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[UrfTheWog]

I really think this *could* be a great product.  It seems like it's 75% there. Nice UI, very good features, but is still buggy. Have you guys thought about really doing an audit of your software?

I know you're very responsive to the user community (which is great BTW) but seeing the large amount of updates makes me wonder how "patched" the product is becoming.  

I get crashes running the betas (yes, I'm fully aware they're betas and BSODs are to be expected) but how often should I encounter these - every time I run the product?

I had tried the "stable" version and also had problems. It was suggested that I should try the 9.1 betas "for a more stable version" in the AVSforum.

Again, I'm not trying to throw arrows - I really want to use this product exclusively.  

I've been in a number of projects where the "people who scream the loudest get the most attention/resources" as opposed to doing the prudent and solid track of taking a breather, doing an assesment, and basically making sure the product is cohesive and stable.

In my 15+ years doing IT, the one thing that I hate (and see most often) is that doing it *right* is not on the top of the list. Cheaper, faster, and "out-the-door" seems to take precedance over quality.

My rant for the week - but I think you guys are really close on a great product.  

[jleerigby]

(yes, I'm fully aware they're betas and BSODs are to be expected) but how often should I encounter these - every time I run the product?

I haven't had a BSOD at all using MC - not even the betas.  They have worked really hard lately on the bugs (see comments in bug thread for .238).  

I haven't noticed any posts from you highlighting any specific problems you've had (like the BSODs).  How are they supposed to fix the bugs if you don't report them?  Continual BSODs point to an issue with your system configuration not MC.

[KingSparta]

I haven't had a BSOD at all using MC - not even the betas.

nor me

it might the bugs in his version of windows

[Bartabedian]

In a year and a half of testing MJ/MC betas, I've seen maybe two crashes where MJ/MC just disappeared. Never seen a BSOD or a myriad of other crashes I've read about here. You're problems just might be caused by something else.

WP

[UrfTheWog]

I have an HTPC that runs a number of things (Seti for one). I really don't want to be a beta tester since I have a boatload of other projects but your comments are valid. I will try and make an effort as to tracking the crashes and bugs and submitting them.

Recently, I've tried and read this forum often and I KNOW I'm not alone on bugs of the product.

My comments have to do with the software development process and furious pace of fixes.  It's a concern - not a criticism.

JLee: I'm very new new to this product and forum and my post is based on using this product and "seeing what happens". I'm FAR from a computer newbie and can certainly tell what happens using software products.

WarrenPeace: Not all tomatoes are made the same and I suppose if this was the only piece of software I had running than it might be different.

Again, I really LIKE the product - it's just needs some work.  It's almost there - just not yet.

My concern is a software product that has huge amounts of patches has a much greater potential of being hacked and compromised as to it's security and integrity. That's why audits are actually a good thing, besides being a major pain in the @ss

[Bartabedian]

I run on a daily basis on the same machine running and playing MC:

Photoshop, Pro-Tools, AVID XP, DVD Workshop, Nero, Vegas Video, Sound Forge, MyIE2, Forte Agent, Outlook, Lotus Notes, PowerDVD, CuteFTP, DesktopX, Virtual Dub, Winamp3, Tag&Rename, Project, EAC, RazorLame, MS Word, Getright...

I agree, not all tomatos the same, but I do more with my system while MC is playing than most, AND I use an unusual high-end audio card to boot. Now, all I use MC for is strictly an audio db, playlist and broadcast tool for my home based studio facility. No video, no images and very minor tagging duties. Oh, and lately I've been burning data cd's for my car player with it...all with no crashes, and none of the major bugs I've read about (just the usual "this doesn't do this the way it should" kind of stuff.)

I do understand that since MC does so much, it has the potential to be more buggy than a more simplified "target specific" software app, like say Winamp. But I've been amazed at what some people will do with their computers, like stick'em in a cubby hole desk setup, then not understand when it repeatedly shuts down during any process of significance. Or a friend of mine who smokes like a chimney can't even boot into Windows (then when I wiped the thick tar residue off the processor, he seemed to at least understand there might be a problem with that.) Not to mention the wads of cat hair I found in there sucked in through the one missing slot cover. That's all it takes. Or out of date drivers, conflicting drivers, bus-master slots out of sequence, bad or incompatible RAM or RAM settings...I could go on.

I'm not trying to defend JRiver, I don't think they need it, their work stands on it's own, or it doesn't. Whatever...I just have seen the jump to conclusion thing too often when the conclusion is usually misguided.

Anyway, good luck with getting it "right".

WP

[phelt]

UrfTheWog: I think the most productive route might be to post the steps to reproduce bugs that you find. Start a new thread and see if they can be confirmed by other folks and/or the J River team.

[UrfTheWog]

Sounds good - I'll keep track and submit threads accordingly. Thanks

[DocLotus]

Hi  UrfTheWog;

Welcome to the JRiver Media Center forum

This is one great forum supporting a wonderful product.

MC has been stable for me on Win XP for a very long time.

The reason MC has so many "patches" is simply because 9.1 is under development & JRiver is trying a lot of new things to improve the product.  As in any new thing the "bugs" have to be worked out.  That is what we beta testers are for.

Sooner or later you concerns about stability will be addressed.

Could you tell us a little bit about your system  ?

[UrfTheWog]

I recently had a problem with some drivers that I've been able to restore. This had nothing to do with MC9 - think it was a combination of the new Revo drivers and latest ASUS BIOS update.

I just built this somewhat recently:

ASUS P4P800 Deluxe, 2.4GHZ (not overclocked), 512 RAM (with hyperthreading), Radeon 9700 Pro, Omega 3.6 Catalyst drivers, Revo 7.1 using 5.10.00.0031 driver - can't get "Enable Monitoring" via SPDIF function working with any current drivers  , Pixelview XCapture card.

Other notable software; XP Home, Powerstrip, Norton Antivirus 2003, ZoneAlarm

I haven't been using MC9 lately so I can't comment on any new crashes - been too busy doing other stuff. Will be *working it* within the next few months though since I really want to get my HTPC mostly completed by the end of the year.

As I said before, I really think this is a great product - very robust which certainly leads to complexity issues.