ipod touch 2G compatibility

With the new ipod touch 2G able to use a microphone what would it take to update the software so that it is not restricted to the iPhone?

I have an ipod touch 2G and I bought the app, but it won't transfer because it says it is not compatible.

If it is not a simple fix, perhaps it is an idea for a future update.

ok. confession time. the dude in the shades in the Stairway video is performing on an iPod Touch 2G with external mic. i would expect iPod Touch support may be coming soon.

Is it an ipod touch 2G or just an iPhone with an external mic.

The documentation says it supports an external mic.

in the video it is an ipod touch 2g, with mic plugged in.

elon

In that case when may we see the app available for the ipod Touch?

Unfortunately, probably not for a few weeks. Sorry for the buzz-kill.

elon

As a new iPod touch 2G owner, I think a few weeks is fine -- and a whole lot better than "never". I've purchased Ocarina and await the happy day when I can use it!

I agree! I have an iPod Touch (2nd Gen.), and I'm really looking forward to being able to finally play Ocarina. I purchased the app, but found it wouldn't sync to my iPod (even though I have an external microphone), and so I hope that Smule can get around to making this app (which is really cool by the way) compatible with the iPod Touch (2nd Generation) soon.

[to Support Team]: Let us know when the update is coming up! I look forward to it!

[quote author=iPenguin]...even though I have an external microphone...\[\/quote\]

Off topic (sort of): May I ask which mic you have? I'm hearing that the Philips (only available at Target) is good.

Check out this thread and you can hear for yourself.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=606567

I have the Griffin Smarttalk and it seems to work pretty well.

Over the weekend I bought the Philips at Target for $10. (Most Target stores were out of stock.) Gotta be the best deal for a brand-name mic, and it works fine with other apps. Now just breathlessly awaiting the ability to load Ocarina onto the device!

Cool!

My Smarttalk cost me $10 off ebay. Both of them beat the price of the Altec Lansing ones. The recording on that thread was pretty awful.

Hey Ocarina dudes, any update on the timeframe for touch 2G compatibility?

Please?

Even SonicVox used an external microphone. Shame on you. I want back my money.

Though I wouldn't go so far as "shame on you", I too am very disappointed that a new version has been released that still does not permit you to download the app to the iPod touch 2G.

I'm sure many people around the world have been waiting breathlessly (pun intended) to try it!

Come on guys you could at least give us a freaking update.

Sorry about the delay in replying.

Ocarina was designed for the iPhone, not for the iPod touch. It was not meant to be used with an external microphone. Any suggestion on a good solution for using an external microphone while keeping two hands free to press the buttons are more than welcome,short of taping the mic to your mouth and clipping it to a shirt collar.

elon

That isn't a valid answer. Aesthetics has nothing to do with functionality. People will find a implementation that will suit there needs. The functionality just has to be there. Also I read somewhere on one of the Smule pages that Ocarina was going to be developed for the iPod Touch because Smule or the developers didn't like AT&T. The problem with that was that they needed the inbuild microphone that the iPod doesn't have. What I didn't get was that iPod Touch 2G is Microphone capable and Smule themselves proved that the Ocarina works perfectly fine with the touch. Therefore all they have to do is just release a new update allowing the Ocarina to be synced onto the iPod Touch.

FearedBliss, you are correct. Smule have ALREADY agreed that they will enable it for the iPod touch. The only question is when. A month+ ago they said "in a few weeks". As end users we can only guess about the exact coding difficulty, but if it already works for the iPhone and the only phone-specific feature it uses is the microphone (not GPS, not 3G, not camera, etc.), then it doesn't seem like it's too hard a code change to enable it for the iPod touch. Numerous other apps have made the change in the last couple months.

(And if Smule chooses to renege on its previously-stated promise, it should definitely refund every iPod touch user who purchased the app based on that promise.)

As a side note, I would expect some hardware maker to see a market opportunity and create a smallest-possible, least-obtrusive-looking microphone to attach to the bottom of the iPod touch (and also extend the headphone jack to handle any standard headphones). I'd sure buy it!

Well I've done programming on various platforms including Mac OS X using the Cocoa framework. Overall enabling such a simple feature would be a check to see if the device is a iPod Touch or a iPhone and let both devices through. I've been waiting for about 2 months now or 1.5 months and still no signs of hope.

There might be a tiny bit more the code than that: it shouldn't run on the iPod touch 1G, just the 2G (I think); and once the app is running, perhaps it needs to make sure the microphone is plugged in or else disable certain features.

Still, the reason for the delay must be support-related. They probably don't want a lot of people with 2G touches but no microphones wondering why it doesn't work. (Also, though the code change is probably pretty trivial, they have to do some testing make sure nothing got broken.)

Please, Smule, we've bought your app, bought mics, and are more than ready to use them together! You've missed Christmas but please throw us a little tidbit for New Year's!

You would be surprised how little you would need to code or modify in order to make it work. As for the iPod Touch 1G .. there are external VoIP microphones out there which might actually be of use. I cannot confirm this.

FearedBliss, you're probably right. I was hoping to give Smule the benefit of the doubt as to why they are taking so long to implement a tiny code tweak.

So do you agree that the real reason is the support issue -- they're afraid of getting questions from people who don't realize they need mics? (Since Smule have already promised to implement support for the iPod touch 2G, it seems like mainly procrastination at this point.)

