Using two computers with one iTunes Library.

Re. copying to her iPod - could sharepod help?

Tony,

Have you got home sharing ? Thats what i use and i think its ok for up to 5 different computers can use the same i tunes facility in the same household all you need to have is an i tunes account to open it.
Hope this helps. Dave

Tony,

Have a look at Copytrans. I just used it to rebuild my and my wife's itunes libraries from our iTouches and I noticed that within their suite of offerings is a programme that might just fit the bill for you.

Cheers

B

quote:

Originally posted by scottyhammer:
Tony,

Have you got home sharing ? Thats what i use and i think its ok for up to 5 different computers can use the same i tunes facility in the same household all you need to have is an i tunes account to open it.
Hope this helps. Dave

Thanks for the advice Dave. I've just given this a try but it still doesn't let me set up playlists on the PC for some reason.

Thanks also Officer DBL, I'll check out Copytrans.

Could be the way in which the pc sees the NAS?

Just check in the itunes preferences that its using the NAS as the source, if its using a share i.e. from your computer then copying won't occur unless you have the new home share thingy turned on.

To be honest I am finding itunes more and more unfathomable.

Tony - have you tried completely trashing the iTunes preference and library files on the PC ? Then get the PC to point at the NAS and rebuild it's library from scratch...

As far as I'm aware, if the files are on external storage and each computer has it's own library database for those files, I can't see how either computer would 'know' that they are also being used by another computer, which would be the case if the files were stored locally on one of the computers and had an associated database file...

Also, as Dave said, the recent introduction of Home Sharing should make this all easier with up to 5 computers - although I'm not sure how this effects iPod syncing, I wouldn't be surprised if this is still limited through Home Sharing...

The only files on the NAS that would logically cause a problem across multiple computers are files purchased via iTunes etc - but even then you are allowed up to 5 machine usage with the relevant iTunes password...

Steve.

One other thing and this is a biggy. If you have an entire itunes library on the NAS, i.e the itunes folder with music folder within, itunes was NOT designed to work this way and will be very unpredictable.

The ONLY thing on your NAS should be the music folder with each computer accessing it having its own itunes library locally. This means that if you add new music with one computer it won't automatically be seen by the other. Hence why you should have one computer controilling itunes and the rest 'sharing' with that computer. If this is not suitable in your environment then consider setting up an itunes server directly from the NAS, something like FIrefly. In this way any itunes can add music and it will be available to all, but will not solve your ipod problem, that needs to be connected to the primary computer.

The restrictions on copyright with itunes coupled with the a NAS and multiple computers gets complicated.

OK guys, some more suggestions to be getting on with. Steve, that seems like a good move but the only complication here is that SWMBO has some of her own music files on the PC's HD. I'll perhaps move them off onto the Qnap (thus polluting my music collection with the likes of Meat Loaf!).

Gary, currently the iTunes library is held in a multimedia folder on the NAS, which is designated as "iTunes Server". I'm uncertain about exactly what that confers on the folder other that allowing anyone on the home network to play the tunes. This arrangement doesn't seem to cause any problems with my iTunes on my iMac.

There's no real need to move her local files off the computer Tony, just get them into a folder and store them there - they can then be re-imported to her iTunes after you get sorted (this will write them to the NAS anyway once you have changed the default library location)...I think the important first step is to remove and delete all the library and preference files for that computer (I'm not sure where they are stored on a PC - have a look on Apple's support if you don't know)...

Of course, herein lies the problem that Gary mentions - that with with this set up, presuming you get the PC to pick up from the NAS successfully, any files she adds through iTunes on her machine will not be 'seen' by your iMac, as it's iTunes database file will not know they are there.....Although, as you say, perhaps this is a good thing..!

I don't have much knowledge of iTunes servers like Gary mentions, but I'll be sure there's a solution there IF you do want both machines to be fully independent...Otherwise I'm sure that Home Sharing must be Apple's approach to all this with a 'domestic slant' - but as I've said, if it's Apples way, I'm sure they will keep control on which computer is registered with the iPod...

Failing all this...Buy her a friggin Mac for Xmas !!

Steve.

I thought once you used an iTunes account on one PC,you could not use an other account on the same PC,or so I'm told by my 18yr old nephew.You could always use Media Monkey!