One way to migrate an iTunes collection to another drive

I use iTunes for not only my extensive music and audio library, but my vast video library as well. The collection had become so large that I needed to copy all the files to a new, larger drive. My troubles began with iTunes unintuitive linking. Library consolidation scared me, in that it would mess up my hierarchal structure. If I reimported my videos, all my meticulous metadata would be lost. Naming the new drive the same as the old worked, but would break the link if anything within the link structure moved or changed due to the inode reference database. In other words, I must reimport from the new drive (and thus lose all my metadata). After days of experimenting, I came up with a solution that did the trick. With iTunes off, I copied all my music and video files to the new drive. I also copied my iTunes Library folder to the new drive as well (I prefer keeping all on one drive). I then unmounted my old drive and launched iTunes. Of course, iTunes could not loca...

iPresentee offers 5 new iWeb themes

Section: Apple, Software + Apps, Design, Developer, Home and Personal, iLife, Web, Mac + Computers, SoftwareiPresentee is offering five new iWeb Themes that are geared towards small businesses. These themes include Office, Global, Illusion, Papery, and Money, and come in at only $30 for the entire package or $10 each. In order to use these themes, you need Apple’s iWeb 2.0 or installed. According to the product description, “Each iWeb Theme for Business has seven templates: Home, About Us, Services, Support, Clients, Contact Us and Blank. All themes can be adapted for developing personal website.” There are plenty of screenshots over at their site, and most of the themes look pretty well designed. iPresentee also offers other iWeb templates as well as different Keynote stuff (animations, themes, 3D graphics, etc). They all look pretty cool, so be sure to check out their site. If you have bought or used any of their themes or anything else, let us know what you think about it. Via [Macsimum News] Full Story » | Written by Josh Holat for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Apple rolls out iDVD 7.0.2

Section: Apple News, Updates, Software + Apps, iLifeOpening day of WWDC ‘08 appeared to kick off a string of software updates from Apple. Quicktime was updated to Quicktime 7.5 and iMovie has been updated to iMovie 7.1.2. Following close behind was an update to iDVD ‘08, which has been updated to iDVD 7.0.2. The download is 20.27MB. Logging onto Apple’s support page, you’ll find that the update “fixes general compatibility issues, improves overall stability, and addresses a number of other minor issues.” However, if you are searching for additional information about the update, Apple isn’t talking about it. I’ve found that annoying, and always wished Apple would release more information about its updates. iDVD users saw many additional features added to iDVD ‘08, including: Ten new animated themes Better performance Advanced menu customization Stunning slideshows Pro-quality encoding

Artists avoid iTunes; singles discourage album sales

Many artists and record labels are beginning to see a darker side to the success of iTunes, according to Wall Street Journal. Apple has maintained a strict policy of requiring each song to be available individually. Although the music might be reaching more customers, companies are beginning to notice record sales being cannibalized by singles. For the customer that just wants the song they hea...

Apple updates Final Cut Express; improved stability and plugin support

Section: Apple News, Updates, Software + Apps, Video, Mac + Computers, SoftwareMac users who use Final Cut Express received an update to their movie editing software on Thursday. Apple has released Final Cut Express 4.0.1. Those used to seeing the brief support notes that usually accompany Apple releases will be surprised at the detailed notes that accompany this update. The three main fixes are:  Permission issues resolved Occasionally Final Cut Express wouldn’t open projects that included media that users did not have proper permission to access with this update Final Cut Express is now opening the projects correctly. AVCHD Easy Setups Final Cut Express Users will notice improvements within AVCHD. AVCHD now includes Easy Setups which support the ingesting AVCHD footage using Apple Intermediate Codec. The Easy Setups are: AVCHD-Apple Intermediate Codec 1440x1080i60 AVCHD-Apple Intermediate Codec 1920x1080i60 AVCHD-Apple Intermediate Codec 1440x1080i50 AVCHD-Apple Intermediate Codec 1920x1080i50 Improved plugin support and stability Final Cut Express is an excellent DV editing software package. It’s a great choice for users looking for advanced video editing capabilities that cannot be found in iMovie. I upgraded to Final Cut Express shortly after purchasing my MacBook Pro. Although I enjoyed iMovie, I found I wanted more options than were available. For users who are looking for additional features that aren’t available in Final Cut Express they can purchase Final Cut Pro. I’m a Final Cut Express user. Thanks to this valuable application I’m able to create professional quality videos at the fraction of the price of Final Cut Pro. The learning curve can be steep, especially if you’re new to video editing. I mainly use Final Cut Express to take videos of my daughter and family. My daughter started school this year, so I will definitely be working overtime considering all the activities that are planned at her school. The Final Cut Express 4.0.1 download file weighs in at 122 MB. Via [Apple.com] Full Story » | Written by Opal Tribble for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Add custom folders to the iLife Media Browser

There are times when it would be nice to have your own folders in the Media Browser in iLife '08 applications. In the Media Browser, however, there is no apparent way to add folders, but with a little trick, you can do just that.In the Finder, open whatever folder you want to add to the Media Browser. Then start an iLife application and show the Media Browser (View » Show Media Browser). Open the Pictures tab, then drag-and-drop the open folder from the Finder. It is important that you do not switch to the Finder -- just drag the folder from the background.[robg adds: I wasn't aware that you could add folders to the Media Browser (and I searched here to make sure we haven't run it as a hint; if we have, I missed it). If you activate the Finder, the floating Media Browser will vanish, so you need to arrange your windows such that you can see both the target fo...