[eggman]

It occurred to me when viewing the video that demonstrates multi-tasking under iOS4 that there's a consistent UI for controlling audio apps that can now be playing in the background: it looks like a consistent controller for Pandora, as well as for the iPod app.

If this UI also encompasses a universal interface for controlling music apps through the USB connector, then iPod docks just got a whole lot more useful for the iPhone.

For instance, right now if I'm listening to the "iPod" app while my phone is connected to my car's iPod dock, I can pause or move to the next or prior track using my dashboard controls (which also display track name, etc). But if I'm listening to Pandora, my car stereo acts basically like a set of headphones: I can hear the audio, but I don't have "handsfree" control of music anymore. And that makes sense since there's no universal API for controlling music apps in the background. But now there will be…

It'll be interesting to see if Apple extended that control to the dock so that 3rd-party music apps can be controlled (and, dare I dream, provide track metadata) like the iPod app does.

[turtle777]

I would think that your speculation are on the right track.

iOS 4 will provide much more functionality to the programmers to implement that kind of stuff.

-t

[imitchellg5]

As soon as Pandora is compiled to run with the new APIs, what you're theorizing will be reality.