Zune info

My name is Justin and I’m a developer on the Zune Client Shell.  Before your eyes glaze over, let me say that it’s the coolest job in the world–I get to turn artist’s concept drawings of how the Zune software looks and make it real.  For example, that cool button color animation that goes across when you buy a track in the marketplace?  I made that. 

It’s all part of the experience.  Music

Outwardly, there’s little indication it’s happening.  Perhaps the eyes close slightly; the body slowly rocks to the beat; a sigh; a slowly growing smile.  Inwardly, however, it’s like an explosion; the toes tingle, warm colors appear and the world washes away.  It’s emotional.  There’s something deeply satisfying each time it happens. 

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For me, the first time it happened was about 14 years ago.  I had a crush on this girl who was obsessed with the chain-smoking, binge-drinking lead singer of Oasis, Liam Gallagher.  Beyond a couple of catchy tunes by the Beatles, I was generally oblivious to rock, or for that matter, music in general.  In a bit of logic that should have been beyond my 7^th grade mind, I somehow had realized that having a common interest in music would generally improve my chances with this girl; I took it upon myself to brave the music store and find myself a copy of the album Definitely Maybe.

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One by one, the songs played and the raw sounds of drums and major chords and guitar solos came through to my ears.  A few songs later, I removed my headphones, crestfallen—this terrible noise was becoming an insurmountable barrier between me and the girl I was destined to work up the courage to speak to.  I sighed and decided to give it another chance.  Pressing play, it was then when I finally had my epiphany.  It happened.

The song was called Cigarettes & Alcohol.  It played.  I listened.  It rocked.  I was changed. And I listened to it a couple dozen times on repeat, obsessed.

               Is it worth the aggravation / To find yourself a job when there’s nothing worth working for / It’s a crazy situation / But all I need are cigarettes and alcohol

It was a song with all of the arrogant British swagger of rock ‘n’ roll, bending and twisting my impressionable young mind.  It was against everything I was taught and I felt this thrill as I listened to it over and over again.  I listened to it, headphones on, around my parents, beside little kids, in front of my teachers.  And they had no idea that they disapproved of what I was listening to.  When I got home from school each day, I hid the CD under my bed.  

An endless stream of bands would follow.  Pearl Jam, Nirvana, The Smashing Pumpkins, and oh yes, Radiohead.

I never ended up talking to that girl.  I was too busy crushing on music to care.

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Paperback editions of The Lost Ones available in July at select stores nationwide.
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Check out Zune Marketplace this week for a freebie from super-dj Fred Everything. The track is called “Stay,” off the album Lost Together.

Here’s the deeplink into Zune Marketplace:

Enjoy!

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Some of you may have noticed that I’ve got a special background on my Zune profile page…and that when you add me as a friend, I accept right away.< ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Well, I wish I were that quick to respond! But actually, what you’re seeing is our one-way friends feature. As many of you as want to can add me – but I don’t have access to any of your personal information or play data. (You can add Cesar too, but we’re in a race for the most one-way friends…and I’m winning, so please help me keep it that way.)

This was a new feature with our Spring release – and it became somewhat controversial. You see, we used the one-way friend feature to automatically added special users to new and some existing users. I have to say, I’ve never received quite so much passionate feedback before.

The idea has merit.  We wanted to start out those users with Zune DJs: a set of carefully-selected people who work here whose job it is to program music for Zune Marketplace. Each Zune DJ has different genres for which he or she is responsible. We figured people who are interested in discovering new music on Zune Social might be interested in getting fresh recommendations from people here at Zune who discover and recommend music for a living. So when you sign up for Zune Social, you get six Zune DJs automatically added to your page, for each of the major genres: rock, country, techno, hip hop, world, and Latin.

Since the relationships are one-way, the Zune DJs don’t know a thing about the users connected to them; all they can find out is the total number of people who have added them.  Also, one-way friends is a different system than our two-way friend system, and isn’t subject to the 100-friend maximum.

