itunes music management

In my advancing adventure to apple-pie up my music library, I absitively to try the two foreground agent *commercial* programs. The aboriginal getting TidySongs, aforetime TidyTunes. The additional getting TuneUp, accepted for charwoman up the blend “automagically.” I started with TidySongs, because the commercials for TuneUp were annoying. Let’s alpha with the basics, shall we? TidySongs First off, the website is actual clean. The a lot of apparent affair missing was any blazon of forums or added abutment mechanism. They alone action a FAQ, which does not awning any absolute issues and an email abode to forward to if you accept problems. The email abode has a agenda that the getting on the added ancillary works 8-5 and will acknowledge as anon as possible. Not actual comforting… At any rate, the install requires Flash and Adobe Air. Once you accommodated the requirements the hotlink to install works, which I anticipation was appealing cool. The install downloads the files, depression an installer on your desktop and afresh tells you to run it, which I did not anticipate was appealing cool. I went advanced and ran it. Afterwards install, I bifold clicked the appliance icon, and was presented with a actual uninformative error. Back to the website, no advice about this error. Google has bootless me. Email support. Now I wait. If you are like me, and analytic for advice to accomplish TidySongs work, skip to the end of the article. TuneUp The TuneUp website, at aboriginal glance, is not actual advisory about the product. There are two acquirement options, one getting Gold, the added getting Annual. There is no detail on what anniversary advantage gives you, but I’m a acute guy – I doubtable Gold is lifetime and Anniversary is, well, annual. Digging a little, they action abutment forums as well, which you can apprehend afterwards registering. I downloaded the file, and it installed with no issues or mess. I ran the program, logged in and acquainted anon productive. Now, it’s account acquainted that TuneUp does not yet action a way to abolish Duplicates. I did some antecedent assay and was told that 90% of my library was “messed up”. I begin that funny. At any rate, the cleanup was appealing easy, but recommended you alone apple-pie 500 songs at a time. I ran into two issues at this point, anthology artwork acquired some songs to abort on the cleanup (fixable) and TuneUp seemed to about blast during the cleanup (annoying). I begin that if I larboard the blast bulletin up, TuneUp would abide cleaning. First impressions are critical. Appropriate now, TuneUp has the lead, but I still accept top hopes for TidySongs. I absolutely wish the alike removal. Onward! Since it’s now afterwards 5PM in Virginia, I apperceive that TidySongs is not traveling to acknowledgment to me today. Maybe tomorrow. Given that they alone accept 2500 admirers on FaceBook, I accept agitation assertive they are ever active – but I’ll wait. TuneUp I ran TuneUp on my 31GB library of songs (in baby pieces, assurance is becoming people!). It provides recommendations that it’s assertive are right, and accessible recommendations. As I arrested the results, I did not acquisition annihilation that was wrong. Albums were sometimes wrong, but that is calmly explainable. TuneUp uses a signature access (I anticipate it’s like Shazam) to analyze songs. It looks like it prefers the artist’s anthology over compilations. I don’t accept an affair with that, but some humans might. The aboriginal above affair I ran into during the cleanup was a red box on albums while accomplishing cleanup. This is explained by TuneUp as a permissions issue, an bottomless filetype, or bare awning art. You cannot fix the awning art from the cleanup menu, but can do it from the awning art menu. On some songs/albums, you may accept to try a few altered awning art choices until you acquisition one that works. I managed to get awning art on every song/album in my library. The next botheration I ran into was the accidental crashing. As I said, if you leave the blast bulletin accessible it finishes the cleanup anyway. It seems to be referenced a fair bit on their forums, so I am abiding they are alive on it. Not so abundant an affair as an annoyance, but iTunes is appealing abundant asleep while TuneUp is autograph the new ID3 tags. For anyone with a abate library this wouldn’t be a big deal, but I accept 31GB of MP3s and absent use of iTunes for about an absolute day. At the end of it all, I accept a library with awning art, organized music and LOTS of duplicates. TidySongs I did not apprehend aback from TidySongs. I absitively that there was no way Google could accept bootless me, and approved a few new searches. I did acquisition a ambiguous advertence that the airhelper.exe absurdity I was seeing was angry to not accepting Microsoft .NET installed. Nowhere on their website do I see that requirement… *sigh* The advertence is address of the aforementioned abutment getting that I emailed (based on the name), so I adjudge to chase the hotlink and install (dot)NET. So I arch on over to http://www.microsoft.com/NET and bang on the hotlink to install the accepted (dot)NET Framework. Afterwards install I reboot, it is Windows, for acceptable measure. Just to be safe, I abolish and reinstall Adobe AIR and Flash. I go aback to TidySongs.com and reinstall their application. Bang the icon, and get a new error. “The framework does not accept a bore to load.” Now getting a acute guy, I attending at the date of the column I referenced. It was afore the latest adaptation of the framework was released, appropriately I brainstorm they are not compatible. Aback to Microsoft. I downloaded and installed (dot)NET framework 3.5 which, interestingly enough, did not crave me to uninstall 4.0. Rebooted again, old habits die hard. Once my iTunes computer was up and running, I accursed up TidySongs. No errors, no warnings, it looks like we’re in business. At this point, I’m a little afflicted that my botheration was so simple to resolve. My claimed assessment is that a claim like this should be on their website. It’s no acceptance of very shitty programming if you accusation Microsoft. FAQ, Helpful hits, something… As a ancillary note, now that I can *try* TidySongs… The balloon does not let you even see how the alike remover works, it’s a paid feature. So, for anyone abroad looking: TidySongs Requirements Adobe AIR 1.5.x Adobe FLASH (not sure) Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Of course: iTunes If you don’t accept these: The install will fail. The affairs will accomplish airhelper.exe errors. TidySongs will not work.