My theory is that it is political. I think they are trying to use this as leverage to force Apple to include a built-in mic in the iPod Touch. Unfortunately, current Touch owners are a casualty.

If they wanted to, they could advertise that the app only works on the iPhone, but not lock out Touches in code so the persistent could try to get it to work anyway. (People can buy the app for the Touch right now and they don't get a refund when it fails to work, right?)

It seems unlikely to me that any app maker could force (or even influence) Apple to do anything, let alone get them to change a hardware design.

They told us that they'd have iPot (iPod touch) support in a few weeks. I still believe them, more or less, though it was irksome that they released a new version a couple weeks ago that still didn't have it.

The delay is probably due to the holidays and uncertainty over how to handle support issues from iPot owners. That's my best guess, anyway.

Apple is definitely not going to include a built-in microphone for the touch simply because it's not necessary.

Holidays.. could be, but they announced the supposed "near-by" release for the iTouch version of Ocarina weeks before the holidays.. so if they really wanted to release a iTouch version then it would have been included in the 1.2 update.

This is annoying me quite a lot. I bought the app, and some apple headphones with the remote and mic before christmas after reading in quite a few places on the internet that it would work on a 2nd gen touch. I got the ipod for christmas, and upon trying to sync the app to it, get an error saying it's not compatible.

I'm just going to be pissed if I've wasted $50 on stuff I don't need if they're not going to update it for use with a second generation touch.

Plus, this is the time of year when people have the best shot at freeing up a little time to play with their new toys. Once we're all back at work, there will be less of an opportunity to really give it a workout.

Smule, you and everyone else know that you would make more money if you made Ocarina Ipod Touch 2g compatible and more people would be happy. I hoped that the 1.2 were 2g compatible but it was not!

Now that the 1.3 is coming soon (i hope) why dont you add 2g compatibility for it?

This i something i read at an intenet site:

#0000FF

That proves that it works on an itouch 2g... Well thats it i think.

Plus, they explicitly said that people with the iPod touch 2G should go ahead and buy Ocarina because Smule would very soon allow it to be loaded onto that device.

Keeping one's promise (and not using bait-and-switch methods of gaining money) should be honored above any "aesthetic" considerations.

[quote author=Larsy1995]Smule, you and everyone else know that you would make more money if you made Ocarina Ipod Touch 2g compatible and more people would be happy. I hoped that the 1.2 were 2g compatible but it was not!

Now that the 1.3 is coming soon (i hope) why dont you add 2g compatibility for it?

This i something i read at an intenet site:

#0000FF

That proves that it works on an itouch 2g... Well thats it i think.\[\/quote\]

I agree with ardee as well. If you said that it was being released, then release it! At the beginning it was released as "get it now for the introductory price of $0.99!" insinuating that the price would be going up. With other music related apps being anywhere from free to $20+, of course people with ipod Touch 2g's jumped at the offer. Many bought it AFTER my original thread was responded to with a comment that it would be released in a few weeks. And now you say that because of aesthetics, it isn't going to be released anytime soon.

At the end of the day it's only $0.99 for the app, but even if it were a penny, you should keep your word. People have spent much more than that getting accessories just to try and use the app.

Thanks Larsy1995, you proved my previous point on that even Smule CEO talked about a fully functional Smule Ocarina application for the iTouch.

I don't even know if Smule is going to keep their word, but all I know is that I'm not buying any more Smule applications.

Hope Ocarina will support the iPod touch eventually.

w00t. my ipod touch 2g just synced and installed the ocarina app! anyone else?! i don't see any news or updates on the app store product page...

Nope. It doesn't sync.

[quote author=thegob]w00t. my ipod touch 2g just synced and installed the ocarina app! anyone else?! i don't see any news or updates on the app store product page...\[\/quote\]

Are tou sure it was the ocarina from smule and not the "ocarina spirit" app?? It is a possibility for itouch 2g compatibility in version 1.3 or higher tough...

Ocarina by Smule synced to my first generation iPod Touch. For some reason iTunes thought that my Touch was an iPhone, it even told my about creating ringtones otherwise I wouldn't have noticed. Of course there is no mic support so the app did nothing though other features of the app worked such as the globe view. I was even able to listen to others play but I couldn't of course. I wish my 2G Touch would be recognized as a iPhone so I could just play a song! This proved to me that the app works perfectly on an ipod touch, iTunes just needs to sync the app. But iTunes won't recognize my first generation Touch as an iPhone again so I can't update the app to version 1.2, it just says it is incompatible even though the app is already on it. So Smule just needs to let Apple know it's for the iPod Touch as well.

Thanks for proving that it works taco =).

Like taco, mine also asked me about ringtones though i didn't know that was for iphone only.

Yes, it's the smule ocarina app and nothing else. I tested it with a friend's iphone headset(mic) and it works - though the sound goes to the headphones so what's the point. now to find out how to enable the speaker when the headset is plugged in...

also, i had the original version of the ocarina app if that makes a difference.

The Philips mic ($10 at Target) is separate from headphones/earphones. I.e., it has a female jack into which you can optionally plug headphones -- or you can use the iPod's speaker to listen.

thegob, it may be the original version of the ocarina app that is compatible with ipod touch( i dont no if it where compatible before or not) so why dont you put the "IPA" file on sky drive? I have put my ocarina app 1.2 on skydrive for free download(not sure if it is only me that can use that file) . Just give it a try..

