Convert Your SageTV Extender Into Squeezbox Music Player

Have you given up on the abandoned (thanks to Google’s purchase of SageTV) SageTV HTPC system?  Still have a SageTV Extender laying around waiting to be sold on EBay?  We'll here’s another use for it, convert it into a Squeezebox networked music player for free!

A SageTV enthusiast has created a download package to make the process fairly easy so you’ll be streaming music across your network to your SageTV HD200 or HD300 in no time.

Here’s his initial announcement from the SageTV Forums:

“All,
I'm very proud to announce that after weeks of painful research, coding, cross compiling and testing, I finally managed to "transform" (not in the physical sense of the term of course) an HD200 and an HD300 to a fully working headless squeezebox client connected to a squeeze server...
Why?
Well, the inspiration came after trying the excellent "SageTV Slimplayer" plugin. Despite the plugin did work very well, my requirements were a little bit different, for instance I didn't like the idea of switching my TV on to listen music, also the limitation of one extender at time was a big no-no for me. I currently have 5 extenders in my household and all of them are connected to a separate sound processor and in one instance the extender is hooked up to a Yamaha sound projector which in turns is connected to a video projector, so if I want to listen music in the lounge with the fireplace on, the last thing I want is to turn on the video projector as well. The ideal solution for me would be a Logitech Duet with one Squeeze Remote or some other software solution (Smartphone/iPad/Android), but that would mean buying five of them for a job that an extender is perfectly capable of (wireless connection included).”

If you’re interested head over to the SageTV Forums for more

Sonos Play:3-Smaller, Less Expensive, Still Awesome

A smaller, lighter Sonos arrived on the doorstep of the GeekTonic abode today.  Those paying attention know this home is the happy owners of two Sono’s S5’s along with a Sonos BR100.  As I mentioned yesterday when the new Play:3’s were announced, I had much lower expectations for these smaller guys since they lacked a subwoofer.  Given those lesser expectations, read on to hear how well this little guy performed.

Play 3 – New Family Member to the Sonos Lineup

Above you see the entire Sonos Player lineup.  Those who have followed Sonos will notice the naming has changed from S5 to Play:5:

• Play 5 – $399 All-in-one player.  5-driver speaker system with 5 digital amps, 2 tweeters, 2 mid-range drivers and 1 bass driver
• Play 3 – $299 All-in-one player.  3-driver speaker system with 3 digital amps, 1 tweeter, 2 mid-range drivers and 1 bass radiator
• ZP 120 – $499 55 Watt per channel amplifier – Just attach speakers and go
• ZP 90 – $349 Non-amplified – Attach to an amplified device like an AV receiver

All of these devices must be plugged in for power, but connect wirelessly to your home WiFi system (requires the Sonos ZB100).  You can then control these devices with a Sonos controller, your computer, an Android device, iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad.  Then stream your home music or one of the many online streaming choices like Sirius, Pandora, Rhapsody, RDIO and even the new Spotify among others.

Sonos Play:3

The Play:3 sells the Sonos system to a slightly more-accessible position in the market.  $299 (plus the required $49 Bridge if you want it to work wirelessly) still isn’t in the impulse-buy arena, but it’s at least a bit more accessible.  So the question here is this:  Is are you giving up too much with the smaller, $100-cheaper Play:3 or should you save your pennies for the more expensive Play:5 to get the bigger sound?

Form Factor – Smaller and More Flexible

Before we get into the sound of this guy, lets discuss an advantage the Play:3 has over it’s Play:5 big-brother – size.  The Play:3 weighs in at 5.7 pounds and is about the size of your typical bookshelf speaker system.

The Play:3 is small enough to fit on your nightstand, on a bookshelf, kitchen, bathroom counter or practically anywhere really.  You can even sit it flat length-wise or upright as displayed below to fit it in the perfect place in your home:

Sonos has included what they are calling an “EQ (audio equalization)” that detects which way you place it (upright or lengthwise) and purportedly adjusts the output to take that orientation into account.to provide the best possible sound when the orientation is changed.  I tried it both ways and didn’t notice much difference – sideways may have been slightly less optimal, but not by  much.

Dimensions (HxWxD)  5.2x10.6x6.3 in. (132x268x160 mm)

Something worth noting is that they included threaded mounting holes on the rear of the device if you plan to mount the Play:3 in a more permanent location this makes that much easier.

