[RELEASE] PocketTouch 3.0.2 (Download--post 2747 or Cydia)

[SkylarEC]

Alpha release of PocketTouch. Another app by request. And this one was fun to make because not all the information is easily available. In fact, it took a few hours of digging before I even knew if I was on the right track. Regardless I know you don't care, so here is the app:

PocketTouch. A lot of you have been wishing that you had a convenient way to control your iPods while it was in your pocket, or wherever you keep it. Well, I got enough requests, so I made just something to do that.

• When you run the Application, the screen will be black. That is to help preserve screen life and avoid images burning into the screen.
• As long as MusicPlayer (or iPod) is playing a song, a simple tap on the screen will pause the song.
• Tap the screen again to unpause.
• Slide your finger to the right to skip to the next song.
• Slide your finger to the left to play the previous song.

As of right now, up and down weren't programmed to have a purpose, so I let them do the play/pause feature as well as just tapping. If you run the program in SSH and watch the output, you will see that the app knows how to read up and down.

In the future, I can add in diagonals, etc. I also plan on adding in a settings controller for this. I want there to bet two options for you. The first of which is basically what I what I am putting out today, while the second option will show an image from your library for a selected timeframe before transitioning to another picture. That way you can just set this in its dock and let it be.

To install

1. Download this package http://www.touchrepo.com/Multimedia/PocketTouch.app.zip
2. Put it onto your iPod (or iPhone, but that isn't the targeted audience here) using your favorite means of accessing your device.
3. Using SSH, Terminal, Mobile Finder, Squid, or any other method you want, change the perissions on the Applications to 755.
4. Respring.
5. Enjoy.

Let me know what you guys think. And also, if any Icon artists want to design up an icon, I'd really appreciate it. I am currently using the standard apple placeholder that comes with the iPhone.

EDIT: I would have had this out last night, but I can't use the SDK. It seems that although Apple will let you download it on a PPC Mac, you do indeed need an Intel Mac. And all I wanted was the documentation, lol.

EDIT: UPDATE 0.2b Alright, this new update adds volume control. Lets' test this, and get it up into the repo!
You can download it from the same link I gave earlier in this post.

EDIT: VIDEO UPLOADED I don't know if this kind of Application requires a video, but here ya go anyway... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5elh7ZgLv4

UPDATE 0.3b Get it form Installer now.
Version 0.3 includes

• an improved volume control, although I am still unhappy with it.
• a self dimming screen.
• I reversed the previous/next track swipes, so that it is in line with Photos, etc. Onve I thought about it, it only made sense.

EDIT: VIDEO UPLOADED This is a preview of the forth coming 1.0b.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTnmXkmWJZ0

UPDATE 1.0b Here you go, there are a lot of tweaks within the code, proving heer's more than one way to chase a mouse! I've also added in live updating track Information. And of course, the stunning GUI! Enjoy, Skylar.

EDIT: VIDEO UPLOADED This is a preview of the 1.1 version. Let's hype it up!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xy9eAvImNcY&fmt=18

UPDATE 1.1 Lots of new features, including the shaker, a smooth dimmer, and IMPROVED memory management. the app is also much more lightweight on processor. You probably won't notice those last two, but I did. They were the main reasons for making 1.1.

UPDATE 1.2 Update includes a more Apple like UI, as I took interface inspiration from Weather.app and MobileMediaPlayer.app as well as a corrected "About" popup. I've also fixed the speling mistakes in the "Help" file. Get it while you can!

EDIT: VIDEO UPLOADED This is a preview of the 1.3 version, made to show off the daemon. Spread it!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfrJhHR__fY&fmt=18

UPDATE 1.3 Update includes even more settings, as well as the ability to use the shake feature outside of the app, through the PTShaker daemon. Unfortunately, due to a packaging error, the daemon installs to the incorrect place. If you have it installed and don't want to wait for an update, please move /usr/bin/ptshaker to /usr/local/bin/ptshaker This update is available through the BigBoss Community Source.

UPDATE 1.4

• Completely reworked volume controller. This answers a long time request for more constant volume control while eliminating an anti-deafening safety net I had in place in all previous versions. Incidently, this method uses much less math, resulting for a more snappier feel to the change. And while I was at it, I fixed the "bug" (read:laziness on my part) where you had to lift your finger completely off of the screen before changing swipe direction.
• I have added in Localization support for several languages:
  1. Chinese (Simplified and Traditional)
  2. Dutch
  3. English
  4. French
  5. Italian
  6. Japanese
  7. Polish
  8. Spanish
  9. Swedish
• I have also improved performance by ~400%, thus prolonging battery life.

UPDATE 1.4.1 Fixes the bug where the app wouldn't work. I literally just had one decimal in the wrong spot. Literally 0.2 instead of 0.02. My bad.

UPDATE 1.4.1 Special Edition 1.4.1 SE shows what the app can do with just a little bit more attention spent on aesthetics. Aside from that, there are no changes. I also did not upgrade the language files. I will release an upgrade pack for the languages soon.

