Good news from Apple: Simplify Music v 2.0.2 has been approved and will be available shortly. Over the next few hours all Simplify 2 iPhone and iPod touch users should get notification of the new release though the App Store update mechanism.

2.0.2 has two main features. First, the Simplify Demo is off by default. So, if you need to test your connection or, if you are new to Simplify and are wondering what it will be like once you install at home, flip Simplify Demo ON on the Settings screen. Second, 2.0.2 introduces Compilation Mode.

If you rocked say a 5G iPod back in the day, you may remember how clean your artist list looked when you had “Group compilations while browsing” set. This isn’t available on the new iPods and iPhone, perhaps a reason so many of you have been asking us for something similar. So, here it is.

And, here’s how it works. Flip Compilation Mode ON and all artists whose *only* songs appear in albums tagged as compilations will be removed from the All Artists section and by added in the new All Compilations category. If you have other tracks from that artist (not on compilation albums), that artist and all their songs will remain under All Artists.

An example may clarify. Let’s say you have a lot of best of the 70’s albums. Today, in Simplify, your All Artist list will be filled with folks like Earth, Wind & Fire, Kool & the Kang, Carl Douglas, Dazz Band, Hot Chocolate — you get the point.

Now, turn on Compilation Mode and many of those artists will move to All Compilations where their songs will be listed under albums like Pure Funk. Of course, Earth, Wind & Fire will stay, assuming you have the seminal Spirit (1976).

We are also adding this control to the original Simplify 1.x iPhone application. v1.2.3 was submitted to Apple today.

5/13 update - v1.2.3 of Simplify, now with Compilations, has just been approved and is available as a free update in the App Store.

We just submitted an update to our new Simplify Music application to the App Store. Typical approval time is 1-2 weeks, so we hope it will be available in that time frame. v2.0.2 has two new controls on the Settings page. The first is a switch to enable the Simplify demo; the second is a mode to categorize Compilations.

In v2.0.2, the Simplify Demo is off by default. If you are having a connection problem and want to troubleshoot your Simplify setup, or if you just created a Simplify account from your iPhone and want an illustration of how things will work when you install on your home computer, turn on the Simplify demo. (In v2.0.1, the demo was always present.)

Many users have asked us for a way to help organize various artist compilation albums. If, for example, you have all of the Sounds of 80s albums, today your artist list in Simplify will have many entries for artists with just one song. Kajagoogoo anyone?

With Compilations set to ON, all artists whose only songs are on albums tagged as Compilations will appear in the new All Compilations category and not under All Artists. With Compilations set to OFF, navigation will remain as before. We’ll have more on this when 2.0.2 is officially available.

7:21p update - there are new Mac, PC and Linux builds with demo off switches (off by default). See below for details

Today I’ve been trading emails and comments with a few of you around a feature in Simplify 2.0 - the Simplify Demo. The exchange has re-enforced one thing I already knew - we have great, passionate users — and one thing I know now - I made a mistake in communicating this new capability. Some background.

Simplify is simple, but with a variety of platforms and hundreds of thousands of users, there are bound to be occasional connection problems. To make it easier to fix issues, we first created the Troubleshooting tool (Mac, PC and Linux) to diagnose common problems and suggest solutions. Then, in this release, we rolled out a knowledge base and the Simplify Demo.

In the old days, when a user reported a connection problem we’d ask them to try from another computer, or, if they didn’t have access to one, we’d invite them to connect with one of us. That didn’t scale so well, and, since then, we’ve been without an easy way to answer the question, “Can you play from… ?”

For 2.0, we thought we could help solve a support problem, and improve the new user, just installed experience, by creating the demo. If you can see the demo, at least we know that peer can login to our servers. If you can play from it, we know that things are fine on the playback side and the problem is likely on the remote computer. We reached out to an independent artist we like and asked for permission to use an album. To thank him, we changed the songs tags to include his website.

My plan was to do a special blog post later today around common support questions and feature this as one of the problem-solving tools. Fortunately, there have been very few upgrade and new user problems, but there have been many more reactions to the Simplify Demo. So, to clarify:

1) we aren’t making money from this feature. in fact, I feel bad that we may be causing harm for an artist we enjoy
2) the Simplify Demo is just that — there is no way for us or anyone you didn’t invite to see your music.
3) there will be a way to turn it off in the next release

We’ll have a new desktop build for you tomorrow, and we’ll try to submit 2.0.2 to Apple for approval by the end of the week.

