_ __  __          _ _        _____      _   
  (_)  \/  |        | (_)      / ____|    | |  
   _| \  / | ___  __| |_  __ _| |     __ _| |_ 
  | | |\/| |/ _ \/ _` | |/ _` | |    / _` | __| v2.3
  | | |  | |  __/ (_| | | (_| | |___| (_| | |_  Readme/Changelog
  | |_|  |_|\___|\__,_|_|\__,_|\_____\__,_|\__| http://jmediacat.sf.net
 _/ |                                          
|__/                                           

/------------\
| Basic Info |
\------------/

jMediaCat is a simple audio file catloging/database program (similar to iTunes
Library or Winamp Media Library,) programmed entirely in Java. The program is
meant to make searching through a large collection of digital music fast and
straightforward. jMediaCat will opens selected media files using the host
system's default media player (jMediaCat was written to act as a frontend for
players that don't have a terrific--or any--music database system.) jMediaCat
currently indexes MP3, OGG, FLAC, WMA, M4A, AAC, and MIDI files in a given
directory (and its subdirectories) on your hard drive.

/-----------\
|   Usage   |
\-----------/

jMediaCat has a deceptively simple user interface that consists of an
input field and a results list. Once the song database is populated,
the program is used by typing a query into the input field, and then pressing
the [down] or [enter] keys to move to the results list to select a song to
be played.

If you are using Windows, the first time jMediaCat is run, it will prompt for
a directory in which your music resides. If you are running a UNIX-based OS,
it will prompt for a command to play music files (which can later be changed by
pressing [F3], then prompt for a music directory. Pressing [F2] will allow you to
select a directory containing your music. Any time you change your music directory
or music playing command, jMediaCat saves these pieces of information (overwriting
previously remembered directories or commands) and they will be remembered the
next time the program is run. To rescan your music directory at any time, press
[F1], and to toggle automatic scanning of the music directory on program startup,
press [F4] (this feature is disabled by default.)

Once the music database is populated, you can search for songs by typing in the
input box at the top of the window. Search results will appear and change as you
continue to type. When you have typed enough information to find the song you are
looking for, pressing [ENTER] or the down arrow on your keyboard will transfer you
to the results list, where you can use the arrow keys and the enter key--or double
click--on your desired song to play it inside your system's default media player.

/-----------\
|   To Do   |
\-----------/

*Add ID3 tag support
*Add support to index multiple directories

/-----------\
| Changelog |
\-----------/

11/30/07-v2.3:
*General code cleanup and re-factoring. jMediaCat now makes use of Java generics
and now requires Java 1.5 or newer to compile and run.
*Added full support for Mac OS X. All media files play in QuickTime Player.
*Update checking is now enabled by default.
*Fixed UI bug: The results list no longer flickers when navigating it with the
up/down arrow keys.
*Fixed UI bug: Clicking on the results list (main screen) after invoking a manual
rescan by pressing F1 no longer plays songs previously listed as search results.

3/24/06-v2.2:
*Major code revisions--removed many anonymous classes.
*Fixed UNIX-based OS bug: jMediaCat will now properly show the 'custom command'
dialog box when the program is first run.

3/17/06-v2.1:
*Minor code optimizations.
*Added the ability to turn off update checking (for faster program startup.)

1/21/06-v2.0:
*Searches are performed using 'find-as-you-type' (similar to Winamp, iTunes, and
other programs.)
*Fixed multi-selection bug: only one song in the results list can be selected
now.
*All around speed improvements.
*Simpler, keyboard-driven graphical user interface.
*Added the ability to automatically scan for new music on program startup.
*File extensions are no longer shown in the results list.
*jMediaCat now automatically checks to see if there is a new version upon
startup.
*User can now hit enter or the down arrow to move from the search box to
the results list.
*Indexing folder is now chosen graphically instead of textually.
*More redundant code has been removed.

10/19/05-v1.7:
*jMediaCat now displays a message that it is searching for and indexing
songs instead of just appearing to be 'frozen.'
*jMediaCat's error/status messages are now clearer and more specific.
*Several parts of the code have been re-optimized, and redundant code has been
reduced/removed.
*'Directory is not accessible!' errors should occur a lot less frequently;
searching for media files from the hard drive root should work now.

5/23/05-v1.6:
*Added ability to save music playing command to hard drive in UNIX-based
operating systems
*Compiled official jMediaCat binary using JDK v1.4.2 instead of 1.5.0;
it should now run on systems with JRE v1.4.2 or later
*Added "Usage" information to this file

4/24/05-v1.5:
*Added support for filenames and paths with spaces/special characters
in UNIX-based operating systems

4/23/05-v1.4:
*Fixed major Unix-Based OS bug: jMediaCat will now properly open different
songs when they are selected in the list, as opposed to only the song that
was first selected, no matter which song in the list is selected after it.

3/25/05-v1.3:
*Added ability to save media search results to hard drive
*Cleaned up the source code (again)

3/24/05-v1.2:
*Added support for keyboard-only usage
*Cleaned up the source code

3/24/05-v1.1:
*Added full UNIX-based OS support
*Minor speed optimizations

3/22/05-v1.0:
*Added JRE 1.4.2 support
*Removed the BreezyGUI library from jMediaCat--the program is now completely
self-contained
*Fixed some major graphical bugs

1/18/2005-v1.0b2:
*Initial public release