Smaller But Packs Surprisingly Big Sound

When I first heard the Sonos Play:3 announcement, I was expecting a pretty serious drop in sound quality compared to the awesome Play:5.  I expected a souped-up Hi-Fi radio kind of sound and I was wrong.  The Play:3 is very impressive in my opinion even given its smaller size.  It loses 2 drivers and has a smaller bass driver than it’s Play:5 big brother and yes, that means it won’t fill a larger room quite as well.  But it was very impressive for my families ears.  I compared it to my decent home office speaker system (with subwoofer) and to the Play:5.  In my office it performed admirably.  When I moved it to the much-larger living room (open to the kitchen and two stories high ceiling it still did very well, but I noticed a less “strong” sound.  This is very likely due to the smaller bass driver – in other words there isn’t a “true” subwoofer inside like there is on the Play:5.  That’s a shortcut worth taking for size, but know it has it’s limitations especially in a very large room with some music.

What Does the Play:3 give up Compared to the Play:5?

So now we know what the Play:3 can do, what do you really give up compared to a Sonos Play:5?

The Play:3 is obviously cheaper and smaller – great when you are buying two for a stereo pair or for a kitchen, bedroom or small apartment setting.  But you also give up a line-in jack.  This takes away some flexibility you have with the Play:5.  I use that line-in jack on my Play:5 when I have something on my iPhone I want to just play on the Play:5 conveniently – like an already downloaded podcast or audio recording.  Not a deal-breaker, but certainly something to consider.  You can still stream to it from your computer, a $120 Sonos iPhone/iPod dock or AirPlay.

You also do give up some of the deep bass of the Play:5.  I also felt the sound wasn’t quite as rich as with the larger Play:5.  It’s just very difficult to go this much smaller on an all-in-one speaker without giving up some sound quality.  Even taking that into account, I felt the sound on this thing was very, very good – especially given its smaller size.  Just know you can’t give up 2 drivers and the larger bass driver without sacrificing some.

Conclusion

Choosing between the Play:3 and the Play:5 is easier than it sounds.  It’s about the money, size and large-sound tradeoffs.  The Play:3 would fit right in my home on a bookshelf, in the bedroom or office for example.  And it would make a great way to start your Sonos system.  I’m completely sold on Sonos for a very easy-to-setup & use all-home, connected music system.  Starting off with the Play:3 is a great option – or using it to round out your Sonos system for the right apartment or room is a great choice as well.  Sonos has surprised me with the Play:3  a smaller, all-in-one wireless music player that has bigger-than-expected sound.

Compare the Sonos system to your own stereo setup, Logitech Squeezebox and a few other competitors and the clear winner is Sonos.  Your only decision is can you afford the super-easy, very-convenient music system that has become a centerpiece of the GeekTonic home.  Even with the cheaper Play:3 it’s not the cheapest solution, but it’s a luxury worth saving your money for in our opinion!

Sonos Play:3 Promo Demo Video

Read more at Sonos.com.  Sonos sells directly on their website, at Amazon (sometimes slightly cheaper) and at select Best Buy stores.

The GeekTonic Review of the Sonos S5 (now Sonos Play:5) goes into additional detail on how music streaming services work, streaming of home music and controlling the system.

Sonos S5 – Brilliant Whole Home Music Server/Player

Sonos Setup – Brilliantly Simple

Sonos Gets New Play:3 Hardware

One of my favorite home media devices is the Sonos Music System.  Today Sonos announced a new addition to their music-streaming hardware lineup, the Sonos Play:3.

The Play:3 is a smaller, all-in-one streaming music player priced at $299.  Like the very popular larger Sonos S5, the Play:3 gives you access to your digital music collection served up from a PC or NAS as well as access to most online music services including Pandora, Sirius, Spotify and many more.  This new device includes three digital drivers, one tweeter and two mid-range amps.  This device does not include a subwoofer so I would assume it’s intended for somewhat smaller rooms.

Like all Sonos devices this system is controlled by Sonos’s own controller or an iOS or Android device.  I might add this device in a bedroom or small office where space (or cost) was a concern.  Early reports are that the sound quality is very good, but for larger rooms or if you’re only planning to have a single Sonos device, I’d still go with an S5 or one of the others where you use your own speaker.  It does fit in just below the S5 for their lineup and looks to be a solid addition to the Sonos Family.

