Mp3Xplorer Readme ================= Version: 1.01 Released at: 25.5.2002 Creator: GrMikeD E-mail: GrMikeD@mail.gr Web-site: http://kickme.to/Mp3Xplorer (Here you can always find the most recent version of Mp3Xplorer) Hello dear user! In this Readme file you will find important and interesting information regarding the Mp3Xplorer application. The file is divided into sections according to the information topics. NOTE: This is the first public release of Mp3Xplorer. This means that it is possibly not totally error free and you should be prepared not only to cope with errors, but also to report them to me! These errors are NOT critical for your system (There is no chance to get a formated disk or corrupted windows installation) and have to do with the application performance and functionability. In any case, you use this program at your own risk and I will not be held responsible for any damage of your system. Overview ======== The main purpose of Mp3Xplorer, was is and will be the creation of a very powerful but also very light and simple to use software for the management of mp3 files. It contains in addition a very powerful interface to the Winamp mp3 player. Some possible needs that this program tries to copes with are: - You have a huge archive of mp3 distributed all over your disk and cds and want to know where is what. - You want to categorize your mp3 according to any personal criterium. - You want to search your Mp3 according to any combination of searching criteria like title, artist, category, filename or even bit rate, sample rate and many more. - You want to easily create playlists or reports out of your mp3 collection. - You want to find duplicate files in your mp3 collection. - You want to search your mp3 collection and play them instantly without having to search into deep paths. - You want to play your mp3 instantly using a very powerful Winamp interface. These are just some possible usages of the Mp3Xplorer. I am sure that when you start using the program and become familiar with it, you will find many more. In this case, just send me an e-mail to include them here! Another important characteristic of the program is that when the operating system is configured to be used by many users (like Windows 2000 or Windows XP), the program files are stored in user specific path and therefore, each user has his own settings and data without the risk of conflicting with other user's data. Cost ==== The Mp3Xplorer is freeware. It costs nothing. You can freely use it and distribute it as long as it is not changed and remains in its original setup package. The construction of this program, has taken me several days. In order to continue like this with the same desire, I would appreciate it if you dropped me an e-mail with your comments, bug reports or even requests for improvements. This will help me understand that Mp3Xplorer had a response from the others, was helpful to other people and will make me want to carry on with it. But even if you do not like the program, drop me an e-mail to tell me your reasons. This program is freeware, I do not charge any money for it and the opinion or comment of the user for both bugs and improvements is too valuable for me. Of course if you also insist on contributing with some money (i.e. 5-10 euros), I will not stop you from doing so :-) System requirements =================== The Mp3Xplorer is a light program and does not have any special requirements to run. Only about 2 MB of free disk space and about 16 MB of RAM are needed. This need of course grows as you add mp3s. Mp3Xplorer runs correctly in all the Microsoft Windows platforms (from Windows 95 to Windows 2000 and XP). Because they are used ADO components and enhanced common controls, the DCOM95, MDAC 2.1 and the newest Comctl32 patch must be installed at the host system. Otherwise, an error message will be displayed at program startup or the program will not function correctly. MDAC 2.1 is normally built into Windows and will be built into future versions of Windows, but there is no support in Windows 95, 98 first edition and NT. DCOM95 for Win 95 must be installed in Windows 95 and MDAC 2.1 in the three versions before running the program. They can be downloaded from the following links: DCOM95: http://www.microsoft.com/com/dcom/dcom95/download.asp MDAC 2.1: http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/uda/mdac21/mdac_typ21.asp Comctl32 patch must be installed in windows 95 and NT systems before running Mp3Xplorer. In all the other versions of windows, the library is already up to date. The latest patch can be downloaded from the following link: Comctl32 Patch: http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/ieplatform/ie/comctrlx86.asp NOTE: Alternatively, you can install Microsft Internet Explorer version 5 or later, that includes it. Known Issues ============ I have tried to make the Mp3Xplorer as bugless as possible. In spite of this, this is the first public version of the program and it is possible that it contains some bugs that I couldn’t trace. If you find any bug, please send me a bug report to the e-mail address GrMikeD@mail.gr, stating clearly the situation under which the bug appeared. Some other issues of the program that are under development or under future consideration are: - The Load function of the List files is slow. This is due to complex calculations that are made while it is loaded. - The program integrates pretty well in the shell, but it has not been fully tested yet. - The Winamp playlist interface is still a little bit buggy. - The program runs correctly only in resolutions 800 x 600 or higher. This is likely not to change in the future. - I am planning to integrate a powerful mass id3 editor in the program. All of the above issues are under consideration for improvements in the future versions. Credits ======= Mp3Xplorer was developed with Borland Delphi 6, one of the most powerful RAD enviroments available. For more information go to http://www.borland.com/delphi. The credits for the creation of Mp3Xplorer also go to the following component authors: Author Component name Web site -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Predrag Supurovic Mpeg Audio Tools http://www.dv.co.yu/mpgscript/mpgtools.htm Karsten Bendsen TSortGrid http://www.kogersoftware.com Bradley D. Stowers TdfsEnhListView http://www.delphifreestuff.com Vit Kovalcik TFlatButton http://www.fi.muni.cz/~xkovalc The Mp3Xplorer executable was packed with UPX (The Ultimate Packer for eXecutables) created by Markus F.X.J. Oberhumer & Laszlo Molnar and found at http://upx.sourceforge.net. The setup executable was made with the amazing Inno Setup created by Jordan Russell and found at http://www.jrsoftware.org/isinfo.php. Thanks ====== Thanks to all the people who tolerate me every day like my family and my friends. I also want to thank the beta testers Tutatiw and Kostas who gave me valuable remarks during the beta testing of this program. Dedications =========== This piece of software is dedicated to my very good friend Thisamenis who was the one who inspired me to create it. Messages ======== To Thisamenis: I hope that Mp3Xplorer will make your life easier :-) Have fun! History ======= Version Released at Changes/Improvements Reported by ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1.00 20.5.2002 Initial release - 1.01 25.5.2002 Minor playlist bugfixes - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ GrMikeD (GrMikeD@mail.gr) http://kickme.to/GrMikeD 25.5.2002 Aachen, Germany