[quote author=Larsy1995]thegob, it may be the original version of the ocarina app that is compatible with ipod touch( i dont no if it where compatible before or not) so why dont you put the "IPA" file on sky drive? I have put my ocarina app 1.2 on skydrive for free download(not sure if it is only me that can use that file) . Just give it a try..\[\/quote\]

I'm not at my home computer but thinking about it, it seems to be more of an itunes issue. I've had the ocarina app since it was released yet it never synced. When I opened itunes the other day, I received a pop-up about ringtones (iphone specific feature?) with the new ringtone column added to the music library. Upon syncing, the ocarina installed. Thus, if there was no official ipod touch release, I'm guessing it's itunes thinking I had an iphone instead...

Agreed it's iTunes. By why? And why now?

[quote author=ardee]Agreed it's iTunes. By why? And why now?\[\/quote\]

not sure why...no tinkering done on my end and it looks like installed on user taco's ipod too. i'll try another iphone only app tonight to see if it works.

tried to install loopt and an ipod touch app -- only the ipod app installed. no idea what caused the ocarina to install but i'm not complaining...

OK here is what I've found out. You can only transfer iPhone apps when iTunes thinks that your ipod is an iPhone. It must be an iTunes glitch and it only occurs sometimes. I was able to install uflute and dog whistle (got em when they were free and do not recommend uflute :D ) as well but could not play uflute because the first generation ipod touches do not support mics, so uflute just makes a sound as if someone was constantly blowing into a mic so in a way it is playable. Dog Whistle is kinda cool on my 2G ipod touch which has the external speaker. When you plug your ipod in just check to see if there is a ringtones tab before syncing otherwise its not going to transfer the apps. I recommend selecting the iphone apps you want to install onto your ipod and sync. It will tell you that those apps could not be installed onto your device because they are not compatible but it eventually worked when it appeared as an iphone. Keep ejecting and plugging in your ipod until it comes up with ringtones. This only worked on my Vista laptop (figures) twice (only on my 1G touch though) and hasn't happened on my Macbook yet. I wish it would happen to my 2G touch :( . O and for those wondering about the mics, I use the Phillips one that Target sells for $10 it works good on other apps such as irecorder (also wouldn't recommend but its free so...whatever), Shazam, Sonic Vox, Lighter, Sonic Boom, ichalky, etc. O and it was version 1.1 that installed but I'm positive that 1.2 would install as well, because it's not the app its itunes.

I will be testing this method. Thanks for the hints.

Hey Smule, are you listening?

People are resorting to repeatedly trying to invoke a glitch in iTunes to install your app, all because you didn't follow through on a promise made in writing to paying customers.

What do YOU think is the right thing to do here?

Starting today I will send a polite email to Smule at this address http://www.smule.com/support/troubleshootinglog.php asking for ipod touch support, and I will continue to ask every day until they finally catch on that they have several customers wanting touch support. Eventually they will get tired of ignoring us. I suggest you all do the same, you don't have to enter your email address so you can do it anonymously . Ardee is right, we shouldn't have to resort to invoking an iTunes glitch just to install ocarina. And for my earlier post my ipod was not jailbroken and it will never be. :D

I couldn't get the thing to work. Tried like > 50 times. I don't know what Smule is doing.. It's so stupid that most of there applications are compatible for the iPod Touch but then there single most popular application is not compatible..

[quote author=FearedBliss]I couldn't get the thing to work. Tried like > 50 times. I don't know what Smule is doing.. It's so stupid that most of there applications are compatible for the iPod Touch but then there single most popular application is not compatible..\[\/quote\]

I agree with you. Why should they make all the other apps compatible but not the most popular, why dont they just make the Ocarina compatible and get over with it!

[quote author=FearedBliss]I couldn't get the thing to work. Tried like > 50 times. I don't know what Smule is doing.. It's so stupid that most of there applications are compatible for the iPod Touch but then there single most popular application is not compatible..\[\/quote\]

Actually, the sad thing is, it IS compatible! Smule are refusing to change one setting that permits download to the Touch, after having said they would do so in this forum.

I sent Smule a long email and this is what I got. I guess there is no hope. He quotes 1 post that is against iPod Touch support. Which is probably some iPhone owner who doesn't know what its like to not have an iPhone and is sick of people complaining.

"Hi,

I have been mentioning your emails, and all the posts in the forums. Its a small company and I post what I understand is the plan at a certain given time. Originally it was planned to have support for the iPod touch, so our posts sounded more promising, although none stated that it would definitely happen. I am not certain what the reasons are behind the change other than that, as one post on the forums stated, there is no point to a musical instrument that no-one but the person playing can hear. Ocarina was meant to be a relatively simple instrument to learn, as opposed to a game or gimmick app like Sonic Lighter or Vox. Certain standards need to be maintained to keep it from crossing the fine line from going from instrument to gimmick-application. I have little doubt that at some point support will be added eventually. However, every time I ask about it I am told that at the moment there is no plan to enable support. I will keep pushing for it, and once I come up with a good way to respond to the posts on the forum, I will post something on there.

If you already bought Ocarina, I know Apple will give a refund due to compatability issues.

Sorry I can't be of much more help.

elon"

Ok, well there is something wrong there. The people at the top are being stubborn, but the point about only one person being able to hear it is moot. The ipod Touch 2G requires a mic accessory to play ocarina, there is also a jack to plug-in headphones that could also be used to connect an external speaker.

