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Topic: foo_random (Read 40846 times) previous topic - next topic
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foo_random

Reply #25
foosion: Sorry, but I don't really understand purpose of this plugin, when you can create autoplaylist with ALL query, set playback mode to Random and let it play...

foo_random

Reply #26
You can create a playlist like
Play random abba not longer that 3 minutes
play random jingle
play random song with the genre Jazz and longer than 1 minute but not from a live album

Basically your own programmed radio station etc.

foo_random

Reply #27
Quote
Basically your own programmed radio station etc.


But still - you can achieve it with normall autoplaylist (;

EDIT: There is no chance for support of scrobbling played tracks - am I right?

foo_random

Reply #28
But still - you can achieve it with normall autoplaylist (;

I wouldn't know how you could achieve the same with one autoplaylist. Basically you can create an arbitrary number of "virtual" autoplaylists in a row using foo_random where every entry is a random pick taken out of such a "virtual" autoplaylist. Already a small number of foo_random entries in a playlist set on repeat can keep you entertained for quite a while.

foo_random

Reply #29
This component is brilliant (can't imagine I haven't seen it before)!!

It works, in a limited way somewhat like the trivial automated playlist generation proposal i made. However, it would be cool if it could somehow be possible to say "NOT ARTIST PLAYED DURING LAST 2 HOURS".
Can't wait for a HD-AAC encoder :P

foo_random

Reply #30
Just as you can use query in foo_random, exactly you can use query in autoplaylist, which does essentially the same thing. I still think this component is obsolete from the beginning.

foo_random

Reply #31
Just as you can use query in foo_random, exactly you can use query in autoplaylist, which does essentially the same thing. I still think this component is obsolete from the beginning.

Did you try it or even read the thread? You can use this if you want to create a playlist with random entrys based on certain rules - FOR EACH ITEM ONLY. Useful if you rnu a radio station and want to schedule commercials or anything like that. You might not find it useful - others will, and I will defainately not call this the same thing as autoplaylists!
Can't wait for a HD-AAC encoder :P

foo_random

Reply #32
OK, quick question then - does it allow to limit number or time of random entries in that one entry? if not I still cannot see the point...

foo_random

Reply #33
Thanks for the update, foosion!


... I still cannot see the point...


Well, if you just add one randomized entry to a playlist and also set your playback order to repeat track, then you also can take an autoplaylist to achieve same listening experience. But as The Link already said: We have a row of randomized entry but not only that - the order of the queries aims to achieve a certain dramaturgy. Example: You can achieve that after a Hip-Hop track an Funk track follows, then a Big Beat track, after that then 2 Rock songs and then an evergreen - if you set the playbackorder to repeat playlist then you have your own station. I have absolutely no idea how you can achieve that by using playlists. This little component offers in a bit different way a feature that is known in other players as Auto-Dj playlist.

... does it allow to limit number or time of random entries in that one entry?


What should limitation mean in the context of one single entry - that makes no sense for me?

foo_random

Reply #34
I also first noticed this component this week when the topic got hot. And it's really interesting playing with it.
I noticed this: using title formattings you can get standard fields: ARTIST, ALBUM, TITLE etc. in some panels/elements but the fields are not present in:
- Item Properties/Selection Properties
- UPnP Controler panel displays: GetPositionInfo Error
- foo_vis_shpeck / foo_winamp_ipc / foo_winamp_spam doesn't output them if someone uses winamp emulation software

So because streaming radios, as I know, has at least ARTIST, TITLE can they be available in near future for use in above cases. Playback statistics tracking isn't possible like mentioned before, but it would be nice if it was

[edit] Playback statistics SQL tracks the statistics (on actual track) and user can assign rating to named random queue

foo_random

Reply #35
foosion: Sorry, but I don't really understand purpose of this plugin, when you can create autoplaylist with ALL query, set playback mode to Random and let it play...
The ALL query in the change log is just an example that I mentioned. One of the posts preceding mine contains a report that ALL queries did not work as expected with the older version.