Looking back with my dev team 20/20 vision, we could have done a better job explaining these one-way friends, because some users were worried that random people were going to see their play data and other personal information.

We did find that when we explained to users how these Zune DJ friends worked, they understood and felt it was a desirable feature. And then they wanted more: “Where’s the classic rock DJ?” “Where’s the pop music DJ?” people asked.

But from other users, we heard, “I have nothing in common with those people!”

That last comment totally made sense to me. My musical taste aligns with the Zune DJs Kid Hops and DJ Ms E. But I rarely have any albums or artists in common with them, because they’re getting the latest music, stuff I haven’t discovered yet. So of course I’m not going to recognize the names they’re playing…yet. For me, that’s cool. For other people, not so much.

So what does Zune do with this feedback?

I take it very seriously, actually. And while I can’t give away our roadmap, I can say that we’re planning significant changes in how the Zune DJs are added to people’s friends list, how the feature is messaged, and in addition, looking at a number of other ways to help users find friends and new music recommendations.

Keep the feedback coming – it definitely makes a difference!

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In helping folks out in the forums, I find that a lot of people don’t have a full grasp of how our sync model works and why content is automatically added (or deleted) from their devices. I also find that users tend to get frustrated due to the fact that there is automatic update of content on their device, but they don’t know how or why; or even further, how to control it. In today’s topic, I want to enlighten you to the world of sync groups, how they work, how they govern the content on your device, and how you can use them to your advantage and ultimately have a better sync experience.

Sync groups, a kinda-sorta-technical explanation…

A sync group in Zune software is a set of rules that governs / defines a set of media that will be sync’d to a Zune device. You can use sync groups to combine different combinations of music, video, pictures, podcasts & friends in your collection for eventual syncing to your Zune device. There are two different ways to create a Sync group in Zune software, (1) drag and drop a container or containers to the device icon (2) Manually create a sync group and specify the rules for media to be included using the Sync Group editor.

Once a sync group is created it will automatically add / remove content from itself when the player is active. This is achieved by applying the rules of the sync group against the media contained within the user’s collection; basically the rules contained within the sync group are based upon various metadata contained within each media file that is in the users collection.

Ok, so what does that mean?

First of all, sync groups are only created when you are in “let me choose” sync mode for a particular content type. So, if you have music set in “let me choose” sync mode, anytime you drag and drop (or right-click and choose “sync with <yourzunename>”) any genre, artist, album, song, or playlist (videos, pics, friends, and podcasts, too) to your device, a sync group is created to remember what you sync’d to your device so it stays on the device. You can also create complex sync groups using the sync group editor. It’s kind of like autoplaylists specifically made for syncing content to your device. I’ll give an example of that later.

With simple sync groups, if I drag and drop the artist Radiohead to my device, a sync group will be created for Radiohead. Once this group is created (see below for example), the software basically says “ok great, anytime my user adds more Radiohead tracks to the collection, I’ll put them on their device automatically for them.” Accordingly, anytime I add more of Radiohead’s music to my library, it will automatically be sync’d to my device. Conversely, if you delete the Radiohead sync group, the content will be removed from your device. Further, if you delete some or all of the Radiohead songs on your computer, they will be deleted from the device. This is a pain point for some users as some folks want to have content that is not on their computer still remain on their device. We have definitely heard this complaint, and while I can’t give away the road map, all I can say is that we are listening. At least now you understand why content would be deleted from your device if you delete from your computer; it’s all about the sync group…

That’s great, but what if I don’t want sync groups?

Well, then you are just silly. Kidding of course, but seriously, you don’t have to go by the sync group model if you don’t want. If you have a larger device (or a smaller collection) then “sync all” mode may be best for you. Sync all mode does just what it says, it syncs all of the content in your collection for that content type. So, if you select sync all mode for pictures, it will sync all of the pictures in your collection to your device. Similar to sync groups though, it will automatically add content to your device as it is added to your collection, and will delete content from your device if it is deleted from your collection.

