HP Working With Apple To Add WMA Support To iPod 840
iPod Afficianado writes to a short piece at Connected Home magazine in which Paul Thurrott "is quoted as saying that HP's blockbuster deal with Apple will have one
exciting side effect. The company will be working with Apple to add support for
Microsoft's superior Windows Media Audio (WMA) format to the iPod by mid-year."
Don't Worry...I'm Asking For It (Score:5, Informative)
1.) 64-bit WMAs do have a little less quality than 128-bit encodings of MP3's. However, because 64 is half the encoding of 128, this is only to be expected. However, unless you're specifically listening to it, you may never notice it.
2.) The WMAs are smaller in file size (even at the same bit encoding). This is nice. Especially if you plan to put the songs on some sort of MP3 player with limited memory.
3.) Yeah. The DRM thing sucks. I totally agree. This is why I chose not to go with WMAs in the end. (I was considiring converting my MP3s over.)
WMAs are not all bad. In fact, they do even have good qualities. But, the DRM overrides any benefit that they may have.
Re:superior (Score:5, Informative)
Re: Not all with DRM (Score:2, Informative)
Consider this: who's seriously supporting AAC right now besides Apple? (crickets chirping). That's right - Apple probably has a special deal with Dolby which allows Apple, and only Apple, to distribute free software (itunes) incorporating the AAC codec.
You know what that is?
PLATFORM LOCK-IN.
Same goes for WMA, Real, etc. The big guys get behind a format and then they get to keep everyone else out unless they pony up.
Say no to proprietary formats. Say no to DRM. It's your music.
Re: Not all with DRM (Score:1, Informative)
Re: Not all with DRM (Score:2, Informative)
You are on the right track (Score:5, Informative)
Then use this [sourceforge.net] to encode to the codec of the week on the fly.
Yeah it takes more space, but gigs are cheaper than time (my time at least).
Re:Superior? (Score:5, Informative)
Ironically, this makes it the ideal format for recompressing files that you decompressed in order to remove their DRM.
Re: Not all with DRM (Score:5, Informative)
Nero encodes to AAC, Real encodes to AAC and plays it, and there are a number of flash players I have read about over the last few weeks that are supporting AAC.
AAC is a NEW MPEG standard and it will take time to get the penetration that WMA and MP3 have, but eventually, it will be everywhere.
but I guess open to you means that LAME will encode it?
well LAME is illegal anyway since you have to technically pay for an MP3 licenses to encoded in that format......
have fun with your Ogg files and your 5 pound portable music player....I mean laptop.
The explanation... (Score:5, Informative)
Paul Thurrott is the news editor for Windows &
from http://www.connectedhomemag.com/Articles/Index.cf
Re:Astroturf? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:DRM? (Score:1, Informative)
Don't be a newspeak victim.
Comment removed (Score:3, Informative)
From iTunes 4.2 on Panther (Score:5, Informative)
.
.
Dutch.lproj
English.lproj
French.lproj
Germa
Italian.lproj
Japanese.lproj
Spanish.lp
da.lproj
fi.lproj
iTunes-aac.icns
iTunes-a
iTunes-aiff.icns
iTunes-audible.icns
i
iTunes-database.icns
iTunes-device
iTunes-eq.icns
iTunes-generic.icns
iTunes
iTunes-movie.icns
iTunes-mp2.icns
iT
iTunes-mpg.icns
iTunes-nvf.icns
i
iTunes-playlist.icns
iTunes-sd2.icns
iTunes-visual.icns
iTunes-wav.ic
iTunes-wma.icns
iTunes.icns
iTunes.rsrc
iTu
ko.lproj
no.lproj
pt.lproj
sv.lp
zh_CN.lproj
zh_TW.lproj
Get a Karma (Score:0, Informative)
Ogg and FLAC support.
For those of us who don't use Windows, all other OS' are supported through an ethernet connection (and they are working on mass storage through USB as well).
