After seeing the 1.8 introduction some are asking if this is “only a UI change.” But UI, the visual representation of information, is not “only”, it is the essence of the thing.
What happens when you “solve” a problem? A simple one: you have 17 apples, Alice gets 3 and Bob gets 4, how many does Charlie get? Or a difficult one: figure the electron’s anomalous magnetic dipole moment from the quantum equations of electrodynamic field theory. Or something really difficult, like figuring which Miles Davis/Thelonious Monk recording would interest me most.
Edward Tufte pointed out that “solving” a problem of course does not create any new information. The fact that “Charlie gets 10 apples” was of course already hidden in the problem definition. “Solving” the problem is really about changing the representation so that the interesting fact becomes visible.
In the more difficult problems, the total information space is of course much larger than the single sentence problem statement. Arguably larger in the Miles Davis problem than in the electron dipole moment problem. But in both cases, the “answer” is in fact hidden within the information space of the problem statement, and “solving” the problem consists of bringing that answer to the surface, making it readily available. Changing the representation.
“Visual representation of information” is in fact the essence of problem solving. It is not “only”.
You will always get Miles Davis. Always. No matter how many times you give it thumbs down. In fact, giving Miles Davis thumbs down only seems encourage more Miles Davis.
Same with the Doobie Brothers. And, oddly, Mungo Jerry.
Functionality is great, but how we feel during the experience is a huge component, particularly of an interface that is designed to connect us to pleasure. Enjoying an interface makes us far more likely to use it beyond the absolute amount required. And for a music app, that means exploration.
For my purposes, I’m looking forward to the UI more than to the new functionality (which also looks cool).
UI and typeface were the biggest problems with the actual version, finally glad they addressed it…then we will see next week which are the other changes. To me it’s more than “only” UI is the key for having a good app vs an average one, like all the other music apps out there