7:21p update: We now have new builds for Mac, PC and Linux. You can download build 1243 here:

Mac: http://www.simplifymedia.com/mac
PC: http://www.simplifymedia.com/win
Linux: http://www.simplifymedia.com/lin

In 1243, the demo peer is off by default. If you need to test your system you can re-enable it by going to Options / Preferences and selecting the Computer tab. If you haven’t upgraded yet, you should get 1243 automatically.

As mentioned above, we are expecting to send version 2.0.2 to Apple for App Store approval no later than Friday. It will have a new feature and the ability to control Simplify demo. The demo will be off by default, as pictured here:

5/1 update - v2.0.2 has been submitted for App Store approval.

5/7 update - v2.0.2 has been approved by Apple and should be available in the next few hours.

In the next few hours you will receive a notice on your computer announcing Simplify 2.0. The Mac, Windows and Linux desktop versions of Simplify 2.0 remain free, and they include significant stability improvements and new features detailed below. We recommend that everyone upgrade.

Simplify 2.0 for iPhone and iPod Touch is a new application that includes all of your top feature requests. It is available right now in the Apple App Store at a special $2.99 introductory price.

As a separate app, 2.0 for iPhone is an optional upgrade. We will continue to provide support and bug fixes for 1.x users, and 1.x works just fine with the new 2.0 PC, Mac and Linux versions. For those of you who find the new features of 2.0 worth the price, we appreciate your financial support.

	New for iPhone and iPod Touch
	Search all of your libraries Search by artist, album or song across all of your connected libraries.
	Add to favorites Tap the + icon to add any song or album to your Favorites list.
	Create a playlist on-the-fly Add, delete and re-order your Favorites to create a playlist wherever you are.
	Seek using the scrub bar Use the scrub bar to advance or rewind to any point in a song, audiobook or podcast.
	Improved sorting Lists of artists, albums and songs now have improved sorting to handle a, an and the and other common name variations.

	New for PC, Mac and Linux
		Integrate with WMP 11 On XP and Vista, share your Windows Media Player library and playlists. And, on Vista use WMP 11 to play your Simplify Media shares.
		Share select playlists With library sharing, choose to make all of your playlists available - or just a select few.
		Broadcast to UPnP devices Turn on this setting, and your computer can send Simplify shares to local, UPnP-enabled players like Sonos, Roku or XBox 360.
		FLAC Simplify now supports FLAC as well as MP3, AAC, WMA and Apple Lossless audio formats.
		Ubuntu 8.10 and 9.04 Simplify runs on 8.10 and 9.04. The older 8.04 release is no longer supported.

If you have any additional questions, check out our improved support page with a searchable knowledge base and troubleshooting tips.

Two very exciting things have happened that we have yet to blog about.

First, and we missed this when it originally aired in January, Patrick Norton reviewed the desktop version of Simplify for system on Revision3. We’ve been fans since the TechTV days, so seeing this was awesome. But, the best part was hearing about the write-in campaign you, our fantastic users, conducted on our behalf. The segment starts, “We got about 4 zillion emails all talking about a single service - Simplify Media.” Thank you, Patrick, and thank you, the 4 zillion!

Second, the very excellent Webware announced their nominees for the 2009 edition of the Webware100. And, for the second year in a row, they included Simplify Media. 30 major products and services like Amazon, iTunes, iLike, Pandora and Slacker were selected to battle for 10 finalists spots in the audio category, and, obviously we feel honored to be on the list. If you think we’ve earned it, please vote for us.

If you’ve ever visited out our About Us page, you know that our plan is extend the Simplify approach to photos and videos. We’re not ready to announce anything yet concerning other media types, but we do have some news to share on the music front.

First, later today or tomorrow, you will receive notification that Simplify version 1.2.2 is available for the iPhone and iPod Touch through the App Store. It has some bug fixes and, for our developer friends, full OS 3.0 compatibility. As always, if you encounter any problems, please let us know using the Troubleshooting options or by emailing us at support at simplifymedia.

Second, Music 2.0 should be ready for release in about three weeks. A year ago May, we exited beta and released desktop 1.0. In August, we released Simplify 1.0 for iPhone. And, now, after receiving extensive feedback from you to help us prioritize new features, it’s almost time to unveil 2.0.

Version 2.0 will be free for Mac, PC and Linux and offered for iPhone and iPod Touch at an introductory price of $2.99. Unfortunately, given our development costs, we can’t afford to make it a free upgrade on all platforms, but we hope our current users will be able to take advantage of the discounted initial pricing.

