New Feature Experimentation - Flash VGM Streaming

[Locke Cole]

Hello again,

You may or may not have noticed a new icon that has appeared on the bottom of the menu on most RPGN pages. It reads 'Launch Music', and clicking it enables a frame at the top of your current page. You can continue to surf RPGN regularly, but the top frame should load our flash vgm streaming application. Taken from another project I was working on, and once known as GrapeAMP, it will prove useful for us too.

Currently, songs are streamed at 56kbps quality, and the playlist is randomly generated everytime you load it, or click the shuffle icon. Anyone using Flash Player 8 or newer should be able to listen without any trouble.

Currently there are only 10 songs in the database, but of course I will add many more, so each playlist is truely random. I was thinking about having the player stop every 20 songs or so, to make the user manually shuffle to restart the music. This would be to save on bandwidth, in likes of someone loading up the music application and just leaving it running on and on. Opinions?

As for choosing songs to add, I am trying to keep it to no more then 5 songs per album/game, and will try to pick some decent tunes. If you have any songs you'd really like added in, please do feel free to list them.

I will be developing the flash further as time allows, having some more decent options and integration. I would llike the new site design to somehow allow for the player right in the page, but we will have to see how that goes.

Your feedback is valued, as always. :)

[SeymourGuado]

That is pretty cool, I was kinda thinking about something similar to this a few months ago:) So it will be like a real RPG going about Rpgamers hahaha :)

Nice work

[Kilu]

I was thinking about having the player stop every 20 songs or so, to make the user manually shuffle to restart the music. This would be to save on bandwidth, in likes of someone loading up the music application and just leaving it running on and on. Opinions?

As for choosing songs to add, I am trying to keep it to no more then 5 songs per album/game, and will try to pick some decent tunes. If you have any songs you'd really like added in, please do feel free to list them.
Yes, saving bandwith is a good idea.

You should think about making a some kind of request system for new songs rather than using forums. Embed it to that vgm list of yours, people could just click songs they want to request, or something like that. With some kind of limits, like x request from single IP during xx period.

[Locke Cole]

Yes, saving bandwith is a good idea.

You should think about making a some kind of request system for new songs rather than using forums. Embed it to that vgm list of yours, people could just click songs they want to request, or something like that. With some kind of limits, like x request from single IP during xx period.Well I don't want anything too complicated, as its a pain in the butt to add songs as it is. XD I just wanted a general idea of what we might add in. I hope to have about 400-500mb of 56kbps vgm tunes on the player, aka about 800 minutes of music. A variety would be nice, and although I have good taste in vgm naturally ;) I'm sure theres some good tunes I would miss out on. We could have a monthly playlist or something... we could even have the most current RPGN sound test streamed using the player. Lots of options.

[Locke Cole]

I liked the idea so much, that I've gone ahead with it. You can now change the playlist mode on the music player, from 'Random VGM' to 'Sound Test 8' (current test will replace, of course!)

Hopefully this will boost how many people are exposed to the project. :)

[BAMAToNE]

Haha! This is pretty neat. I'm always looking for something to listen to while I'm at work. I've been streaming VGamp, but there is skipping a lot of times. If you can add a bunch of tunes to this, I'm just going to sit on it all day and listen! (How's that for saving bandwidth. :P ) I don't even want to build my own playlist. Just being able to hit shuffle works with me completely. Weeeeee!

Edit: I like being able to switch to Sound Test mode, but I need to be able to shuffle those too. I don't want to listen to the intro everytime I switch over to it!

[Locke Cole]

Haha! This is pretty neat. I'm always looking for something to listen to while I'm at work. I've been streaming VGamp, but there is skipping a lot of times. If you can add a bunch of tunes to this, I'm just going to sit on it all day and listen! (How's that for saving bandwidth. :P ) I don't even want to build my own playlist. Just being able to hit shuffle works with me completely. Weeeeee!

