MediaMonkey iTunes plugin (d_itunes4.dll)

[datimms]

Not only this, my playlists don't sync correctly. They show up in iTunes but they are empty. Can't tell whether the files went over as they are auto-playlists and I have a lot of music.

[lindholm]

Starting with MM4 1449, any track converted as part of a sync never shows up.
It worked fine with 1448

The Cache directory is not created, etc...

Windows 7 sp1
plugin version: 4.0.3.2014

George

I've just (quickly) checked with MM4 1451 and the build 2014 of the plugin and all seems fine with both conversions and direct. Please check that your TEMP environment variable is set legitimately

I take that back. Converted files are deleted as soon as they are compressed

George

[aprzybylo]

I downloaded the latest version of MM and it started to sync. But I did little test and found a little problem.
1) I choose one file from MM to sync with iTunes, no play count no rating
2) I run sync I see the file in iTunes
3) I play the song ones in MM, I play the song ones in iTunes and I rate the song in iTunes
4) I sync again
5) The song show correct play count in MM (i.e.2) show correct ne rating in MM (the one I set in iTunes)
However the play count stays at 1 in Itunes and rating is reset
6) I run the sync again and now it`s fine in both iTunes and MM
7) now let say the rating is 3 stars in both
I change the rating to 2 stars in iTunes and sync
9) the rating will become 2 in MM (correct) but the one from MM will be copied to iTunes so it will switch from correct one to the one from MM.
10) sync again and everything is fine.

Looks like when you sync the sync from iTunes to MM is ok (i.e. it finds correctly the change) but the other way it happens all the time so the values from MM are always copied to iTunes regardless if the should be or not.

[CarlitoGil]

I have "Copy files to iTunes Media folder..." unchecked
so when I sync the plugging copies files to the temp folder then adds them to the iTunes library, and they stay in the temp folder.

Can I add the original files from my actual collection without copying them?

[CarlitoGil]

Right now to sync the tags with the iTunes library the plugin has to make copies of all the synced files (according to the tooltip).
What if it is a really large collection?

Is this for the time being, before a better way is implemented or are there no plans or possibility to sync metadata without duplicating the whole thing.

What about caching only the metadata?

If the files in the iTunes library are the same in MM (same exact path, no a copy), then
Can you monitor file path or tag changes and update them in iTunes?

[x1x2x3]

It would be great if it didn't have to copy the songs considering I have 40 gigs worth of music! Can this plugin work without copying my whole library?

[reggie_mal]

I have exactly the same question
Is it possible to sync the library without copying all the music?

I have over 100gb on a nas drive, and when I sync, each song from MM to iTunes starts to get copied to "MMiTunesCache" folder in My Documents.

[nohitter151]

That question was answered already several times by the author:
http://www.mediamonkey.com/forum/viewto ... 00#p315051

[regnaD kciN]

(Forgive me if this has also been answered several times before, but I really don't have the energy to go through 44 pages of posts looking for the solution right now.)

I just set up d_iTunes4. I understand full well that I need to copy the files to a new directory, since I'm auto-converting from FLAC to MP3, so I set up a cache directory path and all that.

STEP 1: Using the "Auto-Sync List" dialog, pick several albums worth of tracks, then have it Sync. MM takes a while auto-converting all the files, but the resulting MP3s get copied to the proper folder, and iTunes enters them in its music pane. Great!

STEP 2: Go back to the Auto-Sync List and add a single additional album's worth of tracks. Give the sync command again. This time, MM not only auto-converts the new tracks I added to the list, but also reconverts every single track from step 1. In other words, I have to wait a long while while MM reprocesses and recopies the same sixty-odd tracks it had already processed, as well as the new ones I just added.

Is this the default behavior? Since, eventually, I hope to have several thousand tracks on my iPhone, am I doomed to have to wait while MM reprocesses every single one of those thousands of tracks every time I want to add even a single additional track? Or is there some way for MM to look over at the iTunes cache folder and say, essentially, "well, this track is already there, so I don't have to auto-convert and copy it again"...? (Or is that the way things are supposed to work -- which is what I would have expected -- and my installation/configuration is just screwed-up somehow?)

