Share your Windows 8/8.1 (Store) app recommendations

By Steven P.
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MrChris2000

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Loving TrackSeries and Khan Academy apps.

I just launched version 4 of my app SmashCast which is a podcast subscriber/downloader app.

I know the UI is very basic, but the core functionality is all there, id love some reviews though, even if you hate it (all my reviews are from v2 and dont represent the current state of the app).

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efjay

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I guess I'll post my own application - Music Info http://apps.microsof...bd-90cc214cc09f

It's meant to be a music discovery application, with some pretty photos. But it plays your mp3/wav files too (and DRM free AAC & WMA if you pay too), and with better performance than Xbox Music. It wasn't initially intended to be a music player, so not everything is there yet (like playlists), but people seem to really like it.

Screenshot.9980.1000000.jpg

Any update on when/if playlist support will be added? Tried it and liked it but I listen to my music in playlists so without it I cant buy it. Thanks

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~Johnny

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Any update on when/if playlist support will be added? Tried it and liked it but I listen to my music in playlists so without it I cant buy it. Thanks

Sometime soon - I've ben on holiday so haven't had anytime to add playlist stuff, but I'll get started over the weekend after I've cleaned up some bugs.

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efjay

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Sometime soon - I've ben on holiday so haven't had anytime to add playlist stuff, but I'll get started over the weekend after I've cleaned up some bugs.

Thanks, can I ask though, will the new playlist support enable the app to be able to read existing Zune and WMP playlists? And will it save playlists in those formats (or at least a compatible format) or will it be restricted to reading and writing playlists within the app itself? Thanks.

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Grand Master

George P Global Moderator

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I see that there are torrent front end clients that connect to the desktop version to manage your torrents. How hard is it if at all to make a pure metro app and not just a fancy manager app for the desktop version?

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Lirodon

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I see that there are torrent front end clients that connect to the desktop version to manage your torrents. How hard is it if at all to make a pure metro app and not just a fancy manager app for the desktop version?

I thought Metro apps weren't allowed to do most forms of background processes...

But anyway, I'd recommend News Bento: while its not as good as Flipboard when it comes to bringing in different news sources (here you either pick from the list it gives you, or input an RSS feed), it is definitely a well-designed news app. Its layout mimics the behavior of the start screen, so you'll already know how to manipulate it.

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MrChris2000

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Hey, so I've just had the latest version of SmashCast approved for the Store, I'd love it if some of you took a look and let me know your thoughts.

Its not pretty, but I believe it has the best functionality of the existing podcast applications.

I'm also working on some new features such as improved playlist management (at present you can't easily navigate a playlist, I've got most of that fixed in the current dev build - just shows how long the approval process can be!).

And I'm also looking to fix the two outstanding bugs I'm aware of - see if you can spot them before I get them fixed :)

Any feature suggestions are welcomed as well.

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Neowinian

Rattilla

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My first post here. I've been using Reddit on Reddhub, and I love it. I never knew what Reddit was until I found this app. I tried the app on a whim and I've loved it ever since. I also like that it is being regularly updated to make improvements.

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Brandon Live Veteran

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My new company's first app launched this week. It's a different take on a news reading app, and it's called Newseen.

Here's the store link:

http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-US/app/newseen/e19ec5a5-08bf-4b31-8178-9d512dbdfb35

I also made a little promo video and put it up on YouTube and the app's website:

http://newseen.com

Love to hear what folks think :-)

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Rising Star

Adam Skelton

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osuwildlifer, on 14 Jun 2013 - 08:29, said:osuwildlifer, on 14 Jun 2013 - 08:29, said:

I recommend the Desktop App. It's the only one I use. (Y)

That's a damn shame. There are so many good apps available in the Store that many developers have put a lot of time and effort into.

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BeerFan

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That's a damn shame. There are so many good apps available in the Store that many developers have put a lot of time and effort into.

 

Not a shame at all from my perspective.  I do not want a full-screen app on my 30" desktop monitor. Ever.  (except remote desktop, which for obvious reasons makes sense)

 

I'm not knocking the apps themselves or the skill of the dev's that made 'em... i just hate the whole idea of forcing an app to be full screen only.  Why would I want a full screen, 30" calculator or stopwatch or instant messenger?

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Adam Skelton

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osuwildlifer, on 27 Jun 2013 - 18:34, said:

Not a shame at all from my perspective.  I do not want a full-screen app on my 30" desktop monitor. Ever.  (except remote desktop, which for obvious reasons makes sense)

 

I'm not knocking the apps themselves or the skill of the dev's that made 'em... i just hate the whole idea of forcing an app to be full screen only.  Why would I want a full screen, 30" calculator or stopwatch or instant messenger?

 

You know you can dock them to the sides, too, right? And with 8.1 now you can have them e any size. And I bet your 30" monitor has just as many pixels as my 10.6" and 23", no need to throw that number around.

 

Anyway, I really like the ReddHubb app. I use it on my desktop and tablet to provide, in my opinion, a better Reddit experience than the website.

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corrosive23

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You know you can dock them to the sides, too, right? And with 8.1 now you can have them e any size. And I bet your 30" monitor has just as many pixels as my 10.6" and 23", no need to throw that number around.

 

Anyway, I really like the ReddHubb app. I use it on my desktop and tablet to provide, in my opinion, a better Reddit experience than the website.

I find it hard to believe your 10.6 or 23" does 2560 x 1600. More than likely your 23" does 1920 x 1080, huge difference.

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Brandon Live Veteran

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To be fair, I don't know any 30" monitors which are lower res than that.

 

However, I use Store apps all the time on mine. Though 8.1 very much improves their usefulness on it.

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margagn

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I would like to recommend my free game for Windows 8: Marblie! This is an addictive puzzle game and I think you will like it. It can be downloaded here: http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/app/marblie/9d43e557-deeb-4ff0-9f3d-8b0b56623bf6.

 

Marblie was just released today and I would really like to know what you guys thinks of it! Fell free to drop me a line or review the app! 

 

Thank you for giving it a try!

 

Screenshot.223355.100000.jpg

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Fourjays Veteran

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Can anyone recommend a good music app for playing music on my computer? The Music app in Windows 8.1 is terrible. Was just about usable in Windows 8, but now it is just "cloud, cloud, cloud!" and I'm struggling to find my own music amongst all the pushing of the cloud in it. It has even set all my playlists to play from the cloud! :angry:

 

I'm giving "Groove" a go (which is nice but lacks a live tile) and have downloaded the trial of ~Johnny's "Music Info" mentioned a few pages back (seems good, except for a crash when selecting artists). Any others out there?

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chrisj1968

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Can we have the app store pinned? I'm still half asleep and tried windows store and such but no idea of the URL to the actual store for apps.

 

I just installed Awesome Zombie sniper.. seems to have a pretty decent rating.

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FreeJAC1310

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I have been testing out Media Monkey for music and DLNA server playback. Seems to work well. Have to use the built-in search to build the song indexes took me a bit to figure that out.

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