INTERACT FORUM

Devices => Apple iPad, iPhone, iPod, Airplay => Topic started by: glynor on September 22, 2014, 10:45:17 pm

Title: Fricking iTunes
Post by: glynor on September 22, 2014, 10:45:17 pm
I just want to complain.

On one of my Windows boxes, for reasons passing understanding, iTunes now won't update.  It won't update through the updater wizard, which seems to happen frequently, but usually I can download the installer and just do it manually.

But that's broken too.  It updated fine on other machines, of course, but this one is all borked up.  I'm reasonably sure it has something to do with their crazy Device Detection service which seems to like to bork itself all up (because it is doing something wholly unnatural in Windows).

Sigh... I guess I'm uninstalling it and rebooting and reinstalling again, and probably manually removing things from AppData, and if I'm very unlucky, getting RegEdit out (again) just to be able to occasionally sync Audiobooks to my wife's phone.  Normally I wouldn't care about an iTunes update, but this one is required for iOS 8 to sync right.

Stupid iTunes.
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: astromo on September 23, 2014, 01:10:47 am
Agreed but I'm hoping you're not after sympathy [EDIT: Apologies if this sounds harsh but I take exception to being treated like a fish in a barrel for deep pocketed corporate type to start shooting at ... my tongue is firmly in cheek ..  :P]. I'd be planning an exit strategy.

Maybe you should be looking at a platform change and getting on the MC for Linux plan:
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-reasons-why-the-ubuntu-phone-should-be-your-next-mobile-device/ (http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-reasons-why-the-ubuntu-phone-should-be-your-next-mobile-device/)
http://liliputing.com/2014/09/ubuntu-smartphones-hits-rtm-release-manufacturing-stage.html (http://liliputing.com/2014/09/ubuntu-smartphones-hits-rtm-release-manufacturing-stage.html)

May not be all the way there yet but the future has possibilities.
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: Arindelle on September 23, 2014, 09:55:08 am
OMG hate is not strong enough for my feelings about iTunes  -- go on complain all you want


(http://funny-pictures-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/MEME-iTunes.jpg)



(http://www.troll.me/images/first-world-problems-ii/accidentally-opened-itunes-takes-30-seconds-to-close.jpg)
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: 6233638 on September 23, 2014, 10:01:28 am
I agree that almost everything about iTunes is terrible.

But at least they display nice high quality artwork in the library.
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: glynor on September 23, 2014, 04:36:03 pm
May not be all the way there yet but the future has possibilities.

Linux on the Desktop.

It's always a year away!

(And, I think the phones are an utter disaster, thus far.)
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: astromo on September 23, 2014, 04:49:10 pm
Linux on the Desktop.

It's always a year away!

(And, I think the phones are an utter disaster, thus far.)

Thanks for the tip. I'll give the bleeding edge a wide berth and let others go through the pain.

Ironic that you've got the best media management software going and you're still lumbered with negotiating the all pervasive iT. Why doesn't it show up as a virus? It turns up on the machine at home because my other half has one of their phones but I can assure you, it comes straight off when we're done.
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: Z0001 on October 20, 2014, 04:56:12 pm
... So what's the answer to iTunes? None or least very few PC users on this forum want to use itunes for anything other than transferring media from MC to an apple device I suspect. How do we do this without iTunes?

I guess we need a bunch of drivers, and there seem to be a few media syncing options. Are they any good? Are people using them with MC? I would ideally like to build a playlist in MC and then drag it onto an iPad icon.

Can MC build in this feature?

Not only does iTunes on windows not work, but its visually awful and terribly non-intuitive; for example on the sync page the rows of text come out overlapping on my pcs and have done for a long time (even after reinstalling windows). Rant.

With other devices on an android platform is the syncing experience any better?

Cheers
Z
Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: Arindelle on October 21, 2014, 09:40:46 am
... So what's the answer to iTunes? None or least very few PC users on this forum want to use itunes for anything other than transferring media from MC to an apple device I suspect. How do we do this without iTunes?

I guess we need a bunch of drivers, and there seem to be a few media syncing options. Are they any good? Are people using them with MC? I would ideally like to build a playlist in MC and then drag it onto an iPad icon.

Can MC build in this feature?
euh sure and has done, but every 2 months apples changes their crap or release a new version which makes building stuff so futile ...

I started using this program on my PC => Phone Trans , but basically you still had to have itunes installed.

I'm checking this out now CopyTrans Manager http://www.copytrans.net/ (http://www.copytrans.net/) this is free for the media sync module. Just drag and drop files to add, make playlist, simple tagging and image manipulation. Sync is a little slow (pretty sure this partially a webapp) -- but not anyslower than itunes. Import files over a lan no problem. Learning curve -- zero 2 minutes and it just works. I'm really liking it actually. Ok for phones ipads and ipods

The only things it doesn't do (or that I haven't figured out yet,) is: 1) import external playlists which might be a drag for some people. But I just convert an mp3 copy flac files to a folder and it just works (there is a workaround but iTunes has to be installed on the computer) 2) does not update smartlists (like recently added from iTunes) but I don't care no iTunes for my music using my directory structure period.

Only been using this for a couple of days, see what you think

Title: Re: Fricking iTunes
Post by: mwillems on October 21, 2014, 10:02:57 am
With other devices on an android platform is the syncing experience any better?

Short answer, yes. I can use MC's built in sync to move files to android devices, and it's more or less as simple as dragging a playlist onto the device window in JRiver.  There are occasional hiccups, but it works pretty well and requires no external software.