Notes from the workbench.
Product notes, build logs, technical write-ups, and essays about owning music. Dispatches explain what shipped, what changed, and what is still being worked through.
Kanora is on YouTube
Kanora now has a YouTube channel for development clips, experiments, and practical product videos, starting with the Meta Quest 3 spatial library prototype.
ReadYour record collection, overflowing into the room
A Meta Quest experiment for Kanora turned from in-headset listening into a spatial remote for browsing a real music library while the hi-fi keeps doing the listening.
ReadTaking a Kanora Library Off Grid
A .kanora library on a USB drive can now become a browsable Kanora library on iPhone or iPad, with playback resolving back to the files on the drive.
ReadWhy Kanora's Library Had to Become Portable
Kanora's portable-library work moves the source of truth into .kanora, so Core Data can become a rebuildable local index instead of the place the user's library is trapped.
ReadWhy This Site Uses Plausible
A short note on the website analytics I do use, the user data I do not want, and why I pay for privacy-first measurement instead of taking the free route.
ReadKanora on Apple TV
The first Kanora TV app turns Apple TV into a room controller, a local playback device, and a large Now Playing surface for a music library hosted on the Mac.
ReadKanora on the Watch, for Real
Kanora's Watch app can now carry music locally, play from Watch storage, browse synced albums with Cover Flow, and show Now Playing on the watch face.
ReadKanora Watch, First as a Companion
The first proper Kanora Watch app started deliberately small: browse the iPhone library, control playback, and keep Now Playing honest from the wrist.
ReadBuilding My Own Sonos: Kanora, Watch, and a Raspberry Pi Kiosk
What started as a Mac music player grew into a local home media system with watchOS support, DLNA playback, and a Raspberry Pi touch-screen kiosk.
ReadOwning Your Library Means Owning the Paths Too
A more opinionated note on why ownership shows up in path handling, external drives, local imports, and all the boring infrastructure that decides whether a collection is actually yours.
ReadA Recording Sheet That Understands Vinyl and Cassette
Why one small metadata flow says a lot about how Kanora is trying to understand collectors without turning every analog detail into a performance.
ReadRecording a Record Without Turning the App Into a DAW
Why analog capture in Kanora is being built as a library workflow, not as an attempt to become a full audio-production environment.
ReadWhy We Added MP3 Companions to a Lossless Ripping Flow
A small feature with a very specific worldview behind it: keep the archive clean, but leave room for the realities of mixed hardware and network playback.
ReadDLNA, Still Here
Why older network audio hardware is still worth supporting, and how Kanora is approaching DLNA as real product work instead of legacy trivia.
ReadThe AirPlay Button Is the Easy Part
Why output switching only looks simple from the UI, and why most of the real work happens in route changes, playback continuity, and state discipline.
ReadMetadata Editing Is Easy Right Up Until Trust Matters
Why good metadata tools are not mainly about forms and fields, but about making sure the same truth survives all the way back to the files you own.
ReadRipping CDs in 2026 Without Pretending It’s a Solved Problem
Why CD ripping still deserves careful software, and why the real work starts once you stop treating it as a one-click utility.
ReadHost/Client Library Architecture Complete: Phases 1-3 Shipped
Three implementation phases completed: iOS discovers Mac hosts, the local API serves library data, and clients browse remotely with transparent streaming.
ReadDesigning Host/Client Architecture: Bringing iTunes Home Sharing to Kanora
Planning a local library system where the Mac hosts your music and iPhone or iPad can browse, stream, and download on your home network.
ReadTwixmas Progress: iOS Polish, Artist Editing, and Momentum
An end-of-year product update covering iOS polish, artist editing, and artwork reliability.
ReadFrom HALC Overload to an Ordered Threading Backlog
A practical debugging note about turning a Core Audio overload warning into a sequenced playback stability backlog.
ReadWelcome
Why this blog exists, what Kanora is trying to build, and how the project will share product notes in public.
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