Also, someone who would perform with the ocarina app would likely do so in front of a mic. A true instrument is meant to be used to perform. I am a musician with a degree in music along with a lot of performing experience. If you are going to use a mic and an amplifying system for a performance, what is the difference between that and using a direct line out from the thing? It's like asking someone with an electric bass or guitar to stick a mic in front of their tiny practice amp for a performance.

It seems that all we get is feeble excuses to our complaints. I hope elon is true to his word and will keep pushing for ipod Touch compatibility. We should also keep pushing for it in the forums. At some point they will have to listen.

Unfortunately the iphone hasn't been released here so I only have the option of making it work on the Touch.

Ya at least elon is trying. I think ipod support will come once the developers are done adding other features to the ocarina. It seems it's the last thing on their list to do.

It's nice to see a response from elon from someone who emailed-at least we know that they are trying to get iPod touch support, but there's no defnite date for that.

Yea we already know that ardee.

I agree that elon hopefully continues to push for support. Ocarina is an application and it should be able to run on the iTouch. If Smule is not going to give us iPod 2G users support because they think that others can't hear the Ocarina play.. well think again. We will find a way to make others hear our beautiful music (easy line-out).

OK, I want everyone to think about a few points for a moment.

1. The internal Ipod speaker - isn't very loud, as someone about mentioned yes, you can plug an external speaker in, well done, but now, where do you plug the microphone in? And to assume everyone will have some sort of external pickup mic just to play is a bit silly. Of course if you only want to play to yourself the headset is fine.

2. speaker/headset defaults - One other thing to keep in mind, is by default, if you plug a headset into the ipod, sound goes through the earphones NOT the external speaker. Now as you ALWAYS have to have the headset in with the ipod, you could NEVER get it to play aloud with the external speakers by default. So tehy would have to find a way to force the sound through the external speakers... BUT you dont' always want the soudn throught eh external speakers, if you're practicing you might want it in the headset, so you need a way to choose to override teh sound or not and thats not an easy task either.

3. Microphone positioning - You need two hands to play. Remeber headsets are designed to play the mic next to your mouth not in front (to pick up some but avoid breathing noises and so they don't get in your mouth and so they don't get little bits of spit as you talk etc) This takes the mic out of range to blow into which means you have to take it out of your ear and reposition it somehow, so you can hold it comepletely stead while also having 2 hands free to play AND still being able to see the screen AND you have to be able to tilt the device (for the vebrato effects). I imagine (and from the e-mail responses from smule) that this has to be one of th biggest problems, how do you comfortably position the mic? Particularly if there are 6 or 7 different types that might fit differently?

Summary

There are going to be some obvious complications with any sort of Ipod touch version of Ocarina, problems that don't exist on the iphone (hence why its ben released). Now, I think its a GOOD think that Smule haven't released the ocarina on the ipod touch. Because you would download it and then get pissed off that it doesn't work the way you imagine, you're realise you can't plug 2 different cables into the audiojack, that... you somehow have to hol the mic steady while you play. and you'll complain and moan about having to spend money on a application thats not ready for use.

I'm convinced smule would love toe release the ocarina on itouch, in fact I read somewhere that was their original concept till they hit problems with the touch. Think about it commerically, you open up a bigger target market. But the last thing they'd want to do is release an app that will only make people angry they bought it, or scare away new customers.

My conclusions

So what I'd recommend is this, either wait while smule works on an ipod touch version, if the aformentioned (and probably more issues I haven't thought about) get fixed, if they can, I'm sure they' release it, if they can't well at least they tried.

The only real issue I ever had was that it felt we weren't keep quiet enough in the loop about it. For the most part I received responses to my quieries, but It would obviously be nice to have a regularly updated section of the site to check up on to see what its up to or if, its been found to be impossible or whatever.

Anyway I have hope that it will eventually work and be released. But I'm glad that smule are smart and nice enough to NOT take your money till they have a product they can be as confident and proud of for the touch as it is for the iphone.

Now that Redsn0w( the 2g jailbreak) is coming, we can use the touchmods mic and then the mic problem is solved. Then you can use both the internal speaker on the touch or any other speaker you want. (out of subject) The jailbreak will make the touch have possibilities to be more like iphone, and it will also activate the bluetooth chip(i think), and if you have a windows mobile you can get 3g network on the touch too.

With Siphon the touch will get the phone thing( you can call people free, people can call you free) and there are many "SMS" apps out there. A jailbreaked ipod touch 2g is almost the same as an iphone as long you have the right accesories of course.

[quote author=DragonWrath]

1. The internal Ipod speaker - isn't very loud, as someone about mentioned yes, you can plug an external speaker in, well done, but now, where do you plug the microphone in? And to assume everyone will have some sort of external pickup mic just to play is a bit silly. Of course if you only want to play to yourself the headset is fine.

\[\/quote\]

The internal speaker is not very loud. However, most people who would use it would use one of the mic adapters which allows you to put the mic anywhere and plug in headphones (OR SPEAKERS) to the side of it.

Of course, this is not aesthetically the same, but it works.

