Please take a moment and take a good look at CoverSutra and Cover Stream, two full-blown, all-out iTunes controllers.

CoverSutra 2.1.2: Integrates a customizable album artwork display, a floating control window, a pop-up notification system for song/album changes, and a spotlight-esque search bar into one application.

Cover Stream 2.0: A CoverFlow browsing window makes it easy to find what you want to listen to. Has a quick search feature, a resizable album art display, and a notification pop-up for song changes.

You Can’t Judge an App by It’s Cover

On an initial superficial glance, these two iTunes controllers may look like long lost brothers, seperated at coding:

They both use HUDs¹, they both display album artwork on your desktop… even the preferences icons have similarities if you look close enough.

There’s a good explanation for this: CoverSutra and Cover Stream were primarily designed by the same person: Laurent Baumann, an undeniably talented graphic designer from France.

There’s a good story to this, really there is. Something we don’t often hear in Mac software articles is the story. How was this software created? Everything has a story. It’s only on rare occasions that someone asks just what it us.

The characters in this story are Cover Stream developer Fabian Kowalski and CoverSutra developer Sophia Teutschler, as well as Laurent Baumann. I contacted each of them for their insights, and, of course, for their story.

(In fact, my contact with Laurent inspired his personal blog post on this subject, which is very similar to what he corresponded to me. I will link to it later².)

An iTunes Controller Story

Back in the year 2004, long before either CoverSutra or Cover Stream existed in the flesh, Laurent Baumann was using the iTunes controller X-Tunes, which he was “a huge fan of”. “It was the first application to sport a ‘floater’³ with controls”, he remembers, “I had to remember a single hot-key to be able to be able to control every playback aspect.”

In 2005 Laurent started releasing icon sets and gained credibility in the design community. He says: “I felt the need to mockup ‘my dream controller’ (which I called AIR, standing for An iTunes Remote).”

Laurent describes himself as “a music lover and a big fan of artworks” so his dream application naturally “sported a black translucent controller, and the artwork of the song.”

“In October 2006”, he continues, “I took part in the beta testing of a new application called Coversutra. Unfortunately, Sophia [the developer] told us after two betas that she was dropping the development (mainly due to the arrival of iTunes 7, which intensively used artworks through CoverFlow and the new group list view)”.

Laurent pownced on the occasion to have someone actually develop his dream application, the one he had in his head from the get-go, and contacted Sophia with an updated mockup.

Apparently, she was impressed. In the coming months Laurent worked with Sophia until they released CoverSutra 1.0. “We kept working together, and while I was using it extensively, I really felt the need to be able to browse, or at least search for songs”, he says. So Laurent created a mockup that would eventually be lead to CoverSutra’s current search functionality.

In October of 2007, Laurent decided to quit working on CoverSutra. “I decided to quit working on CoverSutra because of unfortunate troubles me and Sophia were having”, he explains. “I couldn’t bear to use the application anymore, so I decided to sample other controllers. I installed and activated Synergy once more, the best alternative, in conjunction with SimpleScrobbler.”

Two months later, Laurent discovered Cover Stream 1.0. He enthusiastically describes his find this way, “It was like: Oh my goodness! Someone actually found a great solution to integrate my dream browser in a floater!”

According to Fabian Kowalski, Cover Stream started out as a personal project. And in his case necessity was the mother of invention. “It’s true there are a hundred different iTunes controllers out there”, he admits. “They all let you play, pause and skip music, some even let you search your music library for a particular song. The problem I had with all of them was that none of these controllers could be used to browse my music library, just search it.”

For this reason, Fabian found himself constantly listening to the same music over and over again, because it was the only music he could think to search for. “What I wanted wasn’t just a controller, but a controller and a search tool combined with a full-fledged browser, something that could replace iTunes altogether.”

He continues, “I always loved the original Cover Flow application by SteelSkies, but wasn’t very happy with the way Apple implemented it in iTunes.” Fabian describes Cover Flow in iTunes as ‘jerky’ and ‘sluggish’ and, for that reason, he says, he never really used it. “So I went looking for a way to extend Cover Flow to the desktop, and eventually came up with a working solution. I thought it was pretty cool and decided to make it public.”

Fabian is clearly still surprised with the response he received from the release Cover Stream 1.0. “The response I got was really quite overwhelming, despite the app’s rather simple user interface. I’m no graphic designer for sure, and didn’t even try to be when cobbling together the GUI over a cup of coffee.”

“Quite frankly”, he says, “all I wanted with the first release was to demonstrate the possibilities.”

Apparently, he did. After all, it caught Laurent Baumann’s eye.

