Apollo (A Pandora Radio app for Touchpad)

[Jake_M]

This is Apollo, a third-party Pandora media services client.(see attached pictures)

DOWNLOAD HERE

Now available for the Pre 3!

Developed by Taylor Kimmett and Jake Morrison.

Using 100% of Pandora's API, we used Enyo as a UI and used the exact same functionality. In terms of "features", the only differences is that we have settings in our app, an entire bookmarks manager, and it's a lot more fluid and usable than the Mojo version.

From our App Catalog Description:

Apollo is a third-party client for Pandora Radio.

Features include:

• Creation of new Pandora accounts
• Sign in with existing Pandora accounts
• Creation/Deletion of stations
• Bookmark management (bookmark current/recent song/artist, view/delete bookmarks)
• Like/Dislike of songs
• Skip current song (6 skips/hr/station)
• Viewing of recent tracks for each station
• Create station from current song/artist, recent song/artist, bookmark song/artist
• Put song to sleep for one month
• Links to browse music on Amazon.com
• Sorting of stations by name or date of creation
• Viewing of current song artist biography
• Explanation of why current song is playing
• Dashboard (Notification) controls (like/dislike, pause/play, skip)
• Song progress in dashboard
• Dashboard controllable from lock-screen
• Settings: audio quality, selectable backgrounds, full screen toggle, application timeout, toggle auto-play station on app startup, simple/full exhibition, statistics
• Exhibition mode compatibility

All this paired with an excellent UI which makes use of Enyo 1.0 (sliding panes and other niceties).

**All feedback is highly encouraged, negative or positive. Please review the app and let us know what you think. Remember, constructive criticism will allow us to fix and improve the app in order to provide the best available user experience**

What does this app do that the Mojo phone version doesn't?
-Doesn't randomly pause.
-Has a bookmark manager
-Custom settings
And more!

Video demos:
Apollo for HP Touchpad: v1.2.0 What's New/App Preview

Patches: (NOTE: Patches are not supported by us or Pandora)
Remove skip limit

NON-US USERS:
There is an ongoing discussion in this thread of proxies that will circumvent your IP to be U.S. Refer to this post: Apollo (A Pandora Radio app for Touchpad)
Feel free to discuss but keep in mind that JMTK and especially not Pandora support this. YMMV

For more info, email enyopandora [at] gmail.com
Donations are accepted!:

[BBooDad]

it looks fantastic. I can't wait to try it out!

[R_E]

ooo i wanna try

[k4ever]

I use Pandora a lot and I would be willing to try this

---Sent from my HP TouchPad using Communities (a great webOS app!)

[khazoury]

me too!

[dignitary]

Nice work, but unless you work at Pandora and have legal clearance to use the name "Pandora" as part of your app, I hope you're prepared to change the name before release. Pandora's a publicly-traded company in the U.S. and they'll defend their trademarks and intellectual property with legal force. You legally don't have the right to use the name "Pandora" in your application.

That said, you might be using 100% of Pandora's API, but it's an unauthorized use of their APIs, which means if Pandora at some point (like they did in January) decides to change the API again...everyone you've distributed this app to now has a broken, unofficial Pandora app.

Just my $0.02. If you want to use the Pandora name especially, you'd better be contacting them before just doing it without permission.

[bluenote]

cool.
In to beta test if you need (touchpad, veers, pre).

[Jake_M]

Newest features added in private beta:

• Progress of song in dashboard(with setting to turn off)
• Added Like/Dislike in dashboard
• Added sort by 'Date || Alpha' for radio stations
• Fixes pausing when ~60s left in song(happens in the official phone version, fixed it in ours)

Originally Posted by dignitary

Nice work, but unless you work at Pandora and have legal clearance to use the name "Pandora" as part of your app, I hope you're prepared to change the name before release. Pandora's a publicly-traded company in the U.S. and they'll defend their trademarks and intellectual property with legal force. You legally don't have the right to use the name "Pandora" in your application.

That said, you might be using 100% of Pandora's API, but it's an unauthorized use of their APIs, which means if Pandora at some point (like they did in January) decides to change the API again...everyone you've distributed this app to now has a broken, unofficial Pandora app.

Just my $0.02. If you want to use the Pandora name especially, you'd better be contacting them before just doing it without permission.

I understand, and we probably will end up changing it. We've contacted them multiple times with only one response from a customer service saying they'd forward our email to the proper people. If Pandora doesn't want to take the time to tell us what we can't do, I'm not going to continue to ask them.

That being said, their ToS also states no one can use a reverse engineered API or any unofficial use. However there are MULTIPLE WP7 and Chrome apps available for Pandora, all named differently but use third party(which are still Pandora) or the official version.

We also make a full disclose in our app:

Pandora® is a registered trademark. © 2005-2012 Pandora Media Inc., All Rights Reserved.

We make no claim to owning rights to services provided by Pandora Media Inc.

Pandora and the Music Genome Project are registered trademarks of Pandora Media, Inc.

We most likely will change the name, I will follow up on that process later when it comes time for submission.


Thanks to everyone for comments, much appreciated.
For everyone who wants to beta test, submit feedback, give criticism: email enyopandora [at] gmail.com

[nhavar]

I vote for "Par dona" as the name

[Jake_M]

We are looking for a new icon as well, so that might go well in voting for a name. If people want to create icons(in Photoshop or something) and suggest a new name that goes with that icon, that would be great! We're literally accepting 100% criticism/feedback.

This is an app the Touchpad has been missing, and we want the community to be satisfied with the end result.

[texasflood]

Enyodora or Touchdora for a name, or Touchpadora, Tpadora, hah.
And there of course there is Endora, but that's probably another copyright.

