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UI revamp


duo8

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I know this has been said multiple times but I think Poweramp really needs UI improvements.

 

Something like:

  • Material design (as in color scheme, icon design and animations). Gotta wait for L first though.
  • Tabbed UI. Slide left/right to switch to Albums, All songs, Playlist, Folders, ... Maybe the player screen should be a tab too.

Some other small things: (These are just my opinion though)

  • On-screen search button throughout the main screen. (The Albums/Artist/... screen.)
  • A "Now Playing" bar on the bottom on the main screen, if there's something playing.
  • Album view uses the album art as background
  • Maybe swipe to show quick scroll bar. That bar got in my way countless times. Especially when I'm trying to press that small menu button on the side.
  • Up button on top left, overflow on top right, ... like other 4.x Android apps. Also transparent decor support.
  • Option to change album display density, so you can display more in one screen.

 

And unrelated to the above, but some kind of networking support would be nice. Like streaming from a media server, or even cloud support. And play to other devices. But these two seem farfetched.

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Personally, I'd make the scroll bar bigger and more usable, I never seem to be able to use it effectively. I turn that three-dots menu button thingy off anyway, so at least that doesn't get in my way (my phone has a proper hardware menu button, as God intended for non-iPhones. :) )

I like the idea of swiping to get between Folder and the various Library views though, very much more intuitive.

Not so fussed about Material Design though, I like the basic interface pretty much the way it is, and as this is a skin-based player, couldn't someone come up with a funky trendy one anyway? Because you know that it'll all be changed again the next time the Google Android design team are bored or feel they need something to do. Newer is not always better (look at the god-awful Windows 8 interface vs. Windows 7 on a decent-sized PC screen).

Not quite sure why a Now Playing bar is needed though - there's already one on the player screen (or do you mean in the Folders/Library screen, in which case I agree that would be a good idea)

Andre

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Material design conception finally allows come to the uniformity of the Android apps interface. If all follow your principle "newer is bad" we still would have enjoyed ugly Win95/98 (let's at least remember the terrible Windows Mobile). But progress does not stand still and actually the main Win8 desktop interface is quite comfortable and nice. Similarly Holo interface in ICS has been a notable step forward compared to previous versions of Android, but pervasive dark background and "hacker look" is outdated and boring.

But it's not in appearance, and that the apps must be brought to uniform standards UI with standard patterns of interaction, when similar actions in different apps on different devices are executed in the same way. And how to achieve this is written in Material design guides. That's important rather than "leather" or "carbon" skins. 

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actually the main Win8 desktop interface is quite comfortable and nice.

LOL, we'll agree to differ then. I think it's terrible: flat dull and expanses of coloured rectangles with flat icons that have no depth delineation or shading to indicate separation from backgrounds, etc. Windows 7 was starting to look really nice, rounded details, glass interface, etc. Windows 8 threw out all the good stuff and left more like what we had back in the DOS days (coloured boxes with plain text in them).

A common style for user interaction is not a bad thing though, as it makes it easier for people to pick up a new app and use it immediately rather than trying to work out how to navigate around each new interface. But the devil's advocate in me says that part of the reason a lot of people went with Android rather than Apple is the level of choice and customisation that Android offers over iOS's dull conformity. ;)

Andre

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I think it's terrible

 

And I think it's more nice and simple than pseudo-glassish Win7. Clean lines, fewer distractions, the possibility of extending the right of interface elements if necessary, nice animation etc. Tastes differ, but general direction to simplify the interface is a positive phenomenon.

 

 

A common style for user interaction is not a bad thing though, as it makes it easier for people to pick up a new app and use it immediately rather than trying to work out how to navigate around each new interface. But the devil's advocate in me says that part of the reason a lot of people went with Android rather than Apple is the level of choice and customisation that Android offers over iOS's dull conformity. ;)

 

Android has long ceased to be the OS for geeks. Freedom and flexibility is good, until the UI does not overly challenging to master ordinary users. Combine freedom and simplicity is possible - for example look at MIUI, apparent simplicity of the interface in the  iOS style hides a lot of opportunities for customization and individual configuration.

 

In Material Design Google give sufficient interface unification with simplicity, dynamic and beauty, without taking away the ability to provide app specific only for him peculiarities. If developers begin to use these features, then faster Android will be replenished qualitative and convenient apps.

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But it's not in appearance, and that the apps must be brought to uniform standards UI with standard patterns of interaction, when similar actions in different apps on different devices are executed in the same way. And how to achieve this is written in Material design guides. That's important rather than "leather" or "carbon" skins. 

I agree. Apps should be designed with this in mind.

 

A common style for user interaction is not a bad thing though, as it makes it easier for people to pick up a new app and use it immediately rather than trying to work out how to navigate around each new interface. But the devil's advocate in me says that part of the reason a lot of people went with Android rather than Apple is the level of choice and customisation that Android offers over iOS's dull conformity. ;)

Andre

We can have both uniformity and customization. Uniformity in app design improves your workflow and help you do things quicker.

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> Tabbed UI. Slide left/right to switch to Albums, All songs, Playlist, Folders, ... Maybe the player screen should be a tab too.

 

 

No. Those are a pain. If you want to move from one end to the other, it ends up being multiple swipes. It should really be the hamburger menu, which is what the design stardard is/was (not sure how Material Design changed that if it did).

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  • 4 weeks later...

I totally think Poweramp needs a UI revamp. I like the idea of swipping left or right to switch folders instead of the current method we have now. But I do agree that could be too much swipping, so I think the Hamburger Menu isn't bad either. I also think a Material Design inspired set of animations, color schemes, and icons wouldn't be bad. But I'm not too crazy over that to be honest.

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