Laurent realizes that Cover Stream 1.0 was not perfect: “Unfortunately, the application was lacking certain features, like desktop artwork, last.FM support, etc.” Nonetheless, Laurent kept an eye on Cover Stream. And finally, with the release of version 1.4 he decided to step in and offer Fabian a partnership.

“[Laurent] was still keen to finish what he started: making the best looking iTunes controller out there”, Fabian notes. “He had some really great ideas and so we decided to work together. We spent a month or two rethinking and redesigning my original project, exchanging ideas, me coding and he doing the graphics, and there you go: Cover Stream 2.0.”

The Difference

Now that we know the story, I’ll ask: What’s the real difference between these applications?

For one, the developer’s philosophies.

CoverSutra’s user interface looks great. There’s no doubt about that. It’s a wonderfully designed piece of software. One nifty thing it does is allow you change the look of your desktop album artwork to look like a Vinyl, a CD case, and a Jewel Case.

But how Fabian and Laurent approached this shows another philosophy. Laurent says, “We wanted to stick with ‘What Would Steve Jobs Do’ (WWSJD - an internal joke now).  For example, Apple doesn’t use Jewel-cases; in iTunes, Front Row or Apple TV, not even in the iTunes Store! I honestly thought, if Apple would have created an iTunes Controller, they would have used Cover Flow for browsing (Fabian also implemented an awesome search-as-you-type filter) and a Front-Row-like desktop artwork.”

“…We really want to stick with the Apple philosophy and style”, Laurent says, “this is what differentiates Cover Stream from CoverSutra”.

When asked what the main differences are between Cover Stream and CoverSutra, Sophia Teutschler, CoverSutra’s developer, added: “[Cover Stream] might be good for people who don’t want to see iTunes at all, where CoverSutra is an extension to iTunes by offering several aid ins that iTunes is lacking.”

I think that’s it in a nutshell.

Fabian Kowalski finally adds, “What I find most satisfactory about this release [Cover Stream 2.0] is that it is just the app I originally wanted. As a developer you usually make the app someone else wants. But this one I just did for me, and I guess that is what ultimately makes it appealing to others as well. It’s made with love, and I think it shows.”

Laurent Baumann has his final words too: “I definitely see Cover Stream as the genuine child of [the original] CoverFlow”, he says, “and I’m happy to have finally found and participate in, the development of my dream controller…”

Nicely put, Laurent.

Both CoverSutra 2.1.2 and Cover Stream 2.0 are €14.95 (roughly $23). You can get CoverSutra at Sophiestication and Cover Stream at its dedicated webpage.

Footnotes:

¹ A HUD (or heads-up-display) is simply a floating back translucent window often seen in Mac applications (e.g. iPhoto’s Image Correction panel)

² Laurent Baumann’s (strikingly-similar-to-what-he-corresponded-to-me) blog post: http://lbaumann.com/index.php?id=483050c1cc951

³ A ‘floater’ is a window or control that is there when you need it rather than being a normal application window, at least I think it is…

Many of us have to wake up far earlier than we would like, and Embraceware’s Awaken lets us do it in style. The interface is very polished, with interface transparency and iTunes-like buttons. The dock icon is a very cute aqua-ised alarm clock complete with bells on top. A large digital display (with the date underneath) reminds you of the time in a not-so-subtle way. A drawer below shows all the alarms you have set up at a glance. Of course, the main feature is that you can choose an alarm from your itunes music.

A Plethora of Options

With Awaken your experience can be customized endlessly. If you like your sleep and want to drift gradually into reality, set the awaken to fade in system volume gradually with the screen brightness after waking from sleep, playing a calming playlist in iTunes. If nothing short of bedlam in your bedroom will wake you up, set the system volume and iTunes volume to the max in preferences; then place your (laptop) Mac on the other side of the room and use your Apple remote to control it. If for some reason iTunes crashes or the music is unavailable, a selection of several short, but still jarring sounds get you out of bed-choose from ‘cuckoo clock’, ’sci-fi alarm’, or ‘buzzer (loud)’ among others.

Power Features

If you are too lazy (or busy) to open your RSS reader, email, or browser when you wake up, Awaken will do it for you. If you’re working on an important article or other file, these can be opened too. You can set a handy reminder note to show when the alarm starts (e.g. sync iPod, make hazelnut-with-an-extra-shot-cappuccino). If you find that music isn’t really right for you, add any custom sounds you like through a preference pane or choose from your podcasts instead. For a hidden-away look, Awaken can open at login as a menubar app, and alarms can trigger through this.

While I actually got my copy of Awaken as part of the MacHeist 2 bundle, the asking price of $12.95 isn’t bad, and you can take advantage of a fully-functional 2 week trial if you don’t feel like shelling out that much for an alarm clock.