What if I don’t want you to automatically add and delete content from my device?

Now that’s just crazy talk! Kidding again, and we realize there are some of you that really want full control of the content that is added and removed from your device. To achieve this, you can connect your device in “guest mode” which will not create any sync groups when you sync content to your device, and hence it won’t add or delete content automatically. To do this, disconnect your device. Then go to Settings > Device > Sync Options. Then click the “forget this device” button. Then reconnect your device and select the option to connect as a guest. Now you can sync content to your device, delete it from your machine, and it won’t be removed from your device.

Advanced sync group action…

A feature that we added in the 2.5 release is the ability to create complex sync groups based on specific criteria that you choose. These are really like autoplaylists for sync’ing specific content your device. You can create complex sync groups from music, video, and pictures in your collection, and then filter the groups using a multitude of filters. Just like simple sync groups, as content is added to your collection that fits the criteria of the sync group, it is automatically added to your device. To create a complex sync group, navigate to Setttings > Device > Sync Groups, then click the “new group” button. A dialog will launch where you can name your sync group, choose from the source (music, video, or pics), and then filter the group to your liking. I’ll outline one of my favorite sync groups below.

Complex sync group example: Favorite TV series…

Here’s my scenario: I am a huge fan of “The Office.” Needless to say I was stoked when we got the deal with NBC and started offering episodes of The Office for purchase in the Zune Marketplace. I’m continuously buying episodes, so I wanted a way for them to sync automatically. Here’s how I do it: I purchase an episode of The Office from Marketplace, then I navigate to Settings > Device > Sync Groups, and click “New Group”. I name it “The Office” and set my Video collection as the source. I then choose “The Office” from the TV series dropdown menu, and then click OK. Now the group is created, and the episode I purchased is automatically added to the group and sync’d to my device. Now every time I purchase a new episode of The Office it is automatically sync’d to my device. (Tip: You can even get more creative by using the “Year” filter to create separate sync groups for each season of the TV series).

I encourage you to experiment with the sync group editor and see what cool groups you can come up with. If you do, I think you’ll find that you have much more control over the content that syncs to your device, and in turn, a better sync experience. Feel free to add some comments to this post with your favorite sync groups to share with other users. It’s fun to see what people come up with, and I might even add a few more of my faves in there for you as well. :) Enjoy!

(for full versions of the example screenshots (and another favorite sync group of mine) click here)

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Greetings once again, and welcome to the return of New Music Friday. Ready to get to the music? okletsgo:

• Let’s kick off the week with an awesome cover, which to me is like a cake filled with pies: Stereogum has Zuneinsider favorite Throw Me the Statue covering Huey Lewis
• Fans of Hip Hop? Check out Seattle hip hop artists Common Market, over at Music For Robots
• And if you can’t decide which genre you like, check out mashup artist Girl Talk over at RockInsider
• Fans of The Strokes should check out Albert Hammond Jr’s track, posted up at MOKB (rock)
• Aquarium Drunkard posts a Hold Steady track and interviews band member Craig Finn - very cool (rock) 
• Gorilla vs Bear posts a track from indie/electro darlings High Places
• And last but certainly not not-awesome, check out Jamie Lidell, over at Arjan Writes

Ok, enjoy the music and have a great weekend everybody!

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As many of you know, when Zune refreshed the product line back in November 07, we started selling DRM-free MP3s. We’re now up to around two-thirds of our catalog available in that DRM-free format. I’m sure many of you saw the recent announcement from Rhapsody today – with other digital music providers moving toward MP3, it could be signaling even better changes for the industry in the future.

Taken in combination with the millions of tracks you could get with a Zune Pass, and guided by recommendations from your friends in Zune Social, I think it makes for an exciting platform to discover new music. As many frequent readers know – helping folks discover and get new music is something at the core of Zune. And the good thing about all that discovery is that you can take it to go – you can drag and drop both subscription tracks, MP3s you get from Zune Marketplace, and the Zune Cards you download from Zune Social down to your Zune.

