Q: Cannot save "Release Date" field in iTunes/Windows 12.4.0.119

I had this same issue in Windows 10. Just tested it on iTunes/Mac 12.4.0.119 -- this platform won't even let you select the Release Date field to make an entry.

This is a major issue, given that AppleTV won't allow any alternate sorting of TV Shows other than by Release Date.

Yep. Same here. I have a Windows 7 system (64 bit Windows Pro) and iTunes 12.4.0.119. I can edit the "Release date" field but iTunes doesn't save it.

I seriously wonder if they actually do any regression testing before releasing new versions. It seems that they're only concerned about getting it out but don't give a second thought to making sure they didn't break any functionality! In a former lifetime I was a software engineer and I would get my *** chewed out by my boss if I ever let something like this slip through to the testing group! We did our own regression testing and only once we felt that we didn't hurt any existing functionality would we then give it to the QA group.

Anyone else here remember when iTunes 12 first was released back around Oct 2014? Not only did it show the "Release date" as "6/5/1905" but it actually changed the "Release date" field in all of the TV shows in my library. That was flat out data corruption (and I never heard Apple ever apologize for this). 

This time it's looking like they just don't save the field.

It's odd how a company with such a great reputation in so many areas can fail so spectacularly so often.

Anyone taking bets on how long it'll take them to fix this? I'm guessing by July 4th, 2016. Yea, I know it's a bit optimistic and it'll like take them well into the fall but I'm hoping for a quick fix. They hardly ever get bugs fixed quickly so maybe they'll finally realize that people like it when products continue to work properly!

Larry.

One quick update to my previous post. I'm having almost the exact same issue on my MacBook Pro. I'm running OS X El Capitan (10.11.5) with iTunes version 12.4.0.119. On the Mac I can't even edit the field. Meaning if I click on it I can't set any value in the display. On my Windows 7 system I can set a value and then be disappointed when it's not saved.

Larry.

I may be wrong, but I don't think the release date was ever supposed to be an editable property. It certainly wasn't in the past. As far as I'm aware it used to be a read only property for items from the iTunes Store. How long has it been editable?

tt2

I've been editing this exact same Release Date field for roughly 30 items per day for the past 2 years. I'm not sure when it started or when it ever wasn't editable, along with all the rest of the fields on that tab.

Lately it seems Apple is taking cues from Microsoft -- rollout crap and (maybe) fix it later. Things just aren't the same with Steve Jobs gone..

Hi tt2,

You're wrong . Yes, there are many fields that are not user editable (like the little "HD" symbol) but this one has been editable all along.

Larry.

Always happy to be wrong. Unfortunately it is a read-only property as far as the scripting interface is concerned so I cannot write a script as a workaround for the recent change.

tt2

Oh I quite agree that all fields should be editable, but as I say I've a strong suspicion this used to be a property that was only ever set on iTunes Store purchases and not user editable. I see release dates for my purchased music which I cannot edit either. If people like you and Rick have been editing it for TV shows for a couple of years then it might go back to the launch of the new style Get Info in iTunes 12.0, or it could go back earlier.

Tell Apple what you want at iTunes Feedback.

tt2

lschwarcz & Steve,

In regards to Apple's sloppiness (to put it nicely): the release of the iPhone SE -- a.k.a. "regurgitated iPhone 5" -- has me really concerned about the future of Apple. Steve Jobs would NEVER have allowed the re-rollout of an old product with a new chip.

For 30 years I was a mac-dissing pc nerd, until I jumped off the cliff and into the Apple utopia. Now I've converted every area of my life over to Apple's control, and they, in turn, are more interested in removing religious liberty from our nation's constitution and daily harassing me to upgrade my not-even-close-to-full iCloud storage than in actually creating something new and cool. It is a huge disappointment to say the least, and it makes for a very discouraging outlook on the future.

Rick

Yes, you are wrong.  This has been an editable field for some time now.

UPDATE: June 3, 2016

I see that there's a new release of iTunes for both Windows and OS X (version number 12.4.1.6 for both).

The Windows version does not have a fix for the "release date" field but the OS X version does! Once again showing how poor Apple is with testing and fixing their software! They managed to get one OS fixed but not the other .

There is a workaround for the Windows version if you have a Mac too! You can "import" a TV show episode from the Windows system to your Mac, set the release date on the Mac and then copy it back to the Windows system. Not exactly a viable workaround for most but if you happen to have both platforms it may work until Apple gets their act together and starts to test their software before releasing it to their customers.

Larry.