UPDATE 2.0 Initial release for iPhoneOS 2.0. Completely recoded from scratch and remade ultra efficient. Settings now available through Preferences.app.

UPDATE 2.1 What started out as a 0.0.1 update turned out to be an entire .1 upgrade, as I couldn't stop fixing problems. Download from post 2315. Update fixes several bugs and noticeably increases performance. Also, you no longer have to open the app twice to load its settings. Awesome!

UPDATE 2.1.1 Update 2.1.1 includes a cleaner and more organised preference pane. with the introduction of two new options.

• Randomize Shaker - Decide whether you want the shaer to play a random song or the next song in your playlist
• Random Transitions - Decide whether you want track info to transition with their default fade, or with any one of 16 variations of popular transitions.

I have made the track controls cyclical. Meaning that swiping next while on the last track in your current palylist will start the playlist over. Likewise, swiping previous track while on the first track of your playlist will skip to the end of your current playlist. the effect is a fluid, cyclical flow of music. Also, the Animations have been fine tuned by me.

UPDATE 2.2 Update 2.2 includes a reworked touch engine that allowed me to fix the "Enable Taps" bug. It also will let you choose whether pause works via single or double taps. Version 2.2. also has a Color Chooser that lets you change PocketTouch's color suit your mood/taste/style/whim/sports team/etc.

UPDATE 2.3 Update 2.3 includes include a Preferences overhaul with a few new features, and mountain of polish applied. This is the PocketTouch I should have released as 2.0. Features include:

• PocketTouch will now advise you to start your music if it is not playing when you open the application.
• The bug where colors aren't always applied has been corrected.
• The Color Chooser now supports themes, for easier customization.
• You can now launch PocketTouch directly from Settings to test any changes you made.
• You can now open Safari directly from Settings to make donating to the developer easier than ever.
• Memory improvement consistent with reducing the cpu instruction set from ARM's full 32 bit instruction set to a 16 bit set. This is important as more applications crop up that need to run in the background. PocketTouch leaves as much memory free as possible.

Update 3.0

1. Theming
   • You can now specify if you want a background image for use within PocketTouch. <i>Add your images to /User/Library/PocketTouch/Images
   • New color options include system patterns, such as PinStripes, Match Thatch, and Weather Thatch.
   • Choose to have the time flash to a new color, or pause when the track is paused
2. Pause Improvements
   • PocketTouch now properly detects whether or not a track is paused upon start up
   • PocketTouch detects when you remove the headphones and reacts accordingly
   • Locking the device while the track is paused no longer causes PocketTouch to crash upon unlocking the device
3. PocketTouch Framework
   • PocketTouch has been rewritten to access a framework. This allows for more expandability, as well as PocketTouch functions within other applications.

UPDATE 3.0.1 Bug fixes.

UPDATE 3.0.1.1 Low level accelerometer work around to temporarily avoid crashes until a fix can be determined.

UPDATE 3.0.2

• Accelerometer fixed--low level workaround discarded. Dimmer issues resolved.
• New settings added:
  • Set the Shaker depth and timing to suit your comfort.
  • Formerly hidden "Disable auto lock timer" feature has been revealed and added to the standard settings lineup.

[eng]

sounds like a good app, itl certainly make switching through music easier in peoples pockets

[FregoS]

Nice! This is just what i wanted! You should also dim the screen brightness. Just what i needed wheb i go biking in the summer time! I'll dl when i get out of the restroom ;p

[SkylarEC]

Originally Posted by FregoS

Nice! This is just what i wanted! You should also dim the screen brightness. Just what i needed wheb i go biking in the summer time! I'll dl when i get out of the restroom ;p

I'm not going to dim the screen brightness. I could VERY easily add that feature, but since so many people forget to setuid then chown installer to root, they'd keep getting their settings messed up every time they used the app. Plus, you'd want some hint as to whether or not the iPod is on when it is just sitting there on the counter.

[Steaps]

Amazing, i'll try this later. P.S. Thanks for reminding me to charge my touch.

[bard1290]

This is awesome! This will be very handy when running or working out. How detrimental will this be to battery life? Will it be just like running an applictation all the time? Regardless, thanks a ton Skylar!

[jamil_d]

swiping sideways does NOT work; 1.1.4. -- EDIT -- Does Work Now.

Great App though! Swiping up/down works, as well as tapping

[FregoS]

I think dimming the screen is needed. You should add volume control and brightness control(if not automatic dim). How, you might ask. Brightness control should be on the low end of the screen. Volume control should be up and down

Great app! it works great. Just DL'ed it and it works great!

EDIT: Jamil-d, for me, swiping left and right works. Swiping up and down just pauses the music

[SkylarEC]

Originally Posted by jamil_d

swiping sideways does NOT work; 1.1.4.

Great App though! Swiping up/down works, as well as tapping

Huh? I programmed this on 1.1.4, and that was the first feature I added. I have a request for you.

Open up an SSH client (has to be SSH) and tell me what the output is when you swipe left or right. That way I can help solve the issue.

[FregoS]

Oh, you should also add song info to marquee on the top of the screen!