Anyone know what's new in iTunes 4.5?

[evilsprung]

As the topic title states.

thanks

[moss84]

From the Versiontracker listing:

- Share Your iMix. Post and email songs in your playlists for everyone to see. Rate iMixes from other music lovers to drive them up or down the charts, and discover new music at the same time.

- Party Shuffle. Be your own DJ with a playlist that's always full of songs. Add, delete and rearrange them on the fly to create the best mix for the moment.

- Print CD Inserts. Create stunning CD jewel case inserts for your album or mix disc using designer templates for both color and black & white printers.

- Discover Music. Find out what's playing on more than 1,000 radio stations around the United States. Get music and audiobooks related to a movie. See a music video, get the track. Download a free song.

- Previews in Playlists and Quick Links. Save store previews to purchase later. Find more music from the artists you love via Quick Links in your library.

- Automatically convert WMA to AAC. Convert the music you saved in Windows Media Player (unprotected WMA files) to AAC format.

- Apple Lossless. Use the new lossless encoder to import music from CDs and achieve sound quality indistinguishable from the original, at about half the original file size. Plays in iTunes and on iPod.

[JFreak]

party shuffle and the thing apple calls "lossless encoder". that needs further investigation since at first sight it seems it's just an aac encoder that is smart enough to select suitable bitrate between 800 and 1000 kb/sec. but the party shuffle rocks :)

[gorman]

Wow, this is an awesome update.

Hint 1: Option+click the little arrows next to artist/album/song names in your library. Normal clicking the arrow takes you to the listing in the store, but option+clicking takes you to the relating listing in your library. I've wanted this forever.

Hint 2: Apple+L or the little icon in the display area will take you to your currently playing song. If you're in the mini-mode, it will switch to the large mode.

Hint 3: Printing your library to PDF is cool!

Hint 4: Right click a song, and you can enqueue it in the party mix.

There's much more, but that's a start!

Oh, and you can now send purchased music to 5 computers (instead of 3).

Congrats on an awesome update, Apple!

[crenz]

JFreak, AAC isn't lossless, so there should be a difference. I'm curious to see how Apple's lossless encoder compares with the various lossless encoders available.

Oh, by the way, the WMA->AAC feature is "Windows only".

Thank you, Apple. :mad:

[Mr. Anderson]

why is this in current events?

:rolleyes:

D

[crenz]

why is this in current events?

Well, you are a Moderator, so you are the one who can do something about it, n'est-ce pas?

[Rincewind42]

JFreak, AAC isn't lossless, so there should be a difference. I'm curious to see how Apple's lossless encoder compares with the various lossless encoders available.

Oh, by the way, the WMA->AAC feature is "Windows only".

Thank you, Apple. :mad:

Well, AFAIK there is a Windows Media SDK (developer stuff) for Windows but not one for Mac OS X. If you can't get the software to actually do the decoding, you can't re-encode it to AAC can you? I agree that it sucks, but I can't see many Mac owners having a large number of WMA files either (and now their PC using friends who do can tell them to get iTunes and convert to AAC).

[aswitcher]

Yeah

http://www.apple.com/itunes/share.html

"Real Fast User Switching
For Mac users, iTunes 4.5 now takes full advantage of Mac OS X Panther fast user switching, so you don’t have to quit iTunes to switch users on your Mac. Even better, you don’t have to maintain two separate libraries, either. iTunes figures it all out, so you can manage your music with ease."


Can someone please confirm that on a single Mac the music owner can easily share with another account holder, and what the features Apple hint at are?

[SilentPanda]

Apparently iTunes will have a free weekly single.

Here's this weeks (a song by the Foo Fighters):

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=6906522&selectedItemId=6906455

And you can make a iTunes Music Store wish list for yourself! Drag the song from the music store to a playlist and then it'll sit there till you purchase it. Neat!

[keysersoze]

Apparently iTunes will have a free weekly single.

Here's this weeks (a song by the Food Fighters):



FOO Fighters..not Food Fighters!!! :) :)

[dragula53]

I dislike this update.

it turned itunes into an interface to the itunes music store, instead of a really great jukebox with a music store imbedded.

I don't want to have access to the music store from every single one of my songs.

thblblblblbblblbl

[Rincewind42]

I dislike this update.

it turned itunes into an interface to the itunes music store, instead of a really great jukebox with a music store imbedded.

I don't want to have access to the music store from every single one of my songs.

thblblblblbblblbl

Then go into General Preferences and turn off "Show Links to Music Store".

[JFreak]

JFreak, AAC isn't lossless, so there should be a difference. I'm curious to see how Apple's lossless encoder compares with the various lossless encoders available.

yes, i know. but at first sight that lossless encoding seems to put m4a files in the music library, so that beast needs further investigation. it might be "lossless" with quotes, as the 800k-1000k aac stream might sound (and look in freq analysis) as original, but as you said, aac is lossy format, so if apple advertises lossless and implements lossy, that's going to soon hurt them in the form of bad press.

someone confirm that i'm wrong here. i'd be gladly so :)

[SilentPanda]

FOO Fighters..not Food Fighters!!! :) :)

I don't know *what* you're talking about.... :D

(no I did not edit my post.. :o )

[Frisco]

What software changes have been made to the iPod and am I reading this correctly--it is for all iPods, including the 1st Generation Pod :eek:

I thought us 1st Generationers were a forgotten breed!

