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AirPort Express Streaming Audio From Any Program
Foobaz writes "Until now, the only application that can play audio on Apple's AirPort Express has been Apple's own iTunes. But Rogue Amoeba, makers of Audio Hijack, just released Airfoil, a program that lets you redirect anything to your AirPort Express, like streaming audio from mplayer, RealPlayer, or VLC."
No really, don't they ?
Do I need an airfoil hat to use this?
Has anyone used this? Are there any sync issues if running audio from (as an example) VLC from a video file?
Sharpies don't just sniff themselves.
It emits noise after using for ten minutes, unless you purchase the "pro" version
I want to be able to use my computer as an AirTunes sink, not a source. I'm not about to buy an Airport Express, but I'd like to be able to pipe audio from my girlfriend's iBook to my desktop's speakers.
Then yeah, I'd like to be able to do it with DVD Player.app as well as iTunes.
There are no trails. There are no trees out here.
Airfoil looks like a great product,however, I can't quite tell if it is something that Apple will dislike given how proprietary Apple can be.
http://www.busyweather.com/
That will work nice for those who have airport express, but when will other hardware makers put the ability to stream music to a stereo on their routers so the price won't be such a factor?
w00t
Damn... still waiting to be able to stream from launchcast.
... my game of tetris to play music through it too?
How do they accomplish this? Is there any sort of conversion on the fly being done to the audio? Are they piping it through iTunes somehow or implementing this on their own? Does this involve encryption algorithms?
Let's play video games with mailmanZERO
They don't like to share their toys with outsiders.
Don't flame me. I'm an Apple user. So I know what I speak of.
I think I speak for all of us when I say AWESOME!
Kudos to the hackers though..
If you don't know what AltaVista is (was), get off my lawn.
Now I can finaly get away from the monopoly of Apple and use Windows. Oh Wait....
Or is the output the same as plugging a cable into the audio out of the computer?
Syntax error: loose != lose, affect != effect, then!=than
From the site, under "Buy" on the right:
*Before purchase, noise is overlaid on all transmissions longer than 10 minutes.
Where's the windows, linux and freebsd versions?
Why is it that there are each day 3 new mac stories on the frontpage of slashdot, considering that only 3% of all computer users use a mac....
That is dishonest marketing. JustePort has been doing that for quite some time. It's even more dishonest when Rogue Amoeba probably relied on JustePort to write the AirFoil.
please please have someone make apple lossless work on linux so we could have streaming to it using dvd jon's little app
I would like to stream video and sound from my Mac to my home theater system. Does this exist???
Does that include streaming diarrhea?
The next firmware upgrade from Apple will break this; you can count on it.
And also routers that can do this? Its a cool feature that i'd like to have but dont want to switch to macs
Bush and Blair ate my sig!
Time to get rid of that tinfoil hat, and get an Airfoil hat...
mplayer, RealPlayer, or VLC...
Or... Doom3. Wonder how long it will take for the neighbors to call the cops.
Apple hates this sort of openness, or freedom of choice for the user. Look for the next version of iTunes to break this.
If they wanted you to be able to use the device however you want, they would have opened it from the very beginning. Apple only wants you using your computer the way Steve Jobs thinks you should use it, and only for Steve Jobs-Approved purposes.
And thats why (smart) people avoid Apple like the plague. I don't care how pretty it is or how snugly it fits in your anus.
Oh wait, Apple loves OSS because they used BSD code in their OS and are willing to share some sourcecode under a free-ish but not-free license. Of course, MS uses BSD code and has shared source but we hate them, you know, just because slashdotters are stupid shitheads who have no business sitting in front of a computer, let alone calling themselves "experts".
Just turn on the iTunes Music Sharing on your girlfriend's iBook. then start your iTunes and connect to her shared Music and play.
I've been hoping for a while that Tiger would include a more advanced sound control panel that would allow the user to direct sound streams and adjust volumes for any combination of sound inputs, outputs, and for each application. It would also be very nice if they would include a maximum volume damping feature on an application by application basis. This is really something that should be handled by the OS. Unfortunately I have not heard of any of these features making it into any of the Tiger betas. Maybe Longhorn will have it, then Apple can copy them for a change.
using vlc you can stream video over a network. you can even reencode the media on the fly!
I purchased Audio Hijack to rip AAR to my iPod (you know... before the election) It was crashing on my iBook however. Rogue's support was great, we went back and forth with emails of things to try for a few days. The conclusion was me getting a new build that cured the problem. YMMV of course, but I'd buy from them again.
/. rarity)
This is a completely unsolicited endorsement (a
Currently bidding on sig
http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=2004
I've been using this solution for playing DIVX files from my laptop (which is connected to my projector, while the audio is routed to AirPort Express) for some time, and works well, thanks to the author's knowledge, and the power of VLC !
