With version 2 upcoming (including our then new logo), it would be great if we could get some (press) coverage and maybe gain some new users along the way
It’d be great if we could draw up a list of media (both big and small, digital native and traditional) that we might reach out to.
@tonytamsf from what I remember you seemed to have an interest in this a bit. Would you be happy to join in this effort?
Here’s a list of potential media. Please feel free to add your own! (It’s a wiki, so you should be able to edit via the button on the bottom-right of this post.)
Sendegate (forum targeted more at podcasters, not users - we could highlight chapter image support and details on how to integrate them) h/t @ByteHamster
You might consider reaching out to the lads at Late Night Linux. Whilst they are Linux focused, they often discuss Android and regularly promote using F-Droid.
Thanks @Matth78 and @tenkara_vt for your suggestions. I’ve added them.
Except Xda-Developers, as I wasn’t sue yet whether we should send in a content suggestion or rather post it in the Apps & Games forum section. Anyone has experience or a feeling for what may be wisest, either just as an Xda reader, Xda forum member or general human being?
I am not really sure about sending a content suggestion because after reading what you are not supposed to do it say to not ask for a review. I think we are asking to promote a major version update but maybe it’s too close to asking for a review? Maybe we could point out we are not sure if it’s ok to ask but we feel it’s more about an “original development work” than a review which would respect rules about suggesting content.
About Apps & games I won’t post in it since we already have a user forum. I think thread for apps are supposed to be a way to get feedback for free app.
A couple of thoughts. I used to be fairly active on XDA, though that has pretty much slowed down to only checking a couple of times a month. There isn’t a real privacy focused ROM for my current phone, so I’ve it rooted and that’s it.
Personally, I’ve found very little useful in the apps and games section. It often becomes just people complaining and devs answering questions that are better answered elsewhere. Maybe that’s because I’m very picky about what I install on my phone or because I’m old and don’t care about the same things as younger people.
To the point that @Matth78 makes. One thought is that you could have two different press releases. That way you could send something to the content section of XDA without violating the requirements for posting there. Then in other locations you could still ask for reviews where it seems acceptable.
I’m so sorry this thread got closed - I hope we didn’t miss out on any of your brilliant thoughts in the meantime
As you may know, we have picked and released our new app icon. Version 2.0.0 has been sent to and accepted by Google. It’s a staged roll-out, so not everyone will get it at the same time. But hopefully we’ll all get to benefit. As soon as roll-out is (close to) 100%, we should send out the communication.
It’s time, therefore, to start drafting the texts. I would love to get help from you all. I was thinking of setting up a shared doc (a pad maybe, as it’s Google-free?) so we can all contribute. @tenkara_vt I’d love to get your help also with a check as a native speaker.
At this point (I’ll create the shared doc tonight): any ideas on what we should highlight/can focus on in the text?
I’ve created a Pad in which you can all contribute. For the moment I’ve just added my ideas for the rough content of the message. Feel free to add your ideas or contribute actual text. Your comments here on the forum are also most welcome, of course
Rather busy at my end as well. I wanted to start writing the press release over the weekend, but then realised I wanted to have more info to be able to say something interesting. So I ended up working yesterday and today with ByteHamster to prepare a full list of (interesting) changes in v2 (vis-à-vis version 1.8.1). The result you can see below behind the button/link.
