I was doing some research on XUL for work when I ran across a reference to a Mozilla-based media player called Songbird.
So I was intrigued by what a read, and after I downloaded and installed the player itself, I was impressed with what I saw.
Songbird treats every web page you visit as a potential playlist. If the browser finds links to MP3 files, it’ll create a playlist of those files, which you can listen to with a built-in player. It’s much more convenient than waiting for a QuickTime plug-in to load, and you don’t have to click through each link to listen.
The media player in Songbird isn’t just restricted to web sites. It also contains a library to handle files on your computer.
The program is still in development, and the preview available has a number of interface quirks. I noticed an issue with scrolling when viewing an XML file. The browser doesn’t keep a history, and handling bookmarks in the side bar can be unintuitive. Future features include the ability to rip and burn CDs and synchronizing with playback devices.
When Songbird gets closer to a 1.0 version, it could very well be an incredibly powerful application.