Thanks for any help you can give me.

[markstuartwalker]

I downloaded the latest version of MM and it started to sync. But I did little test and found a little problem.
1) I choose one file from MM to sync with iTunes, no play count no rating
2) I run sync I see the file in iTunes
3) I play the song ones in MM, I play the song ones in iTunes and I rate the song in iTunes
4) I sync again
5) The song show correct play count in MM (i.e.2) show correct ne rating in MM (the one I set in iTunes)
However the play count stays at 1 in Itunes and rating is reset
6) I run the sync again and now it`s fine in both iTunes and MM
7) now let say the rating is 3 stars in both
I change the rating to 2 stars in iTunes and sync
9) the rating will become 2 in MM (correct) but the one from MM will be copied to iTunes so it will switch from correct one to the one from MM.
10) sync again and everything is fine.

Looks like when you sync the sync from iTunes to MM is ok (i.e. it finds correctly the change) but the other way it happens all the time so the values from MM are always copied to iTunes regardless if the should be or not.

Yeah, there are some loopholes like this, I'll admit that it is not perfect. There is a similar one where the rating is changed in both locations - MM wins in this case. There are others around having MM auto playlists which are dependent on (say) playcounts that are updated from itunes playing tracks. Another aspect to consider is that ID3tag information is only MM->iTunes but changing these values triggers a full track update into iTunes which can cause loss of other changes.

The honest answer is that there isn't much that can be done without changes in iTunes or MM. Remember the MM interface is designed to support relatively dumb devices which only play the music and do not allow it to be edited. I'm pushing the boundaries here.

The best approach is to try to use MM for attribute editing and allow the changes to propagate to iTunes and any iDevices. Playcounts and Ratings are bidirectional but they sometimes take 2 (or 3) sync cycles to get values equalised to all devices.

I actually don't ever access iTunes from the keyboard. I run it minimised and have it's entire content synched to the iPhone. I use playlists within MM to control what appears in iTunes and thus what gets to the iPhone. On the iPhone I play music and adjust ratings. I sync every few days (wirelessly ).

[markstuartwalker]

(Forgive me if this has also been answered several times before, but I really don't have the energy to go through 44 pages of posts looking for the solution right now.)

I just set up d_iTunes4. I understand full well that I need to copy the files to a new directory, since I'm auto-converting from FLAC to MP3, so I set up a cache directory path and all that.

STEP 1: Using the "Auto-Sync List" dialog, pick several albums worth of tracks, then have it Sync. MM takes a while auto-converting all the files, but the resulting MP3s get copied to the proper folder, and iTunes enters them in its music pane. Great!

STEP 2: Go back to the Auto-Sync List and add a single additional album's worth of tracks. Give the sync command again. This time, MM not only auto-converts the new tracks I added to the list, but also reconverts every single track from step 1. In other words, I have to wait a long while while MM reprocesses and recopies the same sixty-odd tracks it had already processed, as well as the new ones I just added.

Is this the default behavior? Since, eventually, I hope to have several thousand tracks on my iPhone, am I doomed to have to wait while MM reprocesses every single one of those thousands of tracks every time I want to add even a single additional track? Or is there some way for MM to look over at the iTunes cache folder and say, essentially, "well, this track is already there, so I don't have to auto-convert and copy it again"...? (Or is that the way things are supposed to work -- which is what I would have expected -- and my installation/configuration is just screwed-up somehow?)

Thanks for any help you can give me.

No, it's not how it should work. I have FLAC and higher kbps conversions and only changed files are re-converted - this was essential to the way that I operate. If there are no changes it simply pauses a while and the progress bar jumps to the RHS and it finishes.

If more than one machine is involved I suggest that you check the clocks are in sync.

To pin down the problem I suggest only sync a handful of tracks and pay very close attention to timestamps in MM, cache and iTunes.