Great feature progress.
Thanks for adding the alpha sort!
And the bluetooth keyboard pause/play button works now which I didn't see mentioned.
Good stuff...
You know, not a comment about the software but I'm listening to a Jimi Hendrix track and the pandora "about artist" section states "no information about the artist is available". Really? Hendrix?

[Jake_M]

Originally Posted by texasflood

Enyodora or Touchdora for a name, or Touchpadora, Tpadora, hah.
And there of course there is Endora, but that's probably another copyright.
Click to view quoted image

Great feature progress.
Thanks for adding the alpha sort!
And the bluetooth keyboard pause/play button works now which I didn't see mentioned.
Good stuff...
You know, not a comment about the software but I'm listening to a Jimi Hendrix track and the pandora "about artist" section states "no information about the artist is available". Really? Hendrix?

Haha I just checked on their page, NOTHIN' about it.

Still looking for more feedback, we're getting lots of emails and we'd love more.

[60RH]

Originally Posted by Jakeeeee

Haha I just checked on their page, NOTHIN' about it.

Still looking for more feedback, we're getting lots of emails and we'd love more.

I tried it few days ago but just got around to post my impressions.
Great looking TP app. I wish it was formating well on the pre2 as well but that is ok as far somebody patches the phone version and make it not to randomly(constantly) pause.

Back on the TP version. It's beautiful
Still there is some learning curve.
At first I didn't figure out why the order of the played artist is backwards to what is in the phone version, but then I figured how the layout is working and the album art gets pushed up and going from left to right makes sense.
Love the dashboard progress indicator.

Have two suggestions:
1. when I want to read the artist info I can do that only when on the song. Even if I select the artist from the history there's no way to bring that info from the context menu - just by from amazon and such. Maybe you can put another info icon there or just add selection to that menu. Not sure how hard is that and if it's too much work using pandora API.
2. this is only if you plan to make it work for the phone. I know it's not formated for the phone and anyway you can't skip more than 6 times per hour or something like this. Anyway I always wondered why they didn't have support for headphones and having next or pause from the standard headphones implemented. This would work even with the current layout for ppl that want their phone in the pocket and not look at it as far as they stay on the same station

Names: Anesidora(webDora) the other name of the goddess. Besides with all the Greek mythology going on with webOS it belongs here
Funny thing is that back in the day Pandora radio used to be called Pandora's Box.
And when Pandora opened up the box she left in only HOPE
This is what webOS hangs on

[Jake_M]

Originally Posted by BoRn

I tried it few days ago but just got around to post my impressions.
Great looking TP app. I wish it was formating well on the pre2 as well but that is ok as far somebody patches the phone version and make it not to randomly(constantly) pause.

Back on the TP version. It's beautiful
Still there is some learning curve.
At first I didn't figure out why the order of the played artist is backwards to what is in the phone version, but then I figured how the layout is working and the album art gets pushed up and going from left to right makes sense.
Love the dashboard progress indicator.

Have two suggestions:
1. when I want to read the artist info I can do that only when on the song. Even if I select the artist from the history there's no way to bring that info from the context menu - just by from amazon and such. Maybe you can put another info icon there or just add selection to that menu. Not sure how hard is that and if it's too much work using pandora API.
2. this is only if you plan to make it work for the phone. I know it's not formated for the phone and anyway you can't skip more than 6 times per hour or something like this. Anyway I always wondered why they didn't have support for headphones and having next or pause from the standard headphones implemented. This would work even with the current layout for ppl that want their phone in the pocket and not look at it as far as they stay on the same station

Thanks! I don't think we're going to be having time to format it for phones haha. Maybe though.

The reason we made the history album arts fade is so you see so you can tell the order and it kind of looks nice.

1. We kind of decided against previous songs info, despite it being available in the phone app. It is possible but then we're fluffing the UI and features. May come later if there's higher demand but the logic behind it is, "do people really need to see previous information?"

2. Not sure I understand that

[60RH]

Originally Posted by Jakeeeee

Thanks! I don't think we're going to be having time to format it for phones haha. Maybe though.

The reason we made the history album arts fade is so you see so you can tell the order and it kind of looks nice.

1. We kind of decided against previous songs info, despite it being available in the phone app. It is possible but then we're fluffing the UI and features. May come later if there's higher demand but the logic behind it is, "do people really need to see previous information?"

2. Not sure I understand that

Like the standard music player or the remix one you can advance the song or pause using the headset that comes with the phone using the button. Short click - pause. Double click - next.
Hope I made myself clear this time

[Jake_M]

Originally Posted by BoRn

Like the standard music player or the remix one you can advance the song or pause using the headset that comes with the phone using the button. Short click - pause. Double click - next.
Hope I made myself clear this time

Interesting, we got Bluetooth keys to work, don't know why we couldn't figure this out. Will keep you updated.

[matteebee13]

I've been using this for the last 3 days and it's pretty polished. I'd say darn near close to perfect. My original app was pausing randomly on both my TP and my Pre 3. Many hours of play and it has yet to throw a pause at me using this beautiful enyo version. Excellent work and very smooth. Where's the donate button so I can buy you a beer?

[Jake_M]

Originally Posted by matteebee13

I've been using this for the last 3 days and it's pretty polished. I'd say darn near close to perfect. My original app was pausing randomly on both my TP and my Pre 3. Many hours of play and it has yet to throw a pause at me using this beautiful enyo version. Excellent work and very smooth. Where's the donate button so I can buy you a beer?

Quick question regarding that. When you have many hours of play, it doesn't pause at any point? Do you turn your screen on periodically or leave it off?

And link to donate is here, I appreciate your enthusiasm and just hope you can kind of spread the word. Feedback is crucial!

Any other feedback? What does it need? Not need?

[khazoury]

looks beautiful!

[Jake_M]

Originally Posted by khazoury

looks beautiful!

Thanks!