This is totally wrong. No one should EVER modify Apple products without express consent from Apple. We all know that Apple makes the best products out of the box and that no modifications could ever be necessary.
You think you own the product, so you should be able to do what you want with it? Sorry, but no, it's an Apple product and such notions do not apply to Apple products. Unless Steve Jobs gives the go ahead and gives it his blessing.
I would like to be the first to say that this is unethical, immoral, and wrong. Since when could another company profit off of hacking another companies product? Since when did you gain the 'right' to modify or change the operation of something you own, even if it isn't a physical modification?
I, for one, say Apple should sue the crap out of this company like that sued that college kid.
I don't get it... With such a cool device, why would they limit its use to just iTunes? I'm sorry, but I don't like iTunes... I don't like some of the moves Apple's been making with their software locking people into their platform. I'm not interested in buying their overpriced hardware... A simple wifi device to let be broadcast my music wherever? Yeah, I might be interested in that... But it requires iTunes, so there's one more thing that I'm not going to buy from apple.
With a 3rd party hack, I could buy the device, use it how I'd want to, and then ~hope~ they don't start producing versions with firmware that will prevent me from using the device the way I want to. I think I'll just save my money and look for an alternative.
I just want to use the devices in a flexible way. Why do I have to be submitted to all your beurocratic overhead garbage that goes with it?
If I buy a Chevy vehicle, I want it to work with any gasoline that's been refined properly. I don't want to buy Chevy gasoline, or gasoline from an "approved Chevy distributor". Same goes for my music... If I buy something that plays music, I just want it to play my goddamned music... Not music from store A, or through service B.
I honestly didn't think this crap was that hard to grasp. Until things change, Apple ain't seeing a dime from me.
~D
This sig has been enciphered with a one-time pad. It could say almost anything.
Take a look at Nicecast. They claim "One-Click Broadcasting Of Any Audio On OS X"
A VideoLAN and VLC setup could also be the solution. It would be cheaper (as in free), but more work to setup.
...you're completely wrong, and the fact that you'd say this represents a fundamental misunderstanding on your part. "You can count on it."
This doesn't crack or break anything (as, e.g., Hymn does) nor does it circumvent any type of DRM or copy protection, and it uses iTunes on the backend to actually send the music anyway, so no, this won't be broken.
It wasn't apparent on the site that that is the case, so it's good that he informs anyone, who otherwise would have downloaded and tried, that it's just a waste of time if you aren't going to buy it.
supposedly its easy peasy, but i've no idea. And I can't for the life of me get Airfoil to work with mplayer from the commandline.
not worth it
Yes they do.
Now time for the French jokes....
Q: What do you call a Frenchman with 1500 girl friends?
A: A shepherd.
Q: Why don't they have fireworks at Euro Disney?
A: Because every time they shoot them off, the French try to surrender.
Q: What do you call a Frenchman with a sheep under one arm and a goat under the other?
A: A bisexual.
$25 for that? Sorry, not worth it. If I cared, I'd hack my own. Hopefully somebody will do the same. This is basic functionality that should be enabled by default for any app in the OS. I'd consider paying for it if it showed up as an audio driver in the OS. Even then, I might wait until Tiger.
Mac developers need to get over themselves. Not every dipshit program that takes 2 days of coding is worth $25-$15 a pop.
Launchcast has some great ideas going and it's genre selecting features are pretty awesome, but if I can't even use it simply because I'm on a different platform, then it'll get no support from me anymore. It's a shame such a good idea will go to waste.
Exactly why would I want to stream audio from Notepad.exe?!
If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.
This looks like a pretty good solution for AirPort users... but I'm looking for the whole enchilada. I want to be able to set up speakers in every room, then have a remote control that controls everything, from any room, and I want it all to be wireless (because I live in an apartment and can't run wires everywhere). And here's the real kicker: I want to be able to have anything and everything as an input -- FM/AM, CD, MP3, Shoutcast, Sirius, even the audio from the TV, or whatever. I know there are lots of products out there that let you stream your MP3s all over the house, but I want to stream everything. Is there a complete audio solution like this that doesn't cost a million dollars?
As someone else pointed out, you could stream video via LAN with (what else?) Video LAN Client (VLC). It has its bugs, too, but is updated and fixed more frequently than any open-source software I've ever used.
Si la vida me da palo, yo la voy a soportar Si la vida me da palo, yo la voy a espabilar
All the little shit apps for Mac want $10-20. And where are the cool updates? There's pretty much aren't any. I'd rather give my $10 or $20 as a donation to a GPL project that continually improved the product.
Some of the stuff is less complex than a shell script, but has a pretty GUI made with Xcode. Sad.
How bizarre... my brother just asked me about another of their products (Detour) yesterday.
