iTunes 7 -- major step backwards? (1 Viewer)

[EricW]

i don't use album art because it's a space waste. i've heard itunes 7 is buggy - i hope they fix it before my nano comes in the mail.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

but this won't fix the order of albums on the ipod, just what is displayed on itunes.

CJ

 

[Christ Reynolds]

space waste? it's not like youre doubling the size of storage needed, we're talking about one image file per album.

and you've HEARD that itunes 7 is buggy (not necessarily true), and you want them to fix whatever it is (could be nothing). try it out for yourself instead of relying on third hand information on the internet. you'll have to use it with your new nano anyway.

CJ

 

[DaveF]

If you order by date in a playlist, it will be ordered thusly on the iPod.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

well, i'm not talking about a playlist, just the albums as they are displayed in their artists location. does this apply to that too? i'll have to check it out when i get home.

CJ

 

[MarkHastings]

Actually, that doesn't bug me at all because I can go back and then rename the file (to my original naming convention) after the artwork is downloaded.

The reason I actually prefer this method is the following...Since it is only downloading art by what the file is named, there isn't any concern about Apple spying on your music files. I can own a "legal" copy of an iTunes purchase and then name it something different (to get different artwork)...

If it worked the way we'd like it to work, then I would be more worried about the possibility of Apple collecting a database of songs I own...This way, any such database has no legal ramifications with me because Apple can't prove that I own (or don't own) something like "The Beatles" because the Beatles artwork was downloaded to my computer.

All I could say is "I had a legal copy of an iTunes song and it downloaded the incorrect artwork because of the naming convention I use'

And besides, what 'other' method are they going to use??? The artwork is being downloaded through the iTunes store and since they already have a database of songs, why not use that database? Maybe if I paid for this service, I'd be mad, but for free, it's not that big of a hassle.

 

[DaveF]

They had several options:
- Use the same database entries for iTunes as used to identify ripped CDs (CDDB, I assume), avoiding the entire problem.
- Have iTunes in agreement with the CDDB system (separate, but identical databases).
- Have an internal cross-reference system that mapped from CDDB to iTunes so it could properly identify albums.

But even if they did this, the artwork system would have been bungled -- it is missing many CDs, both oddball and common. It shouldn't have been tied to iTunes's limited selection.

 

[MarkHastings]

but again, they already have a database and system in place for their purchases...It seems like they're just using this (already created) system to download art and nothing more.

 

[drobbins]

Ok, I tried out the new version 7 tonight. Thanks to your help I could do the drag & drop method. But, it did not load any of the info from the cd. All songs were "Track 1" etc.. So I "select all" and right click to see what options are available. "Get Info" Great I think! So I click on it. It opens up a window that allows ME to enter all the info (artist,song name etc..) from the cd!?! Why could it not do this for me? If there is an option, that I could not find, that does this automatically, why isn't it the default? I still think for a product, that it's main purpose for existing is to load and play music, itunes is clumsy and takes far too many steps to do a simple operation.

Now I am trying the sync operation while I am typing this. The ipod says "Do Not Disconnect" but the itunes is not showing any activity. Is it doing anything? If it is, where is the "in progress" info? After a few minutes with no activity, I notice that it is not showing the ipod icon, so I don't think it is recognizing that it is plugged in. I did the "safely remove hardware" thing and closed itunes with the old "ctrl-alt-delete". Upon restarting itunes, it still does not recognize that the ipod is plugged in, but at least there is an advertisement for the itunes mini store taking up the bottom 1/4 of the screen. The only option is to go to the store There is not a "no thanks" option. I am beginning to really despise this software!! Upon having to read the whole ad, it tells me that to turn it off I have to go to the view menu.
I don't have time for this now. My daughter won't have her 2 new cds added for tomorrow. Any of you have an idea why my computer sees the ipod but the itunes does not?

Thanks.

 

[Yumbo]

Roll eyes, lol.

Need to be online for auto-info from CDDB.
Otherwise, select and under Advance - get CD track names (when online).

Your settings are under auto-synch, which ALSO automatically unmounts from iTunes.

Please read instructions, please fiddle with settings.

Otherwise, get a Mac (makes life easier)!

Enjoy!

 

[MarkHastings]

Dave, I had the same strange problem with the iPod not showing up. There may be some bug in this version. I haven't exactly figured it out yet, but I saw the iPod in "My Computer" and after right clicking on it, I had to choose "Use as removable device" (or whatever it was)...and while that didn't seem to exactly work, Apple help told me to change the drive letter from E to something else. This seem to work, but it does seem to take a while for the iPod to load into iTunes.It will do this automatically...maybe it's not connecting to the net?

Check your prefs. -> Advanced tab -> Importing tab : make sure the "Automatically retrieve CD track names from the internet" is checked. It should be by default and retrieve the names of known albums, just like any other CD ripper.

 

[Michael_K_Sr]

The first time you run iTunes it asks if you want to allow it to connect to the Internet to retrieve information. Believe it or not, not everyone wants it to.

 

[MarkHastings]

Dave, you can also retry CD track name retrieval by highlighting the CD and go to the "Advanced" menu and choose "Get CD Track Names".

 

[drobbins]

I have a DSL line that is always connected. Itunes went to there music store, so it knows where the connection is.
It is showing up as a "G" drive. I clicked on "service & support" this issue is 3rd on their list. Following the instructions I have to restart the computer. "I'll Be Back"

 

[drobbins]

Well the computer has restarted.
The ipod icon is showing.
The new songs are in the ipod.
My daughter is happy!
The rain has stopped.
The sun is rising and there is a beautiful rainbow that ends over my house.
The butterflies are fluttering by.
Birds are chirping.
Bambi came out of the forest and crossed the road ok.
The cute little blue birds helped me get ready for work.
But I still have the aftertaste of a bad apple in my mouth.

 

[Ted Todorov]

We don't want you with bad aftertaste so be warned, the Macintosh is quite a tart apple, so be very careful about biting into it. And if by some mistake you do, try not expect the impossible.

 

[Andrew Pratt]

Unless its a Sony CD it won't have any info on it which is why it and any other CD playback software will hit against CDDB etc to get the title/song info.

 

[MarkHastings]

Dave, as was mentioned, the CD specs don't allow track names. Everything is downloaded from CD Database through an internet connection.Why? Because you don't understand how CDDB works? Why is that Apples fault?

Again, don't blame the car manufacturer if you forget to fill up and run out of gas.

 

[drobbins]

I didn't know that about the track information. I always used MusicMatch Jukebox and it entered the song info automatically. I didn't know that it retrieved it also. Anyway, last night I couldn't get it do download the track info either. I have the "Automatically retrieve CD track names from the internet" checked and I am connected. I also tried "highlighting the CD and go to the "Advanced" menu and choose "Get CD Track Names" and there was not that option.
I don't, but I do blame the car manufacturer if I had to read the owners manual to figure out how to fill the car with gas. And then talk to the service department to learn how to open the cap because it wasn't designed for my particular car.

I am thankful for all the help that you have given. I still believe that itunes is not intuitive even though it can do what I would like. You all probably think that I am computer illiterate, but I haven't had this much trouble with software since the Win95 upgrade came out and I have done my share of networking and formatting hard drives etc..

 

[Yumbo]

Ignorance ain't bliss. Switching from OS9 to OSX was a huge difference yet intuitive. Switching from Windows 3 to OS7 was even more fun.