iTunes: from old XP to new Vista?

[Bob Carruth]

I'm helping my daughter-in-law transfer files from her old Compaq XP desktop to a new Dell Inspiron 1545 laptop running Vista Home Premium. I'm OK with everything but iTunes which I've never worked with.

I've found the iTunes folder under My Music and the original download of the iTunes app. The current version of iTunes is 7.2.5.20.

She has never purchased any music but has converted most of her music CDs and has them well organized in iTunes. Her Ipod is currently synced and running fine.

Should I install her original app on the laptop or get the latest version and install that?

Do I copy the iTunes folder from My Music to Music? Will the data base links still work since it is my understanding that it uses fully qualified paths?

Have I even asked the right questions?

Any comments, directions and suggestions will be greatly appreciated. I'll try to get any needed information that I have not included.

[awaj]

I never used itunes, nor will I probably ever use itunes. I believe you should be fine with the current version, and it should just be transfering the songs over from the itunes folder. someone else might want to verify that. In theory, you should just beable to pull the songs off the ipod. if the ipod is large enough, it should only take one sync (probably more then 8 gigs...)

How many CDs?

[Paul Komski]

How-To: Backup your Windows iTunes library (http://uneasysilence.com/how-to-backup-your-windows-itunes/)

I don't think pulling the songs of an iPod works that way. I believe it has to be re-synchronised from scratch since transferring directly from an iPod would make file sharing much too easy.

[classicsoftware]

This is why I hate Apple. This will be a torture to get the play lists to transfer easily. The songs are a piece of cake. It's a simple copy process. The trouble is the play lists are not stored with the data files. They are stored somewhere in I Tunes. Good luck. Lot's of scotch or Valium usually required....

[jlreich]

Lot's of scotch or Valium usually required....
Well that's not so bad. :p :D

[Bob Carruth]

Thanks, everyone.

I'll pass on the Scotch and Valium but it is definitely a 3 Martini job.

I finally found this thread:

http://forums.ilounge.com/archive/index.php/t-203400.html

To cut to the chase it includes this set of instructions which has worked for others:

- Copy your entire iTunes folder to external storage.
- Copy those files to your "Music" folder on your Vista system. The end result should be that you have "Documents\Music\iTunes" on Vista, where you had "My Documents\My Music\iTunes" on XP
- Put a fresh install of iTunes on the system.
- When you run iTunes for the first time, hold down the Shift key. If it asks you to select a library file, pick the one you just transferred over. It didn't ask me, presumably because I only had one sitting there.
- The end result for me was that my library, including all ratings, play counts and play lists, was sitting on the new system.

I ran out of time today. It took Over 3 hours to copy 4.5 GB to a USB flash drive on the seriously ill Compaq. Good news was that it took less than 7 minutes to load on the Inspiron.

Tomorrow or the next day I'll try the above and report back either way

[awaj]

wait, if all is good and it is properly on the system, what's left to try? the scotch and Valium?

[Bob Carruth]

wait, if all is good and it is properly on the system, what's left to try?

I got the data on to the system but have yet to install iTunes and get it to decipher the iTunes Library data base's full XP paths to Vista's new folder names.

The other complication that I didn't mention is that this is the first Vista machine I've ever seen much less worked with. I'm reserving judgment but so far it is the most radical set of changes I've come across since going from 3.1 to 95. Unless something disastrous happens I'll keep my own XP machines running as long as I can.

Martini time!! :)

[awaj]

the only big thing that has changed is the looks. (there's other big changes, but if you don't dive too deep into the OS, you probably won't notice them.) You can still find CMD, and the Run option is built into the start bar (kind of)

[classicsoftware]

I got the data on to the system but have yet to install iTunes and get it to decipher the iTunes Library data base's full XP paths to Vista's new folder names.

The other complication that I didn't mention is that this is the first Vista machine I've ever seen much less worked with. I'm reserving judgment but so far it is the most radical set of changes I've come across since going from 3.1 to 95. Unless something disastrous happens I'll keep my own XP machines running as long as I can.

Martini time!! :)

Just stay with it. Vista has some really cool features.....

[Paul Komski]

Well you won't find me agreeing either that the only big thing that has changed is its looks or that it should be persisted with. It is tolerable post SP1 on modern and adequate hardware and has some aficionados. You will glean that I detest its inception. It will be dropped like a hot potato as soon as 7 comes out - in like manner to the lifetime of WinME - I have no doubt at all. It would have never made it this far if it hadn't been for the hold that MS has over the OEMs. Just ask businesses why they have been so reluctant to adopt it.

On a very practical level (leaving aside any of its bloated glitz) are the "architectural changes" to the way partitions and the boot process have been radically altered from all other legacy Windows. Another lack of backward compatibility (as has been discovered here in reinstating the iTunes library) is the way the Windows folders and the folder hierarchy have been restructured and renamed. And then there's the infuriating way that UAC was developed and the way that huge chunks of space get eaten up with system restore and backup features. Such space gobbling is bad enough but it is so non-transparent that it takes a lot of digging to find out how to get it back. Etc.

[Bob Carruth]

It will be dropped like a hot potato as soon as 7 comes out.

I'm not going to dig very deep since I'll have to start all over with the free upgrade to 7 included by Dell. Just want to get it running and JUNK that old Compaq.

One thing that surprised me is that my 2003 Dell 8300 XP easily beat the Inspiron by at least a full minute copying the same flash drive data (one can't have too many backups :) ).

[Bob Carruth]

Finally got to try the instructions outlined above. Just in case anyone finds this thread the bottom line is that it worked perfectly.

I installed the latest version of iTunes from http://www.apple.com/itunes and started it while holding down the shift key and we were in business.

Thanks again all.

[awaj]

glad to hear things worked out (I'm still never going to get an iPod or iTunes...)

[Bob Carruth]

glad to hear things worked out (I'm still never going to get an iPod or iTunes...)

You and me both! :D

I suppose, though, if one has a very large computer based music collection iTunes is one way to keep it organized and relatively easy to find a particular tune. Personally I'd rather use my CD player and home theater sound system. Actually I wish I had kept my turntable and could still play vinyl. Still sounds better to my old ears.

Have to admit that I do use Photoshop Elements Organizer to catalog and access my 9500+ photographs. Sort of the same concept but without the noise.

[awaj]

two things that I found helpful organizing my music is a program like MP3Tag (http://www.mp3tag.de/en/) and I've had better control finding what I want with MediaMonkey (http://www.mediamonkey.com/) (the free one...) I'm sure there are other media players that are just as good though.

A friend of mine uses itunes, and it labeled My Evil Plan to Save the World by Five Iron Frenzy as recorded by OC Supertones (two different bands, though another program labeled music I recorded as something total different too...)