sonictonic

Q: Hundreds of old podcasts with dead links WON'T DELETE. Please help...

Hi People,

 

I've subscribed to podcasts for a really long time, and have upgraded iTunes, Macs, and OS X numerous times over the years with my iTunes data moving from one to the next and never getting a "fresh start"... and now I'm in the process of cleaning my library up and using the Podcasts app on its own, instead of iTunes, to manage my podcasts. The problem is that even though I have EMPTIED my iTunes from podcasts locally, I still have 734 VERY OLD podcasts showing up on Apple TV even though they have long since been deleted, and most don't even exist anymore on the internet, let alone on my Mac.

 

This seems to have been a problem for a handful of people, from what I can tell by searching around, but there aren;t many answers. I only saw one person's problem solved by a script of some kind and tbh, I am just not savvy enough to understand how to use/run a script. I followed the link to the one mentioned, and there aren't even instructions. I need help from someone knowledgable... and I am hoping I can get these old decrepit podcasts out of my system somehow without doing anything weird. Can I simply delete or rebuild the library file somehow? I wish I could just delete them but there doesn't seem to be a way.

 

I am able to see them in iTunes after making a Smart Playlist and setting iCloud Status to "is" and "error" and Media Kind = Podcast. But I can't delete from a smart playlist, so I'm stuck. But these are the same old, long gone podcasts showing up on the Apple TV in the Computer section.

 

PLEASE somebody help me clean this up. Anyone have an idea of the best way to do it?

 

Thanks much in advance...

iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)

Posted on Mar 21, 2016 8:55 PM

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Q: Hundreds of old podcasts with dead links WON'T DELETE. Please help...

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  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Mar 24, 2016 11:09 PM in response to sonictonic
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Mar 24, 2016 11:09 PM in response to sonictonic

    Anybody?

  • by Kenichi Watanabe,Apple recommended

    Kenichi Watanabe Kenichi Watanabe Mar 25, 2016 4:24 AM in response to sonictonic
    Level 8 (38,248 points)
    Mac OS X
    Mar 25, 2016 4:24 AM in response to sonictonic

    When you show your Podcasts library in iTunes, you are saying these podcasts do NOT appear there anymore, correct? 

     

    I wonder what would happen if, from that smart playlist with the "ghost" podcast episodes, you change the Media Kind to something else.  For example, if you don't used iTunes U, change Media Kind to iTunes U.  Do they appear in your iTunes U library?  If they do, can you Delete them from that listing?

  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Mar 25, 2016 7:47 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Mar 25, 2016 7:47 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

    Thanks for replying. That's right. If I go into the Podcasts "section" there is NOTHING there. The Smart Playlist I set up has the "error" status and like I Said there are hundreds. It's years worth of podcasts I've watched and listened to in the past, and they all show up in the Podcast section on my Apple TV on the same WiFi network in the "Computer" Apple TV app. This makes me think these things are stuck in the library files somewhere... no?

     

    I can't really use iTunes U as a test like you suggest, since I have a couple things in that section, so a Smart Playlist set up the same way would yield no result. Unless I take the "error" off of the status attribute to apply... but even then it still wouldn't show hundreds of old things there since I never used iTunes U nearly as much as I have used Podcasts over the years. I just tried it out a bit here and there.

  • by Roger Wilmut1,

    Roger Wilmut1 Roger Wilmut1 Mar 26, 2016 5:38 AM in response to sonictonic
    Level 9 (77,869 points)
    iTunes
    Mar 26, 2016 5:38 AM in response to sonictonic

    Try ~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music/Podcasts.x.jpg

  • by Kenichi Watanabe,Apple recommended

    Kenichi Watanabe Kenichi Watanabe Mar 26, 2016 9:20 PM in response to sonictonic
    Level 8 (38,248 points)
    Mac OS X
    Mar 26, 2016 9:20 PM in response to sonictonic

    My previous suggestion was to try to make those "ghost" podcast episodes appear in a (different) library, so that you can use the Delete command on them.  They DO appear in your smart playlist, but you cannot Delete them from there.  BUT if you do a Get Info on one of them on your smart playlist, on the Info window's Options tab, can you change Media Kind to something else, such as iTunes U or Audiobook)?  If you can, check the iTunes U or Audiobooks library to see if that podcast episode appears there.  If it does, try to Delete it there.