Read more about the Sonos Play:3 at the Sonos Blog

For more on Sonos and a detailed review of the S5 read this review at GeekTonic

Google Music Beta Arrives

Today I received my Google Music beta.  I’ve been playing with new Spotify Music service for the last several days so this just multiplies my music testing to do.  My really-quick first impression is that this service has potential, but has a ways to go still.  But I’m paying attention to all of Google’s media offerings since I see a comprehensive, all home-all internet, Google Media solution evolving here.

Are you part of the Google Music Beta?  If so, what do you think so far?

Read more about Google Music & sign up for an invite here.

Spotify Arrives for US

This morning brings the States a nice little musical gift.  Spotify, one of Europe’s favorite music services began it’s U.S. launch with a invite-only beta.  I received an invite this morning so I’ll be giving the service a good look over the next few days so I can share with you how it works and how it compares to competing music services.

What is Spotify?

Spotify brings the U.S. 15 million tracks of music with on-demand access, import of your MP3 music collection, offline mode, social media integration, compatibility on many mobile devices including iPhone and Android and more.  Sonos already has support for it so I’ll be testing that as well.  Logitech also announced that they will be offering Spotify service on their Squeezebox Touch and Squeezebox Radio.

The available plans include:

• Free – Play local files, share with friends, access to millions of tracks, ad-supported
• Unlimited $4.99/month – No advertisements, unlimited streaming
• Premium $9..99/month – No advertisements, unlimited streaming, offline mode for playlists, spotify on mobile

It’s currently only available by invite, but I imagine this one will open up soon.  In the meantime read more about the service and sign up for an invite at the Spotify website.

Sonos S5 – Brilliant Whole Home Music Server/Player

Remember back when you began using an MP3 player instead of a Walkman?  Okay, perhaps not all of you are as old as I am for that example but bare with me.  Compare how listening to music changed when you upgraded to a good MP3 player versus that Walkman.  That’s how much Sonos changed our home during the month I reviewed it.  Now that you know how much I loved doing this review read on to see if I think it’s worth spending the $399 for the Sonos S5.

Music has always been an important component of our home media and for many years I’ve used a Home Theater PC (HTPC) to serve music throughout my home with full control of my music collection – accessible from any TV set or computer in the house.  Before I began reviewing the Sonos system I was mostly satisfied with the music setup on my HTPC.  A month of using Sonos has made me realize what I was missing.
 

What is Sonos?

Sonos is a music “server” system that takes music and serves it from a PC, Networked Attached Storage, external hard drive or MP3 player and streams that music to one or more of your Sonos devices anywhere on your home network.  Sonos also gives you access to a long list of online content including Pandora, Sirius and more.  You have access to your playlists, genre &I artist info as well as cover art embedded in your music collection.

Music Sources for Sonos

• Your Music Library – MP3s, iTunes songs stored on your computer
• Internet Radio – Use the Radio Guide to tune into over 100,000 radio stations that stream online.  I found nearly all of the local radio stations as well as stations from all around the world.
• Online Music Services – My favorites here are Pandora, Sirius and Last.fm but there is a long list of options that work with Sonos some free and some cost.  The list includes:
  
  • Audible
  • Amazon MP3
  • Audible
  • Classical.com
  • eMusic
  • iheartradio
  • iTunes
  • Last.fm
  • LiveDownloads.com
  • Napster
  • Pandora
  • Rhapsody
  • Sirius Internet Radio
  • Walmart
  • Wolfgang’s Vault – newly added to Sonos where you can listen to recorded live concerts etc
  • Zune Marketplace
• MP3 Player, CD Player etc connected with an audio cable (included)

Why would you need a “music box” to play back your music when you already have a AV Receiver, HTPC, iPod etc?  It’s about having instant access to your collection to playback anywhere in your home – including the deck or pool area.  Sonos connects to your network with a wired, ethernet connection – you need at least one of your Sonos devices hard-wired by Ethernet or a $99 Zonebridge.  From there you can have any of your Sonos devices around the home connect through your WiFi network.  During the review period I had a single Sonos S5 mostly in the kitchen/living room area, but at different times would carry it up to the bedroom and even the outside deck.  The only thing you have to connect is the AC plug to a wall outlet.