Check out www.riovolution.com for more details.
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
Re:ogg playback in iTunes (Score:3, Informative)
Apple has more than enough artists IN HOUSE. They don't hire an artist to make icons for audio formats.
I often joke that there are more graphic designers employeed at Apple than engineers.. and compared to other companies, that probably isn't too far from reality.
"Or the product that was going to burn to CD, but unless the owner finds more money soon the developers will find a new job and the company will be out of buisness."
So, the reason that Apple would put in
Re:Superior? (Score:5, Informative)
But, I disklike it. There are many reasons but the main ones are:
1)inferior quality
2)DRM
3)It's being pushed by a convicted monopoly
Point 1 I can easily justify because WMA at the max supported bitrate is the only codec I could detect 100% is a double blind test, codecs tested were LAME VBR with --alt-preset fast extreme, Ogg Vorbis with Oggdrop's max VBR setting, WMA 8 Max VBR setting, and WAV source. Point two should be self explanatory, but if you must know I dislike the idea that I am renting the music from whomever decides my equipment should be blessed to play their format. As to the third I do as much as I can to fight a company that is out to crush all competition no matter what illegal methods they must employ.
*rolls eyes* (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Superior? (Score:1, Informative)
Thurrott may be a complete Windows fanboy but he does seem to have sources inside Microsoft.
Look at his other articles (Score:5, Informative)
Some highlights:
Lost amid all the hubbub of CES was the start of Macworld Conference & Expo, which opened Tuesday with an unexciting Steve Jobs keynote.
Apple might have to face music of another kind in a class-action lawsuit that will likely be filed this month against the company in California.
Microsoft, the industry's 800-pound gorilla, has just launched an advertising campaign aimed directly at Linux's OSS solution.
Positive MS articles, negative Apple/Linux articles.
Re:Superior? (Score:5, Informative)
As opposed to the proprietary AAC format? The only difference is whether you make your check out to Microsoft or Dolby. If you want a non-proprietary format, there is only one choice: Ogg Vorbis.
Re:Superior? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Superior? (Score:4, Informative)
http://home.wanadoo.nl/~w.speek/compari
WMA doesn't come out on top.
Itunes + sourceforge = ogg (Score:5, Informative)
I use Amadeus II [hairersoft.com]for my music editing.
I can't believe I can listen to the files in I-tunes, thanks slashdotters. I know one good thing that came out of this "news" article.
Re:Superior? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:DRM? (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
That's true, although its worth pointing out that any iPod can play uncompressed AIFF files just fine.
Of course, it kills your battery and you lose most of the skip buffer, but I don't see how that wouldn't be true of an uncompressed file with a WMP wrapper, either.
Re:Superior? (Score:1, Informative)
Think again (Score:2, Informative)
I've thought about that before too, and it sounds nice, but it's not going to happen. There is still a little problem of a different copany called Apple, but this one is a record label. To quote FoxNews: [foxnews.com]
So far Apple has gotten away with iTMS, but I don't thing that becoming a record label (which is basically what you are suggesting), indi or not, would fly any farther than you can toss a yellow submarine.
Computer Games (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
That's exactly the same as WMA: Windows Media Licensing [microsoft.com]. Well, not exactly the same, since WMA licensing costs less.
Re:stupid formats (Score:1, Informative)
This format is not crap and I use it on my mp3 player because it only supports mp3 and wma, and wma sounds better at the same bitrate.
Re:The "superior" quote comes from Paul Thurrott.. (Score:5, Informative)
Hey. Tell him how you really feel! (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Superior? (Score:1, Informative)
Mwahahahaha! And no, I wasn't said AC. I haven't even read that AC's post.
Re:Superior? (Score:0, Informative)
It is highly surprising to me that you were able to detect, and thereby assume inferiority, of a LOSSLESS codect amongst other LOSSLESS codecs.
WMA's highest bit-rate, btw, is lossless. I point this out in case you didn't bother to find that out when you decided to post your lie.
