Aeroplayer Questions

[PBM808]

- Does aero player support 320x480? if not, are there any comparable players that do?
-have they included a shuffle/random play mode yet?
-will the control panel, for controlling music without having the player open, work while using a luncher like zlauncher? how does this panel work, such as a floating, movable panel, or is it a small icon that opens the panel, etc?
-are there any players that have dancing animations that move to the music or spectrum analyzers?

[Sid]

As of version 2.11.1, No to your first 2 questions. (I don't know about other players).

[TJ37]

-Does aero player support 320x480? if not, are there any comparable players that do?
As stated above, no there isn't at this point. Pocket-Tunes does support 320x480 though.

-Have they included a shuffle/random play mode yet?
AeroPlayer comes with the option for that. Pocket-Tunes also.

-will the control panel, for controlling music without having the player open, work while using a luncher like zlauncher? how does this panel work, such as a floating, movable panel, or is it a small icon that opens the panel, etc?
I believe so (for Pocket-Tunes, and AeroPlayer).
Pocket-Tunes - In pTunes, there is a window where you can customize how you want the window to pop-up. Default is dragging your stylus from the Home button on the silkscreen to the menu button. The mini player takes up 50% of the screen (in 320x320) and is basically a mini window with the song name, volume control, and the basics: Play, Pause, Next, Previous. It also has a button that allows you to open the full pTunes instead of having to find it.
AeroPlayer - I believe for AP, you must make a command stroke, and when the command bar comes up, there will be a icon there that brings up the controls. The window also has the basic functions (Play, Pause, Volume controls, etc.).

-are there any players that have dancing animations that move to the music or spectrum analyzers?
MMPlayer supports this I believe.

[Sid]

Sorry I missed that, where is the option for shuffle play located?

[TechnoCat]

- Does aero player support 320x480? if not, are there any comparable players that do?
-have they included a shuffle/random play mode yet?
-will the control panel, for controlling music without having the player open, work while using a luncher like zlauncher? how does this panel work, such as a floating, movable panel, or is it a small icon that opens the panel, etc?
-are there any players that have dancing animations that move to the music or spectrum analyzers?
Just so you're aware, AeroPlayer developement is effectively dead and AeroDrome lied about it for months on their Yahoo board. It's a fine player as-is, but lacks some of the bells-and-whistles of PocketTunes. However, if support and on-going development are important to you, avoid it.

[Sid]

Just so you're aware, AeroPlayer developement is effectively dead and AeroDrome lied about it for months on their Yahoo board. It's a fine player as-is, but lacks some of the bells-and-whistles of PocketTunes. However, if support and on-going development are important to you, avoid it.

Do you know why?
I got a "free" license as part of the purchase of Mark/Space's The Missing Sync for Palm OS.

[TechnoCat]

Two guesses. First off, it basically works and so, barring new bugs, they aren't interested in it more. Secondly, they probably are chasing more lucrative sources of income. Shareware is not an easy way to make a living, and especially not if you only have a tiny number of products.

[PBM808]

so i should invest in pocket tunes, i assume?

[tanker_bob]

Just so you're aware, AeroPlayer developement is effectively dead and AeroDrome lied about it for months on their Yahoo board. It's a fine player as-is, but lacks some of the bells-and-whistles of PocketTunes. However, if support and on-going development are important to you, avoid it.
How do you "know" this? What's your source?

[Sid]

I had occasion to email Aerodrome with a question that turned out to be answered in the FAQs, and then I followed up with a question about continued development, here's the answer:

It's not true at all. In fact, we're currently beta-testing the next
major release.
--
Best regards,
Aerodrome Support

http://www.aerodrome.us


> Hi,
> Thank you. I'm sorry I didn't check the FAQs first.
> I am a registered user and have another question that's not in the FAQs, I
> read a "rumor" that there would be no further development of AeroPlayer. Is this
> true?


[Edit]
Aerodrome answered this question within minutes of me sending it.

[TechnoCat]

Guys, look over the archives. You can believe Aerodrome's words, or you can believe their actions and the accuracy of their past words over the last nine months. Don't take my word or their word for it. I don't have a horse in this race either way, but their history right now is pretty pathetic.

Example: Messages 2751 in January and 2784, Feb.11th, claimed they were working on a new release, in response to gripes at that time that releases were not coming. Five months later it's still not here.

And Sid, even if they do come out with a major release, you still should consider their past messages and actions, and paucity of on-going releases. You should still consider that ten months after the UX50 came out, they still lack widescreen, in contrast to PocketTunes for example. They have very little credibility right now and a new release just wouldn't fix it.

[cosFFM]

I also heard of payed customers of AeroPlayer switching to PocketTunes, because they have felt that development has come to a halt and because of the "unfriendly" tone of the company and their treatment of the customer base.

What went on on that list? ;) Anyway, I use PT and am very happy with it and their support (which is outstanding by the way - right up there with CESD/DB5 and Jeff/ShadowPlan).

[Sid]

TechnoCat,
I appreciate the sincerity of your warning, and will keep it in mind. If I find that AeroPlayer is no longer satisfactory, I will look elsewhere if there is still no update.

[Sid]

I've been demo-ing PocketTunes in light of some of the posts here, and it's quite nice, has more features than AeroPlayer and as of right now, seems to have a brighter future. I may buy the standard version, don't need the extra features of the Deluxe one.

[fiqqer]

True Aerodrome have only done one recent update but from my account it is still on par in terms of functionality with PocketTunes and in terms of sound quality it is better than pockettunes.

