[JohnFrance]

Since a couple of weeks im using iRATE radio : http://irate.sourceforge.net/

iRATE radio is (at least for me) an unique way of getting music to people...
Quote : " iRATE radio is a collaborative filtering system for music. You rate the tracks it downloads and the server uses your ratings and other people's to guess what you'll like. The tracks are downloaded from websites which allow free and legal downloads of their music. "

And after several feedbacks, it really starts understanding my musical taste.
It's learning from my ratings and downloads the music I like. From all kind of Websites: URLs where artists promote themselves. All LEGAL ! Nothing illegal...
No need to surf endlessly to find the music I want to hear and get on my HD...
It is kind of widening my musical horizon !!!

There are downloadable versions for Windows, Linux and for Mac OS X !
See 'Download' in iRATE radio.

Normally I am using iTunes in my iMac as my Musical Database.
But if I move the tracks from the iRATE folder into iTunes, iRATE 'feels' that they are 'missing' and downloads them again. iRATE wants that all my tracks plus RATINGS stay in the folder.

Anthony Jones - the originator of iRATE - gave me in their "Help Forum" following answer :
" I can't answer your Mac question because I don't have a Mac. As for the files in the download directory, they will be redownloaded if the are deleted or moved."

My problem is "How do I get these tracks in iTunes ? ". Without disturbing the (ever growing) iRATE data?
Is there a clever way of doing this on a regular basis?

[Spheric Harlot]

One method might be to just declare the iRATE folder the default iTunes Music folder (you can do this in "iTunes" --> "Preferences").

Then, add a Folder Action Applescript to the iRATE folder that will automatically import anything added to the folder into iTunes. (This should be possible, right?)

[JohnFrance]

---- Then, add a Folder Action Applescript to the iRATE folder that will automatically import anything added to the folder into iTunes. (This should be possible, right?) ---

Thanks for your suggestion, Spheric !
Might be a good idea... but...

I'm just a simple iMac user and not an " Applescript writer "...
if you know what I mean...

[Spheric Harlot]

Originally posted by JohnFrance:
I'm just a simple iMac user and not an " Applescript writer "...
if you know what I mean...

Yes...neither am I, unfortunately.

Have you tried googling for it or going off the links on http://www.apple.com/applescript ?

I looked through briefly and didn't find anything right off the bat, but you might possibly find a readymade script that does this.

If you do find something, you might do good to link to it here for the archives...

-s*

[JohnFrance]

If you use iRATE Radio ( http://irate.sourceforge.net/ ) often , it will fill iRATE's Download file continuously. And in a relative short time you will receive hundreds and hundreds of legally downloaded MP3 tracks of all kind of Web sites. All tracks according to YOUR musical TASTE (almost).

If you use iTUNES, you would like to import them in iTunes in a simple as possible way. Thus you can use/sort/find/listen to these tracks as you can with all other iTunes tracks.

There is (as far as I know) no tailor-made solution to do this automatically. iRATE does not want you to delete their tracks as imported in their Download folder. And if you drag and copy them as such, to modify them in iTunes, iRate will mark them as 'missing' and starts to reimport the same tracks again in iRate.

I think i've found (with the help of many users in different forums) a way of putting the tracks on a regular basis, without too many 'handling'... and without disturbing iRate's ratings. And by easily seeing what tracks in the ever changing Download file have been copied in iTunes and which not yet...

This is how I do it :

I go the Download file of iRate. Change the (usual) 'column view' into 'list view'. In list view I can SEE 'date modified' but also 'label' (color) and 'comments'.
I select a series of tracks I want to copy (either in 'date modified' or in 'alphabetic' order, or in no order at all) and give them a RED color label. I double-click this series of MP3 files: they are being entered automatically in iTunes (be sure of iTunes Preferences: -> Advanced -> Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to Library).
After that I change the RED label into GREEN : so I see immediately which tracks have been copied in iTunes (the GREEN ones) and which not (the uncolored ones)...
Doing the RED labeling is not really needed, but might help keeping the overview.

When the tracks are copied in iTunes, I can modify and/or add whatever info I want. The original MP3 tracks STAY in the iRATE Download folder : iRATE keeps my ratings etc. and is NOT disturbed... and can continue to download my TASTE FILES... it works exactly how I wanted it...