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#288487 - 20/10/2006 16:09 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: drakino]
peter
carpal tunnel

Registered: 13/07/2000
Posts: 4180
Loc: Cambridge, England
Quote:
Basically the iPod works a lot like the empeg does. Files are renamed and stashed away on the hard drive while all the real data the player uses is in a database. The main difference is that the empeg rebuilds the database, but with the iPod only iTunes can rebuild it.

Right, but the Empeg's "rebuilding" is just rebuilding it from the *1 files. Without the *1 files written by Emplode/Emptool/Jemplode, the Empeg can't do anything with the tune files, just like an Ipod. Same with the Karma, for that matter. Among Rio hard-drive players, only the Carbon was truly self-databasing and zero-PC-footprint -- although future Karma-derived Sigmatel-based players will also be self-databasing and zero-PC-footprint.

Peter

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#288488 - 20/10/2006 16:37 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: mlord]
wfaulk
carpal tunnel

Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
I think that there actually is an MP3 folder in there. But it's hidden somehow. I remember reading a "how can I get MP3s off my iPod" article somewhere. Of course, even if you can access existing tracks via mass-storage, there's no guarantee that you can add new tracks that way. Maybe; maybe not. I've not tried.
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Bitt Faulk

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#288489 - 20/10/2006 17:03 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: andym]
Mataglap
enthusiast

Registered: 11/06/2003
Posts: 384
Not quite MSC easy, but SharePod is a small Win32 program you dump onto an iPod and run off of the iPod that lets you upload and download songs into the iPod database without using iTunes.

Personally, I went with rockbox on my nano, which does ReplayGain, Ogg, and songs are added like Mark is talking about.

No matter what, it's a real pain to use both iTunes and some other way to manage/upload/download stuff from an iPod; either drink the kool-aid or don't drink the kool-aid, it's not worth trying to drink the kool-aid and the 18 year old single malt.

--Nathan

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#288490 - 20/10/2006 18:28 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: Mataglap]
BartDG
carpal tunnel

Registered: 20/05/2001
Posts: 2616
Loc: Bruges, Belgium
Quote:

Personally, I went with rockbox on my nano, which does ReplayGain, Ogg, and songs are added like Mark is talking about.


Is that Rockbox software any good? Would you recommend it?
(sorry for the thread hijack)
_________________________
Riocar 80gig S/N : 010101580 red
Riocar 80gig (010102106) - backup

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#288491 - 20/10/2006 21:31 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: BartDG]
hybrid8
carpal tunnel

Registered: 12/11/2001
Posts: 7738
Loc: Toronto, CANADA
I'll chime in with exactly two cents.

1. I find iTunes 7+ (not iTunes 6 or any other version) to be the best music management and display software I've ever used or have had the opportunity to research/read about. I've got about 80GB in it right now. *not that iTunes doesn't have issues or things I'd like to alter.

2. When I looked into RockBox (about 6-12 months ago) it looked very unpolished and for the couple of music formats and features gained, you'd lose a huge ton of functionality and user interface polish. Maybe it's better suited to players that come with craptastic firmware, but for the iPod it just seemed like a downgrade. * not that iPod's firmware doesn't have some issues of its own, including navigation that could be done better.
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Bruno
Twisted Melon : Fine Mac OS Software

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#288492 - 20/10/2006 21:48 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: tman]
gbeer
carpal tunnel

Registered: 17/12/2000
Posts: 2665
Loc: Manteca, California
Quote:
At first I thought that maybe you ended up with a returned Nano that somebody had taken the CD. My original Nano came in a box big enough to fit a full sized CD in but obviously you can't shoe horn that into the new Nano packaging.

Looking at the Nano page at Apple shows that they really do expect you to be able to download a copy of iTunes from the internet to get it to work. It is a 34MB download as well so I guess they expect you to have broadband or cheap internet...

I think the expectation it that as an iPod owner you should also be a Mac owner. In which case iTunes is already loaded on the machine when you buy it. So... Who needs a CD.
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Glenn

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#288493 - 21/10/2006 06:44 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: andym]
Cris
pooh-bah

Registered: 06/02/2002
Posts: 1904
Loc: Leeds, UK
Quote:
I thought you had a shuffle? Or is that another impulse buy?


Good point! It is a Shuffle, that just goes to show how little it gets used

Cheers

Cris.

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#288494 - 21/10/2006 07:19 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: hybrid8]
BartDG
carpal tunnel

Registered: 20/05/2001
Posts: 2616
Loc: Bruges, Belgium
Quote:
I'll chime in with exactly two cents.


Two excellent points! Cheers Bruno!
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Riocar 80gig S/N : 010101580 red
Riocar 80gig (010102106) - backup

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#288495 - 21/10/2006 11:30 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: mlord]
pedrohoon
enthusiast

Registered: 06/08/2002
Posts: 333
Loc: The Pilbara, Western Australia
Yep, my Creative MuVo Tx FM flash player does drag and drop for mp3s, works fine, I never even loaded the Creative software on my PC.
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Peter.

