Winamp News

[Sabine Klare]

The last 3 posts before my current post are so good, especially Yours, Aminifu. Since November / December 2013 I am adding another phrase to my broadcast-topics, if I broadcast live on Mixlr: Music forever!!!... ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♥♥♥♥♥ ★★★★★

For me myself the 22nd July 2014 will become the 4th anniversary, although I had discovered the beautiful Winamp-Milkdrop-Videos by many other YouTube-User already between 2008 and 2009. But Winamp became my life companion, my true friend, and I want, that Winamp will live much longer than me, forever. If no tragedy will happen, then I myself will stay, until I am an old grandma...

[KMNS]

Winamp is some of the best Media players out of the market. Maybe now mostly i am using Audacious (due I am using linux, great winamp alternative) and foobar2000 still like the Winamp player.

[PPNSteve]

also a long time Winamp user since before the AOl days and am glad that my player of choice, Winamp, will live on.

I just hope (and request) that it keeps the same simpleness and ease of use, performance, plugin-ability, and so on as it has now.

now if the new Winamp crew can just get rid of those over-priced and inefficient encoders (mp3 and aac for example) recently added and go back to the better, free ones, I'll be 100% happy again.

Keep that Llama's ass whipped!

[DrO]

MP3 and AAC encoding is not free, sure there's certain levels which prevent having to necessarily pay it (assuming that the program has declared it's usage of such aspects), but Winamp is too well known and so has to cover such costs somehow (irrespective of the library being used e.g. MP3 encoding is done using LAME which the code is free, but that is not the same as encoding licensing). and the FhG AAC encoder was viewed as one of the better ones when it was last publically tested (should be easy enough to find that article).

[Higheststorm]

As you all surely know by now, Winamp & SHOUTcast have recently changed ownership.

The winamp.com website is currently undergoing heavy work and an almost-completely new redesign.
As a result, many features will be unavailable, including some in-client services.

The Winamp downloads and Winamp Pro purchases will also be temporarily unavailable
whilst code licensed to/by the previous owner is removed/replaced.

We hope to have everything restored and back in working order as soon as possible,
and we apologize for any inconvenience caused in the meantime.

Watch this thread for any further updates.

Any word yet on when winamp will be re-available for download? And if i had Winamp pro before, will my password be changed?

[DrO]

there isn't any eta on when a new desktop client will be available as lot of things still need to be sorted out (and as needed re-implemented post AOL specific removal) and there needs to be something to make it worth the update...

[Juanus]

I was reading something and (I am sure that you already know this) but It looks like Gracenote launched Gracenote Open Developer Program.

http://www.gracenote.com/company/faq/developer/

http://www.gracenote.com/press/02/15/2013/

Although I don't know if Winamp can be considered a "non-commercial developer". But. I hope that this helps Winamp keep Gracenote as it's look up database and maybe even add some of the other features gracenote offers.

[DrO]

i think it's safe enough to say Gracenote usage will not be kept as Winamp is not applicable to those terms.

[Juanus]

i think it's safe enough to say Gracenote usage will not be kept.

That's not what I wanted to hear. So far it's the best tagging service out there. That means that the "view tracks similar to.." function is going away also! awww man!

[DrO]

there are other services (unless you and others want to stump up for the ridiculous amount of money that is wanted by them) which are more reasonable and can provide the same means of the previous functionality (and not be as buggy as Gracenote has been - as it's the biggest cause of crashes in v5.66x and beforehand and a large reason for people uninstalling Winamp permanently).

it was always going to be expected that some things will and have to change and everything which can be done to maintain existing behaviour (even if the provider has to change) will be done. hence why a new Winamp desktop client release is going to take a while.