Read On for Demo Videos and Much More about the Sonos System and Sonos S5

DRM – Dead For Music Downloads – Video DRM Just Getting Started

In a bold, exciting headline TorrentFreak declares that “DRM is Dead, RIAA Says.”  I concur that DRM is definitely dead for music downloads and it is certainly a milestone that representatives of the RIAA are admitting it now.  But we still have a very long way to go – just look at video.

Music Download DRM is Dead

The torrentfreak article explains the context of the quote this way:

Jonathan Lamy, chief spokesperson for the RIAA declared DRM dead, when he was asked about the RIAA's view on DRM for an upcoming SCMagazine article. "DRM is dead, isn't it?" Lamy said, referring to the DRM-less iTunes store and other online outfits that now offer music without restrictions.

Hearing that the RIAA is declaring DRM dead for music is nice – although we’ve known this for a while now (to say the least) even if they haven’t.  There are now many avenues to get DRM-free digital downloads of music from Amazon, iTunes and other legitimate sources.  But how about DRM on video?

DRM on TV, Movies and eBooks – Just Getting Started

Just as music DRM is going away, DRM on TV streaming (Hulu etc), Cable TV Tuning (Encrypted Digital QAM/ CableCard & soon Satellite TV Tuners?), Video Downloads (iTunes & Amazon) and DVDs & Blu-Ray Disks all have plenty of DRM or encryption with copy restrictions making it more difficult to view and listen to the media you purchase.  I use the word purchase a little loosely since the media you pay for with DRM really is intended to be more of a “rental” of sorts.

You’re Renting those DRM’d Media – not owning

Take for instance the Amazon debacle of last week.  Yes the books Amazon pulled from customers Kindles were in fact “unauthorized.”  But the fact that Amazon pulled the books right from customers Kindles (even though they did credit the money back to those customers) without notice or an “ok” from the owner of those Kindles shows one of the dangers of DRM’d media.  Many other examples of DRM’d music going away when the “DRM server” was pulled are all examples of why we do not want DRM on items we purchase.

DRM on All CableTV – Removing the “Analog Hole”

Let’s not forget that the MPAA had plans to some day close the “analog hole.”  Which would mean forcing video to HDMI-only.  The MPAA push for something they call "Selectable Output Control" (SOC), a way of ensuring your set-top cable box can't show certain content on the analog output so you won't copy it is another example of “locking down” the content and forcing you to their limited rules.  The MPAA request was knocked down by the FCC last year, but I don’t see the MPAA giving up this fight any time soon either.

There Must Be a Better Way

The ills of DRM have been widely talked about of course as have the reasons media companies have put encryption and DRM onto that media.  My problem with DRM is mostly around the shackles it puts on your use of that media.  It hinders the use of the media on your Home Theater PC, mobile devices, eBook Readers etc and makes it more difficult for the paying customers to enjoy the media they are willing to pay for.  There has to be a better way – lets hope the other media industries come around faster than the music industry has and finds a better solution than DRM.

For the full article on the death of music DRM check out TorrentFreak

via Lifehacker

Quick Note: Do Not Buy the iPod Shuffle

I probably don't need to say this to you - knowing you're all pretty savvy about these sort of things.  Still I thought it might be worth mentioning in case the new iPod Shuffle story was too small to have been noticed by you. 

Don't under any circumstances purchase the new iPod Shuffle.

If the overly-tiny mp3 device with no screen of any kind hadn't already turned you off, maybe this will:

Apple's new iPod shuffle requires a specially equipped Apple headphone since the controls for the darn thing are ON THE headphone cord.  To make matters worse, it's being reported that any third party headphones will require an Apple-licensed authentication chip for it to work. 

Sorry, but this is craziness on Apples' part and they have just gone too far with this one. 

An already overpriced, under-featured iPod now requires an overly expensive headphone or a crappy Apple headphone for it to work.  I own several Apple devices including an iPod Touch, an iPod Classic and an iPod Nano but if this sort of craziness continues I'll be switching to the competition in a heartbeat.

via iLounge

Free Song Sunday - Free Music MP3s Volume 2

Without Question, my favorite place to get MP3 downloads is Amazon MP3.  It's been DRM-free since the beginning, has a great selection and integrates with the iPod iTunes app (if you want it to) as well as most other MP3 players. 