Re: Not all with DRM (Score:4, Informative)
You mean my Rio Karma [digitalnetworksna.com]? You're off a bit on the weight, though; it's 5.5 ounces, i.e. 0.1 ounces less than an iPod with the same disk capacity. That and its list price is about $50 less. Oh, and it can connect via Ethernet, has standard RCA jacks in its docking station so it's connected to my stereo system whenever it's recharging, and has a Java-based connection software so it can talk to any operating system with Java support.
I'll give negative confirmation (Score:1, Informative)
Why do people believe everything they read on the Internet?
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:The "superior" quote comes from Paul Thurrott.. (Score:5, Informative)
How far behind is Mac gaming?
I had to laugh out loud when I saw MacWorld's hilarious "2003 Game Hall of Fame," which reads like a list of PC games past. Which games made the list, you ask? Well, you'll have to think back a bit, because most of them debuted on the PC one to three years before they hit the Mac. Here are the PC release dates for the mainstream games that made the list (even the bizarro choice, Noiz2sa ["most difficult-to-pronounce" game, duh] was out on the PC first, though I couldn't find a release date):
Zoo Tycoon - Released on the PC October 2001
Unreal Tournament 2003 - Released on the PC September 2002
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2003 - Released on the PC July 2002
Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast - Released on the PC March 2002
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Desert Siege - Released on the PC March 2002
Dungeon Siege - Released on the PC April 2002
Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne - Released on the PC July 2003 (the sole simultaneous release)
The Operative: No One Lives Forever - Released on the PC November 2000
On the PC, we're playing newer versions of these games now (I actually have both Tiger Woods 2004 and Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, for example). But the funniest part of this roundup, of course, is the section titled 'Best Place to Get Classic Games." Clearly, that would be the Mac. But serious game players have know this for some time, so it's not a huge surprise. I just think it's interesting to see it so clearly demonstrated.
posted 1/4/2004 10:55:32 PM
and
More egregiously, Apple still locks its customers into their proprietary music store and crappy AAC format.
(I wondered about this -- isn't WMA proprietary, and AAC open-speced as part of MPEG 4, or am I confused?)
Re:Superior? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:DRM? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:What is wrong with having more optional feature (Score:5, Informative)
You don't HAVE to include DRM in the files you encode. It is an option that can be turned on or off in Windows Media Player.
Re:DRM? (Score:5, Informative)
It is iPod getting WMA support, as others already stated.
But beyond that, I thought this was discussed several times already in response to previous related stories. First of all, iPods fully support MP3 format, so MP3 is in no way "out" and WMA "in." That's pure nonsense. Second, you can add encryption and DRM to any compression method with relatively same level of effort. There is nothing inherent in AAC or WMA that they "support" DRM and Vorbis and MP3 don't. Any of those streams can be encrypted and wrapped around with their respective containers. No DRM for Vorbis? Bullshit! A simple googling would show you otherwise [sidespace.com].
So, moderators, stop moderating this trolling as insightful. If you don't know what you are moderating, then either go find out, or move on to the next post.
Re:Superior CRM? (Score:3, Informative)
I used to wonder why Microsoft games used the wav format when something else would be more efficient, and now I now. The good news is that ffmpeg can convert it into something usable.
Zen (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Zen (Score:5, Informative)
Because iPod works as a USB or Firewire hard disk. Zen doesn't. To store files on Zen, you have to go through their special software.
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
The monopoly is legal (hence the reason it still exisits).
Re:The "superior" quote comes from Paul Thurrott.. (Score:1, Informative)
2. AAC isn't their format, and it isn't crappy. AAC is MP4 - Fairplay is a third party DRM tech that Apple licensed. But this guy Thurrott is so obviously an astroturfer I don't know why anyone is bother to post his stuff.
Re:DRM? (Score:3, Informative)
The law doesn't agree with you, neither do the courts.
