Library sorting by downloaded doesn't work

[Inudesu]

Plan

Premium

Country

US

Device

OnePlus Nord

Operating System

Oxygen OS

My Question or Issue

When I sort podcasts in my library, what I really want to find are podcast episodes. Especially if I sort by "downloaded." I don't really care to see a list of podcasts from which I have once downloaded an episode. I just want to see a list of podcast episodes that I downloaded (even if I don't follow that podcast!). 

But when I navigate to podcasts, and sort by downloaded I see this (which is a reasonable start, given the current library design).

I don't see the episodes I downloaded from podcasts I don't follow, which is problem #1. But also - if I click on one of these podcasts it doesn't hold the sorting criteria to "downloaded."

I have to then sort within the podcast to find the two episodes I want to listen to. And it resets every time!

To find a podcast episode that I downloaded (from a podcast I also follow), I have to navigate to podcasts, sort to "downloaded" then click the podcast, then re-sort that podcast to "downloaded." 

To find a podcast I downloaded from a podcast that I don't follow, I guess I'm just left with scrolling through "your episodes" or something like that??? Can that be how this is supposed to work? Is the goal to just make me follow more podcasts? Or use the "your episodes" thing that I wouldn't otherwise ever bother with?

Is this just a current bug? I feel like this has happened and then been fixed a couple of times before.

At the risk of getting scolded for suggesting that a previous version might be better than a downgrade in UX, I do think this library set up was better in every way and did not pose this particular problem.

So, that would possibly be one way to fix this. And would be a fewer-clicks functionality overall (at least for me).

Since returning to the non-bubble, non-dynamic, but way more functional and useful library is probably not happening. Is there another fix? Delete and re-download seems to be a common answer to problems like this from twitter support. But it's hard to know a bug from just bad UX design. Is this supposed to behave this way or would re-downloading maybe help? I should be on the latest version.

[Susan_GP]

Hi there @Inudesu,

Thanks for your post here in the Community and welcome!

First up, we appreciate your detailed explanation on this matter.

Currently, when you go to Your Library and filter by Podcasts and Downloaded, you will get the Podcasts you follow. However, when selecting a Podcast from there, you shouldn't have to filter the episodes again by 'Downloaded'. If this is not working as expected, try logging out and back in twice in a row to force a sync between your account and device. You can also try reinstalling the app. We understand this might be a recurring suggestion, but it helps us check if it's something we can fix or need to report.

Now, you can find all your downloaded episodes (including the ones from Podcasts you don't follow) on 'Your episodes', and you can filter the Downloaded episodes from there. Just open it and select the 'All episodes - Newest/oldest' sorting option. You will get all the Sort and Filter options, which include 'Downloaded'.

We understand it'd be useful for you to have a way to simply access all your downloaded episodes outside of 'Your Episodes' and we thank you for taking the time to let us know. We'll make sure to forward your comments to the right team. We appreciate your feedback as it helps inform our decisions going forward.

If you feel like it, you can submit an idea requesting this option, making sure you follow our Community guidelines.

The Idea Exchange is a great way for us to see what our users are interested in and how many people like a certain idea. Check out this FAQ to learn more about it. 

If you need a hand with anything else, we're always a post away!

[Inudesu]

Logging out and back in twice didn't fix the problem. I can maybe try a reinstall later (but won't I lose all my downloaded episodes if I do this?).

I will also likely try submitting this library set-up as an idea, but I'll have to work around the "don't ask for complete rollbacks" rule. 

Thank you for the reply and suggestions.

[Susan_GP]

Thanks for your quick reply @Inudesu,

When opening the Podcasts after filtering by 'Downloaded', you should see the downloaded episodes first by default. However, this doesn't happen if you don't have the filter selected first. Maybe you can double-check that.

Now, reinstalling will delete your downloaded content, but you can re-download everything again without a problem. You can try it out when you have a Wi-Fi connection available.

We'll be here in case you need help.

[Inudesu]

When I open a podcast after filtering to "downloaded" it just resets to "newest" within the podcast. 

I can try a reinstall, but I have like 50 podcast episodes downloaded. That's going to be a lot to go redownload them all.

[Dessi]

Hey @Inudesu,

Thanks for the reply!

Can you try applying the Downloaded filter when you've opened the podcast itself as well and not only to Your Library? Once that's done, it should always show you the downloaded episodes first when you open that specific podcast. 

If it doesn't, it'd be great if you can send us a screen recording of the whole process so that we can have a closer look. If the file is too large to attach, you can upload it to Google Drive (make sure to allow general access to the file) or as an unlisted YouTube video. 

Hope this clears things up.

[Inudesu]

Yes, if I go to the library, sort to podcasts, then find the podcast from which I have downloaded episodes and open it and then change the filter within that podcast from "newest" to "downloaded" the one or two or three podcast episodes I have downloaded (and I am looking for) will appear. Once. But whether I go straight to the podcast from the library or first sort by downloaded, it resets back to "newest" each time.

[Ivelina]

Appreciate the cooperation @Inudesu.

We understand that it's not ideal to have to re-download your content, but a clean reinstall often helps resolve different performance issues (that can be caused by corrupted cache) and we would really appreciate it if you could go over this step, in case it makes any difference. You can follow the steps here and if you're using an SD-card on your phone, please remove it before hand.

After that, test with downloading a few different episodes both from podcasts that you do/don't follow and let us know if the sorting resets or if it's saved.

Lastly, something else that comes to mind is to ask a relative or a friend to log in to their account on your phone and check if the same behavior persists there for them.

If anything else comes up in the meantime, don't hesitate to let us know.