[quote author=DragonWrath]

2. speaker/headset defaults - One other thing to keep in mind, is by default, if you plug a headset into the ipod, sound goes through the earphones NOT the external speaker. Now as you ALWAYS have to have the headset in with the ipod, you could NEVER get it to play aloud with the external speakers by default. So tehy would have to find a way to force the sound through the external speakers... BUT you dont' always want the soudn throught eh external speakers, if you're practicing you might want it in the headset, so you need a way to choose to override teh sound or not and thats not an easy task either.

\[\/quote\]

It IS possible to hardwire the speaker play with something plugged into the mic/headphone port. It is a software modification.

[quote author=DragonWrath]

3. Microphone positioning - You need two hands to play. Remeber headsets are designed to play the mic next to your mouth not in front (to pick up some but avoid breathing noises and so they don't get in your mouth and so they don't get little bits of spit as you talk etc) This takes the mic out of range to blow into which means you have to take it out of your ear and reposition it somehow, so you can hold it comepletely stead while also having 2 hands free to play AND still being able to see the screen AND you have to be able to tilt the device (for the vebrato effects). I imagine (and from the e-mail responses from smule) that this has to be one of th biggest problems, how do you comfortably position the mic? Particularly if there are 6 or 7 different types that might fit differently?

\[\/quote\]

The mic adapters can be clipped right to their jack and work essentially like blowing into the mic port on the iphone.

You're right about smule's worries. They are worried that people who don't know much about the ipod Touch and what would be needed to use this app, will get angry and leave negative comments, thus tarnishing the image. The above comments I posted are already done. It's more of whether it is worth pleasing the Touch users that have been begging for a Touch release at the risk of having more people download it when it becomes available and getting angry when they don't know how (or what they need) to use the program.

fasequeira,

Excellent response. I was thinking many of the same things; thank you very much for posting!

All of the arguments against releasing Ocarina for the touch 2G (as they promised), except perhaps for ones related to tech support or reputation, just don't hold water.

And one more thing: just being able to roam the virtual globe and listen to users' music (and watch the mesmerizing graphics) is of significant value. Probably worth the cost of admission to many touch users, at least until somebody (inevitably?) comes out with a compact mic that attaches to the bottom of the device, passes the headphone jack through for speakers/headphones, and becomes essentially part of the iPod.

[quote author=ardee]

...at least until somebody (inevitably?) comes out with a compact mic that attaches to the bottom of the device, passes the headphone jack through for speakers/headphones, and becomes essentially part of the iPod.\[\/quote\]

Actually, there are mics out there that attach through the dock or plug in directly. Some of them require a jailbroken ipod, which might not be too far off.

Also, the speaker issue can be bypassed with software changes.

Basically what it comes down to is the possible loss of image. Here's a scenario to compare with. You have many mac users that pay top dollar for "aesthetically appealing machines that run a stable OS". Now you also have those who can put that OS onto a Non-Apple system with certain patches. This is all great, and is much less expensive, but while using this "hackintosh", you encounter many compatibility, update and crashing problems that simply don't exist with a legitimate mac product because you are using third-party or alternate ways of running the system. Now, for the person trying out the Mac OS for the first time, they will possibly have a bad experience and bad mouth the Mac OS all over the internet. As there are many more complainers online than supporters, this creates a bad name for the OS.

This is what smule is afraid of. If the app doesn't live up to what it was supposed to be, there will be many negative (out of context) comments and reviews that bring the app, and therefore the company, down. In the end, the initial additional income from Touch users could translate into a loss of image and income if the app is not presented correctly.

I realize this is an about face of some of my previous posts, but after corresponding with some of the admins, this is what I have come to understand. They are working on and trying to figure out if the Touch release is in their best interest, and if they release it, what modifications might be necessary to avoid a backlash from ignorant users. Invariably there will be users that don't realize that mic capable doesn't mean that the mic is built in. Those will be the ones that complain first.

[quote author=fasequeira][quote author=DragonWrath]

1. The internal Ipod speaker - isn't very loud, as someone about mentioned yes, you can plug an external speaker in, well done, but now, where do you plug the microphone in? And to assume everyone will have some sort of external pickup mic just to play is a bit silly. Of course if you only want to play to yourself the headset is fine.

\[\/quote\]

The internal speaker is not very loud. However, most people who would use it would use one of the mic adapters which allows you to put the mic anywhere and plug in headphones (OR SPEAKERS) to the side of it.

Of course, this is not aesthetically the same, but it works.

\[\/quote\]

The arguement for using adpaters and mics that require a jailborken ipod touch (which you cannot yet reliably do anyway) is a dumb one. No legitimate company can been seen to promote jailingbreaking, thats just crazy. On a side note, this is a 99c application. A 99C application that involves spending what $50 on a standard apple headset (well its $50 AUD not sure what it is elsewhere). Its not something you want to do until your sure it will work, not require large amounts of spending or and modification that an untrained layperson cannot do themselves. This would become a publicly available application, it MUST be accessible to anyone who buys with without jumping through stupid hoops with what is EASILY available. Currently you can build you own (infeasible for most people) use the standard commercially available ones (but that have to be plugged into the headphone jack) - the ridax and touchmod mics require jailbroken software, which instantly rules them out here.