[Rincewind42]

yes, i know. but at first sight that lossless encoding seems to put m4a files in the music library, so that beast needs further investigation. it might be "lossless" with quotes, as the 800k-1000k aac stream might sound (and look in freq analysis) as original, but as you said, aac is lossy format, so if apple advertises lossless and implements lossy, that's going to soon hurt them in the form of bad press.

someone confirm that i'm wrong here. i'd be gladly so :)

.m4a really just means MPEG-4 Audio, it doesn't mean a specific codec (such as AAC Lossy). It is possible that Apple's Lossless is a variant of AAC or another codec that is truly lossless. The MPEG container, like the Quicktime MOV format it is based on, it capable of holding media of nearly any type.

[stoid]

I was going to try and open a lossless file in QuickTime to look at the specs in the Info Window, and QuickTime (and also VLC can't open it, must be iTunes only format :(

edit: added iTunes file info FWIW...

listed as 928Kbps

[IndyGopher]

What software changes have been made to the iPod and am I reading this correctly--it is for all iPods, including the 1st Generation Pod :eek:

I thought us 1st Generationers were a forgotten breed!

From the iPod update page:

Changes for iPod without a Dock connector


Compatibility with iTunes 4.5 and the iTunes Music Store
Improved playback performance


Changes for iPod with a Dock connector and iPod mini


Compatibility with iTunes 4.5 and the iTunes Music Store

Improved playback performance

Support for the Apple Lossless Encoder, to enable compressed music encoding at high quality


Sounds to me like earlier iPods really ARE becoming obsolete now. Oh well... finally a good reason to move up from my pre-ordered first generation iPod.

[rueyeet]

Goodness. How many songs could you fit on an iPod mini in Apple Lossless format...maybe a couple hundred?

Wish lists and lots new ways to find music....the ol' plastic's gonna be burning after this! And I might actually have enough excuses accumulated to get a printer now, too--those CD inserts would be very handy (I'd prefer an option to add my own graphics too, but what can you do).

I even have five free codes left, including the Ben & Jerry's one....

[jbembe]

Apparently iTunes will have a free weekly single.

Here's this weeks (a song by the Foo Fighters):

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=6906522&selectedItemId=6906455

And you can make a iTunes Music Store wish list for yourself! Drag the song from the music store to a playlist and then it'll sit there till you purchase it. Neat!

FREE SINGLE!!!!!!!!

If this doesn't pursuade people, what will?!!!!

[mikeyredk]

i am having a problem with the 4.5 upgrade the itunes window is not as snappy as i would like it to be. Sometimes if i switch windows the itunes window doesn't pop up. going to try to do some permissions checks

edit: after the check worked fine

[mikeyredk]

Apparently iTunes will have a free weekly single.

Here's this weeks (a song by the Foo Fighters):

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playlistId=6906522&selectedItemId=6906455

And you can make a iTunes Music Store wish list for yourself! Drag the song from the music store to a playlist and then it'll sit there till you purchase it. Neat!

is there a way to keep track of which song is free?

[Wes]

It's on the main page of the ITMS within iTunes, and I presume it will remain there.

[mikeyredk]

It's on the main page of the ITMS within iTunes, and I presume it will remain there.

i guess it will only be for today since its the birthday and all

[yoman]

Wish lists and lots new ways to find music....the ol' plastic's gonna be burning after this! And I might actually have enough excuses accumulated to get a printer now, too--those CD inserts would be very handy (I'd prefer an option to add my own graphics too, but what can you do).


youve been able to do this for a while. select song and open the artwork tab then drag a picture onto the artwork frame. :)

you can also select the song, get info, hit the artwork tab and click the add.. button :)

[Wes]

i guess it will only be for today since its the birthday and all

I doubt that, they're aren't going to give away a free song and get all the PR that comes with it, then hide it in the bowels of ITMS.

[stoid]

I doubt that, they're aren't going to give away a free song and get all the PR that comes with it, then hide it in the bowels of ITMS.

Yes, I'm sure that the Weekly Free Song will stay up on the plate. ;) ;) :D

Besides, you wouldn't want anyone to poor their breakfast cereal and milk all over the Free Song of the Week! :eek:

[mikeyredk]

I doubt that, they're aren't going to give away a free song and get all the PR that comes with it, then hide it in the bowels of ITMS.

from the email they sent out it said its only for the first week

[Wes]

from the email they sent out it said its only for the first week

It's only on the front page for a week? or this free idea is only going to last for a week?

The iTunes Music Store features a new free single every week. On Tuesday of course. So if you want to keep current with all the new releases and newly added exclusives be sure to sign up for the free New Music Tuesdays email bulletin. It's a great reminder to download the free single every week.

