Needs tips for organsing a music library with the help of Winamp
 

I have 1900 items. Some hide, Some Stick out.

I know most people have Over 9000 items in there libraries some here probably have 20,000.
And that seems normal (Good thing Winamp can handle that load)

So give all tips into organising and perfecting a Library.
It can be making modifications to Winamp.
Or outside, Just give tips.

Thanks.

Descriptive Metadata

Ensure all files added to the media library have as much metadata as possible. The <Alt+3> File Info editor can be used to populate tags for file formats that support tags. The <Shift+E> Edit Item Metadata editor can be used to add metadata to the records of files whose formats don't support tags.

Correct and comprehensive metadata is the key to having the media library be able to sort and present your media in many various ways (with default and customized smartviews and powerful customized search queries).

Could you recommend a setup for SmartViews?

Well it depends on what you want to see.

All the library views listed under Local Library are smartviews. You could use modified versions of them (right click and select edit to make changes, then save the modified view with a new name), or add views to show all files from a certain decade, and/or all files with a particular genre, etc.

Chose the advanced mode of the Edit Smart View dialog and read thru the query language documentation for examples and info on the available parameters and operators you can use.

Mix and match, experiment, have fun thinking up various ways to present your media that would be useful to you.

OK Thank you!
 

I will keep this in mind when making my Smart Views

I would recommend a one album per folder structure, and use only id3v2.3 tags.

http://forums.winamp.com/showthread.php?t=345521

I go into other details here:

http://forums.winamp.com/showthread.php?t=350643

http://forums.winamp.com/showthread.php?t=373555

The file storage scheme is very important if you use external image files for album cover art (and/or you use file formats that don't support tags). If you use formats that support tags, then you can embed artwork in each file and the storage scheme doesn't matter as much (if you use Winamp to find and present your media). If you look for stuff manually, then a consistent logical storage scheme is helpful.

The ID3 tagging scheme is used by the mp3 and wavepack formats (version 2.3 is most common, but 2.4 is coming on). The vorbis tagging scheme is used by the flac format. Winamp is able to read and write both of these tagging schemes and a few others. The important thing is to use whatever scheme correctly.

not accurate. depending on your folder structure, you can create smartviews based on it, so you can create some very dynamic results sets that are not possible just with tags.

for instance, I use broad genres in the folder structure, which means a file can be found under two distinct genres via one query. I also use folder structure to delineate lossy from lossless, the person or source of the files origins, newly ripped from vetted files, etc... and smartviews allow me to really get a lot out of categorization, dynamically, that I could not get out of tagging alone.

2.4 is not coming on, it died; its like v1 tags, supported only reluctantly and half heartedly, and not anything close to universally or fully. in fact, v1 tags are much better supported than 2.4, but 2.3 is far and away the king.

What part of what I said about file storage schemes, as they related to artwork and manual searching, is not accurate?

As to ID3v2.4, I'm seeing more mp3s I download using it than less.

did you bother to read what I wrote?

the whole thrust of what u said here:

...is that folder structure is only important if using external images if you can otherwise tag your files; and that is not accurate, and I explained why above. you can reread it.

folder structure is important to smartviews, manual searches in winamp (not just windows explorer), and so on.

which is meaningless. if everything you downloaded was mp3pro, would that mean mp3pro is all that's out there?

winamp is not 2.4 compliant, and most apps aren't, and importantly windows does not recognize them at all. 2.4 has its uses in certain situations where the person using them has a well defined reason to do so, but that does not apply to the casual user seeking advice about how to organize their collection.

I did not say "that folder structure is only important if using external images".

But you always try to restate what I actually say. So be it.

The OP can decide for himself what's meaningless based on his experiences. Winamp will read ID3v2.4, but it writes ID3v1.1 and 2.3.

you know, you're a funny guy. on reflection, I guess I'm just missing the joke of your posts.

so... that being the case, since he's using winamp, no rational person would advise him to use 2.4 tags.

right, you only strongly implied it.

yeah, what leaps I took! what broad license!

go on, explain what you really meant then? explain how it's wrong of me to say what you said is not accurate?

my point, which is correct, is that folder structure is important EVEN IF you embed art and EVEN IF you fully tag files, for lots of obvious reasons. that's what I was correcting about your post, that's what was not accurate in your post, b/c as even stevie wonder can see, you were saying the opposite. when you say its "very important if you use external files" and then go on to say "but it doesn't matter as much [if you embed]" then I can state that is not accurate, and u should appreciate the correction. the whole premise is wrong just on its face, as you revolve the whole decision as being based on art handling mostly, and tagging to some extent, and that simply is not true in either case, and I explained why.

My Folder Structure is only very simple.
In E:/Music for albums it is
Artist - Album

For Singles there not in sub-folders and are titled
Artist - Song

Then If music is based of MLP for example there will be a:
MLP Music folder

you should do whatever works for you, :up:

I am just letting you know that folder structure CAN be useful and important beyond just art implications, even if you fully tag files.

I do however highly suggest you do something like this, which I think is what you are saying you do do already:

..\music\artist\album\song.mp3

and

..\music\artist\singles\songs.mp3

I hope we have not confused you. I'm sure we're both happy to help should you have any questions.

ps. what is MLP?

@Satuim,

I'm glad you are finding Winamp fun to use. As you have seen, there are several people willing to try to help with specific questions.

What makes Winamp so appealing for me is that there are usually many ways to accomplish things. But some things are either not possible or very complicated to do.

