I'm not gonna jump on the "iTunes sucks!" bandwagon, but there are some fundamental changes that need to be made. The biggest is that iTunes still thinks it's just a music player. It doesn't seem to know that it's much more than that now. If you "get info" on a movie or TV show, you still get "artist", "album", "composer" etc. categories. There should be "director", "studio", "network", etc. categories, and iTunes (the name doesn't really make sense anymore either) should know if you're accessing a movie or TV show or podcast or whatever, and adjust its interface and functionality accordingly. Basically, the iTunes interface should reflect the various categories you find in the (increasingly mis-named) iTunes store.
"iMedia Store" sounds dumb. Perhaps "Apple Media Store"? I dunno. Call it the "Movies! Music! TV shows! and so so so much more! Store"
I can understand why some people think that the iTunes name is no longer valid because of the extra content .. movies, tv shows, apps, etc. etc. I would only say this .... I've never believed that a name has to describe completely what's inside. If it can be done, that might be a bonus, but the important thing is .... if a name has built up a following that is immediately recognized for what it is .... almost worldwide .... that has to trump everything, imho. There are a lot of companies that would kill to have the brand recognition that iTunes has.
As for appearances, I've always thought that the front "doorway" for iTunes should be a mockup of a small speciality music storefront ... where the door "opens" when you click on it and inside, as you "look around" via the arrow buttons or by touch .... you see other "doors" labeled movies, tv shows, etc. ... and they open when you click on them to reveal a room designed for the appropriate content.
Wouldn't it be neat, for instance, if in the "record" store the albums would be layed out in various bins, coverflow like? ... just like the old record stores where one would spend hours browsing. This might be too graphic rich to be possible .... but I know I would spend a hell of a lot more time browsing in a web experience like that ..... and more $$$ in all likelihood.
As far as movie info .... why not a link to imdb? .... it has all the info you would ever want. Just my 2 cents (canadian) worth. lol
Harping on the name is ludicrous. Also note that Macs aren't actually fruit. But it's name is a fruit. Oh the humanity.
And then there is QuickTime. Apple is claiming to bend the laws of physics? Or maybe they mean it goes faster than the speed of light, thereby speeding up time. Those lying bastards!
Complaints about speed, especially on the PC, seem valid. Also, you're right about different tags being needed for video.
I wouldn't go so far as to call it horrible though. In my opinion, it is still of higher quality than 99% of applications. Seriously. Just what are we using as a benchmark that makes it seem bad in comparison?
I can understand why some people think that the iTunes name is no longer valid because of the extra content .. movies, tv shows, apps, etc. etc. I would only say this .... I've never believed that a name has to describe completely what's inside. If it can be done, that might be a bonus, but the important thing is .... if a name has built up a following that is immediately recognized for what it is .... almost worldwide .... that has to trump everything, imho. There are a lot of companies that would kill to have the brand recognition that iTunes has.
In my view, it's as if I decided at some point that I wanted to sell shoes, so I opened a store called "Joe's Shoe Shop". But then, I decided to sell hats as well, and later shirts and pants, and even later, books, stuffed toys and bicycles! After a while, "Joe's Shoe Shop" just doesn't sound right anymore. iTunes was named iTunes, because that was its original design?before there was a movie store and app store and other stuff. iTunes was a music library and player. Now it's more. It's absolutely true that a name does not have to reflect its function. Take Amazon. It has nothing to do with a river in South America. But the name was open enough that they had the freedom to expand from a mere book seller to an everything seller!
And Apple, Inc. does not sell fruit. I will note, however, that they did change their name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple, Inc. to reflect the fact that they are no longer only a computer company, but now a consumer electronics and media company. Apple has made name changes to various products in the past. That's all I'm saying. I've said my piece on this, and I'm letting it go now.
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As for appearances, I've always thought that the front "doorway" for iTunes should be a mockup of a small speciality music storefront ... where the door "opens" when you click on it and inside, as you "look around" via the arrow buttons or by touch .... you see other "doors" labeled movies, tv shows, etc. ... and they open when you click on them to reveal a room designed for the appropriate content.