We’re working to push the industry to explore new models – the standard $.99/track model is a great start, but there’s so much more we can do there. So for a major player like Rhapsody to make an aggressive push into MP3 is a great sign that change in the way that folks get/find/acquire music is coming – more on this as it develops. What about you, dear blog reader - what do you think?

And speaking of Social - add me up as a friend - I can’t handle Jessica having more friends than me!

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Check this video about Friday’s launch in Canada:

In addition to the new Canadian artists in Zune Originals, now you can buy Zune accessories via Zune Originals - check it out!

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Check out this article on Zune.net about badges, both on your zune card and in the forums. Here’s what the gold badges look like:

1000 Album plays

1000 Artist plays

1000 rated forum posts*

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A few weeks ago, I posted about Joy Division and Zune - well today’s your chance to pick up the Joy Division Limited Edition Zune - only one of only 500!

 (thanks to IHaZ for capturing the image)

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Hey there!

Cesar has recruited me to give you the developer’s perspective here on Zune Insider. I’m a program manager on the Zune Social team, and I also spend a good amount of time in the forums, getting users’ perspectives on features we have already developed and what you’d like to see in the future.

So what’s a program manager? Basically, my job is to figure out the details of what the development team is going to build. Program managers have a foot in two worlds: we have to understand both the needs of our business, and the technology we’ll use to build features. Pretty much it’s the best job around here.

 I’ll be hanging out and blogging about a couple of things. I’ll talk about how features that already exist came to be, in an attempt to give you some more transparency around our process. I’d also like to have conversations with you around feature areas I’m thinking about - I won’t be able to tell you what exactly we’re doing and when, but I will talk about how I see various aspects of Zune Social and engage you in those discussions.

Feel free to add me as friend, by the way - I listen primarily to electronic music and look for new stuff (well, new to me) every week. Plus you’ll get the added bonus of being able to see every time I post in the forums - woo hoo!

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Before I worked on Zune, I worked on Windows Media Center - specifically, on TV signal setup and recording. Media Center has a really active community (not run by Microsoft) called The Green Button, and working with those folks over there, we started a forum called “Ask Jessica,” where Media Center users could ask me questions about TV features.

One of my fave things about working at Microsoft is being able to move around the company to different projects. When I was ready to move on from Media Center, I wanted to continue my work in the user community. I also knew that I had to continue working on a consumer product.

Zune was the “duh!” choice, right. But one of the things Chad, my manager here at Zune, asked when I said I was interested was, “So how are you going to take community involvement to the next level here?”

Answering users’ questions: of course. Blogging: sure. But how about this: how about design a feature out in the open? Where anyone can contribute and shape what we do?

Pretty radical for Microsoft, I’ve got to say.

So over in the forums, I started out with a notion. Let’s design some kind of fun activity for The Social. Going back and forth for a few weeks with some users produced the idea of a music trivia game, where users can contribute their own questions. They could write questions for general trivia, or they could write “get-to-know-me” questions, like “What artist headlined the concert at which I met my husband?” (Nope, not telling. If you leave a comment and guess correctly, I’ll figure out something cool to do for you.)

It took me longer than expected to write the functional specification for the thing; I had to work it in among other responsibilities, and it’s out of sync with the rest of our release cycle. Honestly, I’m learning as I’m going. I’ve never done something like this before, where my actual work is out there for anybody to see and criticize.

And it’s been kind of weird, frankly: before I posted the spec, people were eager to see it. But now that it’s available, I haven’t gotten any comments.

So I don’t know if this experiment will be successful; I think success will be creating a small, core group of users who give great feedback and shape this music trivia game. If you want to be part of that, head over to Jethereal’s Zune Blog and check out the spec; then hit up my forum and tell me what you think.

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Our buddy Max at Channel 8 does a comprehensive round-up of cases that you can get for your Zune 4 or your Zune 8 - the flash models - check it out!

