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[gpvillamil]

OK, looked at the way the Hairstyle name changes every few seconds. Very funny, for a bit. It's a bit like an annoying colleague who insists on talking in a "funny" voice - amusing at first, but then really annoying. I know you guys have to let off steam, but someone put some effort into making something *less usable*. I really like the product! I really, really want to help you sell it (I mentioned before that I build and install media PCs) and this doesn't help! Especially when iTunes, WMP9, WinAmp, Sonique, myHTPC are *free*! The speed bumps in v10 are significant enough that I really want to use it, and so it's the version I show to people, instead of 9.1.

We all want to have fun, whimsy is good, so let's put that kind of stuff in SKINS, VISUALS, TRACK INFOS, where we can change it, not in a menu item that is frequently used!

True dialogue from last night:

Me: Check out how cool Media Center looks on my TV - I click on the option called, ummm, Button Mode
Friend: Neat!
Me: ...and then I can go to a screen that shows details about the song - right click, then Full Screen
Friend: Neat! let me play! Where is the Button Mode?
Me: Umm, let me check... now it's called Showtime
Friend: Why does it do that?
Me: It's a sort of joke
Friend: Oh, I guess you have to put up with that if it's free - iTunes must be more expensive?
Me: Actually MC is $40, iTunes is free
Friend: Now it's saying "I Like Cheese"! That's so lame! Make it stop!
Me: I can't
Friend: Show me iTunes again - you said it's free?

[nila]

lol.

Poor friend - next time just tell him it's the third button down - thats fairly easy to remember and stays constant.

Or just tell him to press F11 till it goes to the right mode.

iTunes doesn't do hairstyle mode and I tried it and didn't like it - it had NO power. I was REALLY disappointed in it.

If you build media PC's I dont think you should be installing v10 onto them unless they are for you personally - v10 is JUST starting development and has BIG warnings about not being stable etc.

Your going to do yourself no favours by putting an early beta version of a product onto systems you are building.

You should be putting v9.1 stable onto the systems, at least until v10 is slightly deeper into development - at this point it's going to be changing non stop.



As for the name changing - it was put there to let us see different names so we could chose which one we prefered - I think it's kind of amusing and is purely one of many signs that it is a program in early development.

ALOT of programs put 'easter eggs' as they're called in them - Windows/Photoshop to name just two big ones.

[NoCodeUK]

I agree on the iTunes thing.  I had a friend who was a mac user who was always going on about how great iTunes was.  When I finally got it for Windows I was like "Is that it?".  When I said MC did everything iTunes did and more he was like "Nah iTunes is still better!".  I guess once a mac user...

Adam

[gpvillamil]

Actually, I'm giving people a choice. I'm not putting MC10 on anything for now, though 4 people are using 9.1 and liking it.

10.1 is a more compelling demo than 9.1 because of the speed. "Hairstyle" is popular because it gives the impression of being friendlier & easier. However, iTunes comes across as being equally easy, even without having a full screen mode.

So far, the people I talk to prefer iTunes if they're willing to deal with Windows, and myHTPC if they want a fullscreen mode. It takes some configuration to setup, but hey, that's what I'm there for.

The benefits (and it has major ones!) of MC over the other options are harder to explain - mostly they come from quite advanced features, like the Media Server, the Smartlists, etc.  But try demoing these features to someone who is not super-comfortable with computers, and eyes will glaze over: the smartlist interface looks too much like programming, and the Media Server looks a bit scary. Adding "friendliness" to these features will make it soooo much easier to sell the benefits of MC.

And the whole "Hairstyle" naming thing is just irritating me, regardless of what my friends think.

[nila]

lol.
Just press F11 like I do

I hate going thru menu's - prefer shortcut keys so much more.

I think they said they've chosen a name so it should get made 'sticky' pretty soon.

Are your friends Mac users by any chance?

Also - MC just has 'tools' which iTunes REALLY doesn't have.
It'd depend a lot where they get their music from and how much they have and what they do with it etc I guess.

iTunes is easy to get to grips with to begin with but runs out of options really fast when you start wanting some grunt power.

At that point they'll probably start checking out MC more. iTunes is like a warm up starter course


Hopefully v10 should have a few more GUI things built in for smart lists etc like iTunes style.

For your HTPC's though - v10 should have all the answers if hairstyle gets the major rework.

I tried myHTPC and for me the biggest killer is the fact that all the artists are listed together so compilations add around 100 enteries to my artist list even though the only have one song by them - MC groups them into: Various Artists - which is tiny but HUGE

Hopefully v10 will allow us to configure the main screen to call other programs like myHTPC and if it can - that'd make it a match in my opinion

That and plugin ability along with search.

[Mike Noe]

And the whole "Hairstyle" naming thing is just irritating me, regardless of what my friends think.

Ever heard the term "self-deprecating"?  Can't these guys have a little fun along the way?  Relax, clear your mind, join the party, this can be a lot of fun...

[jleerigby]

And the whole "Hairstyle" naming thing is just irritating me, regardless of what my friends think.

