iTMS videos

[benbondu]

As far as I can tell, Apple doesn't provide any easy way to save the music video files which you can view on iTMS. I know there's probably a really good reason for this and it probably has something to do with the fact the entire song is played during the video and you're not buying it. I look at it like an MTV on demand so to speak (albeit much more limited in the selection). My big complaint though is there also isn't any way to purchase the rights to save the video even if you already own the song. Some of those videos are really cool but it gets tiring waiting 5 min to see them whenever I get in the mood. Why aren't videos for sale? Maybe they will be in the future.

My question is if anyone has any suggestions on how to circumvent this save barrier. I thought snapz pro might be a possibility but I don't own that yet.

The other purpose of this post is to possibly spark discussion on the ethics of doing so. Does anyone know the legality of it? I imagine it's technically illegal to tape record MTV. But I wouldn't really think of this as stealing since the things being downloaded aren't for sale anyway. (I have no problem with buying the audio track). It seems like a waste considering how much money and effort goes into a lot of music videos. Aren't they supposed to be enjoyed for their art value (tongue in cheek), as well as sell records? MTV and other such stations probably have an interest in having exclusive rights to play the videos, but I really don't think this would detract from my viewing of their channel since I don't watch MTV to see a specific video anyway. Plus, when was the last time MTV was about the music?

[vniow]

Search the comments for more advanced scripts. (http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20040428183055735)

[benbondu]

wow, thanks. That answers my question perfectly.

[The Tuck]

Here's a program with a GUI which will do the same thing as the shell script if you're interested: iTMS Extractor (http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/23306)

[iostream.h]

Here's a program with a GUI which will do the same thing as the shell script if you're interested: iTMS Extractor (http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/23306)

Yeah, I wrote that so if you need any help with it please feel free to send me a PM.

[chameeeleon]

I'm hoping iTunes 5 has a really cool music video implementation. I'd love it if I could have music videos attached to singles I buy on the Music Store, and then watch them in the visualizer window. This would def. give iTunes music purchaes an edge to competitors. Although the file size might be too big to make this possible. Another thing I'd love is if the Music Store added a TRL-style Top 10 music video countdown display. Anyways, that script's a big help to me too - thanks!

[jph]

Hello,

does anybody know if somethig similar is possible with streams under Safari (still looking for a program/script to save baseball games/summaries)?

If yes is it important if the stream is provided via a real/WMP or QT plug-in?

Thanks

jph

[Nermal]

does anybody know if somethig similar is possible with streams under Safari (still looking for a program/script to save baseball games/summaries)?

The videos on iTunes aren't streams. Streams are a lot harder to copy than progressive video (which is what iTunes uses). Basically, progressive video consists of a video file stored on an HTTP server which is downloaded upon request. Streams, on the other hand, are sent using a packet-by-packet mechanism - the actual file never gets downloaded to your system.

There are a couple of stream rippers out there. Windows users have the excellent StreamBox VCR, and Macs have VLC (which I've never been able to successfully use). I keep a Windows computer around for VCR :D

[jph]

The videos on iTunes aren't streams. Streams are a lot harder to copy than progressive video (which is what iTunes uses). Basically, progressive video consists of a video file stored on an HTTP server which is downloaded upon request. Streams, on the other hand, are sent using a packet-by-packet mechanism - the actual file never gets downloaded to your system.

There are a couple of stream rippers out there. Windows users have the excellent StreamBox VCR, and Macs have VLC (which I've never been able to successfully use). I keep a Windows computer around for VCR :D

Thanks for the clarification!
I might try VLC (now that the playoffs are near and coverage here in Germany sucks...).


jph