[MoparShaha]

Yeah

[url]"Real Fast User Switching
For Mac users, iTunes 4.5 now takes full advantage of Mac OS X Panther fast user switching, so you don’t have to quit iTunes to switch users on your Mac. Even better, you don’t have to maintain two separate libraries, either. iTunes figures it all out, so you can manage your music with ease."Well, I just tried firing up iTunes in my second account while the first account was also running iTunes. Worked perfectly, no error messages like before. But, the iTunes in the first account kept on playing through my speakers when I had logged in to the second account. I had heard of this happening to some people before, when Panther first came out. This was the first time it's happened to me. Is this a feature or a bug?

As for sharing across users, it looks like the other user has to be logged in and have iTunes running. Then, the library in the background account simply shows up as a Shared Playlist in the foreground account. I'm assuming this is the new feature Apple is talking about.

[edit]: added a little more info

[hubert8]

Anyone experiencing problems viewing some of the music videos on ITMS? I can see the video and hear the sound on certain videos (Coldplay, Missy Elliott, Massive Attack), but with MOST of the videos I can only hear the sound and not see the picture (Foo Fighters, Audioslave, Guster, etc...). The video window is blank and usually has the same color as the background.

[aswitcher]

Well, I just tried firing up iTunes in my second account while the first account was also running iTunes. Worked perfectly, no error messages like before. But, the iTunes in the first account kept on playing through my speakers when I had logged in to the second account. I had heard of this happening to some people before, when Panther first came out. This was the first time it's happened to me. Is this a feature or a bug?



Well that's exactly what I am after, the first account playing when I log into the second or vis-a-versa, so I can play tunes from an account I am not working in.



As for sharing across users, it looks like the other user has to be logged in and have iTunes running. Then, the library in the background account simply shows up as a Shared Playlist in the foreground account. I'm assuming this is the new feature Apple is talking about.

[edit]: added a little more info


Sounds good

[oingoboingo]

Yeah

http://www.apple.com/itunes/share.html

"Real Fast User Switching
For Mac users, iTunes 4.5 now takes full advantage of Mac OS X Panther fast user switching, so you don’t have to quit iTunes to switch users on your Mac. Even better, you don’t have to maintain two separate libraries, either. iTunes figures it all out, so you can manage your music with ease."


Can someone please confirm that on a single Mac the music owner can easily share with another account holder, and what the features Apple hint at are?

Just confirmed it. I was playing a song in my account, then switched over to my girlfriend's account, and started up iTunes. iTunes continued to play the song I was playing in my own account, and showed my own personal playlist as a shared playlist in my girlfriend's instance of iTunes.

It looks like the other user's copies of iTunes need to be up and running for other users on the same Mac to see their playlists though (just like with network iTunes sharing). Anyway, that's a great improvement...I was getting around to kludging a shared iTunes folder somewhere, using symlinks to share the folder between the two user accounts, but now it's been solved. For me, the iTunes 4.5. update is worth it just for the multiple user improvements.

[csubear]

new itunes 4.5 feature, playfair no longer works...

[aswitcher]

For me, the iTunes 4.5. update is worth it just for the multiple user improvements.

Yep, this is great. Well...now I just need my PB to arrive... :(

[ifjake]

i think i might stick with AAC just to save space. 192 is my bit rate i think. works just fine for casual listening. i'd say an AAC at 900 kbps pretty much becomes lossless, if that's what apple lossless is. sure principly or technically it may be lossy, but if the ear can't tell the difference then what else matters. the ear itself is lossy, more or less depending on the person. sound is dependent upon perception.

how big do these lossless audio files run? sure it may change depending on the music, but on average 5 minutes of music equals how many megabytes.

[Mustafa]

...I was getting around to kludging a shared iTunes folder somewhere, using symlinks to share the folder between the two user accounts, but now it's been solved. For me, the iTunes 4.5. update is worth it just for the multiple user improvements.

If you want to share iTunes libraries with other account users, all you need to do is move your iTunes folder from your Music folder into the Shared folder. It's all explained in The Missing Manual (Panther Edition) p. 378. All except that after you've moved it, you need to import the Music Library.xml in each account.

[oingoboingo]

If you want to share iTunes libraries with other account users, all you need to do is move your iTunes folder from your Music folder into the Shared folder. It's all explained in The Missing Manual (Panther Edition) p. 378. All except that after you've moved it, you need to import the Music Library.xml in each account.

Thanks...that would have been a better solution that resorting to a traditional UNIX-style symlink kludge, but with iTunes 4.5 sharing it mostly won't be necessary :D

[abhishekit]

It's only on the front page for a week? or this free idea is only going to last for a week?

The iTunes Music Store features a new free single every week. On Tuesday of course. So if you want to keep current with all the new releases and newly added exclusives be sure to sign up for the free New Music Tuesdays email bulletin. It's a great reminder to download the free single every week.
its one free song every day this week, because of the anniversary, and after then . one free song every tuesday..
and actually one can just goto the music store to check out the free song..
cheers