iTunes library

Under iTunes preferences, I have indicated for it NOT to keep my media folder organized. I prefer to organize my library myself. I choose to have the artists listed without the "The" (example Rolling Stones vs The Rolling Stones). I also don't want songs listed under albums, each song is listed under the artist name only. Yet for some reason, I think it happens when I sync my iPod, ITunes goes in and adds duplicate songs, or lists the artist with a The in front, or sorts the songs into albums. But here's the interesting part. It doesn't do it for my entire library: it only does it for some artists or songs and most of those are songs I added manually from my CD's, not songs purchased through iTunes. Why does it keep doing this? Why can't it leave my library alone? How do I get it to stop?

It's not messing with your library. It's reading the embedded tags in the music files, which have the CORRECT name of the artist and also the album names, etc.

You can edit the tags in iTunes if you like.

iTunes Library

Okay I see where I can edit the song names in iTunes. But what about where, for example, I loaded songs from a couple of CD's I had for a band called "2002". I removed the album names and filed the songs directly under the artist name. Then, where the song name indicated "Healing Waters" - I renamed it to "2002-Healing Waters".

Now when I go into the iTunes library on my PC - the "2002" folder 1) has albums listed under it and has resorted the tracks under the appropriate albums, and 2) the song names changed back, for example that song is once again "Healing Waters".

Yet hundreds of other artist folders and their songs that were downloaded from iTunes, once changed in that same way - have stayed in the new format. What am I missing?

Sounds like you are still editing the file names rather than the actual tags. To edit the tags, select a song (or group of songs) in iTunes and press command-i for "get info." In the case of a group of songs, you can only edit the common tags of course.

Well, I decided that editing all the tags was far too tedious so I have left everything as is, ignore my library, don't try to resort it in any way, and let iTunes do whatever it wants. But why does it continue to put duplicate songs in there. There are 5 and 6 copies of some songs. To keep removing duplicate songs constantly is ridiculous, there must be another way. All songs, same title, same tag, filed in same folder.......

iTunes does not -- indeed, cannot -- add songs to the library by itself. Only you can do this. So stop doing it.

Duplicates

Sorry but I disagree. I just went in and deleted about 2,000 duplicate songs - there were up to 10 dups of some songs. The songs, for the most part, were from albums I did not buy through iTunes but loaded into my library myself. The only actions I perform at this point since my library is set up, is to purchase the occasional song and add it to a Playlist. And of course constantly syncing and charging my IPod. Yet these duplicates start to appear. I am not definitely not adding them myself. Who would add 2,000 duplicates to their library? Makes no sense.

iTunes does not -- indeed, cannot -- add songs to the library by itself. Only you can do this.

Click to expand...

In defense of what member chas stated, he is correct. And you affirmed what he told you by stating this:

The songs, for the most part, were from albums I did not buy through iTunes but loaded into my library myself.

Click to expand...

Duplicates

Okay thanks but I am still confused with no answer to my problem. I loaded the albums/songs into my iTunes library once, just once only, months ago. Why does the library now keep creating duplicates of those same songs, under the original album, showing them as name as ...1, ....2,. ...3. It isn't me adding duplicates & would have no reason to do so, I'm not even listening to those songs at present. Yet the dupes continue to appear. So how do I stop it doing this?

Could it be that when you sync with your iPod that the songs are there under those old names, so they get synced back to iTunes? To see if that's the case, delete the dupes again in iTunes, but before you sync with the iPod, check to see if the deleted dupe is on the iPod. Then sync, and if the deleted track reappears in iTunes, that's your culprit. To fix, get iTunes correct, then reset your iPod to factory, deleting all tracks and then sync and that should fix the problem. (That sync will take quite a while, depending on how many tracks you have.)

Shelley99,

Could you answer a few questions for me?

1. How are you adding the files from your CDs to your iTunes library? Are you dragging the files into the iTunes window and dropping them there?
   
2. In Preferences under Advanced, is the box checked by "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library?

Duplicates

In answer to the last 2 questions:
When I originally added the files from CD's, I ripped them onto my PC. Then I dragged them into my iTunes media folder under the artist name. And second answer, in Preferences Advanced, the "copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" box is NOT ticked.
Here's an exact example of what happens:
ON MY PC: under iTunes media music folder, I add a folder - artist "Michael Lington". Then I rip a track from a CD & drag it into that folder. I rename the track: Michael Lington-Off the Hook.
iTUNES: then I drag the song into the iTunes window of a playlist to add it there as well.
iPod: when I sync - the song is added on to my iPod in that playlist.
The problem (for all these files, this is one example):
Eventually:
ON MY PC: in my iTunes media folder, here's what I see:
Michael Lington folder. In that folder, track names exactly as I have listed here:
Michael Lington-Off the Hook
Off the Hook1
Off the Hook2
Off the Hook3 etc

iTUNES: shows all the duplicates under the library
iPOD: does not show duplicates in the playlist