The Bose SoundDock Portable is the original Bose SoundDock on steroids. It’s odd because the SoundDock Portable really isn’t portable at all. Its both heavier and taller than its predecessor, and its a pain to tote around. Aside from the grip handle, swiveling dock, and rechargeable battery, it really isn’t portable at all. Don’t get me wrong, It just seems more deserving of the name SoundDock II. But honestly, this is the greatest iPod speaker system I’ve ever owned, and the sound doesn’t disappoint.

Portable?

Not really - the Portability aspect of the SoundDock Portable simply doesn’t shine. Sure the handle, swiveling dock, and battery are nice, but it just doesn’t make any sense why it’s taller and heavier than the original SoundDock. I would only bring this product with me for the sound it produces. The sound is by far the absolute best I’ve yet experienced with any set of portable iPod speakers.

Control Me

The remote is of much better quality compared to its predecessor. It’s covered in soft rubber which makes it great to both hold and use. A playlist button has been added so you can skip between them, and change songs within the playlist. As I love playlists, I thoroughly enjoy this feature. There’s also your typical volume up and down keys, along with the skip track buttons and power switch. The remote gets great reception so I’ve never had to hit a button more than once - a lack of frustration is always a good thing.

Sound

This sound system never fails to blow me away every time I turn it on. Providing absolutely stunning sound for a portable player. Compared to the original SoundDock, the sound is much more crisp and clean. The base is much more defined, and there’s no annoying squeal like the older SoundDock.

Odds & Ends

The auxiliary input is key. Being that the older SoundDock didn’t feature an AUX input, I’m stoked to see one on the newer model.

The battery life is exceptional. I get about 3 hours at full volume, but Bose claims you can squeeze “much more” life at a lower volume. This is phenomenal for a product of this class.

As portable as it claims to be, the power supply is obnoxious. It’s about half the size of the Xbox 360 brick and is just about the size of a Cinema Display adapter. However for a portable product there shouldn’t be a power supply to carry around.

The Verdict

I truly love this product. From its design, to its added battery, it all adds up. It makes a great replacement to the original SoundDock, and its sure to last at least a few years. Compared to the iPod Hi-Fi it replaces, it packs the same sound, in a much smaller package. But one thing is for sure: It’s definitely not portable. The SoundDock 2 would be a much more suited label for the system.

When it comes to media libraries, iTunes is undoubtedly one of the most popular applications on both Windows and Mac OS X with hundreds of millions of copies in the wild. I tend to be very obsessive compulsive with my iTunes library. Everything must have its place and be organized perfectly. Album art on every album - and if the album art can’t be found on the Internet, I scan it in manually. 

One of the advanced iTunes features that I didn’t begin using until recently are Smart Playlists. While I occasionally played with the default “Top Rated” and “Most Played” playlists, I didn’t really use the feature to the max. Over the past couple weeks, I’ve begun to discover the true power of Smart Playlists in iTunes, and how they can help you get the most out of your music.

All songs:

One of my pet peeves with iTunes is the way it handles music. The so-called “Music” tab is mixed with PDF documents and Music Videos. When you create a smart playlist, it includes songs, podcasts, movies, and anything else in iTunes. The best way to get around this is to create an “All Songs” playlist. This will automatically exclude podcasts, movies, PDF documents, and other non-music files. This playlist will become the foundation for other music-only smart playlists.

Forgotten Lovers:

This is one of my favourite new playlists, and one that I find myself spending a lot of time in. When you have a large music collection it’s easy to lose track of one of your favourite songs and forget about them. “Forgotten Lovers” scans through your iTunes library for songs that are three to five stars that haven’t been listened to for over 2 weeks. As you can see, to avoid this playlist from including podcasts and movies, we only have it gathering songs from our filtered “All songs” playlist.

Rate Me:

Having thousands of songs in my iTunes library makes it hard to go through and rate every single one. However, I try to rate as many as I can. This playlist makes it easy to do so. It gathers all the unrated songs in your library that have been played more than three times, and skipped less than three times. Usually this means that I like the song, but haven’t yet rated it.

Once you have the All Songs playlist set up, iTunes makes it simple to create powerful playlists that you can use on a daily basis. The sheer amount of metadata that iTunes stores is mind-boggling, down to the precise number of times a song has been skipped. Smart playlists in iTunes help people with large music collections rediscover their music all over again. 

Although they’ve been in public knowledge since CES 2008 in January, the first I heard of Monster’s latest audio product “Beats” with the backing of superstar Rap producer Dr Dre was just yesterday.

