Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
Posted this in the nano section, but didn't get much feedback, so I hope nobody minds if I repost it here:
Basically, my main problem is that I have too many songs. They won't all fit onto the 4 gig nano. My goal isn't to narrow my library down to 4 gigs, but to at least get rid of the songs I will never listen to, as well as rate all the songs in the library. I don't have time to do this while I am in front of the computer, but I have plenty of time to do this through the iPod (creating playlists to grab the unrated songs). ALl the songs have been rated (one star = delete this from library, and the rest os the range is used for actual rating). Now I want to transfer all this information back into iTunes. I have sync'd up the iPod several times, but iTunes isn't grabbing the ratings. Is there a way to force this? I am afraid of deleting songs off the iPod in order to put new ones on, because doing so will delete my ratings.
Please let me know how I can transfer the ratings back into iTunes.
[1061 byte] By [
Darold] at [2007-11-10 22:09:13]
# 1 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
AFAIK the ratings should transfer in to iTunes. Maybe try an iPod reset and give it another go.
As a way forward, you could consider Smartplaylists to constantly rotate the music that is on your nano:
http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/how-to-create-smart-playlists-in-itunes/
# 2 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
I tried the reset, but unfortunately it didn't help. I am already using smart-playlists to bring unrated songs into the iPod, but until I can find a way of telling iTunes which ones have been rated, it won't work very well.
-Any other suggestions?
Darold at 2007-11-15 16:56:40 >
# 3 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
Called Apple. They said that there was no way to transfer ANY information back into iTunes. Then they told me that was my last free phone call to them, and all future phone calls would cost me money unless I signed up for their two year protection plan.
First, if its impossible to tranfer your ratings into iTunes, how are you guys doing it. I told her I had "talked" to people who said they were able to do this without a problem, and the tech lady just repeated that its impossible
Second-Can they call this my one free call? I wated on hold for over 20 minutes to be told that its impossible? Don't they have to fix something?
-Sorry, but I'm a little upset over this one.
Darold at 2007-11-15 16:57:38 >
# 4 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
The technical support person was obviously confused. Apple does maintain that you cannot transfer music files back into iTunes (which is probably what she thought you were asking about), but rating and playcount information transfers back automatically, as long as you're using automatic synchronization (they won't transfer back in manual synchronization mode).
Under your iPod preferences, is your selection set to "Automatically Synchronize Playlists" or "Manually Manage My Songs and Playlists"?
# 5 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
Oh, that must be where the problem is. I have it set to manual, because I have too many songs for auto. If I switch it, will the songs in iTunes be updated before it imports them into the nano?
Darold at 2007-11-15 16:59:36 >
# 6 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
As long as the songs can be matched up to your library, it should sync the ratings back. Note that if you have modified any of the rated songs in your library since they were copied to your iPod, this may not work (as the iPod would may not be able to match them back). However, as long as you haven't changed anything, this should work without any problems.
If you're concerned this may be a problem, you may want to pick up a third-party tool like CopyPod (Windows) or iPodRip (Mac) which will allow you to transfer all of your music files from your iPod back to your computer, including the rating and playcount metadata. These tools are designed to restore your library from your iPod completely.
The best way to keep a subset of your iTunes library on your iPod is to use the "Automatically Update Selected Playlists Only" option, and then select those playlists that you want to automatically synchronize to your iPod. This would also tie in to your use of Smart Playlists, which I gather you're now just selecting tracks from manually (possibly because you have too many unrated tracks to fit on the nano?)
My suggestion would be to modify your "Unrated Tracks" Smart Playlist (or whatever you've called it), and select the option to limit your music to a reasonable size for your Nano (ie, 2/4Gb or less), and then select that playlist for automatic synchronization. This will ensure that every time you connect your iPod, your rated music will automatically be replaced with new unrated tracks.
# 7 Re: Getting iPod music ratings into iTunes
The best way to keep a subset of your iTunes library on your iPod is to use the "Automatically Update Selected Playlists Only" option, and then select those playlists that you want to automatically synchronize to your iPod.
This is exactly what I did, and everything seems to be working perfectly now. Thanks everyone!
Darold at 2007-11-15 17:01:39 >