Anyone know if there is an equivalent product for Windows? I know I can reroute audio as a whole under Control Panel, but I haven't seen anything to give this level of per-program control.
For only $39.95 you can have a cross platform (apple, windows, linux, hell anything that has line out for that case) FM transmitter. http://www.hobbytron.com/HI-FI-Stereo-FM-Transmitt er.html
Or find many more here... http://www.google.com/search?q=fm+transmitter ... all cross platform... and all cheap.
Consider yourself disemvoweled...
Those who complain about affect & effect on
Can their lawyers be far behind?
YMMV, but I find many of Apple's recent actions the very antithesis of the 1984 commercial that launched the Macintosh.
"It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
---But it requires iTunes, so there's one more thing that I'm not going to buy from apple.---
You do realize that iTunes is free, and works just fine with all sorts of file formats you can rip from your own cd's or buy elsewhere right? It'll even convert your WMA files to AAC.
---If I buy a Chevy vehicle, I want it to work with any gasoline that's been refined properly. I don't want to buy Chevy gasoline, or gasoline from an "approved Chevy distributor". Same goes for my music... If I buy something that plays music, I just want it to play my goddamned music... Not music from store A, or through service B.----
Sounds pretty much like iTunes fits the bill for you then, as long as you avoid buying music downloads from any seller with proprietary DRM (pretty much everyone selling major label songs for download, Apple included).
--- Until things change, Apple ain't seeing a dime from me.---
You should really stick it to them by downloading it and using it for free then.
I actually absolutely agree. It just seems that Yahoo hasn't put one ounce of development effort into it since they bought it, and it's a bit of a shame, because it did have some promise... the whole idea of being able to rate ( and especially, block ) songs and customize streams is pretty neat. Still, at this point... I have songs in my personal collection ( mostly ripped from CDs I own, honest! ) that I've forgotten about... add iTunes playlist sharing ( allowed and actually used quite a bit at my work )... I almost never listen to shoutcast streams anymore, even though I like them. I "party shuffle" my own music...
I wonder if going to the launchcast feedback page and telling them they're screwing up by not recognizing 10 million potential users in OS X would get them to actually do something...
This is nice, but I have a Linux box that I'd like to stream music to my AirportExpress, from what I hear it's hard to do since the streams need to be in a proprietary apple format.
http://davedash.com/
Get it now,
Don't be late.
All is great,
'Til the next Apple update!
"It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
Apple limits it to iTunes, because they make it. They developed it, and thus they get to choose how its used. If Apple doesn't want other programs but their own to be able to access it, then don't buy it. Wait for some other company to release an AirTunes-equivalent adapter. But Apple doesn't want people to be able to use their devices without using their methods. Yes, there will be 3rd party hacks, and there's not much Apple can do about it.
But if someone buys an AirTunes adapter, they buy something that is limited to work with Apple software. So don't act like it's your right to use it however you want.
I'm suprised nobody has managed to get system sound (all programs) working through AirTunes.
Would be fantastic. I'd love to remotely use my stereo speakers without ugly cables dragged across the room.
The coolest part about Sonos is its ability to synch multiple rooms with the same audio. Anyone know how they're doing this? I would guess Sonos is using some precise clocking chips with a synch signal sent via a dedicated frequency. If Airfoil can't synch audio across multiple rooms then what's the point???
This product finally allows me to stream my Oggs to my Express. Yay!
Hey. In case anybody cares, there really isn't a need for VNC, as long as you're not using Windows 98 on your media server. Or maybe XP Home too. Windows NT-based operating systems (i.e. 2000 & XP Pro) allow you to use Terminal Services as you're doing to get into them. There's a Remote Desktop client available for both Linux and Mac OS X (www.rdesktop.org).
If you're using Linux as your media server, just connect to it using a remote X-Server. It might be a little less intuitive for a Windows user to understand, but you can locally display your programs on your client that are actually running on your server. The client can be Windows, Mac OS X or Linux. On free windows X server can be obtained at www.cygwin.com.
I'm sure you know all this, but this is just in case anyone else is reading your post looking for options.
www.clarke.ca
Am I the only one tired of being harrased by constant media pouring out of every possible faucet? Go outside or something, dang.
...yes without your iPod, Billy.
Does this mean my tinfoil hat will receive signals wirelessly?
I wonder if going to the launchcast feedback page and telling them they're screwing up by not recognizing 10 million potential users in OS X would get them to actually do something...
It might, seeing as how they've got a "new media focus" according to press releases, and they've recently posted job openings for that division.
---I believe the poster meant "the wireless playback unit requires iTunes, so the wireless playback unit is one more thing I'm not going to buy from apple, because I don't like/want iTunes."---
Understood, but his reasons for disliking iTunes were not very accurate.
