CNET Insider Secrets has posted a video on how to create an iPhone ringtone using only iTunes. This is a very simple trick and I’ll go through it step by step. 

For this trick to work, you will need iTunes 8, and any DRM-free Mp3 or AAC track. This includes “iTunes Plus” songs purchased from the iTunes store, the ones ripped from your CDs, or even those purchased from the Amazon music service. 

Right click on the song in iTunes and select “Get Info”. In the Options tab, enter the start time, and put the end time 40 seconds (or less) after the start time. For instance, in the example track, I have set the start time to 0:00, and the end time at 0:30. Anything more than 40 seconds and it will not work. Click OK. Continue Reading »

Someone over at Techradar has posted a piece [link] on how iTunes has become a bloated piece of crap, and offered beautiful suggestions on how Apple could change iTunes. From what it looks like however, the author is either a Windows user or has just switched over. Let’s go over the points he makes. 

1. Clean up the interface
What’s wrong with the iTunes interface? The author clearly wants only the list view, and if that’s the case, use the list view! No one is forcing anyone to use the Grid view or Coverflow. Both may be gimicky, but they work just fine for the rest of us.

I will however say that the Grid view does bring an inconsistent UI into the application, which Apple seems to be just testing out. In the next version a cleanup of the grid view would be appreciated.

2. Bar the Genius
Okay hold of a minute. The main feature of genius is playlist generation, and one that works fine. The tracks that are recommended are not necessarily those available in the store as it uses user data to generate playlists. Apple is not making any money out of Genius playlist feature. The Genius feature is also a fantastic addition for the iPhone/iPod and is something I use on a daily basis.

The Genius Sidebar on the other hand is just the rebranded mini-store and can be left out of this discussion.

3. Better file handling
While we would all like to play our pirated content in iTunes, Apple is not going to let that happen because of the record deals. So hopes of iTunes being able to play x264 and all that jazz isn’t going to get them to allow that media. Deal with it.

The author then wants iTunes to seamlessly convert video files as and when needed while syncing an iPod or iPhone instead of you having to manually convert those files (resulting in two of the same on your hard drive). This is insane! A single 200MB video file takes 15 minutes to convert! Imagine the hue and cry that will follow when people find their iPhone takes six days to sync up!

For those confused, to convert a video file (say a HD quicktime video) to iPhone format, just right-click and select “Convert for iPhone”. This creates a new file in your library leaving the original one as it is. 

4. Better handling of Multiple libraries
This is absolutely rubbish. Most users are content with a single library. And for those who want a second one, hold down the option key at startup! How much simpler can it get? The author is also aware that there are plugins for this purpose at dough’s scripts. Since this is a more advanced feature, script hunting is fair game. 

5. Better file tracking
In all my years of using iTunes with the “manage my music folder” checked, I have never faced a problem of file tracking. This is only two Windows geeks who prefer to manage their music in custom folders and then end up crying about it on the web.

And, on the Mac there’s no such thing as losing a file. iTunes will keep a track of your file if you move it or even change its name. Unfortunately, Windows is a little backward in technology hence there is no way to do this. 

6. Better database handling
Why do we have to care? iTunes is always running on my Mac, and it hardly uses 200MB to do the same. Even the startup, with my 8000 song library is very fast. I wouldn’t care if iTunes used a MS Word document as a database.

7. Better codec support
The author suggests iTunes should support WMV. Nuff said.

8. Multi-room support
The Airport Express, AppleTV and iPhone are more than capable tools at extending your iTunes library outside of the computer den.  

9. Cheaper iTunes Store
How does this apply to iTunes? In any case, 256kbps tracks are more than enough for anyone who listens to music. Simply making uninterested users download heavy CD-quality tracks does not make good sense. And at $1 per song, Apple has proven that it is a very good business model. Case to point: 5 billion songs sold already.

10. iTunes Pro
This I will partially agree with. Just as iPhoto has Aperture, and iMovie has Final Cut, iTunes should have a pro version. Something that is totally detatched from the free version of iTunes (no ads for the pro version please!), that has a lot of powerful features and expandability for those who want a little more than the basic version. This will of course never happen as there is no way Steve Jobs will allow a pro version of iTunes to be released.  

So what does Apple need to change then?
For one, it needs to improve the code. Snow Leopard is going through the shredder, and so should iTunes. Especially the Windows version (have you used iTunes on Windows lately?). Making iTunes blazing fast, optimised from the ground up, will make this application the more preferred music player on Windows, as it is on the Mac. 

I’d also like to see some improvements in the interface of the iTunes store. Tabbed browsing would be nice, wish lists, and a more responsive search (Store > Search…) feature. 

Any gripes with iTunes? Share them in the comments.

Apple has, in rapid succession, dropped 3 updates through the night. iTunes gets bumped to 8.0.1, the MobileMe control panel for Windows jumps to 1.2, and then there’s the AppleTV 2.2 update.

iTunes 8
As expected iTunes 8.0.1 arrives close to a month after the initial release. And it fixes a whole bunch of stuff. For one, the seed song will continue playing seamlessly on hitting the Genius button, much like it does on the iPod. Second, the issue about iTunes automatically deleting HD TV shows has been fixed. And third, the iPhone app update issues have been solved. It also fixes some voice accesibility and syncing issues with the new iPod and fixes some problems with updating Genius.

iTunes still hasn’t solved its high memory consumption issues, but I guess Moore’s law has taken care of that for now. Updated for Mac and Windows, I highly recommend it, even at it’s 52MB file size.

MobileMe
An update for the Windows control panel, MobileMe adds support for syncing more than the previous 2,000 contacts, and “prevents syncing of data between Microsoft Exchange Server and MobileMe, a configuration that is not supported.”