Wouldn't it be neat, for instance, if in the "record" store the albums would be layed out in various bins, coverflow like? ... just like the old record stores where one would spend hours browsing. This might be too graphic rich to be possible .... but I know I would spend a hell of a lot more time browsing in a web experience like that ..... and more $$$ in all likelihood.
Meh. I think that's getting too literal. Makes me think of how in the early 90s, there were all sorts of radical ideas of what "cyberspace" should look and feel like. There were all sorts of crazy 3D animated interfaces, with links that would spin and float around, and make you feel like you were traveling from one site to another. Some looked cool, but the "coolness" factor wore off pretty quickly. What people want is quick easy access to the information and content they are seeking. The same is true of iTunes.
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As far as movie info .... why not a link to imdb? .... it has all the info you would ever want. Just my 2 cents (canadian) worth. lol
Now that's a great idea! As you're downloading your movie, iTunes could access imdb and download all the related info about the movie?it's all text info anyway, so it wouldn't crush your hard drive. Maybe even a "pop up trivia" feature as well (that you can switch off of course!!)
ITunes has been out for a decade. Why is MS just waking up now?
Serious question. Are Microsoft products really that unknown???
I know the general public basically knows about iTunes and Pandora and only has a bit of an idea about what the Zune is, but I'm making the assumption that since you took the trouble to comment on a tech site and own your own domain that you're way above the curve as far as tech understanding goes... and yet you still haven't heard about what the Microsoft Zune services are?
Microsoft released the original Zune (i.e. Microsoft's iPod) and Zune Marketplace (Microsoft's iTunes Store) years ago. True, it was a long time after the iPod/iTunes release but still, it was years ago.
The Zune Marketplace also has the Zune Pass which is a music subscription service that gives you unlimited access to the Zune Music Marketplace and lets you own 10 tracks/month. This music can be downloaded/streamed to PC, X360, WP7, or ZuneHD.
There are also a bunch of other social and discovery services built in that attempt to emulate the functionality of Pandora.
So that is Microsoft's iTunes music competitor, and I think someone could make a decent argument that it's actually more feature rich than iTunes. Probably the biggest failing isn't the service itself but the fact you need to use Microsoft devices to access it.
Back on topic. The "Ventura" product is likely not a service "to compete with Apple's iTunes" but an improvement to the existing Zune Marketplace.
It likely ties in with project "Orapa" which is an effort to bring Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV to Microsoft devices.
To put it simply, the idea is to deliver your existing cable service to your PC/X360/WP7/Zune via the Internet. This is something that is already partially in place in Australia.
As far as I'm aware this is something new and as such doesn't directly compete with iTunes.
Serious question. Are Microsoft products really that unknown???
I know the general public basically knows about iTunes and Pandora and only has a bit of an idea about what the Zune is, but I'm making the assumption that since you took the trouble to comment on a tech site and own your own domain that you're way above the curve as far as tech understanding goes... and yet you still haven't heard about what the Microsoft Zune services are?
Microsoft released the original Zune (i.e. Microsoft's iPod) and Zune Marketplace (Microsoft's iTunes Store) years ago. True, it was a long time after the iPod/iTunes release but still, it was years ago.
The Zune Marketplace also has the Zune Pass which is a music subscription service that gives you unlimited access to the Zune Music Marketplace and lets you own 10 tracks/month. This music can be downloaded/streamed to PC, X360, WP7, or ZuneHD.
There are also a bunch of other social and discovery services built in that attempt to emulate the functionality of Pandora.
So that is Microsoft's iTunes music competitor, and I think someone could make a decent argument that it's actually more feature rich than iTunes. Probably the biggest failing isn't the service itself but the fact you need to use Microsoft devices to access it.
Back on topic. The "Ventura" product is likely not a service "to compete with Apple's iTunes" but an improvement to the existing Zune Marketplace.
It likely ties in with project "Orapa" which is an effort to bring Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV to Microsoft devices.
To put it simply, the idea is to deliver your existing cable service to your PC/X360/WP7/Zune via the Internet. This is something that is already partially in place in Australia.
As far as I'm aware this is something new and as such doesn't directly compete with iTunes.
Well then I owe a sincere apology to Microsoft for that naive comment of mine. Apparently they weren't sleeping - it was me!