I'm on the lookout for more free (legal) music and will be adding to this weekly feature going forward.  This week I'm adding just a few tracks from iTunes.  In coming weeks I'll add a handful of songs from Amazon MP3, Apple iTunes and a few other sources.  The goal is to help GeekTonic readers find some free music from "official channels" so to speak.

 

Here's a few of my favorites from the free MP3 Amazon selection this week:

 

• I Saw Three Ships by Dan Fogelberg
• Sooner (From "Chocolate and Ice") by Morning Jacket
• 100 Days, 100 Nights by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
• Prayer Wheel by Nels Cline

 

I won't presume to know your musical taste, so feel free to browse the full list of free MP3s at Amazon Can't beat the price of free ;)

 

And iTunes has the occasional free song download as well (note: click the "iTunes" button to view the free song in itunes):

• The Last Vegas - I'm Bad (rock)
• If U Leave (feat. Mary J. Blige) by Musiq Soulchild 

 

 

Stay tuned to GeekTonic for more media and media-gadget news & talk.  If there is enough interest in this series, I'll add a RSS/E-mail subscription link specifically for "Free Song Sunday".  Let me know in the comments if you're interested at all or have your own suggestions for free music (Keep in mind, I know about torrent already ;)

Free Song Sunday - Amazon Free Music MP3s

Without Question, my favorite place to get MP3 downloads is Amazon MP3.  It's been DRM-free since the beginning, has a great selection and integrates with the iPod iTunes app as well as most other MP3 players. 

For the past several weeks, I've been watching Amazon MP3 for any free MP3's and thought I'd begin sharing those with GeekTonic readers.  A great way to sample new music for free so you can fill up those Media Center computers and portable music players.

You can browse and preview all songs right from your browser - no special program or iTunes required.

 

Here's a few of my favorites from the free MP3 Amazon selection this week:

• Energy by The Apples in Stereo
• Strange Overtones by David Byrne and Brian Eno
• Turn Cold by Cut Off Your Hands
• Microphone by Coconut Records

 

I won't presume to know your musical taste, so feel free to browse the full list of free MP3s on your own.  Can't beat the price of free ;)

For the complete listing of free, MP3's available on Amazon, follow this link

Dr Horrible Free Online Again at Hulu

If you missed Dr. Horrible (mentioned last week in this post) from a week or so ago when it was online for free, don’t fret – you can now watch the three episodes for free on Hulu.
Head over to Hulu to check it out.

Pandora Radio Plugin for SageTV

While the throngs of iPhone and iTouch users were trying out the new Pandora Radio, one of the most popular free iPhone application releases, I was testing out a new Pandora Radio Application on my SageTV Home Theater PC.  Pandora radio is one of the more popular internet radio applications that is a perfect match for the HTPC and is a very welcome addition to my Home Theater PC abilities.

PANDORA WHO?

Pandora has a database of more than 600,000 songs each marked with musical characteristics that helps Pandora personalize a station/playlist based on songs you like or dislike.  The Pandora web app is one of my favorites and the iPhone and now SageTV applications that work with Pandora extend that excellent internet radio interface to the media players that get a lot of use in this house.

PANDORA RADIO PLUGIN FOR SAGETV

The new SageTV, Pandora Plugin was developed by Craig (known as cncb on the SageTV forums)

The plugin allows users to extend their personalized radio stations from their Pandora username onto their SageTV HTPC.  Select a station to listen to and as you're listening to a song you can give it a thumbs up or a thumbs down to help “teach” the station your preferences.  Songs you don’t want to hear can be skipped without giving them the thumbs down just like in the Pandora web application.  It’s a fairly simple interface, but very easy to use and extremely functional. 

SCREEN-CAST

I did a quick, one-minute walk-through to give you a feel for the interface:

One quick note about the plugin.  In it’s current form, you cannot use it on an extender without a hack (more on that in the forum thread below).

For more about the plugin, check out the following links:

SageTV Pandora Plugin Forum Thread

SageTV Pandora Plugin Download

Napster Offering Over 6M DRM Free MP3s

In what can only be described as an amazing irony, AP is reporting that today, Napster will begin offering its complete catalog of over 6 million music tracks in DRM-Free (aka unprotected) MP3 format.

All four major music labels along with countless indie labels are represented in the store.  Add to this that every track will be available at 99-cents!  This in my opinion is the equivalent of the music industries final acceptance that their old business structure is dead.  It's about time......