  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Mar 26, 2016 9:16 PM in response to Roger Wilmut1
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Mar 26, 2016 9:16 PM in response to Roger Wilmut1

    The files have long since been deleted. They only show up listed in the library, in this smart playlist and on Apple TV. Every one "can't be located" (because it's been deleted but iTunes still thinks it exists)!

  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Mar 26, 2016 9:19 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Mar 26, 2016 9:19 PM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

    Ah! Now I get what you're saying. THANKS! You are DEFINITELY on to something here! I just tried it, and it WORKS... but... only ONE SINGLE file at a time!   I tried selecting ALL 700+ files, doing the Get Info, changing the Media Kind to iTunes U, and it said all the files needed to be the same type in order to do that change. Weird. But even then I tried smaller batches, of the same "show" and after making the change, I get no error, but nothing changed. Then I tried ONE file at a time in random shows, and as soon as I change the kind, it takes itself out of this smart playlist, and then shows up in the iTunes U section, where I can delete it like you said.

     

    This is awesome that works, but am I seriously going to need to do this 700+ times..... manually? UGH *shudder*...

     

    Thanks again for your help on this...

  • by Kenichi Watanabe,Helpful

    Kenichi Watanabe Kenichi Watanabe Mar 27, 2016 12:17 AM in response to sonictonic
    Level 8 (38,248 points)
    Mac OS X
    Mar 27, 2016 12:17 AM in response to sonictonic

    That would be unfortunate and annoying, if you had to repeat the action 700+ times.  When you do a Get Info on an item that is on a list (like your smart playlist), you can make a change in the Info window (for one item) and go to the next (or previous) item on the list, using the arrow buttons at the bottom left corner of the Info window.  The Info window stays open to the same tab for the next item.  Still unfortunate, but somewhat less annoying.

     

    Hopefully, once they all appear on the iTunes U library list, you select them all at once and Delete them all in one shot.

  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Mar 27, 2016 12:20 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Mar 27, 2016 12:20 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

    Thanks for the < > tip in the Get Info window... I can get a decent rhythm that way at least somewhat. It's crazy to me iTunes is this fickle. Alas, I'm going to chip away at this 'dead' playlist a bit at a time. I got it down to 600 for tonight so maybe I just do 100 a day and I'll have them all cleared out in less than a week from now. Finally. LOL. Thank you again!!

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz Apr 2, 2016 10:14 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe
    Level 7 (20,157 points)
    iTunes
    Apr 2, 2016 10:14 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

    Kenichi Watanabe wrote:

     

    I wonder what would happen if, from that smart playlist with the "ghost" podcast episodes, you change the Media Kind to something else.  For example, if you don't used iTunes U, change Media Kind to iTunes U.  Do they appear in your iTunes U library?  If they do, can you Delete them from that listing?

    I'm experiencing the same issue and posted about it here: Podcast count discrepancy

     

    Before posting, I already tried days ago what you're suggesting. When you change the Media Kind, these episodes will indeed appear in iTunes U and it appears that they can be deleted. Unfortunately all these, now deleted, episodes re-appear in the smart playlist as Podcasts in a short while, especially after relaunching iTunes, but sometimes just switching playlists is sufficient.

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz Apr 5, 2016 3:43 PM in response to sonictonic
    Level 7 (20,157 points)
    iTunes
    Apr 5, 2016 3:43 PM in response to sonictonic

    sonictonic,,

    Did this method work for you? Or did these podcasts reappear, as was my experience?

  • by sonictonic,

    sonictonic sonictonic Apr 5, 2016 9:18 PM in response to Rysz
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Apr 5, 2016 9:18 PM in response to Rysz

    Everything seems to be A-OK in mine, now. I'm sorry you're still having trouble. I have no idea why...

  • by Kenichi Watanabe,

    Kenichi Watanabe Kenichi Watanabe Apr 5, 2016 9:27 PM in response to Rysz
    Level 8 (38,248 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 5, 2016 9:27 PM in response to Rysz

    I your case, are they also "ghost" podcast episodes that do not appear at all when you show your Podcasts library in iTunes?  Or do they return as "normal" podcast episodes, visible in your Podcasts library?

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz Apr 7, 2016 11:53 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe
    Level 7 (20,157 points)
    iTunes
    Apr 7, 2016 11:53 AM in response to Kenichi Watanabe

    I your case, are they also "ghost" podcast episodes that do not appear at all when you show your Podcasts library in iTunes?  Or do they return as "normal" podcast episodes, visible in your Podcasts library?

    They're visible only in the smart playlists, from which location they can't be deleted.

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