MobileMe 1.2 update will also allow you to manage your iDisk in the Windows control panel. The 1.6MB update requires iTunes 8.0.1 to operate.

AppleTV
Thanks to TUAW, we also know that AppleTV has been updated to 2.2! You know what this means. The AppleTV now has the Genius feature. Holding down the play/pause button during playback will bring up the Genius menu, much like the iPod Nano.

(Screenshot courtesy TUAW)

AppleTV also allows buying of HD TV shows directly from the interface. Apart from this it also brings in some security and bug fixes. The update can be downloaded from the settings menu.

With the advent of iTunes 8, you must’ve noticed that the new Grid view has effectively replaced the Album view. Well, Apple has cleverly incorporated the Album view into the UI, but it might go unnoticed so we’re here to point it out in bold.

Although iTunes 8 doesn’t list Album View as one of the main viewing modes, you can turn it on by any one of the following two ways:

Via List View

Hit the small arrow at the extreme left (see the screenshot). Clicking it again will bring it to List View.

Via Grid View

Double clicking any tile in the Grid View will bring up the Album View. Once you’re in, you can navigate to other Albums with the left and right arrow at the top extreme right. Revert back to Grid view by clicking All Albums/Artists (numbered 1 in screenshot). You can also go to the List View by clicking the small arrow (numbered 2 in screenshot).

All you Album view gypsies (yes, I have no idea what that means), it’s time to rock with iTunes 8. If you’ve any iTunes query or want to share a tip or two, sound off in the comments.

Oh, so soon? After hearing about Apple incorporating preventive measures into iTunes 8, I was a bit worried that the iPhone Dev-Team would take some time before they came up with a smooth and safe PwnageTool for my iPhone. But they did it, and in record time. Just a day after the iPhone 2.1 software was released (5 days after iPod touch 2.1 was released), the iPhone Dev-Team got their show on the road with PwnageTool 2.1, and QuickPwn 1.1.

The ‘pwn’ goes around iTunes 8’s protection, without hacking or patching a single core file of iTunes or Mac OS X. The tool will unlock and jailbreak first generation iPhones. iPhone 3G will only be jailbroken, as will the first generation iPod Touch. This tool is not tested on the iPod Touch 2G, as the developers claim they don’t have any to test it on! Too bad they don’t accept any donations. 

If you are confused about the differences between PwnageTool and QuickPwn, let me put it in simple words. QuickPwn lets you pwn your iPhone after you have officially updated with iTunes. On the other hand, PwnageTool will create a custom firmware which you then use to update your iPhone. Both tools will achieve the same end result, but with PwnageTool you have more control as to what packages you want to install, whether you want a custom boot logo or not, etc. QuickPwn, on the other hand, is much quicker. Both tools are very easy to use. 

This time round the team has decided to go the BitTorrent route to reduce the server loads, especially during the initial stages. If you are wary of BitTorrent technology, they also have direct download mirrors listed by third party hosts. The whole thing feels like it’s a community event! If you are having trouble with downloading the 2.1 update via iTunes, iClarified lists official download links so you can get it using your preferred download manager. 

The tool is currently only available for Mac OS X, but a Windows version should be out soon. 

Go pwn that iPhone!

[Ed note: If you already have a successfully ‘pwned’ iPhone running on older firmware, all you need to do is hit the Update button in iTunes to update to v2.1. It will update your iPhone without locking it back to AT&T, just as if it were legitimately running on AT&T’s network. That’s what I did today and had no problems at all.]

iTunes 8 was launched during Apple’s special music event yesterday. I was very excited to try it out and downloaded it the first thing this morning. Here are my initial Impressions and review of the new features in iTunes 8.

The biggest feature touted at the keynote is Genius Playlists. The idea is that iTunes will automatically generate playlists, based on the current song, with other songs that ‘go well together’. iTunes will initially index all your music and send it back to Apple’s servers where a database based on your playlists, play counts, likes, and dislikes will be built. It then matches this with other users’ databases and brings back all that genius information, updating it from time to time. You need to have an iTunes Store account to use the Genius features (one more reason to have an iTS account). All this is well and good in theory, but how does it perform in the real world? Continue Reading »

iTunes 8 debuted today with some exciting new features with a new ‘genius algorithm’ to make you spend waste more money. With a visual refresh, as well as a new grid view, iTunes 8 might just be the worthy upgrade we were looking for.

Without further ado, let’s look into the new features announced in the “Let’s Rock” Keynote.

What’s New in iTunes 8?

Genius Playlists
You can automatically make playlists from songs in your music library that ‘go great together’, at the click of a button. A genius sidebar makes recommendations from the iTunes Store that might match the Genius playlist. As people add more and more info, Genius will gets smarter and smarter. This helps you to rediscover music in your library.

Grid View: Browsing by Album Cover
You can now have album browsing just like iPhoto’s skimming feature. You can switch by album, artist, genre or composer, each of which shows you all your albums on a dark backdrop. Movies, TV Shows, Audiobooks and Podcasts also support the Grid view, with TV shows displaying how many unwatched episodes remain.

HD TV Shows
After more than a year of bickering, NBC is back in the iTunes Store. Bringing with it the popular shows like Office and Heroes along with the rest of their content. Along with the same $1.99 for SD content, we now have TV shows in HD as well, setting you back by $2.99 per episode! Get ready for Heroes (and Hayden Panettiere) in HD.

Brand new Visualisation
Going along with the rumours, iTunes 8 brings along with it a new visualisation, which involves a 3D space like platform with planets and dazzling lights. It sure looks cool!

iTunes 8 is available for download at the Apple website as a free download for Mac and PC users. What are we waiting for then?

As ‘predicted’ by Kevin Rose and Gizmodo, many of the rumours and predictions came true. All said and done, are you excited by this release?