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Apple Computing Products:
macOS - Apps and Programs
iTunes = Meh x 100
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<blockquote data-quote="Doug b" data-source="post: 948299" data-attributes="member: 59143"><p>Ya know... I can actually live with having to install third party plug ins which allow importing and playback of those file formats. It's not the end of the world I suppose, though native support would certainly be much better because it would ensure core stability in the program due to code optimization and such.. </p><p></p><p>But what bothers me even more than that issue, is how iTunes handles file importing, database storage, tagging and file sorting. Apple assumes that everyone is okay with how iTunes sees fit to look at a file and correlate it within its database structure, ignoring the basic elements outside of a specific tag. For example, if an album of mine isn't tagged at all, a different media player such as Songbird would simply look at the file names, and arrange them in a logical order. iTunes doesn't even try to do this. </p><p></p><p>iTunes even ignores certain id tag versions, and this is why I wind up having albums from the same band which I know are tagged with a year and track number, sorted in a totally discombobulated manner. Perhaps though, it is because I don't let iTunes consolidate my library and put stuff into a folder the way it wants to. </p><p></p><p>And why should I want to ? I spent a good deal of time long ago, putting files and folders into a structure which I was comfortable working with. (see screen shots) Think about how I have things arranged for a moment, and tell me the iTunes way of doing anything makes sense:</p><p></p><p>I keep everything on an External HD. Everything is arranged in alphabetical order. See screen shots. Why then, would I want iTunes to copy all of that to another part of the same external HD in some weird messed up (IMO) order just so that it can sort things the way I already have them ? (when it doesnt' even do that, anyway.) And so now I have double the space taken up on the external drive, too. Why yes, I get it. I'm supposed to delete the original files. But why !? Everything is already so nice and tidy ! Besides that point, what if I decide one day that another media player, or let's say OS is right for me. Now I've got these files in this weird order because of iTunes, and I have to re-arrange everything again. This means having to delete or recreate folders, then copy paste stuff everywhere. Believe me, I've gone through this already as an experiment. NEVER again. </p><p></p><p> I can't be the only Mac user (switcher even) who does things in such a way. After all, it wasn't so long ago that the music loving geek crowd wasn't subservient to these crummy online music services whom offer up horribly compressed files with zero liner notes and such. What I still do, and hope that other do as well, is purchase real music from a store. I love vinyl, personally speaking. But right now my Rega table is in the States, while I sit here in EU. (ironic) </p><p></p><p>I like physical media. I like not only the quality it affords my audio equipment, but I also like looking at original artwork and liner notes. If there's good music to be purchased, I'll buy it. I test music online, and then buy if I like it. So naturally, I have ripped a LOT of albums. Some to Mp3, and others to Ogg and some to FLAC. </p><p></p><p>My favorite Mp3 player plays Ogg and FLAC natively, so why shouldn't I ? (iRiver IHP 120 or Sansa Fuze) I even have an iPod modded with ROCKbox. Point being, I've invested time into having things be the way I like them, and don't like a program dictating things otherwise. It's unnatural. Every other media player I've ever used in my life (besides iTunes) has cooperated in this respect. They were made to. And not with some complicated database system. Usually some simple C+ or C++ coding with an SQL database for querying. At least let me choose between the two methods, Apple ! </p><p></p><p>And how difficult is it for them to integrate a watched folder option so that I don't have to manually import files every time I add them to my external HD library ? Bottom line is, if it weren't for two things, I'd switch to Songbird in a split second:</p><p></p><p>1. iTunes doesn't skip a beat when playing music. I store every piece of music I own/have on an Western Digital 500gig MyBook external HD. iTunes obviously does a great job at communicating with the HD and buffers everything perfectly so that there are no gaps in audio playback. </p><p></p><p>2. Songbird does just the opposite. I'll get between 1-2 second gaps in audio playback at random times. This simply isn't acceptable, and darn right annoying. </p><p></p><p>If either of those two things changed, so would my media player of choice. Until then, I have to live with iTunes being a constant thorn in my side, the way it has been since day one. I'm not crazy. I just like things how "<strong><u>I</u></strong>" like