I was reading through iPod help files, and noticed they have a shuffle mode which will play playlists in a random order. The playlists themselves actually play in the proper order, but when it's done playing a particular playlist, it jumps to another playlist randomly.

Think we could implement this?

You can do that right now pretty easily using playlist properties on the player.

Create a new playlist called "Random by playlist", tag it as "always randomize contents", and then copy all your other playlists into it. It will do exactly what you just said when you play it (with shuffle turned off).

I know that...but why must everything involve making multiple copies of your playlists? It's one thing when you want to do something really technical, like playing a certain amount of songs from each playlist, or making sure you have a "perfect" shuffle.

But I think this would be something that would be rather easy to program.

but why must everything involve making multiple copies of your playlists?

It doesn't make multiple copies of the playlists. When you make a copy in Emplode, it only makes a link to the file, not another copy. So if you modify one playlist, all of its linked copies get modified, too.

Works out rather well for something like this, actually. That's how it was intended to work.

I think he means, why should he have to predict what he might want to do this with, before using the empeg, rather than deciding on the spur of the moment, 100 miles from the nearest emploded computer, that he'd like to shuffle the playlists as described.

That is, it's not the increased disk usage of doing it with emplode that is the problem, it's the design of the player software that doesn't allow you to do this when just sat at the unit.

I think that's the idea, anyway. It does seem reasonably easy, from a layman's point of view, to implement this - some kind of 'only playlist' shuffle option.

Cheers,

A.

I agree w/that he means as you say but on the other hand creating just one playlist with evrything in it & setting as random isn't all that involved & needs only be done once:)
No it doesn't allow for on-the-fly decision but once done it would randomnize every song on the HDD'(s).
I also agree that like a CD player's randomize all discs function, it would seem as well the Empeg could accomplish this. I sometimes experience the 'wish I could do this now, instead of waiting 'til I'm connected to a PC' to change something. Most of the time I'm playing my 'New' or 'Favorites' playlists anyway (which is randomized) & seldom any of my 'genre','moods', 'decade' or artist specific playlists.
Wait a minute if you just selected top playlist and shuffled isn't that the same thing?

If I went Tony's way and copied the playlists into a new folder, wouldn't I have to update that second set of lists every time I add a playlist to the empeg? Sounds like a pain in the butt if you ask me. Would be much easier to click a button and have it automatically work.

Wait a minute if you just selected top playlist and shuffled isn't that the same thing?

Wouldn't this just shuffle all your songs in a random order? What I requested was shuffling the playlists, but playing each playlist in order and in it's entirety before moving to another random playlist.

If I went Tony's way and copied the playlists into a new folder, wouldn't I have to update that second set of lists every time I add a playlist to the empeg?

Ouch, two clicks.

Ouch, two clicks.

Yeah...but that's assuming I'd remember to do it. I wouldn't say I have the greatest memory in the world.