There is no chance for support of scrobbling played tracks - am I right?
Correct. That would require special support in the scrobbling component.

It works, in a limited way somewhat like the trivial automated playlist generation proposal i made. However, it would be cool if it could somehow be possible to say "NOT ARTIST PLAYED DURING LAST 2 HOURS".
I do not plan to add that. For one thing, I couldn't use the core's filter API any more and I would have to add tracking of group based playback statistics.

q-stankovic already said it, but I am going to repeat this for emphasis. The following two things are equivalent in that they result in the same (potential) order of played songs:
  • an autoplaylist with the playback order "Random"
  • a "random:" track with the playback order "Repeat track"

Aside from that there are things you cannot do with autoplaylists, and there are things you cannot do with foo_random. It is up to you to decide whether you need the possibilities offered by foo_random and whether you are willing to pay the price for that (seek bar not working, no scrobbling).

On the other hand, one of the design goals of foo_random was that you don't have to pay for something you don't use. Selecting a subset of the media library and keeping that selection up-to-date costs CPU time and memory. You can easily create 100 "random" entries, and it will only cost CPU time and memory while you are actually playing one of those tracks. With an autoplaylist, this maintenance cost has to be paid while the autoplaylist exist, no matter whether it is currently used or not. See, it is all about trade-offs.

foo_random

Reply #36
Also, foosion, can I assume from the fact that you had to design foo_random the way you did (as a kind of channel) that there's no way currently to add playlist order options or modify the behavior of those that exist?
No, you cannot. It is not possible to add custom playback orders, because that is not part of the SDK. However, this didn't not influence the design of foo_random. It may have influenced that this component came into being in the first place, but I don't remember that exactly.

I noticed this: using title formattings you can get standard fields: ARTIST, ALBUM, TITLE etc. in some panels/elements but the fields are not present in:
That is because of the difference between static and dynamic meta data. The information about the song played by a "random:" track is dynamic metadata, and some components only use static metadata (on purpose).

foo_random

Reply #37
It works, in a limited way somewhat like the trivial automated playlist generation proposal i made. However, it would be cool if it could somehow be possible to say "NOT ARTIST PLAYED DURING LAST 2 HOURS".
I do not plan to add that. For one thing, I couldn't use the core's filter API any more

I'm not saying that you shouldn't, but maybe it would be possible to implement in the core filter? I could imagine this being useful in regular autoplaylists as well.

and I would have to add tracking of group based playback statistics.

What do you mean by group based?

Do you plan to fix playback statistics?
Can't wait for a HD-AAC encoder :P

foo_random

Reply #38
What do you mean by group based?
Aggregate playback statistics for groups of songs, for example all songs by a given artist.

Do you plan to fix playback statistics?
They are not broken. The official playback statistics component does not count songs played through "random" entries, but this is merely a consequence of how the two components work. If playback statistics are important to you, you would probably be better off using autoplaylists.

foo_random

Reply #39
Old thread but interesting component

What can be rationale not to consider ReplayGain values?
Is it implementation problem or some design decision?

I can't think of reason not to use ReplayGain when tracks are randomized. Or maybe there is some switch?

Thanks

foo_random

Reply #40
There is no intention to not consider Replay Gain data. The problem is merely how foobar2000 treats dynamic Replay Gain data, since this component works similarly to an on-line radio station (except that it does not bother to transmit the audio data over a network). It used to work at some point. I do not know, if it still does, as I have not used the component for a while.

foo_random

Reply #41
Neat component.
This component is brilliant (can't imagine I haven't seen it before)!!

Same!!

Also, maybe a minor glitch I noticed the track title is sometimes not displayed on playback, but the query syntax instead...

Thanks.

Re: foo_random

Reply #42
First, big thanks to Foosion for plugin.
Nice plugin, but something very weird happened, when i type title "sun" in foo random plugin window, foobar start playing all files in library even they doesn't much title "sun". Same thing happened when i type query "m".
But when you type query "ALL" and set playback order to shuffle folders - plugin work properly - foobar start playing only one track from folder and then play other track from another folder.