[quote author=fasequeira]

[quote author=DragonWrath]

2. speaker/headset defaults - One other thing to keep in mind, is by default, if you plug a headset into the ipod, sound goes through the earphones NOT the external speaker. Now as you ALWAYS have to have the headset in with the ipod, you could NEVER get it to play aloud with the external speakers by default. So tehy would have to find a way to force the sound through the external speakers... BUT you dont' always want the soudn throught eh external speakers, if you're practicing you might want it in the headset, so you need a way to choose to override teh sound or not and thats not an easy task either.

\[\/quote\]

It IS possible to hardwire the speaker play with something plugged into the mic/headphone port. It is a software modification.

\[\/quote\]

YES, you can force it to use speakers with a software fix BUT as I mentioned before the standard speaker in the ipod touch is too quiet for this to be a good option. The idea of you playing aloud is that people can HEAR you, any sort of noise level above "hear a pin drop" makes it too quiet.

[quote author=fasequeira]

[quote author=DragonWrath]

3. Microphone positioning - You need two hands to play. Remeber headsets are designed to play the mic next to your mouth not in front (to pick up some but avoid breathing noises and so they don't get in your mouth and so they don't get little bits of spit as you talk etc) This takes the mic out of range to blow into which means you have to take it out of your ear and reposition it somehow, so you can hold it comepletely stead while also having 2 hands free to play AND still being able to see the screen AND you have to be able to tilt the device (for the vebrato effects). I imagine (and from the e-mail responses from smule) that this has to be one of th biggest problems, how do you comfortably position the mic? Particularly if there are 6 or 7 different types that might fit differently?

\[\/quote\]

The mic adapters can be clipped right to their jack and work essentially like blowing into the mic port on the iphone.

\[\/quote\]

The standard apple mics have no easy way to clip them to anything. You would always need 1 earbud out of your ear, and there is no clip. Clipping the mic to your shirt or to the cable would not work (too much movement). The only real feasible solution I've seen so far would be to STICKY TAPE the mic to the ipod. Workable but, would be nice ot have something better than that really....

[quote author=fasequeira]

You're right about smule's worries. They are worried that people who don't know much about the ipod Touch and what would be needed to use this app, will get angry and leave negative comments, thus tarnishing the image. The above comments I posted are already done. It's more of whether it is worth pleasing the Touch users that have been begging for a Touch release at the risk of having more people download it when it becomes available and getting angry when they don't know how (or what they need) to use the program.\[\/quote\]

Remeber I've never said it SHOULDN'T be released, or it wont happen or it can't be done. But there is still quite a lot of work to do to fix it. To give you an example, you can currently get an adapter to play movies from your ipod to your tv. You could in theory (with a software modification ) use that to plug into external speakers.

ALL I am saying is UNTIL this stuff is ready, smule would be CRAZY to release an ipod version. I say its NOT worth releasing yet, sure people are going to get annoyed, but its a dumb idea to release an application for a handful of users that will potential either jailbreak their ipods, find expensive work arounds or some uncomfortable compromise. You'd Potentially please a hanadful of people while making 95% feel ripped off!

I know its disappointing, I know it sucks to wait, but be realistic. There are problems to solve, and there are ALREADY TOO MANY companies that release Crappy, buggy, software and games, to make money off the poor saps that buy them, and say, oh we can patch it later, we'll fix it soon. I'm sick of that crap and I for one, am glad thaqt smule is waiting till they get it right before they release it. SURE I'm disappointed its taking a while, but be realistic here, think about it before you complain or come up with ideas, particularly those that involve jailbreaking, or hardware modification or large expenditure... This had be an application that can actually be released to the masses (potentially unwashed masses) before its safe to release

My iPod touch is most definitely NOT jailbroken, yet my microphone (a $10 Philips, available at Target stores) has a standard jack into which you can plug any headphones ... OR SPEAKERS.

And it has a lapel/collar clip.

Bottom line: you do NOT need a jailbroken device to plug speakers in, and you do NOT need to buy Apple's expensive mic, which apparently lacks a clip.

(Oh, those pesky facts!)

And one more thing: a lot of people ALREADY paid for Ocarina after Smule promised a version for the iPod touch "in a few weeks" -- back in November. I can understand not taking money from new touch users, but what should Smule do for the people who gave it money based on a promise it made?

[quote author=DragonWrath]

The arguement for using adpaters and mics that require a jailborken ipod touch (which you cannot yet reliably do anyway) is a dumb one. No legitimate company can been seen to promote jailingbreaking, thats just crazy. On a side note, this is a 99c application. A 99C application that involves spending what $50 on a standard apple headset (well its $50 AUD not sure what it is elsewhere). Its not something you want to do until your sure it will work, not require large amounts of spending or and modification that an untrained layperson cannot do themselves. This would become a publicly available application, it MUST be accessible to anyone who buys with without jumping through stupid hoops with what is EASILY available. Currently you can build you own (infeasible for most people) use the standard commercially available ones (but that have to be plugged into the headphone jack) - the ridax and touchmod mics require jailbroken software, which instantly rules them out here.

\[\/quote\]

I understand where you're coming from, but it is not a dumb idea to use an external mic. There are plenty of mic that work with NON-Jailbroken ipods that range from $3~$20. People who buy a mic could use it for other functions as well, so there are many people who already have mics. Anyone can buy one of these and no modifications are necessary. With any of these adapters, you can plug in whatever you want (speakers, headset, line-out).

