Q: How do I import multiple playlists into iTunes?
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Nov 15, 2010 11:31 AMby Chris CA,rather than the 5,372 individual playlists that I desire.
Why in the world would you have (or desire) that many playlists?
I HIGHLY recommend not doing this.
Playlist are contained in the *iTunes library.itl* file and *iTunes library.xml* file. The larger these files are the more it will bog down iTunes.
Just about anything you do in iTunes will cause these files to be rewritten.
If you play a song, they will be rewritten.
When you skip a song, they will be rewritten.
Rate a song, change a playlist, edit any info, add/delete/change a song, these files will be rewritten. -
Nov 17, 2010 4:28 PMby Scarecrow237,I would have 5,372 playlists, because that is how many albums I own. Why would anyone have otherwise? This is how everyone I know does it. This is how every other program that organizes music does it. This is how my mp3 player (other than iPod) does it.
Rather than criticize how I organize music, why not answer the question? I already have the *.m3u files. How do I move them? -
Nov 17, 2010 7:02 PMby Chris CA,Why would anyone have otherwise?
It's not needed.
iTunes already does this for you. Making playlist for everything makes iTunes much, much more difficult to manage.
iTunes menu View > Column browser.
Select the album you want.This is how everyone I know does it.Only because they are used to doing it this way. Doesn't mean it's the best or easiest way.
I already have the *.m3u files. How do I move them?
File > Library > Import playlist. -
Nov 18, 2010 5:51 AMby Meg St._Clair,What Chris is trying to explain to you is that you don't need individual album playlists in iTunes in order to listen or find music by album. By using the browser function in iTunes, you can easily navigate to an individual album. There is absolutely no need to put each album into its own playlist. That was necessary in older, less sophisticated music applications which is why a lot of people got into the habit of doing it.
Change is not always bad.
Best of luck. -
Dec 8, 2010 3:10 PMby Chris CA,Don't know where you saw any "attitude".
If, as you wrote, iTunes is not for you, then don't use it. I have no problems with you using it or not.
I understand it was a legit question.
Just because you may have always done it this way does not mean it is the best/correct/easiest way to do it. It's simply how you are used to doing it. -
Dec 30, 2010 10:40 AMby TommyC51,I use OSX and iTunes and have the same approach as Scarecrow. I have about 1170 Albums/CD's which have been copied at various times over the years into my Music Library file - with each Album/CD being a subfolder. Multi-CD releases are all in one subfolder. Many CD's were not copied using iTunes and as I no longer have those old CD's - I cannot recopy them. Importing them into Music makes a real mess with many subfolders now in Music as individual non-grouped songs. So, it is easier and neater for me to make each album or CD it's own playlist. It is also then very easy to access my library via my Roku Soundbridge and copies neatly into my iPod and iPhone. It would be a real plus to have a 'bulk-copy' methodology into Playlists or Music that keet all of these items 'together'. Dragging 1170+ items took a long time! If anyone has any specific approach or recommendation I would be most interested in learning it. Thanks.
Message was edited by: TommyC51
Message was edited by: TommyC51 -
Jan 11, 2011 10:11 AMby beppe1968,hello everyone.
I ask my question as my problem is identical to the one expressed here.
Though I perfectly understand Chris's irritation (why would have one playslist per album??? can't you see them under albums both in iTunes and / or in your iPod???), I still think he might have simply answered the question, whihc is also mine:
can I import multiple /// all my playlists into iTunes library instead of doing the same operation Import >>> select >>> as many times as many lists I have?
Thanks in advance -
Apr 22, 2011 5:12 PMby cmaronmurphy,I, too, may not agree on how some people in this discussion are using Playlists. However, the fact is that there is no no way to export or import multiple Playlists within iTunes. This is an important missing function. One of my clients creates Playlists for the places she's travelled to, friends, family, etc. When I move her iTunes Library over to a new laptop or computer, I have to move some 100-150 Playlists one at a time. It's simple enough but highly repetitive.
Individual Playlists can be exported/imported via the File/Library pull down menus within iTunes. They must be saved as .xml files. I highly suggest creating a sub-folder in your iTunes Media folder (I call it Playlist XML's) to copy them into or pull them out of... This will not interfere with any normal operation of iTunes and serves as a logical place to find them.
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Apr 23, 2011 1:58 AMby Chris CA,"clients creates Playlists for the places she's travelled to, friends, family, etc. When I move her iTunes Library over to a new laptop or computer, I have to move some 100-150 Playlists one at a time"
No you don't.
To copy the iTunes library to a new computer, simply copy the entire /Music/iTunes/ folder from old computer to new computer.
Everything including playlists will be exactly the same.
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Apr 23, 2011 4:22 PMby cmaronmurphy,Great, Chris CA, thanks! Question. I am generally clearing truly messed up Libraries and adding back content from multiple drives by dragging and dropping - simple. However, if I can export/import an existing, clean Library to a new computer, will iTunes "find" the media files on the new computer without it yet being actually in the new Library? I.E., if I correctly copy the files into the appropriate iTunes Media folder, will the Playlists "know" that the files are acutally present? My concern is the Playlists dropping songs, because it can't find the content. THX.
