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Foobar2000

foobar2000.org

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Re: Foobar2000

#151

Post by RunSet »

orthoxerox wrote: post #146
RunSet wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I thought "I doubt it is faster than FastStone" but when I went looking for benchmarks all I could find was this forum post from 2011. https://www.donationcoder.com/forum/index.php?topic=25334.0 Which does confirm that Faststone is faster but much water has passed under the bridge since 2011.

That's an interesting benchmark, but I am more interested in a cold start test on a much smaller file (think 2MP, not 1200MP), because that's my usual use case.

I agree. That is another problem with the benchmark- it gives the gold medal to ACDsee, which in my experience has the longest cold start of the three.

Re: Foobar2000

#152

Post by RunSet »

dailykoder wrote: post #21
calvinmorrison wrote: post #5

DeaDBeeF is a clone for Linux.

I do like deadbeef. It's a nice player, but what I absolutely hate about it is that ctrl-w closes the current playlist (well, that's the hotkey I close my tabs with, too, so that's fine), but you cannot restore that (or am I missing some feature?). And I am a lazy guy that doesn't save his playlist regularly. Is there some feature to make it ask me if I want to close a playlist or just disable that hotkey? I sometime…

You might like Audacious[0].

It loads the previously-open playlist by default, which I find a little annoying but apparently is your preference. Audacious has the bare-bones GUI of foobar2000 / deadbeef and also a plug-in architecture.

https://audacious-media-player.org/

Re: Foobar2000

#153

Post by skydhash »

iotku wrote: post #125
zokier wrote: post #79

There is certainly something intangibly attractive on this era and style of software. On top of my head I'm thinking fb2k, mpc (and its forks), virtualdub, utorrent (the original 1.x series), irfanview, kerio firewall (classic 2.x series), putty, even maybe mirc and notepad++ to some degree. Small programs, classic Windows style controls, emphasis on staying out of your way, somewhat minimalistic and barebones but st…

I feel like (with no research) these interfaces were designed by programmers first and foremost and have a tight coupling to the actual underlying code. A "well designed" interface with "good" UI/UX from a proper designer may have best practices, but additional layers of abstraction from the functionality which makes everything feel less direct.

I think (with no research) that people were more respectful of HCI guides. And even skeuomorphic is hard to do well, it’s more grounded in terms of UX. Buttons were actually buttons and icons were more understandable. Now, design is an abstract art challenge.

Re: Foobar2000

#154

Post by skydhash »

athoscouto wrote: post #3

Wow, that brings back memories! foobar2000 was my go to player. I used to spend hours curating all my folders with albums and playlists. Funny how fast I switched to a streaming platform when they became widely available around here.

Streaming is convenient but their interface is not the greatest for curation and focus listening. Especially with their “lots of whitespace” design. There’s a reason we have list and tables in managers like itunes, calibre and file explorers. I tried adding my favorite albums to Apple Music and it quickly became untenable. Spotify is also awful for that. I have ~500 albums in my main library and various series and collection and it’s a breeze to manage, browse and listen with MPD, MOC, beets, Kid3 and the file explorer.

Re: Foobar2000

#155

Post by philistine »

zokier wrote: post #79

There is certainly something intangibly attractive on this era and style of software. On top of my head I'm thinking fb2k, mpc (and its forks), virtualdub, utorrent (the original 1.x series), irfanview, kerio firewall (classic 2.x series), putty, even maybe mirc and notepad++ to some degree. Small programs, classic Windows style controls, emphasis on staying out of your way, somewhat minimalistic and barebones but st…

Seeing this from the outside, I can't shake the idea that Microsoft's complete fumbling of offerings for UI development is to blame. There are so many new paradigms in user interface on Windows that led nowhere, are completely inadequate for modern development, and yet are still supported by Microsoft. The company has lost the plot, and we're left with Microsoft even devolving into web apps for the desktop, with the success story of VS Code leading the charge.

If Microsoft could find one good path forward for UI development on Windows, we'd want those small boutique apps to get with the times.

Re: Foobar2000

#156

Post by zecg »

orthoxerox wrote: post #117
a0123 wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A remnant of simpler times. Foobar and VLC, any other software that has always worked and remained pretty much the same?

IrfanView. I tried replacing it several times with something slicker-looking, but no other picture viewer is as fast as IrfanView.

The batch editing is also handy

Re: Foobar2000

#157

Post by skydhash »

lproven wrote: post #129
athoscouto wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I haven't consumed audio and video from files for a while now. Streaming has become so convenient (partly because of internet prices and availability) that I don't see myself coming back.

I hear this a lot. I find it always leaves me bemused. The main time I want music is at times when I can't stream: for instance, when travelling, especially when on planes. I specifically want my own music for when I don't have internet. When I do have internet, I mostly listen to digital radio. I have no streaming accounts with anyone, except free accounts. I do not have any payment method set up on my Apple account…

It can be great for checking out stuff, like a membership to some club or a library. As soon as I find something I like, I need it to be locally so I can listen without tracking and possible interference by third-parties. And browsing a curated collection is calmer than searching in those apps.

Re: Foobar2000

#158

Post by skydhash »

tryauuum wrote: post #28

It's kind of strange I have never seen any other player where you can just click on a folder and play music from it. Like two clicks, one on a folder (which loads the list of tracks) and second to start playing this list of course it's doable in any player but not with such ease

On MacOS, I used IINA for that. You drag a folder and it plays it, switching by default to Music Mode if it’s audio files..

Re: Foobar2000

#159

Post by mostlysimilar »

DidYaWipe wrote: post #142
imiric wrote: post #26

It's great to see that fb2k is still around and well :) It's remarkable how they've kept the same UI since its inception, 21 years ago. It was clean, simple and intuitive back then, and still is today. Same goes for the website, now that I think of it. A true testament that simplicity trumps trend-chasing. It was my main music player after Winamp released the awful version 3.0, and I never looked back. I don't use Wi…

Foobar2000 was always better than WinAmp. WinAmp was the best example of why standard UI affordances evolved.

Disagree. Winamp skins are the highlight of a better era of computer interfaces.

Re: Foobar2000

#160

Post by lproven »

skydhash wrote: post #157
lproven wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hear this a lot. I find it always leaves me bemused. The main time I want music is at times when I can't stream: for instance, when travelling, especially when on planes. I specifically want my own music for when I don't have internet. When I do have internet, I mostly listen to digital radio. I have no streaming accounts with anyone, except free accounts. I do not have any payment method set up on my Apple account…

It can be great for checking out stuff, like a membership to some club or a library. As soon as I find something I like, I need it to be locally so I can listen without tracking and possible interference by third-parties. And browsing a curated collection is calmer than searching in those apps.

Sure, but a free Spotify or Youtube account lets me do that no problem. No need to pay for anything, no need for Apple Music or whatever.
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