Can I get Automator to do this?

[Gherkin]

I really don't know if Automator has this kind of functionality. If it does, superb.

Here's what I want it to do:

Whenever I download a song from Poisoned, I want the mp3 file to be added to my iTunes library and for the ID3 tag to be modified. I want the artist tag to be renamed "Hot Jams."

Basically, every MP3 I download from Poisoned gets changed to the artist "Hot Jams." Everything else in my iTunes library is ripped from a CD. This way I can easily keep my downloaded stuff and my CD collection clearly separated in iTunes and on my iPod.

 

[mcmav37]

First off, we try not to encourage illegal activities on these forums, so I'll assume you are only downloading non-protected music.

I haven't used Automator much, but I really want to... so your question let me look around a bit. I think you could do exactly what you want. The only thing I'm not sure about is having the script be initiated simply by downloading a file. I think you will have to trigger it manually... say after each download session.

1) "Find Finder Items": set the folder to your downloads folder and have it choose by (a) whose extension is ".mp3" or whose kind is "audio" and (b) whose date modified is "today"; alternatively, you could probably just have a folder with the files you are interested in and use the "Get Folder Contents" action

2) "Add Files to Playlist": add to the library or create a separate playlist for your downloaded music. This could be another way to keep stuff separated instead of or in addition to the artist tag

3) "Set Info of iTunes Songs": here you can choose to set any of a bunch of the tags. I would recommend for your situation, setting the Genre to something unique rather than the artist. That way, on your iPod you could choose that genre and still be able to choose artist and then song instead of choosing your unique artist and then having to scroll through all downloaded songs. But, you could do it however you want as automator will let you set pretty much whatever you want.

Anyways, I hope that helps and I think it will work. I haven't tested it, though. Good luck.

 

[Gherkin]

Thanks for the reply. Should help me out.

Also, I have a quick question, more iTunes/OS X related.

Say I have an MP3 in my Poisoned downloads folder that isn't yet in iTunes, when I double click it, it imports into iTunes. Does this now mean that the mp3 file is actually doubled up on my hard drive, being in my iTunes folder and in the Poisoned folder? Can I safely delete the version in the Poisoned folder, and the file will now exist only once on my hard drive (that being in the iTunes music library folder)?

Is this correct?

 

[mcmav37]

Thanks for the reply. Should help me out.

Also, I have a quick question, more iTunes/OS X related.

Say I have an MP3 in my Poisoned downloads folder that isn't yet in iTunes, when I double click it, it imports into iTunes. Does this now mean that the mp3 file is actually doubled up on my hard drive, being in my iTunes folder and in the Poisoned folder? Can I safely delete the version in the Poisoned folder, and the file will now exist only once on my hard drive (that being in the iTunes music library folder)?

Is this correct?

By default, iTunes puts a copy of all music files in its own file structure, so yes, many files do get duplicated. You change that property in iTunes Preferences>Advanced. To double-check where a song is being played from, select it and hit Command-R. This will open the folder where the song is stored and select it for you.

If iTunes is working as above, you should be able to delete the original file from you Poisoned folder without problems.

 

[dabirdwell]

How about using a Spotlight Smart Folder of some kind

to keep up with your newest music, then just have Automator grab the tracks from there?

Just thinking out loud