My First Challenge to Apple: Simplify Front Row and iPod

As a University student, the iMac that is sitting on my desk is a strong source of entertainment, be it films, television shows, music, digital photos, or surfing the web. The first four that I mentioned are all accessible through Front Row, with the Apple remote. This is excellent, as I don't have the money or the space in my room for a TV, and definitely don't have the money for cable. When some money comes through maybe I’ll dish it out for EyeTV, but probably not as I’ve been keeping very busy with the first five seasons of Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Family Guy I torrented. When I'm out, my photo iPod keeps me well entertained with my music, in an easy to use and generally clutter-free way

However, Front Row and iPod have not yet hit my Zen, and I'll tell you why. Check out this list of every item that exists in Front Row:

-Music
*Shuffle Songs
*Shared Music
*Playlist
*Artist
*Albums
*Songs
*Podcast
*Genre's
*Composers
*Audiobooks

-Video
*Shared Videos
*Theatrical Trailers
*Movies
*Music Videos
*TV Shows
*Video Podcasts

-Photos
*Shared Photos
*All Albums

-DVD

and iPod's music menu,
-Music
*Playlists
*Artists
*Albums
*Songs
*Podcasts
*Genres
*Composers
*Audiobooks

Bolded are all the options that I use, as for the others, I find they are just visual clutter. To improve these interfaces in a very easy way, all Apple has to do is to not include options in these menus that are empty. When I go into Front Row, or on my iPod I don't want to be reminded of the Media I don't have, I want to focus on what I do have and what I essentially want. As for shared videos, shared music, and Movie trailers, I think iTunes preferences should be able to disable these options in Front Row

The reason I’ve made such a big deal out of what some may think is such a small problem, is because of the nature of the iPod and of Front Row. Part of good minimalism comes from cleverly hiding intricate systems behind a veil of simplicity. Think of a concert. Before a concert starts, the band chooses the songs that it's going to play and it in what order. Then, when they get on stage, there's nothing but the desired show. And the musicians won't make any comments like, if want us to perform magic we can't, and if you want us to read you a book we can't. Now think of iTunes as the backstage, and Front Row and iPod as the Stage, as the band. I believe when you use these interfaces, you, like the concertgoer, should experience only the desired media. While this would put more clutter into the iTunes preferences, and offer what some may consider unnecessary choice, I think the result would be worth it.

Oh and two more things,
Coverflow in Front row, done iPhone style (album flips over to show a list of songs in that album), and don't display file extensions for films in the movie folder