I desperately want to dump WMP and have heard great things about Foobar2000...so I've tried it out but I can't get it to do what I want.

Basically the layout of WMP is perfect for me, but the performance isn't. (layout screenshot for those who aren't familiar:)


I've tried to replicate something similar in Foobar by installing the Tree Browser and Columns UI but nothing seems to have changed, I've added my music folder by going through Playlist > Add Directory but all I get is a huge list of songs which is time consuming to browse.

Is it possible to have a library in a similar way to WMP...and if so, how is it done? Sorry if this is very simple, I've tried searching and browsing various sites but I just end up going round in circles. Any other beginners tips on how to get a more user-friendly Foobar would be great too.

What exact performance issues do you have with wmp?

It seems to take up a hell of a lot of memory and if I have a couple of other programs open it can take a few seconds for the songs to load up. It can take 10 or so seconds for WMP to appear properly after it's maximised too.

I've tried doing the same with Foobar and there's no delay problems so I really want to try and make it work (also the thought of ditching my last frequently used Microsoft program, apart from Windows, would feel good). I had a look through the pictures of other people's customised Foobar's and they look great...I've managed to get over the library problem but it's still not easy to use...I can't get the library to appear at the side rather than in a seperate window (despite what the tutorial says, I have columns UI installed).

I think what you're looking for is foo_uie_albumlist.

Set it to view > by directory structure.

Ah, yeah that is what I was after, thanks.

I also found the solution to my other problem on the Audiosrobbler boards, I didn't realise you had to make Columns UI the default UI in the Preferences, I thought it did that automatically.

Is there any kind of beginners guide to editing the look of things? I've nearly got it doing what I want, I don't want it doing anything fancy...but just knowing how to customise it would be great.

http://wiki.hydrogenaudio.org/index.php?title=Foobar2000

Wooo excellent that's what I was looking for, thanks a lot.

I'll get reading that for a while and leave you lot in peace.

try out the strings i wrote for the album list pannel in the 3rd party component forum.