Retailing for $399, they’re supposedly tuned by the former N.W.A. member and Death Row founder himself (along with a little help from ‘Head Monster’ Noel Lee), and boast “rich, deep bass” which promises to keep your head ringin’

The black headphones come complete with a beautifully designed carrying case with anti-microbial cleaning cloths, a special Monster headphone cable, a mini-stereo to ¼-inch stereo cable adapter, as well as Monster’s iSonitalk, a microphone/headphone adapter for iPhones.

“When I’m making a track I’m trying to capture the sound that makes me go ‘now that’s the shit! And I want that reaction from everybody who hears it,” said Dr. Dre. “I spend a lot of time in the studio listening to my music through headphones…with Beats, people are finally going to hear it the way they should: the way I do.”

While I’ve been stuck using the stock standard iPod headphones for the last three years, I feel it’s time to move forward and look for something more satisfying to get the most out of my listening experience.

I’m eager for Beats to arrive in store later this year so I can take a close look at them. The sleek design has already caught my eye, all that needs proving to now is my ears. Not too much longer to wait.

I recently set out on a mission to track down an excellent 2.1 speaker system to hook up to my MacBook Pro for continuous playback of music through iTunes, and other various entertainment requirements.

I’d heard a lot of good things about Altec Lansing’s FX6021 range, and had played with them a few times within the confines of an Apple Reseller. However the noisy and crammed environment is not necessarily the place to put speakers to the test, I had to make a ‘deaf’ decision.’

I decided to finish my long search for speakers and just purchase them, if they were awful, I could always sell them. Once they arrived, the word awful wasn’t even in my vocabulary, the speakers are outstanding, to the point that I would refer to them more as a ‘sound system’ than multimedia speakers.

Sound Quality & Density

When the FX6021s started pushing out audio the first thing which blew me away was the super high density and ‘punch’ of the music, it sounds very luxurious. The ability to fine tune the Bass and Treble setting to your liking is a much appreciated feature.

The system has 5 volume levels, I’m generally listening to music on the first level, occasionally kicking it up to the second. Anything past two and you’re getting into something I’d like to call the ‘party setting,’ ideal for blasting music through a large noisy area. Trust me, you wouldn’t want to have them accidentally turned up to level 4 or 5 when kicking up iTunes first thing in the morning, unless you’re sending out a wake up call for your neighbors.

I’ve been very impressed with how quickly I can change settings to adapt different styles of music. Generally I leave bass and treble two bars off the top - set to the mid level the bass it delivers is really thumping, I’ve been told time and time again to turn the bass down due to excessive thumping, not necessarily a bad thing.

Design & Overall Environment Blending

Residing next to a 30�? Apple Cinema Display the two speakers look impeccable. They match the ‘Apple environment’ very, very well. I assume these would look as amazing when hooked up to a MacBook or one of the newer aluminum iMac’s.

The subwoofer sits conveniently under my desk, it’s not massive, though it’s not small. I’d recommend checking if you have enough room on the ground near your workstation to place it, as you’ll get much better sound quality with it on the floor than sitting on top of your desk.

Included in the box is both a wireless remote, and a desktop controller. The desktop controller is used for controlling volume, treble, bass, and power - while also providing you with a headphone port to isolate your sound into a pair of headphones should the need arise. The desktop controller would be amazing if it was wireless, sadly, it’s not, meaning it’s a little restrictive to where you can place it on your desk - not a huge problem, just a little grudge. If Altec Lansing had anything they could improve on, that’d be the one thing I’d push forward.

The design of the speakers, sub, desktop controller, and remote are all perfectly in sync. The system is very well polished and looks very professional in any setting.

Concluding Thoughts

Overall, I’ve been more than impressed with the system. I would highly recommend these to anyone who is looking for a suitable and compact sound system to hook up to your system for music, DVDs, and other media playback.

They have been a dream since day one, I really didn’t know how bad the audio on any other sound product I own was until I was treated to these. A must have addition to your setup is a good sound system, make these your choice.

The iPod portable speaker market is phenomenal. Hundreds of speakers are available, all with their own unique features, and pros, and cons. However, when I set my eyes upon Altec Lansing’s latest iM7 iPod speakers, I knew that they were unique and different from any other speakers on the market. I wasn’t wrong!

Searching for high quality, stylish, and widely compatible iPod speakers for months on end, I discovered Altec Lansing’s new iM7 portable iPod speakers. After days of researching, and reading about them, I was ready to take the plunge and purchase the speakers.

The iM7’s have a built in iPod cradle, which is compatible with all iPod’s featuring dock connectors, including the iPod mini, and the iPod nano. All future iPod’s, including the iPod shuffle can be played using the audio in port, which is a major reason that I opted for the iM7 above any other iPod speakers, including Altec Lansing’s main competitor product, the Bose SoundDock. Continue Reading »