[quote author=DragonWrath]

The standard apple mics have no easy way to clip them to anything. You would always need 1 earbud out of your ear, and there is no clip. Clipping the mic to your shirt or to the cable would not work (too much movement). The only real feasible solution I've seen so far would be to STICKY TAPE the mic to the ipod. Workable but, would be nice ot have something better than that really....

\[\/quote\]

The apple ones are expensive and haven't proven to be that much better than the third-party cheaper ones. The cheaper ones do have clips and can be clipped to the ipod or to the jack part of the cable. IF someone wanted to tape the mic to the ipod, it wouldn't take any special skills to do.

I'm not trying to pick a fight, but other than volume and aesthetics, the app works the way it should.

A point to note, is a mic on your lapel, wont work. A mic clipped on the ipod or the cable with hthe mic pointed up or down, really doesn't work well at all, basically doesn't work. The mic needs to point straight out from the bottom of the ipod to be comfortable and effective the way it was intended.

And unless you can get a double adapter that allows you to plug a mic and an external speaker in (which i havent' seen, but.. maybe they are available) the jack isn't a great option anyway. I know you can get double adapter for splitting headphones but wasn't sure if you can get one that takes a mic too.

In terms of needing to jailbreak - The ones using the dock at the bottom all need to be jailbroken as far as I've seen so far.

I'm not trying to pick fights either, its just mostly been pretty one way, with people often not thinking things through. If you haven't tried it you really can't judge.

I feel sorry for the people that have bought it if it doesnt' come out, but that said I feel it will come out once they finish it up, and polish it up a bit. Just gotta give them time.

The only thing that really annoyed me at all, was its hard to get any information from smule really where it was up to. They coyuld have avoided a lot of trouble just be setting up a page with where things are up to, what hurdles they face and some kinda rough estimate. Updated it every week or two...

OK, no fights. :D

I am lucky enough to be a beta tester of the iPod touch 2G version of Ocarina. It works great with the Philips mic, with a few very minor caveats (which I have detailed to Smule).

Yes, placement of the mic is something to think about, but we're a pretty creative species. It didn't take long for me to find a way to position it so that it worked fine. (And before that, my wife held it -- the mic, that is -- up for me.) I certainly wouldn't delay or prevent a product's release based on speculations about how people may or may not hold their microphones, though I might give guidance in that area.

And let's not underestimate the value of Ocarina's "passive" features. Spinning and zooming a "live" 3-D globe, seeing where around the world people are making music, and listening in while watching mesmerizing graphics is a pretty cool app in itself. It's quite impressive! A lot of people pay for "passive" apps, too, like e-books and art galleries. So even an iPod touch 1G user with no facility for sound input might enjoy Ocarina. :)

Ardee, you already got the beta? I am too a beta tester and they saïd they would send it soon and that was the 22th. Still havet got it, isnt that weird?

The mic adapters are made so that you can use the mic and your choice of headset instead of the all-in one products.

Check out the Griffin Smarttalk, the Philips one, Monster iSonytalk, and other similar ones.

Some of us have already tried the app out on the Touch and have found it to work just fine.

It's not as slick as the iphone, but it works.

I hope this is the right place to post this, if not please let me know.

I have an ipod Touch 2G, went out and bought a mic and paid the .99 to buy Ocarina.

Ive googled this same question, and read posts everywhere, and no one seems to say how to install it

onto the touch 2G, so.......

How do I install it onto my ipod touch 2G?

Itunes tells me it wont sync it because its not compatible.

Any help appreciated.

[quote author=crackersAkA]I hope this is the right place to post this, if not please let me know.

I have an ipod Touch 2G, went out and bought a mic and paid the .99 to buy Ocarina.

Ive googled this same question, and read posts everywhere, and no one seems to say how to install it

onto the touch 2G, so.......

How do I install it onto my ipod touch 2G?

Itunes tells me it wont sync it because its not compatible.

Any help appreciated.\[\/quote\]

Well i jailbreaked my 2g with redsn0w and use a cracked ocarina app from installous and it work perfectly. Here is a guide on how to jailbreak it : http://www.ipodtouchfans.com/forums/sho ... p?t=137796. Hope this helps :)

Larsy1995,

Thanks very much for such a quick reply.

I wasnt sure if this thread was still alive.

Im going to give the jailbreak a shot. since there are no other options for the 2G touch right now.

Thanks.

P.S.

Doesnt it piss you off a little that you have to resort to jailbreaking your iPod, just to run an app

that works on the iPhone, and was promised to work on the touch?

Bah, just grumpin out loud.

Thanks again and best regards.

Remember its a Tethered Jailbreak so you have to do step 13 eveytime your gonna reboot (forgot that my first time) . Ps. If you dont want it jaibreaked anymore just restore an official firmware in itunes.

Answer to your PS: yea it does.

The moment you've all you iPod Touch n00bs have been waiting for! How to get Ocarina for iPod Touch legitimately through the app store. No Jailbreaking, no cracking. I'm amazed it took this long for someone to figure it out.

First buy Ocarina from the Appstore in iTunes on your computer. I'm sure some of you already have!

2. Change the file extension from “.ipa” to “.zip” and open the “.zip” file.

3. You will see a file called “iTunesMetadata.plist”. In this file there is a parameter that designates what devices the application can run on. The parameter name is “softwareSupportedDeviceIds” and the value will be “2” for Ocarina. You will want to change its value to a “1”. This allows it to work on an iPod Touch.

