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Vanilla 1.1.4 is a product of Lussumo. More Information: Documentation, Community Support.

 
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009 edited
    I just got my first mp3 player ever, believe it or not, an iPod Classic 120 GB. However, it has NOT been a painless transition. Let me try to explain why:

    When I heard some rumours that Apple had changed their policies regarding their user friendliness recently, I decided to take the plunge at last. I saved up bucks for an iPod Classic 120 GB that could house most, if not even all of my 1000 CD's (as I found no non-Apple products that could match this).

    While I was waiting for the money to arrive, I began the cumbersome work to transfer my CD's to my laptop, ripping the tracks with my Windows Media Player and organizing the music neatly on my harddrive.

    Then I finally bought the iPod and it arrived yesterday. However, I then discovered TWO things:

    1) The rumours I had heard was apparently only that tracks bought from iStore could now be played outside the iTunes player as well. I had thought that the whole iTunes program could be avoided altogether, so that I could simply transfer my neatly organized (and renamed) folder structure, ripped with WMP, directly into the iPod. Silly me. Not only did I HAVE to use iTunes, the program also had to convert ALL of my WMP-ripped files into a different format and RENAMING them in the process.

    The result: I now have two "libraries" on my laptop - one for iPod use (through iTunes) and one for use on my computer. Not only that. iTunes failed to convert all the tracks and also renaming the ones it DID convert according to whatever online database it was using. So no more one neat folder called "John Williams" which included all Williams-related items. No, we now have "John Williams", "Johnny Williams", "Original Soundtrack", "Alexander Courage" (!?) etc. And no way to manually change them?!? What the hell is that all about?

    2) I bought an iPod Classic instead of a Nano also because of the bigger screen, hoping to play movies while on long flights etc. However, I discovered that it could not play ANY of the film files I had on my harddrive. No avi, mpeg etc. Only some big and hard-to-get mov-files?!? Geezes. I suppose I have to convert all my film files as well, then? In a cumbersome process that requires HOURS and HOURS for one film, and then getting a mov-file of 390 Gigabytes or something....

    I tried to read the online manual, but there was little help there.

    Seems like I was a little too hasty in my purchase here.

    Have any of you gone through the same ordeals that I have? If so, is there ANY way I can rename files and folders in my iPod?!?
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    I always steer clear of Apple products, though admittedly this is only because I have a friend who is completely obsessed by them and frequently mocks me for my (higher-spec yet cheaper) PC and my (higher-spec yet cheaper) MP3 player. If only to spite him, I'll never have a Mac or an iPod.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Don't listen to him. I hate these people who are anti-Man or anti-PC. It's just a bloody computer for christ sake!
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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Yeah but you have to admit that Apple bears some very close-mind restrictions in their products and i could never understand their elitist behavior.
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    I would try and answer, but I should wait for Erik who has been a love MAGNIFICENT love help when I struggled with comparable issues with my own iPod Classic (160 GB...Apple actually stopped making them in favour of your own 120 GB one... because they were too big! I swear that if one thing will kill the iPod franchise, it's the monomaniacal focus on minusculity...rolleyes ).

    Very briefly though:
    1) there are legion of iTunes alternatives (in spite of what Apple would have you believe). I personally am fond of Floola, but I can pretty much make iTunes sit up and beg now, so I'm not too bothered (though I hated it the first couple of weeks.

    2) There are a couple of freeware programs out there that will (relatively) easily and quickly convert any movie file to MOV. I can watch a 1-hour TV show on as little as 200 MB, so that should do you.

    To be honest though, I only use iTunes for its library function. To convert anything to anything else or to do the most of my catalogueing I had been using other programs for ages, so I stuck with that (I don't have any other format than MP3 either, so that saves a lot of hassle, should I ever have to change MP3 players...I tried and steer clear from any proprietary file format from the very start).
    So if you're adamant to use iTunes for this, I'm of little help. Sorry. shame

    (The one thing I still strongly hold against iTunes is its idiotic use of resources: it hogs memory and space like nothing I've ever seen before!)
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    2) video conversions between formats aren't always without problems though
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    I have had NO problem with Videora WHATSOEVER.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorDemetris
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Not familiar with it. If you're satisfied with it, then by all means that's perfectly ok smile
    Love Maintitles. It's full of Wanders.
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    I'm just saying. smile
    At this point I guess Thor would definitely be more interested in some practical tips than a theoretical discussion. smile
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Martijn wrote
    I would try and answer, but I should wait for Erik who has been a love MAGNIFICENT love help when I struggled with comparable issues with my own iPod


    Likewise! He saved my ass by telling me to tag everything....best advise I've ever had. tongue beer
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Thor wrote
    The rumours I had heard was apparently only that tracks bought from iStore could now be played outside the iTunes player as well.


    I heard they had made the decision to make stuff DRM free, but I haven't heard anything like the above. The day they figure out 320kbps, DRM free MP3 files are the best way to go is the day I will start spending money with them.
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Ok Thor - I don't mean to kick you while you are down but why in the world would you rip your music using Window Media Player thus creating wma files (which can't be played on the iPod) instead of using iTunes or another program that can create compatible file formats for the iPod? Now you have MP3's converted from wma files which means you are converting from one lossy format to another. Your files are going to sound like crap!

    Also, you mention about being to hasty in your purchase. A little research would have helped you and mostly likely would have helped you avoid this problem.

    Anyway, here is what I recommend.

    OPTION #1

    This is the most extreme option... re-rip all of your music into MP3, acc or Apple lossless. This might take the most time but at least you will have better sounding files then the ones you converted from the wma's files. Plus, you can control the tags before ripping, add art work, etc, etc, etc. You'll have full control over your music.

    Now, if you don't want to go that route and decide to convert from the wma files you have to then...