At first glance, Napster's store isn't very well done.  And add to that the fact that their subscription model where you pay $13 a month for all you can rent music is still their main business.  Still, it's the fact that the music industry has gone full circle on the concept of DRM-Free music that is somewhat amazing to me.

While we're on the topic of digital music, I wonder why people are still buying DRM'd tracks when there are DRM free tracks available?  I'm purchasing all of my tracks from Amazon right now because they are DRM-Free.  ITunes won't get any more of my business until they are competitive on DRM-Free digital music.

Napster Online Music

iTunes Now #1 Music Retailer?

Apple's iTunes Store surpassed WalMart as the No. 1 music retailer in the U.S. this January 2008, according to the NPD MusicWatch Survey via ArsTechnica.  While this is an astounding feat, Apple has already announced that they were the number 2 retailer in February 2008 so it was a temporary rise.  Still a very quick rise to number 2 (or number 1) for iTunes which only started selling online music back in April 2003.

From the ArsTechinca article:

"The fact that a digital-only retailer has ascended to the top of the sales charts is not unexpected, but it does demonstrate just how much the music landscape has changed since the beginning of the decade. The NPD Group has been tracking a "sharp increase" in digital downloads over the past several months as physical sales dry up. According to NPD's research, 48 percent of US teens didn't buy a single CD in 2007, compared to 38 percent in 2006."

While iTunes may have passed the competition in the past month, its likely that this is a temporary thing related to Christmas sales and such.  Its only a matter of time though as the trend for online, digital music sales is a sharp arrow in the upward direction.

Read more at Ars Technica

 

UPDATE:

Apple put out a press release later today saying the following:

"*Based on data from market research firm the NPD Group’s MusicWatch survey that captures consumer reported past week unit purchases and counts one CD representing 12 tracks, excluding wireless transactions. The iTunes Store became the largest music retailer in the US based on the amount of music sold during January and February 2008."

I think this means that iTunes was #1 in the months of January and February, but their earlier statement of being #2 in February was based on a full years data.

MP3Tag Gets Update

Mp3Tag, my favorite MP3 tagging application released an update to version 2.4 this past Friday.  This latest update brings the following

• A completely redesigned tag sources dialog
• New action types (for exporting and importing)
• Loading and saving of column configurations and selection state of action groups
• Improved support for Vista
• Improved support for iTunes
• Many more changes and bug fixes listed at their website

I've talked about Mp3Tag before including last week when I showed how to use Mp3Tag to automatically embed album art to your MP3 collection and last year with my how-to-use Mp3Tag post.

 

Read more and download Mp3Tag.

Hymn Project Website Gets Cease and Desist Note from Apple

If you've ever used the myFairTunes or QTFairTunes programs to strip DRM from Apple's FairPlay DRM or Windows Media DRM, then you're probably familiar with the Hymn Project Web site.  This past week, the site received a cease and desist letter demanding that all downloads be removed from the site.  From the website forum:

Until further notice, no links are to be posted anywhere on the site to programs that can strip DRM from any of Apple's music or videos. Any user who does so will get the link removed and a warning from us. Any further infraction will get you banned permanently. The site will remain open for now and we won't have a problem as long as we abide by the C&D.

The tools used to remove DRM from iTunes-purchased songs were used by many people so they could use those songs on unsupported players, mobile phones and other non-Apple devices.  One of the sites administrators speculates that the reason Apple made this move after so much time (these software programs have been available and updated regularly on the site) was possibly related to a new program being developed by them called Requiem that used decryption instead of copying the unprotected music from memory while it is being played like the other programs, that Apple took the step of legal action.  The forum post goes on:

Apparently with requiem the balance has been broken in Apple's eyes. This is really a shame...for them. Because I can no longer remove the DRM from songs I purchase legally from iTunes, I am boycotting the iTunes store and purchasing all my future music from vendors who no longer shackle their music with the chains of DRM. I suggest you do the same. We've complied with the C&D and removed all DRM breaking software from the site. But they can't force us to purchase DRM'd music from their store. I've been a long time fan of Apple and iTunes. But this latest move just plain pisses me off. So, I can no longer support them.

I'm going to guess there will be others to fill this void.  Matter of fact there already is one option that was released last week called DoubleTwist created by DVD Jon.

