Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Trnsmit: They Love Me, They Really Do ∞

I spent about 4 hours constructing the original Trnsmit, which adds iTunes playlists to Rdio. The main problem was demystifying Apple’s proprietary PLIST XML into a usable array and making the user interface blissfully simple. If you don’t love Futura PT, you’re probably a jerk.

And then it turned out that other people actually liked it. And not just any people, but designers and developers for prestigious Web firms. (Search for “trnsmit” on Twitter.)

I went back and added an SQLite backend and a JavaScript-based progress indicator, which allowed it to run simultaneous processes and work indefinitely on monster-sized playlists. Added 50x and 404 error pages. Bumped the file size limit to 4MB, enough for playlists with 2,500 songs.

Rdio plus Trnsmit, it’s a pretty awesome combo.

Bonus: You can use Sirius and XM broadcast playlists by using the “copy and paste a list” link at Trnsmit. Don’t worry about removing the leading numbers, dates, or times; Trnsmit will automatically scrub them.