Gsoc2015Ideas
This page lists the suggested projects for students working on Mixxx as part of Google Summer of Code 2015. Each of these projects represents something that we think would make a really big difference to our users and that we as a development team are really excited about. For advice on how to get in touch and how to apply, you should read GSoC Advice.
A GSoC application that simply repeats the project description will NOT be accepted. We expect you to think about the feature and how it aligns with Mixxx's goals, outline potential use-cases and propose a plan for implementing a solution.
In Mixxx 1.11.0 we removed the old MIDI mapping GUI as we re-wrote the controller subsystem to support HID devices. Now it's time to rewrite the mapping GUI! This GUI should be modular enough to support an HID mapping GUI in the future. In previous versions of Mixxx the keyboard mapping was accomplished via a text file. This project will move keyboard mapping and processing into the new controller sub-system as a new type of controller and introduce a user-friendly GUI for editing keyboard presets and MIDI presets. For backwards compatibility, the keyboard presets should still be stored on-disk in the same text format.
We suggest you check out the MIDI mapping GUI present in Mixxx 1.10.0 and think of ways to improve on it. For example, one very user-unfriendly aspect of it was that you had to know the ControlObject names of the controls you wanted to connect to a MIDI message. The point-and-click MIDI mapping wizard in 1.11.0 now includes a drop-down of all mappable controls. This is a much better way for users to decide on what control to map a message to. Another very useful exercise is checking out the various commercial DJ software offerings out there and examining how they allow users to map MIDI controllers.
Today, Mixxx provides DJs with limited tools for organizing their library. Mixxx reads file metadata and stores track information in its SQLite-based library. DJs are able to sort and search through their music and organize the tracks into Crates and Playlists.
Editing of metadata can be done inline in the library and with the Track Properties editor. These are fine for simple edits, but they should allow the DJ to do much more.
This project aims to massively improve/replace the track metadata editor built into Mixxx and make single or bulk editing of tracks much easier.
Your proposal should include a clear description of the shortcomings of today's editor and how you plan to improve it. If appropriate, please include mockups and diagrams illustrating your plans.
Some important questions to consider:
- What information does Mixxx store about tracks (both DJ-related and non-DJ-related)?
- For example: Crates, hotcues, loops, album, artist, etc.
- What is the simplest user interface to allow the DJ to edit this metadata?
- How will you handle single-track editing versus bulk editing?
Besides just having better track organization and managment the UI and user experience of our library could be updated. This consists of two parts.
Virtual Folder/ Smart Crates
With the SQLite backend it should be possible to add smart crates. They could contain for example every track of a specific genre. An interesting question here is should it be possible to construct arbitrary SQL queries? To get started on this have a look at the 'setTableModel' functions in the *tablemodel classes.
Related issues on the Mixxx bugtracker
Full Text Search
We already over quite an extensive search feature. But the user experience is not so great right now. It is hard to discover which options are available without reading the manual. How could this be improved.
Overview of the currently available search operators
As always with Summer of Code, you aren't limited to the suggestions we've made here. If you've got a great idea for a project involving Mixxx then we're looking forward to hearing about it. Our bug tracker is full of wishlist bugs and other ideas scattered throughout, so if you browse through it, you may find many more ideas for GSoC projects.
IMPORTANT: You should contact us first to get feedback if you're going to submit a proposal for your own project idea!
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