iTunes is a
great MP3 player. It's based on SoundJam, which was bought by Apple
and recreated as iTunes. Although here was an OS X version of
SoundJam planned, it was only in the alpha stage Apple took over.
It's a shame, because SoundJam had a number of features that iTunes
doesn't have.
Within just a few years, pretty much every MP3 player had become
obsolete, and developers have little incentive to continue
development on Macintosh MP3 player software, since the Mac OS now
ships with iTunes preinstalled.
Then came the iPod and the equally free Windows version of
iTunes. With the popularity of the iPod, many people have now
switched to iTunes on Windows as well. This is bad news for AOL's
Nullsoft WinAmp
software, which was once the most popular MP3 player for Windows.
(After having some serious issues with WinAmp version 3, they
actually ended up reissuing a slightly updated WinAmp 2 as WinAmp
5. This would be a problem enough, but with more and more people
using iTunes, it makes trying to compete almost futile.)
Which is why it isn't much of a surprise to hear that WinAmp -
and the version that they tried developing for the Mac - is going
to be discontinued. While eWeek cites the reason as the
founder of Nullsoft stepping down, if AOL really thought it could
compete in the market, it would have kept WinAmp alive.
On the Mac side, Panic Software recently announced that Audion, one
of SoundJam's early and strong competitors, has been retired.
Now iTunes isn't bad software by any means. In fact, I'm
listening to one of my many, easily accessible 80s playlists in
iTunes as I write this.
Other than the iPod, one reason that iTunes is so popular is
because it's easy to use. I can access my playlists without having
to go through any menus, and all of the songs in my music folder
are displayed. It tells you exactly what song is playing, and all
of the commonly used controls are right there in easy reach.
But when it comes to features, iTunes is lacking when compared
to something like WinAmp, which you can use to can host your own
Internet radio station. But most people aren't going to care, and
they'll take ease of use over many features any day.
The other big contender on the Windows platform is Microsoft's
Windows
Media Player. I know one person who uses it for playing
MP3s, and from looking through it myself, it seems to be quite a
bit like iTunes in terms of the way you access your playlists and
the way it displays the music. However, Microsoft hasn't brought
the same functionality to the Mac version of Windows Media
Player.
Why not? iTunes.
Mac users often use Apple software, even when better
alternatives are available. I'm not saying that Windows Media
Player is better, but it would at least be nice to have a few more
choices. The competition in MP3 player software is becoming
narrower and narrower, and that's disturbing.
Four years ago there were many applications for both platforms.
Today, you basically have four choices - five if you still count
WinAmp. There's Windows Media Player, MusicMatch (PC only),
iTunes, or RealPlayer.
Even Audion, one of the better known Mac MP3 players, is no longer
under development.
While iTunes isn't bad software - as I said, I use it myself -
it would be nice if there really were another solid alternative
that was compatible with the iPod and still being updated for
future OS versions so there's no risk of having to switch MP3
players when you upgrade your OS.
Unfortunately, I have yet to find anything meeting my
requirements for software that's both easy to use, like iTunes, and
offering many features, like WinAmp.
As I see it, Mozilla's Firefox is a "Safari Killer." Now let's
see someone develop an "iTunes Killer." It's all part of what keeps
healthy competition alive.