    OPTION #2

    ...delete all the converted files you have. They are all disorganized anyway and re-converting them won't take that long. Next, make sure all of your tags (in your wma files) are clean. This will help in the organized and folder naming when converting through iTunes. Example: Make sure that if you have a John Williams piece that the artist field displays John Williams and not original soundtrack recording. Now, before you convert them check the iTunes preferences/advance tab EDIT> PREFERENCE>ADVANCED to see how iTunes is going to organized your music. Uncheck "Keep iTunes Music Folder Organized". If you check that then your folders are most definitely going to get messed up. Also, check the bit rate you want to convert your music too. EDIT>PREFERENCES>GENERAL>IMPORT SETTINGS *NOTE - Since you are going from wma to another format then may I recommend you select Apple Lossless. That will limit the amount of compression from one file to another. Or at least go to 320k AAC or MP3.

    Once that's done then do a test with one or two album to make sure that you are happy with the results. If not, then MSN me, email me or type out your results here.

    As for movies... there's software you can find on the internet that will convert your movies to a format that your iPod will be able to play back. You might want to open them in Quicktime and export from there... but that might only be possible if you have Quicktime Pro.

    Good luck,

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Anthony wrote
    Thor wrote
    The rumours I had heard was apparently only that tracks bought from iStore could now be played outside the iTunes player as well.


    I heard they had made the decision to make stuff DRM free, but I haven't heard anything like the above. The day they figure out 320kbps, DRM free MP3 files are the best way to go is the day I will start spending money with them.


    Well, there 256k iTunes Plus DRM Free aac files sound better than 320K MP3. But I understand what you mean.

    Anyway, only iTunes Plus files are DRM Free. The 128K files are still DRM protected.

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009 edited
    Awesome tips, y'all (Martijn and Erik in particular).

    Even though I also imported/converted many tracks that had not been copied from my own CD's (but rather downloaded or once ripped from CD's I no longer own), I thankfully hadn't come that long into my CD collection conversion yet. So I guess I'll delete all the converted files (and all the files on my iPod - about 5 Gigs worth in total, some 2700 songs), and then start from scratch, like you suggest, Erik.

    However, I think I'll keep the wma rips I've already done.

    Am I correct to assume that iTunes is the best program to use for ripping my CD's into mp3's then?

    Sorry for sounding dumb, but I'm a real tech noob compared to you guys. I thought Windows Media Player made mp3's out of my CD's when I ripped the tracks! dizzy

    TJ
    I am extremely serious.
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Use whatever program you wish (something that uses the LAME codec if possible). All MP3 files should work just fine with iTunes.
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      CommentAuthorBregt
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    CDex is excellent and free, with many options for ripping.
    Kazoo
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Thor wrote
    Sorry for sounding dumb, but I'm a real tech noob compared to you guys. I thought Windows Media Player made mp3's out of my CD's when I ripped the tracks! dizzy


    WMP does import in MP3 rather than WMA format if you ask it to (in the settings).
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 4th 2009
    Southall wrote
    Thor wrote
    Sorry for sounding dumb, but I'm a real tech noob compared to you guys. I thought Windows Media Player made mp3's out of my CD's when I ripped the tracks! dizzy


    WMP does import in MP3 rather than WMA format if you ask it to (in the settings).


    Yup, or go for the ultimate overkill in quality and rip to WAV. tongue
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeFeb 5th 2009
    For now I'll just stick to my CD's and my tube CD player. Sounds good to me.
    listen to more classical music!
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeFeb 5th 2009
    Thor wrote
    Am I correct to assume that iTunes is the best program to use for ripping my CD's into mp3's then?

    It's pretty good. But one piece of freeware that gets consistently good reviews is Audiograbber. Fast and reliable.

    http://www.audiograbber.com-us.net/

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeFeb 5th 2009
    One day I'll come crying to Erik for help but not today
    listen to more classical music!
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 5th 2009
    Tomorrow?
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeFeb 5th 2009
    Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009 edited
    Hmmm....I'm trying to change the tags of the files before I move them (and in the case of the WMA-files, convert them) to iTunes, but my Windows Media Player can't seem to get the info up in the "rip" box, like the old version. Where the hell do I this, then?!? Am I not able to change the tag info on files that are already ripped and stored on my harddisk?

    (other than, you know, to change EACH single track manually!)
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorAntineutrino
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009 edited
    Use another program for changing your tags. I e.g. always use Mp3Tag (http://www.mp3tag.de/en/index.html) which can handle most audio formats.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009
    Antineutrino wrote
    Use another program for changing your tags. I e.g. always use Mp3Tag which can handle most audio formats.


    It's not that kind of tag, it's the tags denoting artist, album, track title etc. I used to be able to do this on WMP, but this new version doesn't seem to have that option.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009 edited
    I don't use Windows Media Player so it looks like you are SCREWED!!!

    biggrin

    Ok, seriously... download this
    http://www.softpointer.com/AudioShell.htm

    Audio Shell allows you to view and edit ID3 metadata tags directly in Windows Explorer. Or try...

    Tag Scanner
    http://www.xdlab.ru/en/

    Or buy Tag&Rename
    http://www.softpointer.com/tr.htm

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009
    Cool! You're a bottomless pit, Erik (of knowledge, that is)! I didn't even know such a program existed. I'm now doing this slowly, step-by-step instead of the panic-stricken first few days after I got the damn thing! cool
    I am extremely serious.
    • CommentAuthorAnthony
    • CommentTimeFeb 6th 2009
    Erik Woods wrote
    Or buy Tag&Rename
    http://www.softpointer.com/tr.htm


    Yes..."buy". wink
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeFeb 7th 2009
    Erik is certainly the man!!! His character defect is the Toronto Maple Leaf's
    listen to more classical music!