Barry, thanks for that very well considered and detailed response. I think you may have hit quite a few nails on the head in there.

In order to achieve sales and growth, one would think software should be designed to give most new users a feeling that it is easy to find what you need and easy to get started. Upgrading users should see improvements prominently displayed, and preferably most of their favorite features right where they expect them.

Mediamonkey 4 was appreciated by its users for the technical ability to manage a large database with low resource use, and without bogging down. 5 has way more bits and pieces interacting, which by definition leads to more quirks.

I sometimes have the feeling this group programs to please themselves, and the customers can take it or leave it. As is their right. On the plus side, they do give us this forum to talk about it. :D

[quote=Rob_S post_id=498344 time=1654792651 user_id=112670]
Philosophical rant to follow - ignore at will.

Besides for some minor to insignificant bugs to be expected in a new/developing version, after some effort on my part I have got mediamonkey 5 working very well now, after initially almost giving up on it.
[/quote]

Hi Rob,

some thoughts. I don't know why things happened, but this is what I have deduced after reading here during the Alpha & Beta phases.

IMO they made the changes because they thought that the new way was a better way of achieving things.
The development phase was protracted, about 5 years I think.
By the end of of all that, the changes were 2nd nature to them, and they thought that they were self evident and intuitive.

BTW, I also think that most of the new ways of doing things are better, but they are not too intuitive.
Like you I got to better appreciate MM5 after some considerable effort on my part.

They ignored opinions to the contrary regarding how intuitive the differences were.
They left documentation until too late in the project. It did not go through beta test.
It looks like a lot of work has gone into Reference documentation, but there is still no Quick Start migration tutorial.
If they started earlier in the development process they would have seen that MM5 is quite difficult to document cleanly due to its modal nature. That would have feed back into the design process IMO.
I think that everybody's first impression and migration experience would be better if there was some better Quick Start documentation.

[quote=Rob_S post_id=498344 time=1654792651 user_id=112670]
Search is hard to figure out - why hide the search boxes??
[/quote]

I think that they are trying to simplify the tool bar, to make it easier to read & use.
The toolbar has more convenience buttons in it now, and they saved a line by moving the breadcrumb navigation line into the tool bar.
It has got quite busy. Once you have figured out how everything works. it is better that there no search boxes consuming space and creating clutter.

[quote=Rob_S post_id=498344 time=1654792651 user_id=112670]
Why not make a listing of all indexed music the default opening screen?
[/quote]

Unlike MM4, MM5 reopens where you were when you last closed it. ... That's good isn't it?
MM5 also adds a "home" screen with some limited eye-candy:
[list]a selection of "suggestions", showing some of your favourite Artists and Albums, selected on some random basis, so it always appears fresh[/list]
[list]and a section where you can pin albums, artists, or folders for any purpose[/list]

It would have been better is it was more customisable, but that's good isn't ?

[quote=Rob_S post_id=498344 time=1654792651 user_id=112670]
Nodes are hidden from view until one finds the setting to display all nodes?
[/quote]

MM5 now shows nodes by default.
You probably converted across from MM4 before that change was made.
If you started again, now, the sub-nodes would be enabled by default.

I think that they thought that the MM4 Media Tree was often a crappy navigation experience, ie. an endlessly expanding big long clumsy vertical list. They thought the MM5 filtering facility that responds to anything you type was an improvement.

It is looks clumsy when the Media Tree and the MM5 sort|filter box, which opens in the middle of the tool bar, fight with each other, over who will respond to whatever you type. So they turned the sub-nodes by default. ... I think.

It created a lot of confusion, in the absence of any Quick Start navigation aid .. and they relented.

BTW I have the left panel closed 99.5% of the time. I think that MM5 works better that way. They added optional Folder Tree View Elements into the main panel for the nodes where you need vertical lists, ie the Folders and Location nodes.

[quote=Rob_S post_id=498344 time=1654792651 user_id=112670]
Propagating a favorite layout to all different nodes is too difficult
[/quote]

They got started with a facility to create Custom Views.
I think that this facility was one of things that got partially abandoned when the MM5 project overran.
The Alpha version of MM5 had some things that was showing or controlling where Custom Views were available.

