In a premature blog entry , I wrote , “ I really , really need to love Front Row . But there ’s more to be done before it can initiate know up to its potency . ”
The first footstep in make Front wrangle better is to make do with its glitch and most obvious shortcomings . For deterrent example , although Front Row ’s Music menu gives you the iPod - style option to shamble your entire music program library , there ’s no way to shuffle songs within a play list , artist or , record album . ( I still do n’t understand why Apple would essentially reduplicate the iPod ’s user interface in Front Row without including that gimmick ’s most utilitarian preferences . In my intellect , that should be Job # 1 when it comes to updating Front Row . )
The first version of Front Row also did n’t abide by most your iPhoto slide - show context , make the viewing of photos a maddeningly random experience . The late version of Front Row pickle this job , but only for slideshows resident physician onthatMac . The germ hold on in slideshows streamed over the connection from other Macs . And there ’s no good fashion to use Front Row to arbitrarily browse your photo collection — it ’s slide show or nothing .
Video playback is another area that ’s fraught with difficulties . Front Row is inconsistent at bookmarking television , so if you stop a video mid - flow and add up back to it afterwards , you may find yourself having to fast - onward back to where you were . Playing back motion-picture show trailers from Apple ’s web web site can be undependable . The list goes on .
But lease ’s move beyond the obvious fixes and additions to Front Row , and talk about where it should go next .
Right now , Front Row is a very simple product , and I say that as a compliment . Apple take expectant superbia in honing products down to their most basic functions , and the mass who buy their products appreciate that . But Front Row demand to grow to be more operational and flexible , without sacrificing too much of its canonical simplicity .
The biggest complaint I listen from people critical of Front Row is that it is n’t a TiVo — that you ca n’t plug in a TV tuner and record tv set shows via Front Row . I actually think Apple was right not to build that functionality into Front Row … but the complaints from those critic point to what Front Rowdoesneed more than anything else : a plug - in system that invites software and hardware developer into the political party .
If Front Row support plug - ins , then companies such asElgato(the makers of the EyeTV television - transcription hardware and software system ) could integrate their products into Front Row . Then if youwantedto record television set register on your Mac , you could do it — but if you did n’t , that feature would never get in your way .
