X30H, Netfront, & Streaming Media

oldgoat · 06-11-06, 09:08 PM

I have been trying to listen to streaming audio on my X30H for months. My goal is to use my X30H to feed streaming audio to an old stereo in my garage & shop where the radio reception is really bad ... I would also like to play audio files from my desktop HD via Wi-Fi.

Problem: I kept running into Javascript buttons being use to call up the streaming files. PIE couldn't handle the script so I was stopped dead.

I finally had some time tonight & bought & installed Netfront. Now I get to the "listen" script buttons, click, & they work BUT: instead of opening the RAM or PHP file with the correct player, Netfront wants to save the file to my device!?

After saving, I tried to dbl click the file & got "no program is associated with file type... start the program & then open the file" ... OK, I tried to open a php file in Pocket Media Player but it can't see the file on my device & therefore can't be opened .... So, STILL no music or news.

What am I doing wrong? (FYI - I am using the NPR.org site & their streaming news files to test this)

Thanks,
Barry

Womblin'free · 06-12-06, 12:42 PM

Hi there. Personally I use Pocketmusic and map my central MP3 music folder to a network drive, there is no encoder running on the server at all. Simply connect to your network, head to the mapped folder (I have no real slowdown while navigating around a folder that's about 35-40 gigs in size beyond a 30 second or so inital listing).

Not noticed any flakiness at all, and the playlist control is entirely on the PDA side. I looked at the encoder setup guide on Dave's PDA place and it makes no sense to me. If the tools are in place and already work, why bother streaming? Like you, I also use the PDA in the garage, it's plugged into a set of active speakers and nicely covers the swearing when I break spanners

oldgoat · 06-12-06, 06:11 PM

Thanks, Womblin'free!

Pocketmusic is great - I looked it up, downloaded, and installed & was streaming songs from my desktop immediately!! I noticed they mention in the "bundle" version that HTTP streaming is supported ... mp3 & OGG formats, I believe. I wrote them about a couple of my fav online stations & we will see if they are broadcasted in supported formats.

Thanks again!!
Barry

Gigi · 06-12-06, 06:32 PM

That's great that PocketMusic works for you guys, but it's also possible to use TCPMP (freeware) to access Shoutcast stations.

Womblin'free · 06-12-06, 06:40 PM

Must admit I've not tried using TCPMP as a music player, as such. Suffice to say it gets well used for video though

Thanks for the shoutcast tip, could be useful for backup music in hotspots.

oldgoat · 06-12-06, 11:17 PM

Thanks Gigi. I've loaded it, but am new to the shoutcast format. I looked up a couple tutorials & will check them out.

Given the new direction here; I am wondering about POD Cast files... what format are they & can either of these apps play those files on my PPC from my desktop HD? I don't have enough storage on my PPC to house them.

Thanks,
Barry

Gigi · 06-13-06, 08:50 AM

There's info on podcasting here:

http://www.aximsite.com/whatcanidowi...php#Podcasting

Although the podcast apps involve transferring the actual podcasts to your PPC, I think it should be possible to stream them. If you look at the front page and download the Mobility Site podcast, you'll see that is it is in mp3 format. That can definitely be streamed from your desktop.

oldgoat · 06-14-06, 11:07 AM

The Shoutcasts work wonderfully.

I have a question on TCPMP playlists. I have "saved" a playlist three or 4 times. They aren't there when I go back. Is this possibly a disabled function of the software? It was listed as freeware. Is there a default directory? I am saving & then looking for a PLS file ... but can't find one. I have tried a few copies of version 71 & 72.

Thanks,
Barry

Gigi · 06-14-06, 12:41 PM

I don't use TCPMP playlists, so I really can't answer your question about that. However, I don't think the function has been "disabled" since there it's always been freeware.

When I have PLS not associated with TCPMP, the file is downloaded into My Documents by default (instead of opening up automatically and playing) You might want to check there first. If you want to look for a PLS file, just do a search for files with a .PLS extension. (BTW, the default File Explorer has no search funciton; use Total Commander (freeware) or Resco Explorer.)

BTW, this has become more than just an X30 thread so I'll move this to Multimedia so others can use this info as well.

MobileSmith · 06-14-06, 02:08 PM

TCPMP and MortPlayer both say they offer "podcast support". You may be able to stream podcasts with those programs directly.

FeederReader (a podcatching client for the Pocket PC) also has a streaming mode where it allows you download a podcast feed, list all the episodes, and tap on one to stream it using a streaming-capable player. Support for this depends on the ability of your media player to actually stream the file, but it works with MortPlayer.

This is not the default setting of FeederReader so if you need help setting it up this way, I'm at the FeederReader Forums.

Greg Smith
Author, FeederReader - Pocket PC *direct* RSS text, audio, video, podcasts
www.FeederReader.com - Download on the Road

User Name		Remember Me?
Password

Multimedia - Talk/Review Multimedia Apps for Dell's Axim. Mp3/DivX