Automatically Embed Album Art to Large MP3 Collection

If you are like me you have a large collection of MP3 music files on your hard drive.  Some of my MP3's were converted from places like iTunes and Amazon, while others were ripped from my CD collection and others came from all over the place.  Well the end result is a pile of MP3's where some have album art but many others do not. 

At home I use SageTV's HTPC program and on the road I use an iPod to listen to music and it's helpful to have album art embedded into the file itself instead of having a separate photo file for the album art.  When you have a large collection, this can be very tedious if you do it one-by-one.  My solution is to make this process as automatic as possible using MP3Tag.

When you embed album art into the file itself it's easier to move the mp3 file and

If you have a large MP3 collection that you want to transfer to the PS3, you'd want to have album art for each track since the PS3 can only sort one level deep for any media.  If you embed album art into your media *before* transferring to the PS3, you can then group your collection by Artist and consequently view all albums by that artist with pictures for each track showing which album it belongs to.  Its the only decent way to currently use music in the XMB until sony gets its act together and allows folder structures on the native PS3 harddrive (as well as supporting folder.jpg type album art on import).

Here's how you can *automatically* update your MP3 collection with album art.

Note: you must already have album art for each album in your collection.  You might have a "folder.jpg" in each albums folder that you downloaded yourself or if you use something like Microsoft's Media Player, you might have automatically downloaded album art in each folder named something like: "AlbumArt_{0C2xxxx}_Large.jpg", etc.  If you relied on Microsoft Media Player to get your album art, the files it downloaded are probably hidden so you'll want to show hidden files from within explorer to make sure the art exists for each album (click: Tools menu, Folder Options, View tab, Show hidden files/folders from explorer to unhide).  Whatever your album art type, you just need to know the file names stored in each album folder for the art.

Download the free MP3Tag from http://www.mp3tag.de/en/.

• Install and run MP3Tag.
• Select the directory with your digital music files (File-Change Directory) and select the folder with your music.
• MP3Tag will then load all of your music files.
• Select the first song in the media list on the right, then press CTRL-A to select all of your music files.
• Now press SHIFT-ALT-5 to get the "Select Action Type" dialog.
• Choose "Import Cover From File" in the drop-down list, then press OK.
• In the "Format string for image filename" field, type your album art filename here.  (e.g. folder.jpg, cover.jpg or Name.jpg etc)
• If you want to replace existing cover art already embedded in one or more of your MP3 ID3 tags click the "delete existing cover art" option.
• Click OK and let MP3Tag import your cover art for every one of your MP3 files.

Keep in mind that when you embed the cover art into your music file, the size of your music file grows by the size of that cover image.

Once you've finished this, you can delete any of the individual photo files and just leave the mp3 files with the cover art embedded.  To learn more about what MP3Tag can do to help you organize your music files check out this post from last year.

Music Industry Collapse Part 2 - Madonna

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that pop diva Madonna is close to leaving her record company contract (after one more album due to Warner Music) for a $120 million deal with concert-promotion giant Live Nation Inc.

 

 

The 10-year contract with Live Nation, gives Madonna money & stock for the rights to sell 3 albums, promote concert tours, sell merchandise and license her name.  This would be yet another major chunk of armor removed from the formerly formidable music industry.  As I mentioned earlier this week, the middleman is quickly being removed from the equation.  Other examples of major music artists going it alone without a record contract include Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Oasis, Jamiroquai and the Charlatans.

Read the full, original article at WSJ

 

Other Music-Related Stories:

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The Music Industry Hasn't Died, It's Just Eliminating the Middle Man

The TimesOnline had an article in the Sunday Times titled "The Day The Music Industry Died" that along with several  similar articles has hit the Internet by storm.  The article proclaims that the music industry is practically finished based on major bands Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails making drastic moves to "go-it-alone" from the music labels.  These two bands will now control their own destiny and really their own business.  These bands really are the beginning of the new music industry!

 

TOMORROW RADIOHEAD WILL SELL THEIR OWN MUSIC AND LET FANS NAME THEIR PRICE

What's the big deal?  Well the popular band Radiohead let their "record" contract expire and is letting the fans decide how much they want to pay the band for their music.  Beginning tomorrow, you can download their songs right from Radiohead's website

and name your price for the songs.  Here's a screen-shot from their website:

No Record company to do the marketing, packaging, or contract with Apple or Amazon, RIAA or DRM wrapper - just the music. 