Comments
I'm not gonna jump on the "iTunes sucks!" bandwagon, but there are some fundamental changes that need to be made. The biggest is that iTunes still thinks it's just a music player. It doesn't seem to know that it's much more than that now. If you "get info" on a movie or TV show, you still get "artist", "album", "composer" etc. categories. There should be "director", "studio", "network", etc. categories, and iTunes (the name doesn't really make sense anymore either) should know if you're accessing a movie or TV show or podcast or whatever, and adjust its interface and functionality accordingly. Basically, the iTunes interface should reflect the various categories you find in the (increasingly mis-named) iTunes store.
"iMedia Store" sounds dumb. Perhaps "Apple Media Store"? I dunno. Call it the "Movies! Music! TV shows! and so so so much more! Store"
I can understand why some people think that the iTunes name is no longer valid because of the extra content .. movies, tv shows, apps, etc. etc. I would only say this .... I've never believed that a name has to describe completely what's inside. If it can be done, that might be a bonus, but the important thing is .... if a name has built up a following that is immediately recognized for what it is .... almost worldwide .... that has to trump everything, imho. There are a lot of companies that would kill to have the brand recognition that iTunes has.
As for appearances, I've always thought that the front "doorway" for iTunes should be a mockup of a small speciality music storefront ... where the door "opens" when you click on it and inside, as you "look around" via the arrow buttons or by touch .... you see other "doors" labeled movies, tv shows, etc. ... and they open when you click on them to reveal a room designed for the appropriate content.
Wouldn't it be neat, for instance, if in the "record" store the albums would be layed out in various bins, coverflow like? ... just like the old record stores where one would spend hours browsing. This might be too graphic rich to be possible .... but I know I would spend a hell of a lot more time browsing in a web experience like that ..... and more $$$ in all likelihood.
As far as movie info .... why not a link to imdb? .... it has all the info you would ever want. Just my 2 cents (canadian) worth. lol
And then there is QuickTime. Apple is claiming to bend the laws of physics? Or maybe they mean it goes faster than the speed of light, thereby speeding up time. Those lying bastards!
Complaints about speed, especially on the PC, seem valid. Also, you're right about different tags being needed for video.
I wouldn't go so far as to call it horrible though. In my opinion, it is still of higher quality than 99% of applications. Seriously. Just what are we using as a benchmark that makes it seem bad in comparison?
I can understand why some people think that the iTunes name is no longer valid because of the extra content .. movies, tv shows, apps, etc. etc. I would only say this .... I've never believed that a name has to describe completely what's inside. If it can be done, that might be a bonus, but the important thing is .... if a name has built up a following that is immediately recognized for what it is .... almost worldwide .... that has to trump everything, imho. There are a lot of companies that would kill to have the brand recognition that iTunes has.
In my view, it's as if I decided at some point that I wanted to sell shoes, so I opened a store called "Joe's Shoe Shop". But then, I decided to sell hats as well, and later shirts and pants, and even later, books, stuffed toys and bicycles! After a while, "Joe's Shoe Shop" just doesn't sound right anymore. iTunes was named iTunes, because that was its original design?before there was a movie store and app store and other stuff. iTunes was a music library and player. Now it's more. It's absolutely true that a name does not have to reflect its function. Take Amazon. It has nothing to do with a river in South America. But the name was open enough that they had the freedom to expand from a mere book seller to an everything seller!
And Apple, Inc. does not sell fruit. I will note, however, that they did change their name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple, Inc. to reflect the fact that they are no longer only a computer company, but now a consumer electronics and media company. Apple has made name changes to various products in the past. That's all I'm saying. I've said my piece on this, and I'm letting it go now.
As for appearances, I've always thought that the front "doorway" for iTunes should be a mockup of a small speciality music storefront ... where the door "opens" when you click on it and inside, as you "look around" via the arrow buttons or by touch .... you see other "doors" labeled movies, tv shows, etc. ... and they open when you click on them to reveal a room designed for the appropriate content.
Wouldn't it be neat, for instance, if in the "record" store the albums would be layed out in various bins, coverflow like? ... just like the old record stores where one would spend hours browsing. This might be too graphic rich to be possible .... but I know I would spend a hell of a lot more time browsing in a web experience like that ..... and more $$$ in all likelihood.
