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sabre 39 · Jul 17, 2007, 02:39 AM

I've just recently purchased an iPod, and I am trying to figure out how best to get my music collection onto it. I would appreciate any help you can offer.

A couple of years ago, I ripped almost all of my CD collection, and the music is stored on a linux server on my home network. The server share is mounted to a directory in my home directory on my main slackware linux desktop using NFS. I use samba to make the share available to daughter's Windows XP machine and my Win2KPro machine across the network. Although I can mount the server on the desktop of my MacBook, I use mt-daapd (now known as Firefly Media Server) running on the server to share the music out and play it using iTunes.

Last night, I tried copying the music on the server over to my MacBook using iTunes, but I couldn't find a way to import even one file, let alone the entire contents of the share.

I also tried using amaroK on my linux desktop machine, but I wasn't able to get the iPod mounted, either from the command line or using amaroK. (I ran into dependency problems compiling gtkpod from source.)

So, now I am looking for help in copying the music collection over to my MacBook using iTunes to then sync with the iPod. Alternately, I am open to ideas on other strategies to get the collection onto the iPod. I would actually prefer not to have to import all the music (32GB+) onto my MacBook, since I seldom if ever use it to listen to music, and I don't want to give up the storage space if I can get around it.

One idea I had was getting an external drive, transferring the music to that and then opening that music library in iTunes for syncing to the iPod. I'd have to routinely sync the external drive to the collection as I add new CDs and then sync the iPod again with iTunes, but again, that seems preferable to having the whole collection on my MacBook drive.

What do you suggest?

C.A.T.S. CEO · Jul 17, 2007, 02:49 AM

I'd suggest getting a external drive. You can put your iTunes music folder onto a external drive via iTunes > Prefs > Advanced > General tab

sabre 39 · Jul 17, 2007, 03:40 AM

Thanks for the quick response. I've been tending in the direction of an external drive, because it would help me solve a couple of other problems with data backup. Until I read your message though, I wasn't certain if iTunes would accept a music library on an external drive.

analogika · Jul 17, 2007, 03:42 AM

Another thing you can do is change the iTunes settings on your MacBook to NOT copy every song into the iTunes library, and then mount the server in the Finder and simply drag your entire music collection into iTunes.

iTunes will then sync it with the iPod, pulling it off the network. This will, of course, take AGES the first time, but later syncs will be quick.

The only annoyance is that you have to manually add new music to the iTunes library.

I haven't yet found a decent solution to that particular aspect, but that is exactly the way I have my network set up at home.

sabre 39 · Jul 17, 2007, 04:04 AM

I neglected to mention that last night I tried something similar to what you suggest. I had iTunes open and mounted the server's music share on the desktop. I selected all the files on the share and tried to drag and drop them onto the iPod icon in iTunes' list of libraries and devices on the left-hand side of its window. I didn't get the normal indication that the drag-and-drop would work (the iPod icon didn't highlight) and when I released the mouse button nothing happened.

I didn't try dragging and dropping into the iTunes library window though, so that would be worth a shot. I'll have to connect the MacBook to the network with a cable before I do that though. It's connected wirelessly right now, and a transfer of that size would probably shut down the wireless link for most of a day.

Rather than manually adding the new music, can't you just drag over the new .m3u file and album folder? Or, is that what you mean by manually adding?

shifuimam · Jul 17, 2007, 07:20 AM

Have you tried Yamipod? It's available for Linux, OS X, and Windows - and it can be run directly from your iPod. It may be friendlier to adding music to your iPod from a network share.

sabre 39 · Jul 17, 2007, 09:38 AM

I saw Yamipod on some of the references I came up with in my Google searches, but I was hesitant to load anything but music, pictures and video onto a brand new iPod.

shifuimam · Jul 17, 2007, 09:47 AM

Originally Posted by sabre 39

I saw Yamipod on some of the references I came up with in my Google searches, but I was hesitant to load anything but music, pictures and video onto a brand new iPod.

Don't sweat it. You can always run YamiPod from your computer, anyhow - and that will only put music, pictures, and video on your iPod.

But seriously. Your iPod is just a portable hard drive with special software on it to make it play music directly. It's designed to be able to function as a music player and a portable disk drive.

analogika · Jul 17, 2007, 11:07 AM

Originally Posted by sabre 39

I neglected to mention that last night I tried something similar to what you suggest. I had iTunes open and mounted the server's music share on the desktop. I selected all the files on the share and tried to drag and drop them onto the iPod icon in iTunes' list of libraries and devices on the left-hand side of its window. I didn't get the normal indication that the drag-and-drop would work (the iPod icon didn't highlight) and when I released the mouse button nothing happened.

Into iTUNES, NOT the iPod!

You CANNOT drag stuff directly to the iPod UNLESS it is already in iTunes and you have the iPod set to manual (not synced).

m3u files will NOT work sensibly either way.

sabre 39 · Jul 17, 2007, 02:20 PM

I'll take another look at Yamipod. I understand the hard drive aspect of the thing. I guess I shouldn't have let running yamipod from the iPod spook me.

@analogika

Why won't the m3u's work? Does it have to do with the relative locations, or does the iPod just not understand them?

analogika · Jul 17, 2007, 02:51 PM

If you drag an m3u playlist file into iTunes, that's just a list of files, NOT the files themselves. And the m3u files don't show up in the iTunes library, they simply add the songs to a playlist if you drag them into the application.

Since whatever goes on the iPod MUST be in your iTunes library, and the m3u files themselves don't actually show up in iTunes...I'd call that "not working sensibly".