INTERACT FORUM

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  
Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: User defined tag fields  (Read 1525 times)

Bob Brines

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2
User defined tag fields
« on: October 04, 2008, 11:03:05 am »

I just downloaded MC12, although I will use it exclusively for audio. The majority of my library is classical. The tags are ID3v2 created with Foobar2000. I have a user defined field "Work" which contains, rather obviously the title of the work. I need access to this field so that I can set up a display of:

Composer -- Work -- Name I.E: Mozart -- Symphony #41 -- Allegro

How do I do this?

As a corollary, I need two different and switchable displays -- one for classical as above and one for everything else in the normal Artist -- Song -- Album order. How do I do this?

TIA
Bob
Logged

Listener

  • MC Beta Team
  • Citizen of the Universe
  • *****
  • Posts: 1084
Re: User defined tag fields
« Reply #1 on: October 04, 2008, 12:17:19 pm »

> The tags are ID3v2 created with Foobar2000

Which file format are you using?  MP3, Flac, other?

> I need access to this field so that I can set up a display of:

> Composer -- Work -- Name I.E: Mozart -- Symphony #41 -- Allegro

> How do I do this?


You can modify the existing Audio view scheme or you can define a View Scheme for classical music.  I recommend defining a new scheme for classical music.

In the pane at the left side of the MC window, Note the Audio, Images and Video icons.  Click on one of these icons to see files for that type of content and subordinate view schemes.  Note that the icons have small arrowheads beside them.  When the arrowhead points right, the subordinate view schemes view schemes for that kind of content are hidden.  When the arrowhead points down, those view schemes are listed in a tree structure. You will add one or more view schemes to that list.

Right click on the "Audio" icon  and choose "Add View Scheme".  In the dialog box that appears, you will 1) fields to browse and select music files (in lists in the upper portion of the display using the "Pane" display option), 2) a name for the scheme and 3) which music files to display in this scheme and how they will be sorted.

1) specify fields to browse:  Note the empty area on the left side of the dialog under the words "Step 1".  You will add fields to this list.  Click on the "Add" button to the right of the list area and in the "View scheme item" dialog that appears, specify the first field to select.  Click OK.  Repeat for each browse field.

In my "Major Composers" view scheme, I have these fields specified for browsing: Sub_genre, Composer, Work Name, Artist and version.  I don't need genre because I am only displaying the "classical" genre in this view scheme. 

In the finished View Scheme, the fields and the values in your files you specify will be displayed from left to right.  In the dialog, the first field in the list will correspond to the leftmost pane.  Use the "UP" and "Down" buttons to get the order as you want it.

2) specify a name for the View Scheme:  In the area under "Step 2", uncheck "Auto-name" and type a name such as "Classical only" in the text box.

The default settings in the "Step 3" area of the dialog are probably OK.

3) Specify which files to display in this View Scheme:  In the "Step 4" area, click on the "Edit included files" button.  In the "Edit Search" dialog, specify a rules in the "Rules" area. Click on the down arrow in the left dropdown list and select "Genre".  Note that the middle dropdown list to the right now says "Is".  Click on the down arrow in the right dropdown list and check "Classical".

Now in the "Modify Results" area of the dialog, specify the sort order for the music files that will be displayed.  Make sure that the dropdown list of the left says "Sort by".  Then add, remove and re-arrange sort fields in the list area to the right of the dropdown list.

I specify as sort fields Composer, Work name, Artist and Track #.

Note that tyou can specify other criteria for which files are to be included.

When you are finished specifying sort fields. Click on OK in the "Edit Search" and "View Scheme" dialogs.  You should now see the "Classical" Scheme under Audio.

---
You have 2 more things to do to finish your View Scheme". 

A. Click on "Classical" in the list of view schemes.  The Area to the right of the View Schemes list should have two areas.  the upper area will be used to select files to be displayed in the lower area.  At the top of the upper area, you should see 3 arrow symbols and then a word "pane" or the name of a field such as "Composer".  If the word "Pane" is now shown, click on the arrowhead to the right and select the word "pane" from the list.  You should now see several lists of tag values in the uppoer area.  In my case, I see lists for "Sub_Genre", "Composer", "Work Name", "Artist" and "Version".

B. You should see a list of files in the lower area below the panes area.  There will be columns with the name of a field at the top of the column.  Right click on one of those field names and choose "Customize Current View" from the menu.  Add, remove and rearrange fields in the "Fields to show" area.  Note that you can specify the sort order here too.

If you have already imported your music files, you should now see all your classical music files.  In the composer pane, click on "Beethoven" and the list of files is now limited to those files.  Click on a work to narrow the list of files further.

> As a corollary, I need two different and switchable displays

Yes.  Right click on the Audi Icon and add more view schemes.

Some disclaimers:

1.  MC is very customizable.  And JRiver tinkers with the User Interface.  What you see may differ frrom what I described.

2. I've described one way to accomplish adding new view schemes.  MC has a rich interface that provides more than one way to do things.  And you can easily change things on the fly.  For example, you can change the sort order by clicking on a field name at the top of the file list area.  this is very handy for editing files or locating files you think you have lost.

I hope this helps.

Bill
Logged

Bob Brines

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Re: User defined tag fields
« Reply #2 on: October 04, 2008, 04:07:09 pm »

Thanks, Bill.

I'll give it a try and report back. It took me two weeks to get Foobar set up. I expect the same with MC.

Bob
Logged

Listener

  • MC Beta Team
  • Citizen of the Universe
  • *****
  • Posts: 1084
Re: User defined tag fields
« Reply #3 on: October 04, 2008, 04:19:00 pm »


I asked about ID3 tags because that isn't the right format for tags in Flac files.  Vorbis comments are the standard expected by MC and most other programs.

> I have a user defined field "Work" which contains, rather obviously the title of the work.

I assumed that you meant a user defined field in the MC library (Tools/Options/Library dialog).  Be sure that the user defined fields are defined before you import your music files.

> It took me two weeks to get Foobar set up. I expect the same with MC.

Setup should go much faster in MC.  Many things that are heroic achievements in Foobar are just a matter of finding the right commands in MC.

Explore the MC menus and right click on everything in the UI to see all the commands.

This forum has lots of good info.  I've posted some info on using MC11 and 12 for classical music and so have others.  Search first and then ask questions here.

Bill
Logged
Pages: [1]   Go Up