MORE MUSIC ARTISTS MAKING SIMILAR MOVES AWAY FROM MUSIC LABELS

If you think this is just a one-band stunt, lets discuss the latest music artists making similar moves away from the old music industry guard:

Nine Inch Nails.  Just yesterday, Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails put this up on their site:

Hello everyone. I've waited a LONG time to be able to make the
following announcement: as of right now Nine Inch Nails is a totally
free agent, free of any recording contract with any label. I have
been under recording contracts for 18 years and have watched the
business radically mutate from one thing to something inherently very
different and it gives me great pleasure to be able to finally have a
direct relationship with the audience as I see fit and appropriate.
Look for some announcements in the near future regarding 2008.
Exciting times, indeed.

Both Oasis and Jamiroquai, two other very popular bands currently without a record contract are rumored to be considering moves similar to Radiohead's.

The Charlatans are giving away free downloads of their new album and single if you visit the radio station of XFM.

Prince gave away CD's of his new album with every delivery of The Mail on Sunday newspaper in the UK earlier this year.

It's only a matter of time (not much time) before every music artist realizes how irrelevant the current music industry has become.  Once famous, music artists don't need a contract.  Instead, they can make their own deals with Apple and Amazon.  They can sell their music on their own sites or even give away music as loss leaders for concerts, fan paraphernalia, extras etc. 

What about new artists trying to break through and be discovered?  They don't need a major music company contract.  They need Internet exposure and once they get traction they'll be on their way to selling music and concerts.  It will likely make the biggest bands have to work a little harder to stay on top because they will earn what they keep.  But it will also make it a little easier for a newer up-and-coming artist to break through and be noticed.  I dare say it might even improve the talent pool and hopefully the music that plays on the radio and television.

It's difficult to mention the major earthquake in the music industry going on right now without noticing the RIAA's misguided legal escapades.  The RIAA has been going on a lawsuit spree to sue individuals for damages.  In doing so, they have put the worst possible face on the music industry and instead of discouraging music sharing, instead created a disdain for the very industry they sought to protect.  Now, the music industry will discover they are fighting for their livelihood to even keep the artists they supposedly were trying to protect and whom they were profiting from to stay in long-term music contracts that all of the sudden don't look so attractive to the music makers any more.

 

Related Stories:

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How to Find Songs From Commercials, Movies and TV Shows

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Search Nearby Libraries for Materials With One Simple Search - WorldCat

My local library has an online site where I can search for books, CD's, DVD's etc.  It's a decent way of finding materials, but sometimes they don't have what I'm looking for.  So then I have to go to another library's site (there are more then one library networks in my City) and search on their site.  To make matters worse, on both of those sites, I'm required to have a membership to search.  What I want is one place to search for any type of library materials that will tell me which library's have that book (or whatever content) ranked by how close they are to me.  Enter WorldCat.

WorldCat is a publicly accessible, online web search that delves into the holdings of all types of libraries throughout the world.  It includes over 57,000 libraries in 112 countries!  Tell it what book, magazine, journal, video etc. you're looking for along with your zip code or city, and lists the nearest library's that have the book.   A nonprofit organization called the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) created the database and site.

What other things can WorldCat do?  It also includes services such as citation exporting, list making, & text samples. You can even use it to create a private or public index of titles.  Also has the ability to search public lists created by others.  There's a place to read & write reviews of materials right in their catalog.  Also included are Amazon & Worldcat purchase links if you just want to purchase the book or other media you were searching for.

HOW IT WORKS:

First, head over to worldcat.org and type in a search term.  If you don't specify your zip code, it will go based on your internet service's zip.

Next, you'll see a list of results for your search.  In this case I searched for Harry Potter so it will bring up all of the different Harry Potter books, audiotapes, DVD's etc.

Next after you select one of the books etc, you'll see a list of results ranked in order of the closest libraries.  All types of libraries are included such as local community libraries, university libraries etc.)

At the top of the results page, you can see there are many different things you can do from here including further searches by category, purchase from Amazon.com, add it to your personal favorite list, review the item, view other peoples notes/reviews on the item etc.

Bottom line, WorldCat is a great service that I'll be bookmarking for future reference.

Check it out at WorldCat.org

 

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