spoon's Blog

Well, I think I've found the solution.

It seems that if you press the option key while starting iTunes you can select the library which you want iTunes to use. You can also create a new library. I created a brand new library and iTunes started up as if it were new. I added all the music on the mobile Lacie, imported the playlists from the previous library (by clicking File-Library-Import/Export Playlist) and I have libraries on the same HD. Now all I have to do when booting iTunes is choose which iTunes Library I want to use, whether it's the one with the music added from the Time Capsule or the one with the music added from the Lacie. It is possible to run more than one library on iTunes.

Long live Apple! :)

Which is the best way to organize my iTunes Music Library?

Here is the scenario:
MacBook Pro HD of 120GB
Time Capsule 500GB
Mobile Lacie 250GB

Folder containing audio files: 136GB

My music folder is obviously too large for it to be kept on the HD. So I leave it on the Time Capsule and import the audio files into iTunes from there. This means that if the Time Capsule is off or I am away from home the audio files in iTunes would be dead since I don't copy them into the iTunes Music Folder. I usually play music when I am at home and my MacBook Pro is stuck the desk. I have also backed up my music folder on a 250GB Lacie Mobile HD which is very small and portable.

I need to devise a way of being able to play my music both from the Time Capsule (when I am at home) and from my portable Lacie (when I am on the go) from the same iTunes Library. As things are now, for me to be able to play the music from my portable Lacie, I would have to add the 136GB of music into the iTunes Library. This would mean that I would end up with doubles since the Library would have audio files imported from the Time Capsule and from the Lacie.

I'm wondering whether moving my iTunes folder in the Home Folder to both the Time Capsule and the Lacie, and consolidating the library would solve the problem. All I would have to do is change the iTunes folder from the iTunes preferences depending whether I want to play music from the Time Capsule or from the Lacie.

Any ideas?

Like most Mac addicts and lovers I have been waiting for the iPhone to hit the Maltese shores. Well, it has finally happened... however, with one major flaw. We still have no iTunes Account. Frankly, I think that without an iTunes store account we cannot use half of the iPhone's potential since we cannot buy apps from the App Store. I have used a first generation iPhone in the past, and I decided to get rid of it because unlocking, jailbreaking and downloading fixes was too much of a hassle, the visual voicemail was not active, and I was not happy with the lack of some of the most basic phone features such as SMS message forwarding. So I figured I'd wait until it is officially available in Malta to be able to fully benefit from the features. Apart from the fact that version 2.0 did not introduce the SMS message forwarding, the iPhone still lacks some basic features which are standard in the most ordinary of mobile phones. I cannot understand why Apple is not seeing this. Another major flaw in my opinion is that the Notes on the iPhone do not sync with the Notes on your Apple Mail and iCal. This had caused me a great deal of confusion when I was using the iPhone since I would have loads of Notes which I inserted on the iPhone while I was on the go, and then they do not sync to Apple Mail or iCal.

The lack of an iTunes store account in Malta has convinced me that it is still not the right time to buy the iPhone. With all the money you pay to purchase the iPhone, it is still too expensive when you consider the number of limitations it has. For the same price I'd get a top notch Nokia which can sync beautifully with the Mac.

What do you people think?

Errata corrige: Price is €1300.
Sorry, typo.