them. </p><p></p><p>Doug</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]11644[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]11645[/ATTACH]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Doug b, post: 948299, member: 59143"] Ya know... I can actually live with having to install third party plug ins which allow importing and playback of those file formats. It's not the end of the world I suppose, though native support would certainly be much better because it would ensure core stability in the program due to code optimization and such.. But what bothers me even more than that issue, is how iTunes handles file importing, database storage, tagging and file sorting. Apple assumes that everyone is okay with how iTunes sees fit to look at a file and correlate it within its database structure, ignoring the basic elements outside of a specific tag. For example, if an album of mine isn't tagged at all, a different media player such as Songbird would simply look at the file names, and arrange them in a logical order. iTunes doesn't even try to do this. iTunes even ignores certain id tag versions, and this is why I wind up having albums from the same band which I know are tagged with a year and track number, sorted in a totally discombobulated manner. Perhaps though, it is because I don't let iTunes consolidate my library and put stuff into a folder the way it wants to. And why should I want to ? I spent a good deal of time long ago, putting files and folders into a structure which I was comfortable working with. (see screen shots) Think about how I have things arranged for a moment, and tell me the iTunes way of doing anything makes sense: I keep everything on an External HD. Everything is arranged in alphabetical order. See screen shots. Why then, would I want iTunes to copy all of that to another part of the same external HD in some weird messed up (IMO) order just so that it can sort things the way I already have them ? (when it doesnt' even do that, anyway.) And so now I have double the space taken up on the external drive, too. Why yes, I get it. I'm supposed to delete the original files. But why !? Everything is already so nice and tidy ! Besides that point, what if I decide one day that another media player, or let's say OS is right for me. Now I've got these files in this weird order because of iTunes, and I have to re-arrange everything again. This means having to delete or recreate folders, then copy paste stuff everywhere. Believe me, I've gone through this already as an experiment. NEVER again. I can't be the only Mac user (switcher even) who does things in such a way. After all, it wasn't so long ago that the music loving geek crowd wasn't subservient to these crummy online music services whom offer up horribly compressed files with zero liner notes and such. What I still do, and hope that other do as well, is purchase real music from a store. I love vinyl, personally speaking. But right now my Rega table is in the States, while I sit here in EU. (ironic) I like physical media. I like not only the quality it affords my audio equipment, but I also like looking at original artwork and liner notes. If there's good music to be purchased, I'll buy it. I test music online, and then buy if I like it. So naturally, I have ripped a LOT of albums. Some to Mp3, and others to Ogg and some to FLAC. My favorite Mp3 player plays Ogg and FLAC natively, so why shouldn't I ? (iRiver IHP 120 or Sansa Fuze) I even have an iPod modded with ROCKbox. Point being, I've invested time into having things be the way I like them, and don't like a program dictating things otherwise. It's unnatural. Every other media player I've ever used in my life (besides iTunes) has cooperated in this respect. They were made to. And not with some complicated database system. Usually some simple C+ or C++ coding with an SQL database for querying. At least let me choose between the two methods, Apple ! And how difficult is it for them to integrate a watched folder option so that I don't have to manually import files every time I add them to my external HD library ? Bottom line is, if it weren't for two things, I'd switch to Songbird in a split second: 1. iTunes doesn't skip a beat when playing music. I store every piece of music I own/have on an Western Digital 500gig MyBook external HD. iTunes obviously does a great job at communicating with the HD and buffers everything perfectly so that there are no gaps in audio playback. 2. Songbird does just the opposite. I'll get between 1-2 second gaps in audio playback at random times. This simply isn't acceptable, and darn right annoying. If either of those two things changed, so would my media player of choice. Until then, I have to live with iTunes being a constant thorn in my side, the way it has been since day one. I'm not crazy. I just like things how "[b][u]I[/u][/b][u][/u]" like them. Doug [ATTACH=full]11644[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]11645[/ATTACH] [/QUOTE]
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Apple Computing Products:
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iTunes = Meh x 100
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