Amarok 3.3.1 released bringing several bug fixes, better scripting support and more

Exactly one month since the release of Amarok 3.3, which saw the major shift to GStreamer for its audio engine, its first bugfix release 3.3.1, is live. Amarok, in case you're unaware, is a music player and manager for Linux, Windows, and macOS that, apart from playing music, lets you organize massive collections and connect to online services.

Starting with the bug fixes, Amarok 3.3.1 addresses several crashes tied to its new audio backend. The update also corrects a problem with CD playback when the application is not running, and fixes an incorrect permission command in the database settings. A search issue with MusicBrainz, the open music encyclopedia, has been fixed as well. Here is the rest of the bug fixes:

• Equalizer gains now update correctly when selecting certain presets.
• Playback continues properly after time-coded tracks like those from CUE files.
• Embedded cover art is now transmitted correctly through the MPRIS D-Bus interface.
• The transcoding dialog no longer appears after canceling a download.
• Network information now loads earlier to prevent some crashes on startup.
• Playlist exports are now more compatible with other software.

As for UI and general improvements, the developers replaced the remaining hardcoded icons so that they now use the system theme, and they removed code related to the discontinued MusicDNS service.

The Amarok 2.x series had incredible scripting support; it was built on Qt4 and powered by QtScript, a JavaScript-like language that lets developers write scripts to create context applets or manipulate playlists, for instance, to automate their creation.

That system was far superior to what you would find in the current 3.x series, but the developers are working to bring the new system up to par. Towards that end, Amarok 3.3.1 now makes it possible to save and load items in the script console and adds auto-complete functionality.

If you're on Linux, Amarok 3.3.1 will soon be available for download on Flathub as a Flatpak. If you cannot wait, you can get the source code as well as compilation instructions and build it yourself.