More importantly, the unit in question, Airport Express, does not require iTunes, it's essentially an 802.11 base station compatible with OSX or Windows. If you do want to stream music over it, you can use iTunes, or as pointed out in the article, Rogue Amoeba's Airfoil program.
Mac only, and $20 bucks?
No thanks.
I wonder if Apple will go after these guys for trying to sell a software hack to one of their products... hmm.
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recently they started working with those Keyspan remotes. you plug the USB cable for the receiver in the Airport Express's USB port and it will control iTunes on the main machine. you can often find a refurb one for $99 if that makes it more affordable.
as for other people making routers with streaming... there are other devices than can get streamed audio (IIRC) but they are not the same type of multi use device that the airport express is (and more $).
"IRC is just multiplayer notepad."
(with thanks to Bash.org)
You mean Airport Express, which you can use as an 802.11 base station with Mac or Windows machines? And that you can use to stream audio from any application using Rogue Amoeba's new program? Doesn't sound real proprietary or locked-in to me.
Why all the fuss? Are there no other hardware products that do the same thing? Have linksys or d-link seriously not caught on? They don't need a proprietary player like iTunes, they simply need a tray icon that you can right click and select application -- something similar to the airfoil interface..
...when they're using cryptographic methods and not giving you the public keys to be able to send the audio to the device yourself?
iTunes had to be hacked to obtain the public keys to be able to send audio to the device. Open protocols can be used to lock devices down too, you know.
- Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set him on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
i'll take source and reporting bugs. this is a one-trick program that's easily replicated
I wish someone would release a software Airport Express basestation.
I have a computer standing next to my stereo; I would like to play music on iTunes on the computer I work on and then stream it to the computer at the stereo.
This way you could have a much better interface to your "media center computer" thna different remote GUI-apps like VNC offers.
Hopefully for version 2 of this software...
It looks like http://www.jackosx.com/ is exactly what I needed!
"We have nothing in common, your attitude annoys me, and your political views are appalling."
Go RTFWPs:
http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/specs.html
mh
As a side note, I don't know why anyone would pay for a radio shark unless the radio they listen to is not streamed online. If it is, Audio Hijack fits the bill for a lot less money.
San Francisco Photographers
What exactly is cheap enough?
if the server/desktop has XP PRO, then use remote desktop connection, and "leave audio on server"
a ntage/ thing is smaller than most flash drives, and does 5.1 optical out, or provide a 2nd headphone jack- I have one on an OLD pc that I upgraded to XP, and XP couldn't use my soundcard (srs?) at all.. it is very CPU intensive, (kinda/exactly like a winmodem does)
2nd- additionally, if you want to watch via winamp, you can also use output stacker (a plug in that may no longer be available (see stories about ripping from music stores via this method)) to have the audio go out to two different destinations I use output stacker to have the audio from winamp play over a lyra wireless sound device connected to my stereo.
a third solution, has nothing to do with the audio being on the PC, buy a cheap USB audio adapter, http://www.turtlebeach.com/site/products/audioadv
for the old PII 300mhz machine it's on, it provides excellent sound, but that machine can't display divx/xvid and audio at the same time..
(ok, it does, at 3 frames a second or so- even in a box)-- with the audio plug disconnected, video picks up considerably, (but I can't hear it then)
caveat, it's REALLY touch about it's port, unplug it from a USB connection, and connect it to any other USB port, and you WILL have to reboot
as for changeover due to proximity? sorry- can't help, but with output stacker as I described, you can turn down the laptop and up the PC when you get closer....
not sure about the framerate, video over RDC-never tried it.
Luck....
every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
rsh musichost mpg123 song.mp3
Now that SSH is popular, you can do:
ssh musichost mpg123 song.mp3
What's the problem? If you want to get fancy, you can put a web interface on it with 10 minutes or so of work.
Once again, this shows the hatred people have for good solutions that just work.
this is a one-trick program that's easily replicated
Cool, you're building your own version? Have fun!
(Not that I don't agree with you -- it is a one-trick program that I'd rather see as a Free cross-platform console app -- but without doing even a preliminary evaluation of the protocol used for communicating with the AirPort Express, and the difficulty of implementing said protocol, "easily replicated" is easier said than done).
For the same price you can buy a real media receiver like the Linksys or SMC unit which are far superior products. There are a couple nice units listed on the MP3beamer web site.
They are superior because they include remote controls. Airport requires you to go back to your computer to change the music! Both the Linksys and SMC unit have a graphical display so you can see what's playing, select artists/albums/playlists and include a remote control so you can access it from across the room.
The Linksys unit even has powered speakers! It's a fantastic unit.
Have anyone had any success in deciphering what compression is used in ALAC and made any effort towards an open source implementation of encoding and decoding?
The FM transmitters sound horrible, maybe you're lucky if you have 3% harmonic distortion and 48db s/n ratio. It would sound horrible.