What is available atm for Custom Views is clearly an unfinished thing.

Philosophical rant to follow - ignore at will.

Besides for some minor to insignificant bugs to be expected in a new/developing version, after some effort on my part I have got mediamonkey 5 working very well now, after initially almost giving up on it.

The main improvements for me are built-in tagging and play to chromecast.

I really don't know why so many of the things most users would want first and foremost are so well hidden and hard to find.

- Search is hard to figure out - why hide the search boxes??

- Why not make a listing of all indexed music the default opening screen?

- Nodes are hidden from view until one finds the setting to display all nodes?

- Propagating a favorite layout to all different nodes is too difficult.

It does seem like this is the trend in modern software to hide all the useful bits and display a flashy screen with very little in the menus. Is that really what most users want?

This may be an evil conspiracy which needs a name!!

There is nothing wrong with MediaMonkey 5 and it can display your files in the same way if you set it to do so: https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:What%27s_New/5.0#How_to_make_MediaMonkey_5_appear_more_like_MediaMonkey_4

Just like MediaMonkey 4 you can [url=https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Filelisting/5.0]configure[/url] how MediaMonkey displays files in the Filelisting.

Lowlander,

Sir, I appreciate your help
I will save the information for later use
Right now with version 4, I have regained access to my music files

The upgrade to version 5 is just not working for me

I am going to wait a while and see if the mediamonkey programmers do any tune ups to the version 5 install code and then retry

Again, thanks for your explanations and help.

There is no 64 bit version.

Full uninstall instructions: https://www.mediamonkey.com/support/knowledge-base/mediamonkey-install-config/how-to-completely-uninstall-mediamonkey/

When you first start MediaMonkey you likely started with the Home node selected. Just select a different node in the [url-https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Exploring_Tracks/5.0]Media Tree[/url] to see files and switch the [url=https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Filelisting/5.0#Changing_Views]View[/url] to List.

Splash screen is a setting under Tools > Options > General.

I did a revo uninstall of version 5
installed version 4 put in my gold lifetime name and code and
got the proper splash screens the install did a rescan of my music folder and I selected and played a song

this tells me something is wrong with my version 5 down load
I got the msg that a new version was available and followed it and that is when the crazy screens showed up
i am using the mediamonkey dot com down load site

is there a better site for version 5 media monkey for windows 11 64 bit

appreciate the help

I am on windows 11 64 bit o/s

Is there a download site for 64 bit versions ?

I just did a revo uninstall of mediamonkey, then installed the version 5 but still get on opening the program the goofy screen that does not work for me

I cannot get the screens you recommended to show up

this is baffling as prior to this zero problems with media monkey upgrades

Lowlander,

Thanks for your help but I do not show the screens you do.

I have uninstalled and reinstalled mediamonkey and I still get the home screens when I start up media monkey that I sent in. I do not get any of the splash screens I used to get.

I do not know if some how I am getting a different version of media monkey or not but so far nothing is working out for me


should I try to go backwards to a lower version of media monkey

Just change the [url=https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Filelisting/5.0#Changing_Views]View[/url] to List.

here is the link keep getting error that i cannot post link
[url]https://ibb.co/FhHdYch[/url]
if this does not work can I private message the link to Lowlander ?

No, the path is to a file on your PC. As per instructions you need to upload the image to a image hosting service.

Hi,
No, add spaces in url link you got so that we can corerct it till you have enough approved posts in order to link them yourself.

Read info from My signature.

most current version 5
first time to send in a print screen
I converted to a jpg and the link is listed below
did I do it correctly

[img]"C:\Users\David\Downloads\8june2022printscreen.jpg"[/img]

I assume you mean the [url=https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Exploring_Tracks/5.0#Interface]Filelisting[/url] in which case you can customize the way it looks: https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/WebHelp:Filelisting/5.0

If you meant the Options can you maybe attach a [url=https://www.mediamonkey.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=97733]screenshot[/url] of the problem? Also which Build (Help > About) of MediaMonkey are you using?