Meh. I think that's getting too literal. Makes me think of how in the early 90s, there were all sorts of radical ideas of what "cyberspace" should look and feel like. There were all sorts of crazy 3D animated interfaces, with links that would spin and float around, and make you feel like you were traveling from one site to another. Some looked cool, but the "coolness" factor wore off pretty quickly. What people want is quick easy access to the information and content they are seeking. The same is true of iTunes.
As far as movie info .... why not a link to imdb? .... it has all the info you would ever want. Just my 2 cents (canadian) worth. lol
Now that's a great idea! As you're downloading your movie, iTunes could access imdb and download all the related info about the movie?it's all text info anyway, so it wouldn't crush your hard drive. Maybe even a "pop up trivia" feature as well (that you can switch off of course!!)
And how about the name "iPhone"? It does way more than just a phone. Maybe that should be renamed as well.
ITunes has been out for a decade. Why is MS just waking up now?
Serious question. Are Microsoft products really that unknown???
I know the general public basically knows about iTunes and Pandora and only has a bit of an idea about what the Zune is, but I'm making the assumption that since you took the trouble to comment on a tech site and own your own domain that you're way above the curve as far as tech understanding goes... and yet you still haven't heard about what the Microsoft Zune services are?
Microsoft released the original Zune (i.e. Microsoft's iPod) and Zune Marketplace (Microsoft's iTunes Store) years ago. True, it was a long time after the iPod/iTunes release but still, it was years ago.
The Zune Marketplace also has the Zune Pass which is a music subscription service that gives you unlimited access to the Zune Music Marketplace and lets you own 10 tracks/month. This music can be downloaded/streamed to PC, X360, WP7, or ZuneHD.
There are also a bunch of other social and discovery services built in that attempt to emulate the functionality of Pandora.
So that is Microsoft's iTunes music competitor, and I think someone could make a decent argument that it's actually more feature rich than iTunes. Probably the biggest failing isn't the service itself but the fact you need to use Microsoft devices to access it.
Back on topic. The "Ventura" product is likely not a service "to compete with Apple's iTunes" but an improvement to the existing Zune Marketplace.
It likely ties in with project "Orapa" which is an effort to bring Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV to Microsoft devices.
To put it simply, the idea is to deliver your existing cable service to your PC/X360/WP7/Zune via the Internet. This is something that is already partially in place in Australia.
As far as I'm aware this is something new and as such doesn't directly compete with iTunes.
Serious question. Are Microsoft products really that unknown???
I know the general public basically knows about iTunes and Pandora and only has a bit of an idea about what the Zune is, but I'm making the assumption that since you took the trouble to comment on a tech site and own your own domain that you're way above the curve as far as tech understanding goes... and yet you still haven't heard about what the Microsoft Zune services are?
Microsoft released the original Zune (i.e. Microsoft's iPod) and Zune Marketplace (Microsoft's iTunes Store) years ago. True, it was a long time after the iPod/iTunes release but still, it was years ago.
The Zune Marketplace also has the Zune Pass which is a music subscription service that gives you unlimited access to the Zune Music Marketplace and lets you own 10 tracks/month. This music can be downloaded/streamed to PC, X360, WP7, or ZuneHD.
There are also a bunch of other social and discovery services built in that attempt to emulate the functionality of Pandora.
So that is Microsoft's iTunes music competitor, and I think someone could make a decent argument that it's actually more feature rich than iTunes. Probably the biggest failing isn't the service itself but the fact you need to use Microsoft devices to access it.
Back on topic. The "Ventura" product is likely not a service "to compete with Apple's iTunes" but an improvement to the existing Zune Marketplace.
It likely ties in with project "Orapa" which is an effort to bring Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV to Microsoft devices.
To put it simply, the idea is to deliver your existing cable service to your PC/X360/WP7/Zune via the Internet. This is something that is already partially in place in Australia.
As far as I'm aware this is something new and as such doesn't directly compete with iTunes.
Well then I owe a sincere apology to Microsoft for that naive comment of mine. Apparently they weren't sleeping - it was me!