Official Apple Ipod Remote support?

[peanutismint]

Hi guys, first post, very new to RockBox but seeing its potential.  

I've read that it doesn't support the new style Apple remote with FM tuner, but surely there's support for the original remote?  I'm talking about this one:



I'm finding it a surprisingly big drawback not being able to use this, so if the answer is in fact NO, it's not compatible, not even by plugin or other workaround, then is there any chance it will ever be made compatible?  Is there any way to write a control script for RockBox?  Or does it not have access to that part of the iPod?

[Llorean]

Basicallly: It's not supported. In theory there is absolutely no reason why Rockbox can't support it, except that nobody who owns one has done the necessary experimentation and programming to make it so.

[peanutismint]

I own one! But then I'm a total noob when it comes to this kind of stuff.  Anything at all I can do to help?

[Llorean]

Yes and no.

If you're willing to put a lot of time into it, there's documentation in the iPodLinux wiki regarding what's known about the Apple accessory protocol, and about the serial port on older iPods. You'd have to read that (and be able to understand that, which might take other reading elsewhere), then either know C, or learn C, and begin working on implementing a driver, or in the case of newer iPods, trying to figure out how to communicate with the remote so that you can begin to implement a driver.

Far from a simple process.

That being said, several of our developers have wanted a new feature badly enough that they started to learn programming just for that feature, so it's by no means beyond someone's means, as we've had several non-programmers step into active Rockbox development because they had an itch they needed so badly to scratch.

One place to start, if you do so desire, is to go to the IRC channel, and see if anyone in there has any specific advice to give you.

[peanutismint]

Okay, thanks a lot, will take it into consideration... Although I can't help thinking, if it was a problem for a large enough number of people, it might have been solved by now....  Maybe I'll learn C!

[Llorean]

Well, "a problem for a large number of people" doesn't mean much. There's no guarantee that any of those people will step forward and do something about it.

And if you mean "if it were a problem for a large enough number of people" in reference to one of the existing programmers doing it, usually they concentrate on what scratches their itches too. There seems to be a common assumption that the people working on Rockbox think of it or treat it like a product, trying to make the most people happy.

Every single one of them has some sort of itch they scratched while joining the project. Once they did that, they went on to other interests, sometimes not related to Rockbox at all, but just because they helped out never really means they're now going to start taking votes for where their time goes.

[AlexP]

Unfortunately for you, the correlation between people owning an iPod and being able to program is not high.

Lots of users owning iPod != lots of developers owning iPods

[peanutismint]

Are you giving two contradicting statements there?  I don't understand.  Because yeah, the iPod is the most 'computer-illiterate' MP3 player out there if you like, but it's also the most widely-used, and is therefore the most likely to be in the hands of people who do know how to program, right?

[Febs]

Are you giving two contradicting statements there?  I don't understand.  Because yeah, the iPod is the most 'computer-illiterate' MP3 player out there if you like, but it's also the most widely-used, and is therefore the most likely to be in the hands of people who do know how to program, right?

Our experience here says otherwise.

[AlexP]

but it's also the most widely-used, and is therefore the most likely to be in the hands of people who do know how to program, right?

Wrong.

[GodEater]

it's also the most widely-used, and is therefore the most likely to be in the hands of people who do know how to program, right?

It's the most widely used because it's the most heavily advertised, and most people who buy one either buy it because "everyone else has an ipod", or because they can't be bothered to do any research on what the alternatives are. People who both use and develop rockbox are exactly the sort of people who DO look for alternatives because the iPod doesn't meet their music playing needs.

[peanutismint]

Yeah okay, I think I understand now.  So iPod users are sheep, zombies, slaves to a giant 'cool' corporation being whipped with white headphone leads, etc etc?  Sorry to insult all the true audiophiles

I'm using an iPod because it was free, a handmedown from a rich and generous friend, and even though I'm a die hard MiniDisc fanboy at heart, I like the iPod.  It's very easy to use, and it gets the job done.  And as I'm owning my first iPod in 2007, I think it safe to say that the black-silhouette sirensong doesn't necessarily work on everybody.  I think we may have unearthed a bigger problem here, people...

Like RockBox because it's a great idea with some brilliant minds (such as the ones on this very board) behind it, not because it's l33t.  Not owning an iPod doesn't make you better than the masses.  

Think Different

[AlexP]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with iPods, but the fact remains that for a lot of the type of people who are minded to write replacement firmwares want more hardware than the iPod delivers.

[peanutismint]

Yeah, you're right.  Thanks for the advice.

[Llorean]

In the case of "People currently programming for Rockbox" almost every single iPod owner is a Rockbox developer who has worked on other hardware, and eventually acquired an iPod for one reason or another (test code better, work on some specific problem that really interested him, etc). But I think we've had very, very few (I can't think of any specific ones) developers who came in with the iPod Port and have kept developing Rockbox.

Because of that, for few developers are the iPods their primary player. And few are used to using the iPod remote (I doubt anyone own one). When you look at that, it's unlikely that the iPod remote will be an itch for them. When you add to the fact that the iPod port's got plenty of other unique hangups (battery life, getting dual core working, getting USB working, better interface responsiveness), most of those hangups are going to be a lot higher priority (since all of them affect all iPod users, rather than just a small group that bought an accessory) it's not really a huge surprise that it's not yet supported.

It basically requires someone who both owns one, and feels it's the best use of their time for one reason or another.