Hello to 2020 Update!

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As we get into the new year, you might have some renewed new years resolutions to pick that instrument back up and practice a bit more than last year. I've personally continued to use tuneUPGRADE consistently with my practice to hit my goals, and I want to give value to other users as well!



Since the beta launch, users have practiced around 100 hours total on tuneUPGRADE over a few weeks. Many of those users have provided feedback that have helped me focus on what to work on next, from small typo fixes to larger feature changes.

A major update to tuneUPGRADE is now live, including a number of enhancements and fixes requested by the community.

Timer Overhaul

The biggest change is an overhaul of how the timer works on the practice screen. Users had written in explaining the timer didn't run in some cases on mobile (for example, when safari wasn't the focus on iOS, or if your phone went to sleep). I've overhauled the timer system so that it will pick up where it left off if your phone goes to sleep, so your time is still tracked properly. Given this was a fairly major change, please write into [email protected] if you notice any bugs.

Mobile App

Users asked for the ability to run as a mobile app so that you aren't always running a chrome or safari tab on your phone. As such, tuneUPGRADE is now installable as an app, simply by visiting and following the instructions at https://www.tuneupgrade.com/Identity/Account/Manage/Install. 

Monospace Practice Notes

The practice notes section now uses a monospace font, making alignment of any chord progressions, tabs, or notation you want to enter much easier than a variable width font.

Bugfixes

Various bugfixes have been rolled out, such as missing or misspelled tooltips, missing icons on the dashboard and list pages, errors when configuring your practice time, and more. All of these bugs were reported by tuneUPGRADE users, so if you find any more, please shoot me an email ([email protected])! 

Upcoming Features

As we get into 2020, I want to hear from you about features that can help your practice. Some features being considered are:
  • A metronome on the practice screen, which remembers its set tempo per song or exercise.
  • A tagging system and searching system to allow you to enter more information about your songs and exercises and keep better organized.
  • Emailing practice reports, allowing you to email what you practiced easily to your teacher.
  • Expanding gamification to include badges you can earn (logging in and practicing consistently, for example), or leaderboards.
  • Exporting your practice logs so you can run your own data analysis
  • Modifying what day of the week your week starts on, so you can track Wednesday-Tuesday instead of Sunday-Saturday.
  • Expanding data visualizations to provide things like a calendar view of past practice, analysis of how often a song is practiced, and more.
I'd love to hear from you about what you would consider important - whether it's on this list or not! 

Happy New Year, and upgrade those tunes!

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