(Copyright doesn't allow you to control how a work is used, only how it is copied.)
They weren't "convicted" of being a monopoly (Score:1, Informative)
Monopoly's aren't illegal. Using the influence that monopoly grants you in certain ways get's you in trouble. In fact, it's doing certain things that would be perfectly legal for you to do, if you weren't a monopoly.
Re:Superior? (Score:2, Informative)
Normal - 48 to 192
Variable - 40-75 to 240-355
Lossless - 470-940
As for the DRM, there is a checkbox which states clearly, "Copy Protect Music". You uncheck it and the DRM is gone from any future encodings. And just for the record, AAC also has DRM in it, so it's not like Apple is going from an open music codec to a DRM music codec just by adding another codec to their lineup.
I'm no fan of WMP, and in fact I'm currently using OGG right now, but attempting to prove your point using an outdated version isn't helping your point across.
Re:Superior? (Score:2, Informative)
I know. I work for one.
The Best of Paul Thurrott (Score:1, Informative)
Here are just a few iTunes/iTMS/iPod-related picks from Paul Thurrott's blog over past half year:
July 22, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"So BuyMusic.com is live. Like the excellent iTunes Music Store, it offers digital singles and album for download. The layout of the site is, perhaps, overly similar to iTunes. The similarities end there. BMC offers more songs (300K vs. 200K), better sound (WMA 9 vs. AAC), better prices (singles start at 79 cents vs. 99 cents), much better PC compatibility (it reaches the 97 percent of the world using Windows, not the ~1 percent using OS X), and better device compatibility (slew of devices vs. just a few on iTMS). The much ballyhooed problem with BMC--various DRM-related "limitations"--are not a problem: Most songs have unlimited sharing capabilities, or very reasonable limits (i.e. a limit of 10 CD burns. Oooohhhh.). In other words, iTMS, excellent though it is, is now officially toast. Apple should have supported Windows from Day One. Now, it's too late."
July 23, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"one of the best features of iTunes (and I've now downloaded 157 songs from the service) is that Apple lets you copy songs to up to three Macs"
July 24, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"I have a 5 GB iPod [...] the reason is that Apple refuses to add (the free) support for Windows Media Audio (WMA) 9 format, probably because it's afraid users would notice the quality difference if they had AAC, MP3, and WMA all running on the same player."
July 28, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"it's clear that Buymusic.com is going to stomp all over the iTunes Music Store. WMA is the right technology, Windows is the right platform, and Buymusic.com supports a much wider range of PCs and devices than does Apple."
August 03, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"Anyone want to take bets on when Buymusic.com surpasses iTunes' sales? I'm guessing it happens before Apple releases the Windows version of iTunes."
December 09, 2003 [internet-nexus.com]:
"iTunes sales dropping significantly as holidays near [...] a cursory examination of Apple's publicly-revealed sales figures and the dates of those announcements reveals that iTunes sales are actually falling through the floor."
January 03, 2004 [internet-nexus.com]:
As the owner of both a 1st generation (5 GB) iPod and a 2nd generation (30 GB, dock-based) iPod...I purchased over 200 songs from the iTunes Music Store. Bravo."
---
So keep on spreading the FUD, Paul.
I'll be watching you, asshole!
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
The bold is mine. WM9 is more then a media player. It is an unreversable OS patch. Consider yourself OWNED. I'll stick with plain old MP3 for my encoding.
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...isn't AAC a lossless compression format? (Score:2, Informative)
No. Far from it. [telos-systems.com]
Claims to be about 30% better than MP3 at 128k. That's nowhere near lossless (and the algorithm does not intend to be either).
Re:Superior? (Score:3, Informative)
Go ahead. Try it. Buy a track from buymusic.com and then copy the file to another computer which has QCD installed. Play the track. Heck, re-encode into MP3, WAV, OGG, whatever. All without QCD (and the Windowd Media SDK) ever asking anyone for a license.