Ever heard the term "self-deprecating"?  Can't these guys have a little fun along the way?  Relax, clear your mind, join the party, this can be a lot of fun...

I agree with this.  Maybe if you fully explain the background to the 'joke' your friends will appreciate just how responsive the JRiver development team are.  This should be a selling point if anything.  I can't think of any other developer that would respond to an unprompted thread about a name change by instantly giving users ALL the names they'd asked for to allow you to make an informed choice and have a laugh along the way.

I also strongly agree with Nila - demo-ing a very early beta has to be a bad idea as it is giving a false impression.  Some of the features you are demo-ing may not be there in the next release.

[JimH]

So, how about calling it "Hairstyle"?

We'll do it in the next build.  Sorry if we caused an awkward moment.  

If you think juvenile humor is bad, just think -- we could have been out stealing hub caps.

[nila]

So, how about calling it "Hairstyle"?

We'll do it in the next build.  Sorry if we caused an awkward moment.  

If you think juvenile humor is bad, just think -- we could have been out stealing hub caps.

Mine are all scratched up so I'll buy them off of you if you do - I'll give u an extra $2 for some glistening gold alloys instead of hubs

[LonWar]

So, how about calling it "Hairstyle"?

We'll do it in the next build.  Sorry if we caused an awkward moment.  

If you think juvenile humor is bad, just think -- we could have been out stealing hub caps.

For the Yugo?

[knickelfarz]

Besides Yugos, names for hairstyles, sparkling wine in coffee cups and upgrade price complaints we need some more running gags around here. Maybe somebody can start a poll?  

[gpvillamil]

How about some really twisted & bizarre skins & visualizations?

[and don't get me wrong - I love MC, there is nothing else quite like it. Well worth $10 for an upgrade, or even $40 for a whole new licence. I use it every day - a lot - which is why the jokes get a bit tired for me.]

[knickelfarz]

How about some really twisted & bizarre skins & visualizations?

He He, they are in the pipe, you will see them some time... but that's much work for a running gag. Ok, how about:
"Again, knickelfarz heralded to make a skin."
Should be good for smirking from time to time  

EDIT: Mmh, we already have this. If I say "skin", then King would say "Mooo". He already has a shortcut for this on his keyboard... I then get a bad conscience but can always find a good plea, sometimes Matt can give me one by heralding new skin SDK features...

So, sorry, there's still a need for other running gags....

[sraymond]

So, how about calling it "Hairstyle"?

We'll do it in the next build.  Sorry if we caused an awkward moment.  

Please, no...  anything but Hairstyle.  

Scott-

[JimH]

OK.  We'll call it Scott then.

[knickelfarz]

Screenfur? (100% Polyester, of course... Here comes my uncle Lester, all dressed up in polyester...)

[NoCodeUK]

I kinda liked George

[sraymond]

OK.  We'll call it Scott then.

Oh, dear...  I'm afraid that would create quite an expense for JRiver.  You see, I've trademarked the name "Scott".  You wouldn't believe how much the toilet paper and paper towel guys are paying me!

Scott-

[jleerigby]

OK.  We'll call it Scott then.

JimH - You are being 'naughty' today  Play nicely.

[AussieBill]

Man, you need to lighten up!  

I imagine the JRiver team have had a stressful couple of days with the upgrade pricing backlash (now resolved! ) and as a developer myself I thought it was an hilarious in-joke for "download every bleeding-edge build" people like me.

These incremental, daily builds are by their very nature, not for "normal public" consumption, and especially not for your end-clients.

I vote to leave it in until the new name is decided or call it "The Menu Item previously known as Hairstyle".

Now I remember why we don't let end-users into our dev-environment at work.......

[gpvillamil]

Well, "Hairstyle", "Mini-me" and "Mega-me" (the names) all started as jokes and ended up staying in the release version of 9.1, where they have caused all kinds of confusion to end customers that 1)  aren't familiar with Microsoft project code names and/or 2) didn't see or remember the Austin Powers movies.

It is very easy for us in the forum to get used to stuff that is absolutely baffling to end-users. If we don't do a reality check every once in a while and ask ourselves what this would mean to a new customer, we're putting ourselves at risk.

The reason I keep hammering on this point is so that we don't get complacent and let something else like "Hairstyle" (the name, not the feature) filter into a release version.

I can already see signs that we're used to workarounds and ways of doing things that *require* an end-user to search the forums in order to figure out - for example Girder integration.  Another example: the help file does *not* state, anywhere, that you need another DVD player installed for DVD playback to work in MC. (MC does not include the codecs).

[AussieBill]

"It is very easy for us in the forum to get used to stuff that is absolutely baffling to end-users. If we don't do a reality check every once in a while and ask ourselves what this would mean to a new customer, we're putting ourselves at risk."

I take your point there....I've seen this a couple of times too.   I don't think end-users should have to read Interact to find out how stuff works!! But I think the help system is really improving, now, if only they'd tell me how to modify the text font in Hairstyle! <hint hint>