oneof.us

So I updated my Zune software today (along with my Zune player software) and I have a few gripes and props.

Gripe: Ratings? WTF? Instead of having a star rating of 0-5stars, you get 3 rating options… Empty Heart (not rated), Full Heart (I like it), or Broken Heart (I hate it). So, all the ratings you had for your library music in the past, no longer work. All previous ratings have been thrown out the window… Awesome. [update] I’m not sure how it’s doing it now, but, basically, it seems like if you rated a song previously, under the star-system, it gets a full heart now… And why would the song be in your collection if you hated it?

Gripe: No dynamic-playlists. I just (like, 3-4 days ago) realized that Zune 1.0 software had this feature and it was akin to iPods dynamic playlist creator. You could create playlists based on all sorts of pre-defined items, such as last time played, rating, most played, least played, date it was added to your library, etc… Now, with Zune 2.0, that’s gone. No dynamic playlists! Grrrrrrrr

Gripe: Wireless syncing craziness. For whatever reason, it’s not working for me… Lame!

Prop: Podcasts, finally!

Prop: I’m not sure if this was a feature in Zune 1.0, but, you can copy your music from your Zune back to your computer. I know this was never an option through iTunes (had to use alternate means), and again, not sure if this was an option in Zune 1.0… Either way, I like it.

Prop: Zune Device interface. Even though a lot of it remains the same, I like the changes that were made, though only cosmetic in nature.

Prop: Zune software interface. I was gonna gripe about it, because it was just too weird. But, here I am, 5mins later, and I’m starting to like the fluidity and style of it. And my gripe would not about the crazy pinkiness, I’m a man who has no problems with pink, it was the rest of it that was weird getting used to.

When I read the other day that Microsoft will be releasing the .NET source code under a so-called “Review License”, I was more than a little pleased.  Having a chance to step into code under all the namespaces of the framework seems so beneficial and as a tinkerer, I love to see how things work on the inside.

Well, Joe Wilcox over at Microsoft Watch sees this as a way for Microsoft to sue more open-source developers by claiming that their code uses the same concepts, etc as the .NET code.  I whole-heartedly don’t agree.

Microsoft isn’t in a position to wipe open-source developers off the face of the earth as some would have you believe–this is further spreading of FUD and honestly, it’s getting old.  It’s so easy for every Bob, Dick, and Jane to “hate the establishment” and be anti-Microsoft because it’s trendy.  Now I’m no Microsoft fanboy, in fact, I loathe all fanboys because they don’t know the meaning behind the words moderation/fairness/opinion/etc.  Over-the-top support for some cause, while at the same time being ignorant/intolerant of the opposing view is just plain stupid.  But that is how our society is built–extreme competition.

There is a time and a place for competition, but there has to be limits; like when you become a douche-bag about it, that’s the limit.

So, stop being douche-bags you fanboys (not speaking to Joe Wilcox, talking to all fanboys, just to be clear), and have an open-mind from time to time.

Microsoft is embedding itself in future Ford vehicles and calling this tech, "Sync". What Sync does is enable drivers to integrate their bluetooth phone, and media players (iPods, Zunes, etc) with their car through standard interface.

The interesting thing that Autoblog points out, is that there is no Microsoft branding on any of the menus or screens–a change of pace from typical Microsoft products. Not that it’s a huge deal, it’s just different, and I suppose worth noting.

Also, the system allows for speech recognition. As the video below demonstrates, you can tell Sync the artist, song, album, or playlist to play, and it will jump right to it.  No need to fumble through other menus, or look down at your mp3 player, etc… Nice!

Anyway, check out the rest of the article here, and take a gander at the video below.  I’d hope that this tech would be incorporated into other vehicles/manufacturers, but you can almost be sure that if it becomes popular, it will be come exclusive to Ford–’cause they need the financial bump right about now.