Pushtape

Just wanted to let ya'll know the 7.x-1.0-beta release of Pushtape is now available over on the Pushtape project page. Please test it out and give some feedback when you get a chance!

Along with the beta release, Pushtape.com has been redesigned, with the hope that the site can draw in some interested folks who may not know about the project. Screenshots, Demo, mailing list signup, that sort of thing.

If anyone is interested in checking out where we are at with Pushtape, base theme PDF comps have been posted here:

http://drupal.org/node/1398280#comment-6119206

Next step is building out the base theme from comps, working on implementation details and building the install profile. We could use any and all help at this stage - get in touch!

We'll be doing a weekly IRC chat in #pushtape, tentatively every Sunday night to try and push things forward.

zirafa
www.pushtape.com

Check out the design and strategy doc for lots of background info. Automated packages are being built on drupal.org, any feedback is appreciated!

Design and Strategy Process + 1.0 Roadmap
Download Pushtape distribution [warning: alpha!]
Download Pushtape Features [warning: alpha!]
Pushtape.com (sign up for email list)

IRC: Join #pushtape on freenode!

Word on the tweet is there are some musician friendly features growing in Drupal Gardens. Considering modules such as Media and Media Gallery have been improved and/or contributed out of gardens, there could be points of overlap with developing Pushtape features.

This 'could' be a very good thing!?!

It seems like the combination of drupal.org/git and Open Atrium is a good start. With that we can share code, document issues, and document the project.
The missing piece in my mind is how to collaborate on live sites before committing work to code.

Use cases:
* Clone - clone from other developers
* Share - share your development sites with others
* Collaborate - work on a single site with other developers simultaneously
* git pull - clone site from distribution releases and dev code
* Open Source - Can you run it on your own server?

Hosting options:

I have a current music store that I would like to migrate to Drupal 7. Would Ubercart be the best solution? I am currently receiving audio directly from digital distributor via FTP with an XML file included in the folder of audio files. What would be the best way to integrate the meta data from the XML file to fill the album, artist, track, label, etc in the music store as well as the audio as file downloads (zip) and audio previews for each track.

I'm trying to create an audio library similar to this with Drupal 7. While I've replicated a good deal of functionality using Views, Media, and jPlayer, I'm stuck on the playlist functionality. Any suggestions on how to do this in Drupal 7? Example again below:

https://skitch.com/gusaus/r599d/getty-images-search

Here's a blurb from http://cashmusic.org:

CASH Music is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Our software will provide a set of open source applications that will provide musicians the ability to communicate, promote and sell products directly to their audience. We want our software and engineers to set the pace and provide an alternative to the media giants.

Sustainability for artists is the goal, and an open source solution gives musicians and coders the power to build solutions together. We can’t rely on Facebook, the RIAA, or even Apple to invent a new model that works with the best interests of artists in mind. Let's create those models together.

In this thread the question is asked if a music distribution or separate modules is the best way to achieve turn key functionality needed for a music site. The answer, I believe, is an alternative path.

The alternative path is to abstract things out into an application layer, with Features. There is lots of info about Features on the project page (and it shares some ideas with the now defunct Patterns module), but conceptually this graphic sums it up best:

Only local images are allowed.

Having had some experience working with Features this year, I can tell you it is pretty raw. A Feature has hooks and functions to turn on and off things on your site. At its simplest, it will turn on a few modules and change a few defaults. At its most complex, it will need to manually override database variables. It's messy development and takes time. But the real beauty is that it allows developers to focus on functionality instead of technicality. It also allows independent development of features that, combined, can achieve something that looks like a distribution. And for the user, they don't need to know how it works, they just need to know what it can do.

We are lucky, since we have already identified some useful features needed for an art & music Drupal site / mobile application, and perhaps the next step is to refine and prioritize the list.