| Linux jukebox app achieves first stable release |
Jun. 11, 2008
 The Banshee Project has achieved the first major, stable release of its eponymous music jukebox application. Banshee 1.0 features faster searching, browsing, and management functions, along with improved memory usage, faster start-up, and a more responsive interface better supporting large collections, project leaders say.
While hardcore Linux hackers may still prefer something modular and native like MPD and its various clients, Banshee offers a nice GUI jukebox as long as you don't mind using the same Linux box to both control and play the music. As with MPD, the actual media files can be stored anywhere on the network. Banshee is the default music player in lots of modern Linux distributions, and when combined with Amazon's music download service, makes a nice (and less DRM-encumbered) open source iTunes replacement.
      
Banshee 1.0 screenshots
Touted new features in Banshee 1.0 include:- An album browser with cover art
- Play queue
- Powerful search
- Better "last.fm" integration
- Video searching and playback
- Ability to explore playlists without interrupting current playlist
- The return of audio CD playback support
- Optional auto-rip on insert
- Shuffle by song, artist, or album
- Default playlists, such as "favorites"
- Mini mode
- Podcast support
- Visual free space indicator
- Automatic cover art downloads
- Lots more features, and 260 bugfixes
Like F-spot, a popular photo management application for Linux, Banshee is a .NET application that requires Mono 1.2. So, it's not exactly a native Linux application, but instead runs as a managed application, and may not suit older, slower systems. Still, the new 1.0 release is billed as the "fastest Banshee ever."
And Banshees are pretty fast, as everyone knows.
-- Henry Kingman
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