As to file storage schemes, some people are comfortable with dumping everything in 1 folder. I don't do this or recommend it. Since I only use formats that support tagging and embed artwork in all the files I put in my library, I'm able to use a simple scheme that does not require a sub-folder for every album. I fully realize that what I do may not be appealing for someone else.


@MrSinatra,

My simple comment, that you chose to pick apart, says what I meant to say. It stands on it's own and is accurate for what it says. If you want to read between the lines, I can't stop you. If you want to add additional points related to file storage schemes (or anything else) that is fine by me.

It would take a very large book to go into all the ways Winamp can be used and the pros and cons.

You are the only one always encouraging 1 right and proper way of doing things (which just happens to be the way you do things). It is unfortunate that you can't express your pov without attacking someone else's. It has become funny and somewhat entertaining for me to watch how you go about it. I don't think I'm saying things that are not rational, but that's only my opinion. If I'm crazy, then it's highly likely I'll say crazy things. :)

I don't think there's anything funny about misleading others who are seeking advice, but if you do, good for you. I otoh will let people know the situation accurately.

and I don't say my way is the only right way, I simply explain why I prefer my way, and I do so without misleading others.

MrSinatra, your posts speak for themselves. I've read a lot of them over the last 4 years. My opinion of your style of helping others and how you express your pov stands. I know I'm not the only one who feels this way.

I noticed that you did not object to me saying that you think your way is the only proper way. I know you will continue to attack me and try to misrepresent what I say. You can't help it and that is sad because it's not necessary. If you disagree or have other things to add, fine you can just say so or add them. You don't need to try to twist what I say.

You have accused me of a lot of things over the years and now you say I'm misleading others. It's too bad you feel that way, since I will not stop doing what I do. I only try to present facts, observations, and opinions that I think are appropriate to the circumstances. I know I get some facts wrong from time to time, but it is never intentional and no one is right 100% of the time. I may leave out things that others think are important and that is also normal. I'm sure that all concerned appreciate that you are here to set things straight.

I never said it was intentional. go back and read the posts. I said what you said was not accurate and explained why. you on the other hand can not stand to be corrected, you take great exception to it in fact, which is a rather juvenile way to behave. and that has been demonstrated many, many times, from this thread to not giving steps to reproduce bugs even after it being requested, which would have solved the issue MONTHS earlier, drag threads off topic with inane, pointless, and trolling comments, to any number of other things.

as to not objecting to what you said, I thought I had? but if you need it more direct you'll have to go without, as correcting you would be a full time job; and just so the record is straight, you are the only one to make personal attacks, engage in name calling, and so on, I have never done that to you.

I disagree with your opinion that what I said was not accurate. It could be expanded on, even beyond what you added. I object to my words being taken out of context and twisted to fit your misinterpretations.

That is not a personal attack?

This could go on forever, but I'm done. I don't want to get banned.

no, its not a personal attack. a personal attack is not simply being critical of someone else. that is frequently called for, accurate, and constructive.

here is the commonly accepted definition, (note, not authored by me), of a personal attack, for your edification:

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/personal_attack

I made no ad hominem attacks on you or your person, (as you have on me), and I always provide evidence to back my assertions, as I have in this thread. I have only called the reliability and accuracy of your assertions and opinions into question, and called them frequently dubious or flat out erroneous, and that is fair game regardless of whether or not it offends your delicate sensibilities, which you just admitted to having in the other thread.

I really don't care who said what or who is right or not (which is both of you and neither of you two), but the ping pong of posts is not needed, not helpful and detracts from the original need of this thread.

I'm all for open discussion but you're just both antagonising each other of late (in this and other threads) and its getting tiresome (and is a pain go scroll through on the phone all the time :) ). so agree to disagree or something that you can both deal with, but can we please just move on now...

np DrO. if the OP has any further questions, like I said earlier in the thread I'm sure either of us would be glad to help. I don't doubt our good intentions, however poorly expressed.

That was the old way iTunes did my Library up...
I didn't like it very much too much double-clicking.
The advantage with my current method is that I can be in an album very fast.

I could adapt a system like yours but what is the advantage with Smart Views?

And MLP is short for My Little Pony :p



Thanks to both of you though!

b/c with a smartview, you can use folder location as a criteria for the views. you can include them or exclude them, or use terms in the paths for results sets, etc...

for instance, when I rip a new CD, I do it to an area separate from all my other music. I have a smartview just for that location, so I can make sure it has all the right tags and so on before I include it in / move it to my main collection.

in my usage, artist folders are really "album artist" based. and I make more refinements beyond just that. my tags are more detailed, so my storage choices are mainly for organizational purposes, although most of my smartviews are based on folder location, (mainly for showing me different sources/the people who I might have gotten music from)

again, you should do what works for you, but you don't want to have too many files in one folder. I have 75k files w/ext artwork, so not having a sensible storage paradigm would be a nightmare for me.

Another important note:
When I imported Podcasts and ticked the 'Is a Podcast' Option.
I made a Smart View for podcasts but they still appeared in my Music Smartview.

Is there a way to fix this?

if you don't want them in other views, you'll need to amend the smartview query to ignore podcasts (since it's just a flag you're setting associated with the library entry, it doesn't automatically exclude it from other views).

I tried to exclude them. But it didn't work for me.

Could you give me a screenshot/instructions?

excluding them from other views is one way to do it.

however, I would use folder location to do it.

C:\music\ for music smartviews
C:\podcasts\ for pods

that way you only have to say what to include, not what to exclude.

I have already made separate directories for my pods and music.
I might have a try at this later