4. How to edit the “.plist” file.

You should be able to just double click the file and it should open in the Property List Editor. If you don’t have the property list editor you can get it from http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/d ... itpro.html

Otherwise you can upload the file to

http://www.kilrathy.net/plist-converter

and this will turn it into a more human readable format that you can edit.

Once you have opened the file, find the “softwareSupportedDeviceIds” parameter and change it’s value to a “1”.

If you are using the Property List Editor this is super easy but if you are using a text editor it should look something like this.

<key>softwareSupportedDeviceIds</key>

<array>

<integer>1</integer>

</array>

b. PC

If you open the file in Notepad, you should be able to find the “softwareSupportedDeviceIds” parameter and change it’s value to a “1”. It should look something like this, although it most likely won’t be formatted so nicely.

<key>softwareSupportedDeviceIds</key>

<array>

<integer>1</integer>

</array>

If it just looks like a bunch of jibberish, try converting it here first.

http://www.kilrathy.net/plist-converter

5. Once you have made the change, save the file and make sure to replace it in the “.zip” file.

6. After you have edited the parameter in the “.plist” file and saved it back in the “.zip” folder, rename the “.zip” back to “.ipa” so iTunes will recognize it again.

7. Make sure the “Ocarina.ipa” file is still in your “Mobile Applications” folder.

8. Now you can connect your iPod Touch 2G, sync it, and it should properly install Ocarina.

For the original description of how to do this check out

http://www.ipodtouchfans.com/forums/sho ... p?t=129857

That’s it! Don’t forget that you need an external microphone of some sort in order to play Ocarina on the touch.

Here are some suggestions on microphones to buy.

Griffin SmartTalk -- $10 to $20

http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... ps-sellers

Phillips from Target -- $10

http://www.target.com/Philips-iPhone-Mi ... one&page=1

[/][/]

Nice job!

Having purchased the Philips mic, I can attest that it works (which 2 no-name ones I bought don't). However, it picks up a lot of noise when it's moved. Presumable it's from the motion of the wire. I didn't realize that the Griffin SmartTalk had come down so much in price.

Do you know if the Griffin SmartTalk picks up less wire noise than the Philips/Target mic?

Great!!! Hope it really works. I'll try this tomorrow after school:)

1. The above method doesn't work.

2. Smule Ocarina for iPod Touch is currently in Beta and it's working great. 100% compatiblity. All you need to do is find a good Microphone (Griffin Smalltalk Recommended) and your own positioning system.

[quote author=FearedBliss]1. The above method doesn't work.

2. Smule Ocarina for iPod Touch is currently in Beta and it's working great. 100% compatiblity. All you need to do is find a good Microphone (Griffin Smalltalk Recommended) and your own positioning system.\[\/quote\]

Well , your pretty wrong with the method above because i have tried it and it works ;) If it didn't work for you, u must have done something really wrong. I can send you the file as a proof. Cya;). Ps. Ever heard about a dock mic?? Macally ivoice III (i think thats the name) as an example;€

I guess I did something wrong then :( . I just extracted the .plist file and changed the value from 2 to 1 and then re-added to the .zip, changed file format and synced.

Yea I heard about the Dock Connector. Ocarina will probably have a new feature where it will use the new features in the iPhone OS 3.0 to talk to the Dock Connector if anything. Even if it works now the new API will probably give it a better way of managing it.

Today, i downloaded the ocarina app from the built in App Store on my ipod touch 2g. Is it just me and my ipod or has it happened to somebody else too?

Hello Everyone with an iPod touch 2G:

Ocarina version 1.3 is now available in the iTunes app store. It has a touch mode that works quite well, and fully supports the iPod Touch 2G.

Enjoy!

elon

Thanks :) , I'm glad that it's officially out.

When will this app produce sound through the speaker on the ipod touch using the 3.0 firmware? :?:

Unfortunately for everyone who happened to jump the gun and install the beta version of the 3.0 firmware, it will not work properly with 3.0 until the official 3.0 comes out, or until a future 3.0 beta update comes out that no longer has a conflict in the code.

elon

[quote author=chazzito]When will this app produce sound through the speaker on the ipod touch using the 3.0 firmware? :?: \[\/quote\]

Can one use with the iPod Touch 2g Ocarina with an external microphone?

Using the approach I mentioned in:

http://www.pacswinsig.org/forums/Sho...px?PostID=1230

I plugged the headset into my 2G Touch and loaded Ocarina. The program changed from the "Touch Mode" to the standard iPhone mode. I blew into the external microphone and heard the tones in the earpiece.

Using this approach works, but it is not very convenient. I'm sure a special external microphone can be wired so that the internal speaker can still be heard.

I just tried Skype with 3.0 software and it works. Also, I just noticed the "Speaker" button while making a call. Tapping on that button transfers the sound from the earbud to the Touch internal speaker... this with the four-ring earphone plug still inserted in the Touch... interesting. I'd like to see this addition on Ocarina.

Smule's Sonic Vox works like that on the iPod Touch 2G. If you have a mic and you plug it in the sound goes to the headphones like ocarina, but there is a switch that you can flip from in the apps settings to make the sound go through the speaker. The switch says 3G only but it works on the iPod as well. Smule should try to incorporate this, though I just noticed that the switch is gone. Maybe because of 3.0. The settings now seem screwy in Sonic Vox since 3.0. The green Smule icon just disappeared :?: . Well anyhoo Smule should also create Ocarina: World Stage! That would be cool.