"I spent 90% of my money on women, drink and fast cars. The rest I wasted." - George Best

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#288496 - 21/10/2006 15:44 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: hybrid8]
Dignan
carpal tunnel

Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
Quote:
I'll chime in with exactly two cents.

1. I find iTunes 7+ (not iTunes 6 or any other version) to be the best music management and display software I've ever used or have had the opportunity to research/read about.

Ah, but that makes an assumption: that everybody wants a music management and display software in the first place. I tried iTunes. I was far happier with a basic Windows folder structure.
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Matt

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#288497 - 21/10/2006 16:19 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: Dignan]
msaeger
carpal tunnel

Registered: 23/09/2000
Posts: 3608
Loc: Minnetonka, MN
Quote:

Ah, but that makes an assumption: that everybody wants a music management and display software in the first place. I tried iTunes. I was far happier with a basic Windows folder structure.


Exactly !
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Matt

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#288498 - 21/10/2006 17:39 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: BartDG]
Mataglap
enthusiast

Registered: 11/06/2003
Posts: 384
Rockbox? Good? That's so subjective. For what I need and want it's fine and works well. I don't want much graphical flash, foobar2k on the PCs, no viz or album art or anything like that on media players or the empegs.

Battery life is half of what the native firmware is, and who knows when better code will be checked in. USB transfers are 1.0 slow, so I boot into the Apple firmware for adding and removing songs, which is USB 2.0.

Advanced configuration and UI skins are tedious in the way programmers and Unix geeks tend to implement.

I only use it occasionally, travelling, dentist office, gym, that kind of thing, and it's great for me that I can use the same format on 3 computers, 2 empegs, the Treo, and the Nano.

--Nathan

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#288499 - 21/10/2006 17:55 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: hybrid8]
Mataglap
enthusiast

Registered: 11/06/2003
Posts: 384
Yeah, pretty much, Bruno. I personally don't need much in the way of management or display software, so those capabilities don't provide any value to me, and I've got a very large music collection too. Please note the only comment I made about iTunes was that it's a pain in the ass to use both iTunes and any other method, software, or system at the same time. Fortunetely, I found alternatives that work for me.

And rockbox is unpolished, but it's functional, and honestly, less troublesome than the v3a11 software, which I use daily.

--Nathan

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#288500 - 22/10/2006 14:26 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: Dignan]
hybrid8
carpal tunnel

Registered: 12/11/2001
Posts: 7738
Loc: Toronto, CANADA
I still keep my folder structure the way I want it. iTunes oesn't mabage that part if you turn the option to copy songs OFF. So I can still manage stuff IN and OUTSIDE of iTunes.

I now have Album art on nearly every track in my collection and iTunes ability to properly group together Various Artist albums and its sub-sorting capabilities are why I use it. Looking simply at folders you have exactly one view on your tracks. That's not something I want for music. Using Spotlight and smart searches you can somewhat get around this of course, but iTunes as of version 7 does an amazing (and reather quick) job of it.

Hopefully sooner rather than later, I can start using a SqueezeBox 3 and Slimserver as well. Now I just need someone to write a piece of software that lets me use the iTunes UI to control playback from SlimServer. Or a plugin of some kind for SlimServer to make it look like an Airport Express to iTunes.
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Bruno
Twisted Melon : Fine Mac OS Software

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#288501 - 22/10/2006 15:15 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: hybrid8]
wfaulk
carpal tunnel

Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
_________________________
Bitt Faulk

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#288502 - 23/10/2006 20:13 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: peter]
DLF
addict

Registered: 24/07/2003
Posts: 500
Loc: Colorado, N.A.
Uh, which would be what players and where? I've heard of only one, but that one's not in the U.S. yet.

Quote:
... although future Karma-derived Sigmatel-based players will also be self-databasing and zero-PC-footprint.
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-- DLF

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#288503 - 24/10/2006 07:11 Re: Ipod Nano Rant (sort of) [Re: hybrid8]
frog51
pooh-bah

Registered: 09/08/2000
Posts: 2091
Loc: Edinburgh, Scotland
Gaaaaaah - iTunes. I dislike it almost as much as I dislike MS Windows. Why oh why would anyone write a piece of software like that. I don't want software that tries to take over any decision making, or that attempts to enforce DRM in ways it was never meant to. Why add bloat when the main thing I want is to play some tunes, without worrying what format, on any of my home devices, no matter what platform.

Sigh - we hateses it
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Rory
MkIIa, blue lit buttons, memory upgrade, 1Tb in Subaru Forester STi
MkII, 240Gb in Mark Lord dock
MkII, 80Gb SSD in dock

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