[Juanus]

there are other services (unless you and others want to stump up for the ridiculous amount of money that is wanted by them) which are more reasonable and can provide the same means of the previous functionality (and not be as buggy as Gracenote has been - as it's the biggest cause of crashes in v5.66x and beforehand and a large reason for people uninstalling Winamp permanently).

it was always going to be expected that some things will and have to change and everything which can be done to maintain existing behaviour (even if the provider has to change) will be done. hence why a new Winamp desktop client release is going to take a while.

onward and upward. I am looking forward to the future.

[DJ-SirDuke]

Maybe you should have left SHOUTcast the way it was instead of messing it up? I don't know why everything has to be redesigned & messed up all the time. My Father-in-law had a real good policy, if it works, DON'T try to fix it, You'll break it.

[DJ Egg]

Maybe you should have left SHOUTcast the way it was instead of messing it up? I don't know why everything has to be redesigned & messed up all the time. My Father-in-law had a real good policy, if it works, DON'T try to fix it, You'll break it.

If only it was that simple...

We couldn't leave it the way it was, because the previous owner owned all the content and didn't include the design/ui in the package.

We are currently redesigning the site and rewriting the in-client services etc. from scratch, because there's no alternative (other than there being nothing there at all). The content that's up at the moment is just a temporary solution until the new design is ready.

[ChiggyChiggy]

If only it was that simple...

We couldn't leave it the way it was, because the previous owner owned all the content and didn't include the design/ui in the package.

We are currently redesigning the site and rewriting the in-client services etc. from scratch, because there's no alternative (other than there being nothing there at all). The content that's up at the moment is just a temporary solution until the redesign is ready.

A suggestion for the eventual new SHOUTcast is to make it work more like Spotify. (If not outright copying the way Spotify works)

The way Winamp and SHOUTast work currently, are tbh a way of old to say the least... (like opening a SHOUTcast stream requires a playlist file be downloaded... why not have a protocol?)
SHOUTcast was there before Spotify was ever even born but its been all but forgotten in the sands of time.. Its only users are users that know it from its glory days of the early 2000's and whatever word of mouth said users can pass along.

To be relevant once more SHOUTcast needs to adapt.. Things have changed so much as far as streaming media goes since it was born with the likes of SHOUTcast in the 90's, but while the world moved on; SHOUTcast (and by association too Winamp) have stagnated so hard.. SHOUTcast used to MEAN streaming media once.

Its gone to the point that mentioning Winamp's name to the current internet generation evokes laughter due the assumption anyone that uses it is into "retro" stuff.. (and i cat blame them on that)

I honestly hope the legacy AOL left on Winamp will be shed and the Llama will kick ass once more, things like Winamp dont just die, they evolve, and judging by the work thats been done on the new (temporary?) homepage.. then things seems to be going for the better (appealing website = instant consumer attraction)

Someday... just someday... Winamp might go back to being the thing youll always find on someone's PC, Android, and whatever other handheld device is worthy of the Llamas attention. Or at the very least just dethrone the cancer otherwise known as iTunes.

[Aminifu]

A suggestion for the eventual new SHOUTcast is to make it work more like Spotify. (If not outright copying the way Spotify works)

Why should SHOUTcast look to become a Spotify clone? They do different things. The Moodagent service is closer to what Spotify does.

Winamp has been around for a long time. Those who laugh should have more respect and simply not use it, if it doesn't fit their needs. Winamp's core functions do what they do better than anything else. If you youngsters can't get with that, there are other apps to do what you're looking for.

There are ways to add features (like what Spotify provides), for those who want them, thru plug-ins and/or online services. Attempts to evolve and add new things to the core app itself, in order to appeal to the younger generations, has historically been met with protest. People refusing to upgrade and calling the new versions bloated.

The current generation has been spoiled by the 'out-of-the-box' experience of the next new thing, imo. They have forgotten how, never learned, or won't take the time, to examine available options that could have apps like Winamp provide much of the same functions. That said, Winamp does have what some would call an intimidating number of options.

No software program is perfect and Winamp could be improved. But, I would rather have Winamp 'shore up' it's core functions and add unique new features, than try to copy what is already available.