Ping! What would it take to get you to use it?

[tigres]

What's Ping?
I have ping golf clubs.

 

[Blue Velvet]

if you're buying or listening to music aren't you going to have iTunes open already?

When I'm at my desk, usually only as this little fellow:

Not in the slightest interested in Ping or much else in iTunes apart from managing and listening to tunes. I'd even pay a little money for more features like full FLAC support and other video formats, options for on the fly encoding etc. rather than fewer store-front features.

 

[Jaffa Cake]

I'm still on iTunes 9, which probably not only makes me a contemptible Luddite but it also means I've not been anywhere near this Ping thing.

So far I'm coping without it.

 

[roadbloc]

I'd use it if I was paid to do so. Otherwise it's an annoyance.

 

[v5point0]

I have iTunes open 99% of the time I'm using my computer, playing music while I work. With the iTunes sidebar I can comment on songs, like songs, etc.. while I'm using iTunes. If I'm using iTunes and I hear/buy a song and want to share it, that's the appropriate place to do so. I'm already in the desktop app, so why should I have to goto the web to do what's right in front of me?

iTunes should be the publisher, sending the information I enter to FB/Twitter. That exposes it to the world, where my FB friends can comment (or even better, play the song preview on FB, buy, like, etc..). All that information (again, if Ping/FB integrate with each other) would then be dumped back to Ping so if I'm on iTunes I can see what my friends said or bought, or if I'm on FB I can see the same information.

Basically the information exchange should be two-way, so if I'm in iTunes on Ping or on FB I see the same songs, comments, likes, etc... If I'm on FB and want to buy a song, iTunes is going to have to open anyway, so at that point the discussion is moot.

You're right though about Ping/iTunes being slow... perhaps iTunes Preview will expand to allow Ping integration (if it doesn't already) and give you a quick web interface for when iTunes isn't open... but if you're buying or listening to music aren't you going to have iTunes open already?

Not everyone uses iTunes 24/7, some prefer streaming music from web based alternatives such as Pandora.

iTunes for me is a place where my music is stored, organized and synced. Once in a while it does assume the role of an entertainment app but only with new content or when am hosting a party.

Online streaming is the platform for my music discovery and daily entertainment.

 

[mox358]

Not everyone uses iTunes 24/7, some prefer streaming music from web based alternatives such as Pandora.

iTunes for me is a place where my music is stored, organized and synced. Once in a while it does assume the role of an entertainment app but only with new content or when am hosting a party.

Online streaming is the platform for my music discovery and daily entertainment.

And that's a fair argument. That's the situation for a lot of people. Which is the largest reason Ping is having problems - there's just not enough people using it. If someone doesn't use iTunes (or now Twitter) they're excluded. That's why I say Ping NEEDS Facebook. They need a platform to get people who aren't on iTunes all the time. Facebook integration gets them out to a lot of people quickly. Link your iTunes account to FB once and then do everything through iTunes Preview.

Or Maybe Ping makes more sense as a Facebook app than it's own unique social network? Just throwing it out there. I'm no Ping apologist... it's definitely not working as is.

 

[richpjr]

IMO, Ping is the only thing put out by Apple that is worse than MobileMe.

 

[jmann]

There is integration with iTunes on iOS, but are you seriously going to be checking into it when it is unbearably slow. iTunes on the desktop is already slower then browsing on the web, how do you think iTunes iOS will fair?

Yeah but I never see that when interacting with my music. Only when i purchase music but that's not often.

 

[whathesaid]

I had a go with ping over the weekend, now that it's linked up to twitter I find it useful, but before that I didn't see any point in using it. I think that apple are going to have to improve it immensly for me to continue using it, especially integration with other social networks. I can imagine that if it had facebook integration it would attract plenty more people.....and artists.

 

[fishcake]

I'm happily in the luddite camp too, I feel no need to provide my personal details to any corporation so they can make more money and provide me with the opportunity to receive more spam!

I tried itunes 10 briefly, but it didn't seem to be able to cope with the fact that my music files are kept on a central NAS so I downgraded to version 9 again, I'd much rather Apple rewrote itunes than bolted on things like ping.

I'm also a little peeved that my 1st gen Touch has been deemed redundant by Apple with the upgrade to iOS 4.x, it works perfectly well, but if they want to start locking me out of the app store then I'm happy to keep my money.

 

[SkyBell]

I'm not...really sure what it is. As far as I can tell, I can press a like button on a song that's playing. And that's it?

 

[anim8or]

I am coming to the conclusion that Ping! is most likely aimed at music junkies.... which i am not...

Yes i love music and its a big part of my life, offers a lot of inspiration for my work, but i just don't live a 'music' lifestyle where all my friends and i talk about, live and breathe is music.

I find it starnge that Apple has gone the music only route with Ping! as to me the goal of iTunes over the past few years has been as a MEDIA centre application....?

Thoughts....

 

[saltyzoo]

What would it take for me to use it?

Some sort of benefit or feature that enhances or improves my computing / listening experience. So far, I've seen nothing that fits this criteria.