INTERACT FORUM
More => Old Versions => Media Center 12 (Development Ended) => Topic started by: Doof on March 30, 2007, 08:29:27 am
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No this isn't a feature request. It's just some well-deserved praise.
I've said in the past that I didn't v12 really had any kind of must-have feature over v11 to make me want to upgrade. Well, I've changed my mind. It's not that there was any particular thing added to it that suddenly made me see the light or anything. It's just the whole package. MC is the poster child for the old saying "greater than the sum of its parts".
I think the things that really make me realize what a truly awesome piece of software this is is when I'm talking to somebody else and they tell me about some other program that they're using to do some task. Like a friend of mine recently bought an iPod and was telling me about how much he hates iTunes. And then I mention that MC handles iPods and does so much more. He didn't buy MC. Didn't even download it. And then later he developed this uber-fascination with YouTube and Google Video. And I suddenly remembered that there was rudimentary support built into MC a while back for those. Something I hadn't checked on in quite a while. I went and checked it out and it was darn near perfect. Just one little tweak was all it really needed. I asked and I received. I passed the word on to my friend. He still hasn't even downloaded MC. I just don't get it. I think the next time he visits I'm just going to grab his laptop and install it on it myself. Once he starts using it, I know he'll gladly pay $40 for it. Hell, he's paid far more for far less.
My coworker asked about the media player he saw me using here at work. I explained it to him, and even showed him how I was able to stream all of my music from my home PC and listen to it here. He was really impressed. But he likes foobar2000 and its minimalist approach, so he wont' download MC either. It can get to be a little frustrating.
But then I started thinking about all of the selling points I've been point out to people over the years. Especially lately with all of the cool new things being added in v12. And even if I can't convince others of MC's value. I've at least rediscovered it for myself.
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Thanks, Doof. Nice post. Would you mind if I move it to the MC12 board?
And how about pix01.com? Did you try pix01.com? ;) 8)
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Sure, go ahead. :)
And yes! I did try Pix01. Sorta. I needed to post a picture really quick, couldn't remember the password for my own website, so I put it up on Pix01. Another case of MC Saves The Day! :D
I'll probably play with it more this summer once my summer activities all start and I have some pictures to share with friends and family.
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No this isn't a feature request. It's just some well-deserved praise.
I'm still just flabbergasted over the whole "Liberace Rubber Chicken (http://www.jriver.com/~jriver/2007/misc/liberace_rubber_chicken2.jpg)" thing...
I'm proud to say that I have been able to convince a handful of my friends and colleagues that it was worth taking the MC plunge. More than anything, it's the support you get here at Interact from the developers and other users. Don't like something or need something new? Make the case and it can be yours...
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I'm still just flabbergasted over the whole "Liberace Rubber Chicken (http://www.jriver.com/~jriver/2007/misc/liberace_rubber_chicken2.jpg)" thing...
I think there are probably a lot of people too young to know who Liberace was.
Think Dame Edna, the Lounge Pianist, and you won't be too far off.
http://www.liberace.org/
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I have always been a 'One tool for one job' kind of guy.
I have always used MC for audio, but not for any other task.
With MC 12 I find it is more than capable of my day to day tasks.
I have a digital camera that has RAW capability. Previously I used specialized software to process the RAW images to jpg.
MC 12 does a very nice job on these files 99% of the time. The remaining ones are so badly shot that it takes lots of processing to get a usable image. But the ease of using MC for the other 99% is what I like.
Sharing the pictures with others is something I like. MC 12 has the ability to create an online album with just a few clicks. Even creates a TinyURL for you to send to those you want to share the images with. Very cool. Beats other online photo services, and its free.
I've compared the ripping ability of MC with EAC and dBpoweramp R12. Much easier for me to use and gives at least as accurate results. Speed is on par with the others in most cases too.
I have Chinese in-laws. I love the ability to queue up some traditional Chinese music, get a slideshow of images together, then have the music play while the slideshow cycles the pictures. It is an ability that everyone I've shown it to is impressed by. In fact, they have favorite shows that are asked for again and again.
We have LOTS of portable players here. iPods, iRiver, Creative, no name devices. When people stop by and say "I like that song, what is it?" I can plug their device in, let MC scan it, then sync a song or two to their portable. Much of my music is in Wavpack or FLAC, and MC converts to a nice MP3 rate for the portables automatically. Again, impressive to the folks who stop by and see how easy it is to do this compared to how they are used to getting music onto their devices.
Like Doof, is there one thing that I like best about MC other than this forum where I can ask any question and get a lucid answer quickly? Nope, it is pretty much the whole package that I like. I don't notice from day to day how much I rely on MC, but this made me think of how many ways I use it, and how "invisible" most the cool features are because they just work.
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I've used the program since Media Jukebox 6 or 7. My dad was the first I convinced to buy Media Jukebox after being dissapointed in a purchase of Musicmatch Jukebox. I don't think he upgraded to MC. Two of my buddies bought MC11 and recently my brother took the plunge on MC12.
For most of them its the program and its features that convinced them. I don't think any of them are here on the forum although I have been preaching to them about it. One guy in particular was whining about theater view mode and I quoted the thread in which developers ask for feedback.
The support and responsiveness on this forum is unmatched, even compared to paid/subscription based support some companies offer.