Aerodrome really developed the product last year - just check the number of updates - even though there hasn't ever been anything wrong with it from my experience and I have been using it since October 2003. I have used Pockettunes - a lot, including the very latest version - but its sound quality for my Tungsten E is not good. Its better than realplayer but it does not compare with Aeroplayer.

Aeroplayer is a great product and I don't blame the company for trying to diversify. If the company does fall back on development then people will switch and surely they must know this. Some of the comments on this forum are not right. There is a shuffle facility on aeroplayer - it is the up and down arrow on the bottom left hand side using my favourite skin - MicroRibbs.

[toymaker]

FYI

I wrote to Aerodrome Software yesterday and received a response within 2 hours. I had asked if they were interested in another Beta Tester because I currently have the Zire 72 and thought I might be able to help. This was their response:

"Sorry. It's currently a private beta and we're well underway. We
should be releasing a public version in the next week or so.
--

Best regards,
Aerodrome Support"

I believe they are sincere.

[tanker_bob]

FYI

I wrote to Aerodrome Software yesterday and received a response within 2 hours. I had asked if they were interested in another Beta Tester because I currently have the Zire 72 and thought I might be able to help. This was their response:

"Sorry. It's currently a private beta and we're well underway. We
should be releasing a public version in the next week or so.
--

Best regards,
Aerodrome Support"

I believe they are sincere.
I agree. I tried out the new Pocket Tunes 3.0.1 this week. Except for WMA support, all they did was add features that Aerodrome already had--basically caught up. I look foward to what Aerodrome has done to move ahead.

[tanker_bob]

For those that thought AeroPlayer was dead, please checkout http://www.aerodrome.us/aeroplayer/beta.html. Looks like those naysaying sources weren't so reliable after all. I've checked out the new beta, and it sounds great on my T3. AeroPlayer 5 was completely recoded for OS 5 and the extra efficiency readily shows in background operation.

[sdkat2]

I've got Aeroplayer and PocketTunes on my T3 and TH55. I much prefer the sound quality of Aeroplayer, even the old verion, to Pocket Tunes on both. I look forward to larger screen support and some new skins, not to mention the other new features, once they are out of beta. Meanwhile the Aeroplayer beta is now my main mp3 player.

Kat

[Sid]

For those that thought AeroPlayer was dead, please checkout http://www.aerodrome.us/aeroplayer/beta.html. Looks like those naysaying sources weren't so reliable after all. I've checked out the new beta, and it sounds great on my T3. AeroPlayer 5 was completely recoded for OS 5 and the extra efficiency readily shows in background operation.

Thanks Tanker Bob.
Less fortunately for me, I got the AeroPlayer license as part of my purchase of Mark/Space The Missing Sync for Palm OS more than 30 days ago so:

Who can upgrade to version 5.0?

Normal registration codes include 12 months of free upgrades, so if you bought AeroPlayer in the last year, you can upgrade for free! If you purchased AeroPlayer as part of a Mark/Space bundle, you can upgrade free for 30 days. And of course, if you bought a lifetime code, you can always upgrade for free!

[Sid]

OK, here's a question: Does the AeroPlayer beta install over the previous version or does it show up as a separate app?
I downloaded it but there is no documentation with it.

[toymaker]

I'm not sure but I deleted my old version within my palm default launcher just to be safe since they said it was a complete re-code.

[Pdaman]

- Does aero player support 320x480? if not, are there any comparable players that do?
POCKET TUNES, AUDIO PLAYER...

-have they included a shuffle/random play mode yet?
YES

-will the control panel, for controlling music without having the player open, work while using a luncher like zlauncher? how does this panel work, such as a floating, movable panel, or is it a small icon that opens the panel, etc?
YES

-are there any players that have dancing animations that move to the music or spectrum analyzers?
NO, THERE IS NO MUSIC PLAYERS ON PALM OS WHAT SUPPORT SPECTRUM ANALYZERS ONLY MMPLAYER, BUT IT IS MORE VIDEO PLAYER THAN MUSIC PLAYER SO I DON'T RECOMMEND FOR MUSIC PLAYBACK

My opinions :
Before i was aeroplayer user, but now i'm audio player user, becose if i use audio player it save battery life more than any other music player, but anyway i would use pocket tunes, becuse it is better than aeroplayer or audioplayer if we are talking about skins, format supports and etc...

[TechnoCat]

For those that thought AeroPlayer was dead, please checkout http://www.aerodrome.us/aeroplayer/beta.html. Looks like those naysaying sources weren't so reliable after all. Perhaps not. Certainly on a purely analytical angle the naysayers were precisely correct: This will be the first new release in something like ten months (remember: still no official release date yet). Given their upgrade-window (a year), ten months between releases is pretty cruel.

The product may not be dead yet, but if you actually expect bug fixes, feature upgrades (for example, as of last month the released version still did not support the UX50 landscape feature, and I believe the beta still does not support m3u playlists), and information from the team, you're probably much better off with PocketTunes. It takes more than an OS5 conversion to signal a change in their behavior.

Lest you think I have it out for them, look up my review of AeroPlayer vs. PocketTunes from last October or so; I chose AeroPlayer as the better sounding tool at the time, though both had flaws. The real problem is that PocketTunes moved forward regularly. If AeroPlayer moves forward so seldom, it may be ahead for two months and behind for eight... which leaves it trailing 80% of the time. To be vigorously supportive of AeroPlayer in that situation would be to stretch even the term "fan-boy" to a whole new level.