Tips for upgrading from BeyondPod 2.x to BeyondPod 3
While BeyondPod 3 user interface looks somewhat different, all the existing functionality
is still there. The changes we made were in response to the feedback from users
over the years as well as our desire to make BeyondPod comply (as must as possible)
to the new Android design guidelines. Below you can find some useful tips to help
with the transition:
- Make sure to review the updated Overview of BeyondPod
Screens sections in the Help.
- Selecting a feed form the list of Feeds now opens the feed in a new window. The
new Feed window provides a consistent way to manage episodes for a single feed (update,
download, stream, deleted add to playlist etc.) in one place. You can filter the
feed using the Post/Episode filter to show only the posts and episodes you need.Here
are several tips that can make the use of this screen more efficient.
- To change the current feed, instead of going back to the list of feeds to pick
a new feed, just tap on the feed name in the title and select a different feed from
the pop-up.
- For brevity, episode titles by default are limited to one line. Episode titles
can also be wrapped in multiple lines (so they are visible entirely). Title wrapping
can be enabled in Menu > More > Settings > Feed Content Settings > Wrap Episode
Titles. If you only occasionally need to see the full title, instead of using that
setting, simply turn the device in landscape mode - there the title is always shown
in full.
- If you often check episode notes before downloading, you can switch to a "Read
Optimized" episode view where a tap on episode title or description opens episode
notes (to play/pause episode just tap on the episode icon). You can also long press
on the icon to access some additional episode options. To enable use: Menu >
More > Settings > Feed Content Settings > "Optimize for Reading".
- In the previous version of BeyondPod, episodes of a single feed were split across
2 screens (one showing the feed items, the other local episodes, so often to see
all episodes you needed to check both places). The new Feed screen shows all feed
episodes (both available for download and already downloaded) in one place and you
can use the Post/Episode Filter to filter it based on your needs. Some episodes
can appear as "Archived" - archived episodes are episodes that were previously downloaded
or streamed, but are no longer in the feed. Publishers usually "trim" their feeds
to contain only the last 10..20 episodes. If you downloaded an episode long time
ago and that episode is no longer in the feed, it will show as "archived". "Archived"
episodes behave the same way as any other episode except you can't make them "read"
or "starred". (As of BeyondPod v3.0.17 "archived" episodes are considered "read"
when they are fully played.)
- Post/Episode filter allows you to filter the list of feed episodes based on what
you want to do with them (download, play, stream, delete etc.). "All Items" shows
all (available) items/episodes in the feed. "Unread Only" - shows only "Unread"
items (items with a blue "dot"), "My Episodes" - shows all local episodes (both
"downloaded" and "streamable"), "Downloaded" - shows only downloaded local episodes
(useful if you need to see only episodes that can be played while offline). You
can also use a "pinch-zoom" gesture to quickly toggle between "All Items" and "Unread
Only" (Zoom-in for "All Items", Zoom-out for "Unread Only").
- The order of the posts/episodes you see depends on the selected filter above.
When showing "All Items" or "Unread" it is the order they are released by the publisher.
When showing "My Episodes" or "Downloaded" it is the sort order set for the feed
(by default "Latest on top"). If you want to sort local episodes differently,
you can set a feed specific episode sort order in: Edit Feed > More Settings...
> "Sort Local Episodes By", or globally for all feeds in BeyondPod's General Settings
> "Sort Local Episodes By")
- BeyondPod 3.0 changed the default behavior of what happens when you tap on the
episode - in the previous versions it used to add selected episode and all episodes
after it to the playlist. In 3.0, for consistency, it appends just the selected
episode to the playlist. To switch it back to the "old" (2.x) behavior, go to Menu
> More > Settings > Playlist and Widget Settings and check "Automatic Playlist"
- The playlist functionality was enhanced - you can now add/remove multiple items
to the playlist as well as move multiple playlist episodes to the top/bottom. To
edit/reorder the playlist tap on the "pencil" icon on the playlist screen.
- List of some less-known shortcuts and experimental features in BeyondPod can be
found in BeyondPod Tips and Tricks in the FAQ.
- If you prefer the previous (2.x) version of BeyondPod, you can find it
here. (Just install it over the current Market version and you will downgrade
to the previous public build: 2.9.15)
Keeping BeyondPod fresh and moving it forward sometimes requires us to make deeper
changes to the way it works or looks. We try to prototype, test, adjust and fine
tune the implementation based on all the feedback we receive through our support
channels and support forum. We encourage
you to give our beta versions a try - their sole purpose is to share our vision
for the upcoming features, let you try them in real life and provide feedback on
what you like (and even more importantly - what we should change). Latest beta is
always available on our BETA web site. You can also get direct notification in BeyondPod
when new BETA versions are available - to enable it see:
TIP #6 in the FAQ.
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