How do I select all but a few artists to sync with my iPhone?

There is an errata due to my initial confusion in my first comment. For Mac is almost the same as Windows, <command>==<Ctrl>.

The overall response should be:

If you are using iTunes for Windows:

• if you hold the <Ctlr> button and click on a checkbox in Authors list, all elements will be selected.
• If you click again, all will be deselected.

Else, if you're using iTunes for Mac:

• if you hold the <Command> button and click on a checkbox in Authors list, all elements will be selected.
• If you click again, all will be deselected.

In itunes 11 there are hiden shortcuts to select/deselect all checkboxes in the Authors panel in Music:

• First click on one item of the Authors list (to force the focus).
• Press and hold in the keyboard <Command>+A to select all items.
• <Shift>+<Command>+A to deselect all items.

Sorry if I bothered you posting Mac solutions in Windows spaces, I only wanted to help and didn't catch this in the help path (I came directly from a Web Search).

If after a year, you accept a contribution for the Windows version, that is:

• if you hold the <Ctlr> button and click on a checkbox in Authors list, all elements will be selected.
• If you click again, all will be deselected.

See you later!

Connect the iPhone to the computer.

Select the content desired to sync.

Sync.

There is no shortcut to select all artists, the user must select each individual artist they want on the device.

Alternatively, create a playlist containing (or excluding) the content desired and sync that playlist to the device.

Ghazgkull wrote:

iTunes 11.0.5.5

iPhone 5

iOS 6.1.4

I have a large library of music in iTunes and I want to sync 98% of it to my iPhone, but not everything. If I have music from 100 different artists, how do I tell iTunes that it should sync 98 of them, but not the 2 I don't want?

The simplest way is to create a playlist of what you want to sync and sync only that playlist.

Ghazgkull wrote:

Thanks, this works perfectly.

(Someone needs to show the Apple devs how shift+click and ctrl+click work on every other application. This behavior in iTunes is backwards and therefore unexpected.)

Except it is not backwards.

Select and item then Shift click another item. Everythng between and incuding the two items is selected. This is standard behavior (in Windows & Mac OS).

Ghazgkull wrote:

Exactly. In every other application, you shift+click to select a range. But in iTunes, it's ctrl+click. It's backwards from every other app.

No it's not.

ctrl click is checking all boxes. It is not selecting anything.

Shift Click will select all the songs from the first selected item

Shift-click extends a range from a previously selected item.

Ctrl-click adds or removes an individual item from the selection.

A combination of the two will let you select multiple distinct ranges.

Works the same as other Windows applications.

Ctrl-click on a checkbox is an overloaded function and will check or uncheck all visible items.

tt2

Ghazgkull wrote:

. ctrl+clicking in iTunes selects all.

No, it does not. You are still incorrect.

ctrl + click does NOT select anything.

It checks all boxes when you ctrl click on one box.

If you want to select a bunch of consecutive songs...

Select one then Shift click another, This will select all items from the first selection to the last selection.

This is just plain nutty and is normally achieved on Windows 7 using ctrl+a,

No it doesn't

ctrl + a selects all.

You are not selecting anything when you check all boxes. You are sinmply checking all boxes.

fjpgulias wrote:

The overall response should be:

If you are using iTunes for Windows:

if you hold the <Ctlr> button and click on a checkbox in Authors list, all elements will be selected.

You mean all boxes will get checked.

Nothing will be selected or deselected.

It seems we are talking at cross purposes. I have described the behaviour in the main interface but I see now you are referring to the selection areas within the Device > Media Selection pages. In there shift-click does nothing and ctrl-click still checks or unchecks everything. It does not select a range.

tt2

Why are you providing OSX shortcuts to a thread in the iTunes for Windows forum?

Why are you replying to a thread that is over a year and a half old?