NPR Music's Fantastic iPhone App Makes You Thankful for 
Multitasking
  BY Dan Nosowitz Wed Jun 23, 2010



iOS 4's most controversial new feature is multitasking.  Is it 
really
multitasking, or just a glorified app switcher? The jury's still 
out, but apps
like the brand-new NPR Music apps make me thankful for even the 
limited
multitasking now available.  But this isn't about iOS 4--there's 
been plenty of
digital ink spilled on that already.  Let's talk NPR Music!
NPR is one of the best sources for streaming music (including 
video footage),
period.  There's the Tiny Desk Concert series, which gets popular 
musicians to
play a short set behind a desk in NPR's cluttered office.  (That 
can get a little
hairy for a band like Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, 
which has about
sixty-five members.) NPR is one of the most reliable and 
high-quality gatherers
of live video from festivals, be it SXSW or Bonnaroo.  And 
lately, NPR has taken
to streaming entire albums, for free, before release, including 
such
high-profile albums as The National's High Violet.
  Then, of course, there are the legions of local shows from more 
than 75 public
radio stations, plus the shows we all know and love, like All 
Songs Considered
and the tapings from the WXPN World Cafe venue in Philadelphia.  
That adds up to
>do 300 new features monthly.
  The NPR app brings all of that, including a nice, 
easy-to-search directory of
>tists.  Aside from the streaming music, there are also a ton of 
news stories,
reviews, interviews, and other assorted music journalism.  It has 
integration
with Twitter and Facebook, so you can let everyone know how 
amazing The Tallest
Man on Earth is in concert (answer: extremely.  Extremely 
amazing.).
  I've only played around with it briefly, but over Wi-Fi, music 
streams very
quickly and in pretty high quality.  There are a few stutters 
(especially while
searching), but that's a minor quibble for what's a really 
fantastic app.  Pop,
folk, jazz, classical, rock, whatever: If you take your music 
seriously, this is
a great resource.
  NPR Music is available in the App Store now, for free.
  Dan Nosowitz, the author of this post, can be followed on 
Twitter, corresponded
with via email, and stalked in San Francisco (no link for that 
one--you'll have
to do the legwork yourself).
  Copyright Ággc) 2010 Mansueto Ventures LLC.  All rights 
reservedddNPR Music's Fantastic iPhone App Makes You Thankful for 
Multitasking
  BY Dan Nosowitz Wed Jun 23, 2010



iOS 4's most controversial new feature is multitasking.  Is it 
really
multitasking, or just a glorified app switcher? The jury's still 
out, but apps
like the brand-new NPR Music apps make me thankful for even the 
limited
multitasking now available.  But this isn't about iOS 4--there's 
been plenty of
digital ink spilled on that already.  Let's talk NPR Music!
NPR is one of the best sources for streaming music (including 
video footage),
period.  There's the Tiny Desk Concert series, which gets popular 
musicians to
play a short set behind a desk in NPR's cluttered office.  (That 
can get a little
hairy for a band like Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, 
which has about
sixty-five members.) NPR is one of the most reliable and 
high-quality gatherers
of live video from festivals, be it SXSW or Bonnaroo.  And 
lately, NPR has taken
to streaming entire albums, for free, before release, including 
such
high-profile albums as The National's High Violet.
  Then, of course, there are the legions of local shows from more 
than 75 public
radio stations, plus the shows we all know and love, like All 
Songs Considered
and the tapings from the WXPN World Cafe venue in Philadelphia.  
That adds up to
>do 300 new features monthly.
  The NPR app brings all of that, including a nice, 
easy-to-search directory of
>tists.  Aside from the streaming music, there are also a ton of 
news stories,
reviews, interviews, and other assorted music journalism.  It has 
integration
with Twitter and Facebook, so you can let everyone know how 
amazing The Tallest
Man on Earth is in concert (answer: extremely.  Extremely 
amazing.).
  I've only played around with it briefly, but over Wi-Fi, music 
streams very
quickly and in pretty high quality.  There are a few stutters 
(especially while
searching), but that's a minor quibble for what's a really 
fantastic app.  Pop,
folk, jazz, classical, rock, whatever: If you take your music 
seriously, this is
a great resource.
  NPR Music is available in the App Store now, for free.
  Dan Nosowitz, the author of this post, can be followed on 
Twitter, corresponded
with via email, and stalked in San Francisco (no link for that 
one--you'll have
to do the legwork yourself).
  Copyright Ággc) 2010 Mansueto Ventures LLC.  All rights 
reserved.


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