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MotionBox 1.2.0 has been released !



Greetings HMN,

I'm happy to announce that MotionBox 1.2.0 has been released !

Here is a short list of what it brings to the table:

1. Complete audio support

MotionBox now supports local and remote audio files.

I've added an output section in the player settings (bottom right corner).
It lets you decide between streaming the audio or the full video.
This improves the performance and the bandwitdh when you only care about the audio.

And since it's a Video Browser you can switch between audio and video seamlessly.

2. SoundCloud backend

To demonstrate the audio support I added the SoundCloud audio backend.
It lets you access and play your SoundCloud tracks.
It also supports people and playlists.

3. Playback speed

In the player settings MotionBox adds a slider to control the playback speed.
It can be useful if you want to listen to a long presentation at 1.5x speed.

4. Native window

On Windows MotionBox now supports a 100% native window.
That makes it compliant with "snapping" and specific shortcuts.

5. Linux support

MotionBox now supports Linux (32 and 64 bit).
The archive I'm providing has been built on Ubuntu 16.10.
Feel free to build it on your own favorite distribution.

I would like to thank miotatsu for his help on that part.

---

As usual I've fixed a bunch of bugs and improved the application with a focus on simplicity.
Check the changelog: http://omega.gg/MotionBox/changes/1.2.0.html.

MotionBox is a distributist software.
It's a Free Software dedicated to sharing.

Get MotionBox: http://omega.gg/MotionBox/get

Support MotionBox: http://omega.gg/MotionBox/support
Jeremiah Goerdt,
You (and the people helping out) are a rockstar. You're making something really cool.

Thanks
Jeroen van Rijn,
A great looking release, Bunjee :D

And thanks for the shout out in the video. I'll let you know how to pronounce my name properly some day ;-)
Allen Webster,
Awesome!!! I'm glad to have proper Linux support now, and everything is working fantastically. Great stuff.
Benjamin Arnaud,
@CaptainKraft: Thank you mate. I'm passionate about this project, but I also care about "concrete use" scenarios. I follow a vision but I'm happy when it crosses the needs of people. So don't hesitate to post your suggestions.

@Kelimion: I realize my english is rusty and having to thank "original" names does not help :D. But that's some deserved credits.

@Mr4thDimention: Really happy about the Linux port. I wish libVLC was included in the archive, but its modular philosophy seems to defeat that perspective. All of this is alpha so don't hesitate to post feedback / requests.

I have an independant temper, but I read HMN quite often. I'm looking forward to interact more with the community.
Abner Coimbre,
Kudos to the community for helping him with the Linux port. I may now watch videos from a centralized location, and it'll be hard to go back to the old way, so I hope this software project continues to prosper!
Neo Ar,
Thanks for the shout-out! I apologize that I never got back to you regarding getting it to build on my system and packaging for arch linux, I got rather distracted with other things. The system of releases you have works great though. One thing not mentioned in the video that is worth pointing out is that MotionBox will show a little button when there is a new version, if you click it it takes you to the downloads page, so it is very convenient to stay up-to-date. Keep up the great work!
Benjamin Arnaud, Edited by Benjamin Arnaud on
@Abner: "Watching videos from a centralized location" is an interesting way to put it. By "centralized location" I suppose you mean accessing video platforms (Youtube, Vimeo...) through a single piece of software. I understand why people could receive it this way - and MotionBox works a lot like that at the moment - but my goal is actually the opposite: accessing and traversing decentralized videos on the Internet. A video browser is a first step towards it, but at one point we need a decentralized standard with a clear distinction between the video data and the track source itself.

@miotatsu: Yes, I moved the "update" button to make sure it's visible - while being discreet - everytime you start the application. It took me several versions to figure this out.
Abner Coimbre,
Yeah I do mean accessing it through a single piece of software. The term is how my friends described MotionBox. I'm glad initiatives like MotionBox, Matrix, and Mastodon are embracing decentralized alternatives and I'm keeping an eye on them. It's on par with the original spirit of the Internet, and I've recently had strong urges to support it.

At the end of the day, however, a good number of these users will have no idea what we're talking about when we state the need for a decentralized standard (at least, I see a glazed look in their eye as they change the subject). That said I hope my words didn't take away from the real reason you're making MotionBox! The principles its built upon are not to be glazed over here in HMN!

-Abner
Benjamin Arnaud,
@Abner: Exactly, that was more of a precision from one developer to another, between you and me :-).

At the end of the day most users are adopting software depending on their "needs" and "trends".
This is a bit sad and it tends to put aside the ethical discussions surrounding software.
Software is hard to build and it's even harder for someone with strong ethical views.
Because he has to work as hard to match expectations *and* without using "unethical shortcuts".

There is also a wide confusion among users (even developers) about the neutrality of software.
The "a hammer is a hammer, that's what you do with it that matters" kind of neutrality.
And that's never the case with software: it always comes with a philosophy attached to it.
As Marshall McLuhan would put it: "the medium is the message".

On a side note I'm also following initiatives like IPFS, Zeronet or BigchainDB.
I see them as promising but I think the real challenge is the transition.

P34C3.