You're not the first to report this but the other cases have simply 'gone quiet' afterwards so I've never know what their solution was. Please let me know.

[markstuartwalker]

That question was answered already several times by the author:
http://www.mediamonkey.com/forum/viewto ... 00#p315051

Thank you. I have.

The only additional point is to check that you need ALL of these giant collection in iTunes. I presume that you're wanting to sync to some iDevice which isn't yet supported by MM. With this arrangement it's better to sync all of iTunes content to the iDevice and use the auto sync lists to control what appears in iTunes.

[markstuartwalker]

(Forgive me if this has also been answered several times before, but I really don't have the energy to go through 44 pages of posts looking for the solution right now.)

... yeah, I keep meaning to write an d_itunes.manual.pdf and add a FAQ section. Sorry.

[aprzybylo]

I downloaded the latest version of MM and it started to sync. But I did little test and found a little problem.
1) I choose one file from MM to sync with iTunes, no play count no rating
2) I run sync I see the file in iTunes
3) I play the song ones in MM, I play the song ones in iTunes and I rate the song in iTunes
4) I sync again
5) The song show correct play count in MM (i.e.2) show correct ne rating in MM (the one I set in iTunes)
However the play count stays at 1 in Itunes and rating is reset
6) I run the sync again and now it`s fine in both iTunes and MM
7) now let say the rating is 3 stars in both
I change the rating to 2 stars in iTunes and sync
9) the rating will become 2 in MM (correct) but the one from MM will be copied to iTunes so it will switch from correct one to the one from MM.
10) sync again and everything is fine.

Looks like when you sync the sync from iTunes to MM is ok (i.e. it finds correctly the change) but the other way it happens all the time so the values from MM are always copied to iTunes regardless if the should be or not.

Yeah, there are some loopholes like this, I'll admit that it is not perfect. There is a similar one where the rating is changed in both locations - MM wins in this case. There are others around having MM auto playlists which are dependent on (say) playcounts that are updated from itunes playing tracks. Another aspect to consider is that ID3tag information is only MM->iTunes but changing these values triggers a full track update into iTunes which can cause loss of other changes.

The honest answer is that there isn't much that can be done without changes in iTunes or MM. Remember the MM interface is designed to support relatively dumb devices which only play the music and do not allow it to be edited. I'm pushing the boundaries here.

The best approach is to try to use MM for attribute editing and allow the changes to propagate to iTunes and any iDevices. Playcounts and Ratings are bidirectional but they sometimes take 2 (or 3) sync cycles to get values equalised to all devices.

I actually don't ever access iTunes from the keyboard. I run it minimised and have it's entire content synched to the iPhone. I use playlists within MM to control what appears in iTunes and thus what gets to the iPhone. On the iPhone I play music and adjust ratings. I sync every few days (wirelessly ).

I understand the limitations however I think that there's small bug in the sync process. Check the order of the update but the bottom line is that after all is done mm gets correctly combined data and iTunes gets mm's data before the sync. That would suggest that mm sends update to iTunes but prior sync instead of post

[markstuartwalker]

7) now let say the rating is 3 stars in both
I change the rating to 2 stars in iTunes and sync
9) the rating will become 2 in MM (correct) but the one from MM will be copied to iTunes so it will switch from correct one to the one from MM.
10) sync again and everything is fine.

I've done these steps and not got your behaviour. Be aware that at the point of sync into iTunes there is a 3rd value stored in the MM database for the rating, a sort of "value at sync time". This is used to detect any change in rating and be able to adjust the non-changed system to remain in sync. The pitfall here could be that you have manually set the "rating is 3 stars in both" but the 3rd value might still be 2 which will cause odd behaviour.

Further, iTunes (and MM) doesn't always refresh the screen if the underlying DB is changed beneath it. It's important to get the screen refreshed.

Please switch on the debug level to 2 (see start of this thread for details) and capture the trace output for this behaviour and post back. Keep it simple by staying with this single track.