17-2003, 01:36 AM
All I'm trying to say is that it's not Apple's job to handle poorly tagged files. Database sorting algorithms like that are based on unique identifiers for a reason, and if they went around assuming things about the semantics of our naming schemes there'd be a pretty vocal displeasure among the userbase.
There are a bazillion batch tagging apps out there; if MusicMatch doesn't float your boat, maybe try something else. Keep in mind that once it's done it's done, and you won't have to worry about it any more.