Way back in July 2010, there was a lot of buzz around with the cloud music mobile app enabling owners to upload their favorite music tracks on Google docs. Although this was done in a rather questionable manner, when, Google added the upload function to Google Docs allowing users to upload files, and the iPhone app made facilities for audio files to be uploaded to Google Docs. Users would have to upload music using their computer’s browsers, allowing iPhone owners to access a large number of songs through the Google Docs cloud application. As of the last fortnight – mid January, 2011, we had some unofficial news and tips about Google adding preview pane and music player to their collection of Google Docs.
Cloud computing is making various features erstwhile unimaginable a reality. First we saw, SaaS, then HaaS, IaaS, PaaS, ITaaS, etc. Google has been able to introduce this feature of Google Docs on cloud computing with ability to even play video, changing their erstwhile positioning of Google Docs as a business service, inline or against Microsoft Office. Acrobat Pro has also included playability of audio and also audio and video. Although Google has been reluctant in providing information on the introduction of Music player in Google Docs, as a feature in the past, it is now much clearer that, with the addition of Video Player announced in mid January 2011, Music Player is not far away.
CNet announced long back, “store music in Google Docs. Play it on your iPhone.” CES 2011 and the Android success as also various Smartphones like Google Nexus I, etc. hitting the news with phenomenal favorable response worldwide, this consumer oriented feature of Music Player is something that Google can’t hold back too long. Of course, there is also the large growth of streaming music from cloud from various quarters and with Google Docs now allowing uploading of any file types, streaming music application is more than inevitable.
Somewhere in March 2010, the name Simplify Media, a popular music and photo streaming service besides suddenly shutting down its services, also pulled off its mobile applications from Apple’s App Store. A couple of months later the news broke out that Google had acquired Simplify Media and would use their technology to allow Android users stream music to their phones. One more strong indication that Google would use this facility available on their own “Google Docs.” Come November 2010 saw, Google Chrome with Google Docs Media Player as a Google Chrome extension.
This new feature supported various video formats, audio formats, still image formats, animation formats and other formats like KAR (Karaoke), MIDI, Quick Draw GX etc. With the history of Google playing around with different ideas and products, and with statements of product management teams of Google Docs personnel periodically, it is still not clear whether Google Docs will be an alternative to iTunes anywhere in the near future. Leaks on the web with so called codes for the music player, playlists and preview panes for the Google Docs – myth – mystery – reality. Keep guessing!