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Howdy!

My name is Matt and I work on the Zune client (software) team as an SDET. I have been working full-time at Microsoft for just over a year now and love working for the Zune team! Before that, I did contract work for Microsoft on products like Windows Media Player 11, and Expression Media Encoder. Needless to say I am a media fanatic and love working on media related projects. Cesar also recruited me to bring a different perspective to Zune Insider and bring more transparency to our processes, ideals, and implementation strategies.

As an SDET (Software Development Engineer in Test), I am responsible for the planning and execution of testing for particular feature sets in the Zune software. Essentially, I get to break the software, find bugs, and work with our developers to fix issues before the product gets in your hands.  Most of my friends say that all I do all day at work is listen to music, watch videos, play with gadgets, and break software. The great thing is, I really can’t argue with that!

I’ll be doing a few different things while blogging for Zune Insider. For one, I’ll be here to give you the inside scoop on how features came to be the way they are, and our reasoning behind the functionality of the features. I’ll also blog on tips and tricks with the Zune software, bringing features and usage scenarios to your attention that you may not even know existed. More than anything, I want to give you another connection to the Zune team. I have never owned a product in which the people that actually helped create it are in public forums reaching out to users to help them, listen to them, and drive the direction of the product based on their ideas and suggestions. To me, that is one of the most exciting aspects of Zune, and I feel it really differentiates us from the norm.

Some of you may already know me from the Zune.net community assistance forums (Zune Tag: skipdeez) where I moderate the Sync, Send and Wireless help forum. I’m in there quite often helping users, so if you need any help with a specific issue, just drop me a line!

Oh, and by the way, please add me as a friend so that I can beat Jessica in the race to the most friends. :) I love all type’s of music as you’ll see from my Zune card, so by adding me, not only will you be helping me gain more pseudo-status within the Zune team,  you’ll also get to see all the sweet tunes I’m playing. As I type this I am listening to Radiohead, but I have to admit that Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter III” has been resonating out of my office since it came out.

Looking forward to connecting with you all, cheers!

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Interested in seeing more about the Joy Division Zune? Check out this forum thread and this post from our friends at ‘Rama.

Here’s a quick preview, with Zune in the case:

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Head over to Zune Marketplace for a free track from drum and bass* producer Danny Byrd, from his latest record, Super Sized. 

The track is called “From Bath with Love,” and it’s a DRM-free, no strings attached MP3. And if you like it, the whole album is available either in MP3 or via Zune Pass download.

Enjoy!

*liquid funk if you want to get specific

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Here’s some cool podcasting news coming out of another group here at Microsoft this week: the Sharepoint team just announced PKS - Podcasting Kit for Sharepoint. It’s an open source initiative that helps folks produce or consume podcasts - and they work with Zune!

Check the details here.

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Day Three here at Tech Ed. We have a Zune booth down on the show floor; I’m live blogging from it now. We’ve got lots of attendees coming to visit us, coming to learn about Zune.

Here’s a quick video of the crowd at our booth that gathers every day when we raffle off a Zune 80:

Video: Zune Booth at Tech Ed
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Last week, while I was at Teched, Zune had another cool event going on: a concert with N.E.R.D: Live at the Roosevelt, an exclusive get together in L.A. Samantha Ronson DJ’ed until around 11pm, when N.E.R.D. took the stage -

We took footage of the show for Zune Marketplace and it will be available for download within the next couple weeks. Seeing Sounds, N.E.R.D’s upcoming album, hits Zune Marketplace tomorrow, June 10.

More details and photos at Rap-up.com

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30 Days of Night author, Steve Niles, collaborates with illustrators Dr. Revolt, Gary Panter, Kime Buzzelli, and Morning Breath to bring you a graphic novel that will challenge what you think about time and space travel. . .

Intrigued? Six behind-the-scenes video podcasts are being released today in Zune Marketplace. Watch or subscribe to the podcast here.

  

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