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- Apr 12, 2005
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Hey everyone,
Ok, so maybe I've mentioned in the past that I've been working on an Android app that I plan to release to the market. It's gonna be a free app (and that includes no annoying ads either) as most other similar apps are also free and I see no point in trying to make money directly from this. Instead I see it as something worth putting on a resume and that's about it. But, the biggest dilemma I typically face while coding is coming up with a real good name for a class or even variable. And no surprise, I'm having the same stupid problem with coming up with a name for my app! Now we know why I'm not in marketing!
So, I thought I'd come here for some advice. So let me explain what my app does. It's quite simple, it allows you to remotely control WinAMP from your phone. Note, this means it does not actually play the music on the Android device, but controls Winamp on networked PC. Yes, there already are apps out there that do this, I don't care about that. And like all apps like that, they need some form of back-end server that runs as a plugin to WinAMP to provide the connectivity. That's where my app is a bit different, it uses a pre-existing plugin already available on WinAMP's site which was originally designed to be used from a web browser. The plugin is called AjaxAMP. No, Ajax does not refer to the ancient Greek warrior, but to the AJAX programming model of using JavaScript, XML & JSON. Point your browser to your machine with WinAMP/AjaxAMP and you can control it remotely using a slick web interface. Works great on a desktop, not so much on a mobile device. Here's where my app comes in. I reverse engineered the protocol used by AjaxAMP (FireBug, you're my hero) and have written my app to make full use of AjaxAMP's interface. There are unfortunately some problems with this approach: I don't have full control of the server side. Not a big deal, but this means I lack access to album art as AjaxAMP doesn't provide that. There are also some bugs with the server that I hope get fixed (I emailed the author but he's never responded so who knows).
But anyway, I'm here looking for a good name. The name I've used so far is AnJax, which is just Android and Ajax mushed up, but that makes for a lousy name. Here are some ideas I've had that I'm bouncing off people, just wondering what you guys think. Of course, please suggest any alternatives.
1. AirAMP - Because, you control it over the air?
2. SkyAMP - Kinda like #1 (and yes, it does work over 3G networks)
3. ZephyrAMP - This one kinda links the ancient Greek portion of "Ajax" with item #1 above as Zephyr was the god of the Westerly winds (a favorable wind).
4. AetherAMP - Again, like #1 above, but more nerdy sounding although it probably gets the point across nicely (at least to the nerds).
5. AuroraAMP - Yes, I'm hooked on spatial names, and this is hugely over done, but still worth considering.
6. Winamp Sidekick - Ok, it actually kinda describes what it is, but not very imaginative is it?
7. TeensyAMP - My girl friend likes this. She seems to envision the remote player as something "cute" and "small".
8. IttyBittyAMP - You can guess who came up with this one. No, it was me.
9. BabyAMP - I'm not calling it that!
10. MobileAMP - Accurate enough, but reminds me of motor oil for some reason. Actually, maybe not as my app does NOT play music on the Android device. It simply acts as a remote control, so this is probably a bad name.
...There was one more but I forget.
Anyway, I'm kinda partial to AirAMP. What is everyone else thinking? And no, it doesn't need to have Winamp or Amp in the name, but that might help people find it when searching. If screen shots might help, I can do that but you'll need to wait until this evening as I'm at work right now.
Ok, so maybe I've mentioned in the past that I've been working on an Android app that I plan to release to the market. It's gonna be a free app (and that includes no annoying ads either) as most other similar apps are also free and I see no point in trying to make money directly from this. Instead I see it as something worth putting on a resume and that's about it. But, the biggest dilemma I typically face while coding is coming up with a real good name for a class or even variable. And no surprise, I'm having the same stupid problem with coming up with a name for my app! Now we know why I'm not in marketing!
So, I thought I'd come here for some advice. So let me explain what my app does. It's quite simple, it allows you to remotely control WinAMP from your phone. Note, this means it does not actually play the music on the Android device, but controls Winamp on networked PC. Yes, there already are apps out there that do this, I don't care about that. And like all apps like that, they need some form of back-end server that runs as a plugin to WinAMP to provide the connectivity. That's where my app is a bit different, it uses a pre-existing plugin already available on WinAMP's site which was originally designed to be used from a web browser. The plugin is called AjaxAMP. No, Ajax does not refer to the ancient Greek warrior, but to the AJAX programming model of using JavaScript, XML & JSON. Point your browser to your machine with WinAMP/AjaxAMP and you can control it remotely using a slick web interface. Works great on a desktop, not so much on a mobile device. Here's where my app comes in. I reverse engineered the protocol used by AjaxAMP (FireBug, you're my hero) and have written my app to make full use of AjaxAMP's interface. There are unfortunately some problems with this approach: I don't have full control of the server side. Not a big deal, but this means I lack access to album art as AjaxAMP doesn't provide that. There are also some bugs with the server that I hope get fixed (I emailed the author but he's never responded so who knows).
But anyway, I'm here looking for a good name. The name I've used so far is AnJax, which is just Android and Ajax mushed up, but that makes for a lousy name. Here are some ideas I've had that I'm bouncing off people, just wondering what you guys think. Of course, please suggest any alternatives.
1. AirAMP - Because, you control it over the air?
2. SkyAMP - Kinda like #1 (and yes, it does work over 3G networks)
3. ZephyrAMP - This one kinda links the ancient Greek portion of "Ajax" with item #1 above as Zephyr was the god of the Westerly winds (a favorable wind).
4. AetherAMP - Again, like #1 above, but more nerdy sounding although it probably gets the point across nicely (at least to the nerds).
5. AuroraAMP - Yes, I'm hooked on spatial names, and this is hugely over done, but still worth considering.
6. Winamp Sidekick - Ok, it actually kinda describes what it is, but not very imaginative is it?
7. TeensyAMP - My girl friend likes this. She seems to envision the remote player as something "cute" and "small".
8. IttyBittyAMP - You can guess who came up with this one. No, it was me.
9. BabyAMP - I'm not calling it that!
10. MobileAMP - Accurate enough, but reminds me of motor oil for some reason. Actually, maybe not as my app does NOT play music on the Android device. It simply acts as a remote control, so this is probably a bad name.
...There was one more but I forget.
Anyway, I'm kinda partial to AirAMP. What is everyone else thinking? And no, it doesn't need to have Winamp or Amp in the name, but that might help people find it when searching. If screen shots might help, I can do that but you'll need to wait until this evening as I'm at work right now.