Image Credit: "music mac" by shapeshift on Flickr

It took plenty of testing, but I understand why most recommend using iTunes for music management on Mac. iTunes performs the management without using additional plugins or tools. I’ve previous detailed my requirements for a program that organized music. I felt iTunes was limited in scope and did not perform the tasks adequately enough. In Windows, I had several tools that managed by music collection, one for categorization, another for playing, one for streaming music. None of these applications talked to each other, my music manager did not integrate with my music player which did not integrate with my music streamer. Many times I had to rely on folder management to perform the work I required. When I realized some of iTunes benefits, and it’s integration with other applications, it warranted a second look.

iTunes the Powerful

I don’t need to manage my files when using iTunes, I can have it perform that task for me. Without needing to perform this once lengthy process, I can work on more important aspects, such as tagging songs appropriately. Managing song information is very simple with iTunes, changing music genre’s or artist’s name requires a click and instantly the change is reflected through the entire library. No need to rescan folders. If I needed to further categorize the information I could use smart playlists. This allows me to create criteria for my music and automatically updates as my music updates.

Integration with iTunes

The integration of the iTunes library with other programs forced me to take a second look at iTunes. djay, for example, integrates with the iTunes library, separating the need to have it maintain it’s own library and information. Other programs, such as Keynote, perform the same task making it easier to find and utilize music for presentations. Without having to perform searches on my hard drive, I can easily import music to other programs without having to perform additional time wasting tasks.

Fill the Missing iTunes Features

There are features I feel iTunes is missing. Some can be made up through AppleScipts, a powerful feature of the Mac OS. AppleScripts are automated tasks designed to work on Mac and provide additional management tools (such as organizing music files by Genre). A great resources for these scripts are Doug’s AppleScripts for iTunes. I would also recommend using ScritPal, a script management add-on for iTunes.

Requested Features

Although I’ve come to enjoy iTunes, I long for several features found in my favorite media player, Winamp. The first is the ability to rescan my music folder, this helps if I’ve needed to directly manage my music library and remove some items. The second is music queuing. Winamp is able to queue music without needing to create playlist. While the iTunes DJ and Genius are great applications, a queuing playlist would go a long way.

Image credit: Christmas w/a K on Flickr

Ahh, the creative side of me seems to blossom with the new MacBook Pro. I find Mac’s pre-installed software very useful, and has made me life easier in some aspects; managing photos taken on my digital camera is a breeze with iPhoto, and managing my music collection through iTunes is very simple (which can be a problem). That’s not to say there aren’t some improvements that could be made, but in six days I am frustration free with my Mac life.

It’s also taken my 6 days to determine a name for the new Mac, I shall call it “Avalon”. The name holds a lot of sentimental value for me, it was one of my first online handles (yep, old school Internet talk) and has stuck with me ever since. My first Mac (a Macintosh LC) was also named Avalon, so I consider this MacBook Pro a part of its lineage. Changing the computer’s name was very easy, a task that’s never hard on any operating system.

Deeper Exploration into iPhoto

It was time to further explore iPhoto’s integration with Flickr. iPhoto is one of the best photo management tools I’ve come across, and impressed me during my initial experience. This time I was testing the broader features of iPhoto and how they transfered to Flickr. The question I wanted to answer is if it served as a replacement to Flickr Updatr.

Within iPhoto you can add names, descriptions, ratings and geocoding placing to each picture, much of this information can also be added to Flickr photos. When gathered from your camera images are automatically sorted as event, which you can name, and when uploaded are placed into sets based on the event name. When uploading to Flickr not all of the information was retrained. Names and descriptions appear on the Flickr version of the photos but not the geocoded location. Set descriptions are oddly missing, even if assigned in iPhoto. The process isn’t perfect, and does not replace the Flickr Updatr completely. For images I create, edit, or develop I’m more likely to use the Updatr, but for my camera, iPhoto will be my main tool.

Music Management

I have a fairly large collection, and I’ve never liked iTunes as a music manager. Windows had several music management programs that allowed me to move files based my own structure by the files ID tags. A popular Windows music management program is MediaMonkey, although I prefer Helium Music Manager. In the Mac world there’s a lack of music management software, which is a huge disappointment. Most people swear by iTunes, but it doesn’t cut the cake for me. For simple music management and location, iTunes works wonders. They are simple and get the job done but are limited. I would have loved the ability to change it’s file organization scheme, for instance organizing my music by Genre folders rather than the artists name. I require an extensive set of tools, and features that are missing from iTunes (such as scanning my music folder for new music) which are available in popular Windows programs like Winamp.

Songbird, a Mozilla based alternative to iTunes, is a promising music organizer, but still a young program and missing many music management abilities. I’m inclined to use it as a Tag Editor, but until then it currently does not feed all of my interests.

After a few days of searching, I found Media Rage, a small program that provides a collection of tools for music management. It’s a far cry from what I’m used to, but provides all of the features I need in a simple and efficient interface. Media Rage updates music tags, album artwork, and can move files based on your specifications. While small, Media Rage is a full powered music organizer for $10. I’m very impressed.

Next on my to-do list, blogging software and Windows.