Edit: I like being able to switch to Sound Test mode, but I need to be able to shuffle those too. I don't want to listen to the intro everytime I switch over to it!The only reason I removed shuffling the soundtest was because people kinda introduce their songs <.< and I figured having those all mixed up may get confusing. You can always skip a song with the next button :P We'll figure out something.

I've been busy lately with doctors visits and such, but I will be adding 100's of songs to the playlist. As I said, trying to limit it to 5 songs per game, but some games may get a few more. Currently theres only 10 songs :P But we will make that change soon!

[BAMAToNE]

The only reason I removed shuffling the soundtest was because people kinda introduce their songs <.< and I figured having those all mixed up may get confusing. You can always skip a song with the next button :P We'll figure out something.Oops. I didn't even notice I the next/previous buttons. Doh!

[Kilu]

The only reason I removed shuffling the soundtest was because people kinda introduce their songs <.< and I figured having those all mixed up may get confusing.
I think I suggested to leave the introductions out. :p

[Locke Cole]

I think I suggested to leave the introductions out. :pYou just didnt want yours on there :P Meh, I'm up there too! The Sound Test isnt the Sound Test without our audio files!

[Kilu]

Well, I personally think that if I want to listen to music, I don't want listen to some people rant about the song or whatever before that. Would it be too much trouble to give an alternate playlist without the voicefiles? Because eventhough you can skip the files, it would be annoying to pause whatever you are doing, activate the browser window to skip and then go back to do whatever you were doing.

But that's just me.

[Locke Cole]

Well, I personally think that if I want to listen to music, I don't want listen to some people rant about the song or whatever before that. Would it be too much trouble to give an alternate playlist without the voicefiles? Because eventhough you can skip the files, it would be annoying to pause whatever you are doing, activate the browser window to skip and then go back to do whatever you were doing.

But that's just me.So why do we even bother pushing for people to make voice files if we dont want to include them when we introduce the sound test to the visitors? The sound test portion of the website bar is mainly intended for people who have not been exposed to the sound test before, as I'd assume anyone who has, most likely downloaded their copy and listens to it externally. I don't see the point of offering half a product to the visitors of the site.

The bar was intended for use during use of our site, or while browsing in general, and not as a sustitute mp3 player :P If they have to switch back to the browser in order to skip a song, thats really not asking too much. Consider it a trade off for milking our media server's bandwidth. If people feel the need to remove the voice files that much, we recommend they download their copy and create their own playlist, and listen to the sound test in full quality... no?

I need more feedback then just kilu on this matter. If more people feel the need for removal of the voice files, speak up.

[SeymourGuado]

Well I think it is better to listen to it on the site without voicefiles, but I need to know where I get the ones WITH. I want to check out past Sound Tests, should be fun:)

[BAMAToNE]

I have no opinion on this matter, I don't think. For me personally, I would like to not have the voice files streaming. But that's because I have all the ST albums. For a visitor who has never heard of ST or has never heard any of the tracks, maybe this little personalization is enough to make him/her laugh and want to go download them. *shrug*

[Kilu]

Well, of course if the main idea is to introduce new people to it, leave everything in. I'm just thinking people who may use it to stream music at work, for example. But that's just me.

[Locke Cole]

Well, of course if the main idea is to introduce new people to it, leave everything in. I'm just thinking people who may use it to stream music at work, for example. But that's just me.Ah yes that is true, I didnt think about that. Well, it wouldnt be too difficult to make an option to remove the voice files / shuffle the songs. Maybe I'll prepare a function like that for the release of ST9.

[Locke Cole]

I have just added 88 new tracks to the "Random VGM" playlist. The playlist generated is now 20 songs long. Once the playlist ends, you need to hit the "Shuffle" link to get a new playlist of songs. Each playlist should be different, not just shuffled but also new songs. There are currently 98 songs in the database, but many more will be added.

I will be adding an announcement file at the end of the playlist so people know to click shuffle to continue listening. This 20 song limitation is to preserve bandwidth for those who leave the window open and walk away :p I hope it won't be too much trouble.