Third, and most importantly, we want to say thanks for all of the encouraging emails, awesome tweets and amazing blogs posts. There are too many to list, but I did want to call attention to a few:

• an incredible list of useful iTunes applications from Gizmodo
• a wonderful tutorial on using Simplify from Macgasm
• a detailed evaluation at The PhenixbluE
• some slick screen shots at 58% Geek and at Shut Up and Listen

and, the greatest opening sentence ever at The Modern Materialist.

We’ve been working hard on 2.0 versions of Simplify for the desktop and the iPhone. Although we’re keeping the list of features secret for now, there are two things that will likely be in desktop 2.0 we wanted to preview in The Lab.

Support for UPnP: if you have a UPnP client device like a Roku Soundbridge on the same local network (LAN) as a computer with Simplify Media, your device can play remote Simplify shares.

To enable this feature, go to the Simplify Media Computer tab under Options/Preferences and check “Enable UPnP sharing over the local network.” After that, you’ll be able to browse remote Simplify computers as new sources using your UPnP device. It even works with UPnP client software like XBMC. Download for Mac, PC and Linux in The Lab.

Support for Windows Media Player: on XP and Vista, Simplify can scan and share your Windows Media Player library and playlists. If you use WMP, enable library sharing using the Music tab under Simplify Media Options.

In addition, on Vista, Simplify can play remote music right inside WMP 11. (Note we cannot play remote music inside WMP on XP). Download in The Lab.

Like our first lab experiments (Linux and the iPhone), these releases are alpha quality and we ask for your help in testing them. Especially for UPnP, let us know how it goes and what device or player settings you are using. If you encounter problems or have suggestions, please select Troubleshooting and then Report Issue - or email us at support at simplifymedia.

Over the next few hours you should receive an upgrade notice for Build 1103. It contains numerous fixes and several important enhancements related to file scanning. So that everyone can take advantage of these changes, Build 1103 is a required update for Mac, PC and Linux.

iTunes library album art If you have selected iTunes library sharing, Simplify Media can now display your iTunes-downloaded album art. This is in addition to artwork embedded in files. Important: iTunes-downloaded artwork is only supported when iTunes library sharing is selected in Simplify Media under the Sharing tab of Options / Preferences. iTunes does not need to be running.

Improved support for external drives If a share on an external or network drive is temporarily unavailable, songs will return quickly once the drive is connected again. Unlike before, the drive will not have to be completely re-scanned.

Custom scan intervals By default, the application processes song and library updates as they happen. You can now set an interval during which no scan activity will occur, adjustable between once an hour and once a day. The control is under the Computer tab of Options / Preferences.

Limited rescans after updates Previously, after an upgrade or re-installation, the full list of shared files needed to be recreated. Build 1103 will be the last to require an automatic re-scan (although a re-scan could be needed in the future for major new features).

After upgrading you should check that the Simplify Media process is allowed by your software firewall. And, to enjoy all of the benefits of improved album art scanning on your iPhone and iPod Touch, we encourage you to update to version 1.2.1 using the Apple App Store.

Finally, we are hard at work on 2.0 versions for the desktop and the iPhone, and we will be sharing more details with you soon. If you haven’t done so already, please help us with our 2009 plan by taking this very short product survey.

The end of the year is a popular time for "best of" lists, and we are proud to be included on some of the most important. Thanks to:

• Macworld - Our Favorite iPhone Apps
• PCMag - 21 Cool iPhone Apps
• USA Today - The iTunes App Store is iPhone’s killer app
• TechCrunch - A Look At Some Of The Best iPhone Apps Of 2008
• Gizmodo - Gizmodo’s 20 Essential iPhone Apps and The Best iPhone Apps of 2008

We are also one of the 10 nominees for “Most Useful App” in the Best App Ever awards. To be selected from more than 18,000 entries is an honor, but we need your help to win. Click the badge to vote.

We wish you all the best for the Holiday Season and the New Year!

2008 has been an exciting year for us. With your help, we’ve made numerous enhancements to the Mac, Windows and Linux applications, and we turned our experimental iPhone and iPod Touch application into an official App Store release. Now, more than 450,000 new downloads later, we want to thank you for your support in improving the user experience.

We hope that 2009 will be even better, and to do that we ask for your continued assistance. If you have a chance, please take our short product survey.