Full list of changes
special mention: new app logo & icon #4441
NEW
option to export favourites to HTML file #4106
ask user if they prefer streaming to download, when streaming a lot #4121
feed settings to reduce its volume (none/light/heavy), skip its episodes’ intro and ending #3975#3248
include modern security provider (Conscrypt) to fix SSL issues on older Android versions [F-Droid] #4077
app shortcuts to directly refresh, or go to episodes, subscriptions or queue #3748
notification when episodes have been auto-downloaded #3839
‘special thanks’ screen to credit individuals for contributions other than code or translations #4386
option to preview episodes when adding new podcasts #4177#4039#3882
possibility to export latest crash log #3886
support for chapter images (only for new episodes) #3838
statistics screen to show storage size of episodes on device #3523
support for “Subscribe on Android” links on websites #3739
GENERAL IMPROVEMENTS
more fail-safe adding of feeds #4301
support for feeds that don’t specify episode duration #4162
theme switching by keeping settings opened #4125
support for RTL languages #4097#4020#4046 and other localisation improvements #4096#4088#4047#4032
updated player screen: cleaner screen, sharper buttons, improved display of cover image & episode information, wider seek bar for easier scrolling #3856#3857
cleaner sleep timer dialogs #4174#3811
indicate with open circle in player screen tabs when there are no chapters #3817
improved import/export settings screen #3794
consistently use the term ‘podcast’ instead of ‘feed’ #3763
add summary for each of the categories on the main settings screen #3745
FIXES
issues with time stamp links in show notes #4286#4023#3825
app unusable after removing SD card storage #4270
don’t always pass on correct useragent to server #4272#4008#3931
database import not working or causing a crash in some cases #4269#3832#3831
played/unplayed state in downloads not updated while playing podcast #4250
service notification intendedly persistent #4199 and tapping loads wrong screen #4197
issues with searching & subscribing to podcasts #4179, #4147, #4110#4024
issues with gpodder sync #4100#3970
embedded episode images not being used #4059
player sometimes not updating #3966
sidebar menu sometimes highlighting wrong item #3958
“confirm” text not visible when entering private feed credential 3948
default sort order not selected for newly added podcasts #3926
error in download log not always showing podcast title #3921
multi select crops long episode titles #3920
app crashes when trying to resume streaming after a while #3881
changing default playback speed while playing podcast does not work correctly #3819
seeking not possible in edge cases with variable bitrate #3782
So, next step is picking the most interesting things and drafting the press release. Roll-out of 2.0.1 was started Sunday morning, so I guess it’ll soon reach 100%. At that point new installs will also be that latest version, so that’s the time to send out the press release.
Thanks for following up everybody until now. I’ll continue with the press release tomorrow evening. Let’s wrap up this major milestone this week!
Allright - it’s finally here. My proposal for the press release. @tenkara_vt@ByteHamster and others: your critical reviews are most welcome!
Free Android podcasting app AntennaPod launches major new version
Version 2 of AntennaPod has been released today on Google Play and F-Droid. The release is a major milestone for the popular free and Open Source podcast manager for Android. Over 20 volunteers from across the world collaborated on this version. The app has been given a fresh new brand selected through a unique public vote, brings a big update of the user interface throughout, and contains many new features and improvements under the hood.
Lead developer ByteHamster: “With a total of 511 commits, this release is probably the biggest update since the initial release of the app. I’m proud of this new version: the new app icon and many new functionalities were worth the wait.”
The new feature set includes ‘app shortcuts’, allowing users to directly go to their queue or episodes list from their home screen and new per-podcast settings to adjust the podcast’s volume and to skip intros and outros of its episodes. Also a new option has been added to preview episodes before subscribing to a podcast.
Other notable improvements include enhanced audio-description of the interface, benefiting visually impaired to navigate around the app. And AntennaPod is now fully available in 17 languages, with many more partially supported. A full list of new features, improvements and bug fixes is available on the project website.
Possibly the biggest user-facing change is the project’s new branding, including the new app icon. After a call in the Open Source Design community the team received 12 proposals, of which two were selected and put to a public vote.
Keunes, coordinating communication and translations: “We’ve seen an incredible interest and response. Well over 6,000 of our users voted for their favourite proposal and left comments on the designs. All votes and open comments were analysed and used in an intense iteration process. A unique process to get a new brand. Even in the Open Source community.”
The chosen brand is from the hand of designer 221 Pixels. The new app icon and branding feature prominently in the latest release. A remake of the project’s website, based on the new brand, is in the making. The app itself will soon get support for podcastindex.org, a new database from the hand of ‘Podfather’ Adam Curry.
Maybe you can make the edits here on the RiseUp Pad. Then we can more easily continue from there with more edits from others, without having to merge changes or repost a lot.