Is it wrong to be fascinated by one’s own Huz FM feature?
I mean, it’s great! Not the fact it gets displayed on this page - far from it, I knocked that functionality up in no time (even if I have been tweaking it relentlessly ever since ¬ ¬) - but the engine behind it, Audioscrobbler. I don’t think I’ve described it before, so it’s time to get going!
Audioscrobbler, from the user’s perspective, is essentially a plugin you download for the media player of your choice. Random fact for you - I use WinAmp because iTunes is bloody rubbish. Once installed, you choose a username and it diligently reports back to a central server on what kind of subversive music you’ve been listening to, like some kind of secret policeman who never sleeps and never wants a cup of tea.
But here’s the great part! Audioscrobbler uses this listening data to match you up with other people with similar musical tastes. The theory is, although you listen to roughly the same stuff, your music collections won’t be exactly the same - so you basically introduce each other! To new stuff! Stuff you’ll probably like! Over the Internet! It’s magic, I tell you.
Oh, and it doesn’t quite stop there. And this is where Huz FM fascinates me. Clicking on song titles takes me through to Audioscrobbler, where I can find out more stats than you can shake a large stick at about the song itself, the artist, and most importantly who listens to the stuff - how often, and how many people. Apparently I Don’t Like Mondays is just about the only Boomtown Rats song that anyone ever listens to, for instance. Interesting!
It’s great. Sign up today and tell me your username! Oh, and if you have a blog, you can use the RSS service to make your own “Your name here FM!”. What could be better?
