Exporting Playlist not working on iTunes 12

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Exporting Playlist not working on iTunes 12

My operating system is Windows 10 Home and I am using iTunes 12.7.3.46.

I have two iPod Classics of different sizes. On my PC I have set up two libraries, one for each iPod. I export playlists from one library to the other so that I can use them on both iPods.

My problem is this.

On Library 1, the 'Export playlist' option is greyed out for some playlists. For other it's fine. I can see no obvious pattern here. Some playlists are smart, some not. Most contain files from a variety of sources, e.g. Apple, burned CDs, other retailers, etc. It does not matter if a playlist is several years old or created yesterday. Whether or not a playlist can be exported seems entirely random. Even more puzzling is that a playlist can be exportable when I select it and yet, a few minutes later when I return to it, the Export Playlist option is greyed out on the same playlist!

A playlist that cannot be exported in Library 1 is fine in Library 2 even though the content is identical.

The only thing I have noticed is that if Export Playlist is greyed out so too is the Burn Playlist to disc option. So clearly the two functions are connected.

If anyone has a clue what is going on here I would love to hear from you. It will be maddening if I have recreate my playlist from scratch in the second library.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. 😕

Posted on Mar 22, 2018 11:58 AM

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Answer 1

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Top-ranking reply

turingtest2

Level 10

276,671 points

Mar 23, 2018 1:50 PM in response to Froissart

Hi,

Well the script now exists and can be found at http://samsoft.org.uk/iTunes/scripts.asp#ExportM3U. Interesting working out how to export UTF-8 formatted text files. 🙂

As noted it is quite possible to sync multiple devices to the same library. When you have a device connected to iTunes look at the music tab for it and chose the option to sync Selected playlists, artists, albums, and genres. I only ever make selections from the playlists section. I put specific playlists for a device in a playlist folder named for it, so I have, for example, Steve's iPad and Steve's iPhone 6+, each with their own content.

tt2

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Answer 2

turingtest2

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276,671 points

Mar 23, 2018 9:15 AM in response to Froissart

The obvious question is why don't you have one library, with each device synced to its own collection of playlists? That would cut down the management overhead enormously.

I note from other conversations that File > Burn Playlist to Disc seems to have become erratic in recent builds of iTunes, with either the wrong list burning, or nothing at all. In that case there is a context menu that can be used as an alternative, but there isn't an equivalent export playlist feature. I can write a script to export m3u playlists if that would help.

tt2

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Answer 3

Froissart Author

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4 points

Mar 23, 2018 2:50 AM in response to turingtest2

Thank you for the very prompt and helpful reply.

Of my two iPods, one is 160gb and the other is 30gb. Playlists on the smaller device are a subset of the full Library (i.e. Library 1), which fits on the larger iPod. So I choose which playlists from the full library to export to Library 2 and update them periodically when I add or change the content. At least that is what I used to do until this problem arose.

Many thanks for offering to write an export script. My files range from mp3s at 320 kbps to very large 24-bit ALAC files. However, I didn't know I could sync two devices to the same library. Can you point me towards appropriate instructions for this please? I can't see anything relevant on iTunes Help.

If the single library idea works, then I won't need to export any playlists.

Thanks again. 🙂

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Answer 4

Froissart Author

Level 1

4 points

Mar 23, 2018 1:59 PM in response to turingtest2

I am happy to report that I have successfully synced both iPods to the same library, and a much easier job it was too than my previous method.

Thank you also for the Export script which I tried and which works fine. I will have a look at your list of scripts tomorrow as I'm sure there are others which I will find useful.

So my problem is fixed, although the software glitch remains unresolved it seems.

In summary, you have not only solved my question but you have left me in a better position than I was before the problem arose in the first place.

Thank you again. 😀

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Answer 5

turingtest2

Level 10

276,671 points

Mar 23, 2018 2:01 PM in response to Froissart

You're welcome. 🙂

You could drop a line about your export issue to Feedback - iTunes - Apple. I still cannot reproduce it, but there may be others having similar problems.

tt2

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Answer 6

Froissart Author

Level 1

4 points

Mar 24, 2018 8:52 AM in response to turingtest2

Done.

Given the results of my initial Google search it is not an isolated problem. So I would be surprised if Apple are unaware of the issue.

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Answer 7

turingtest2

Level 10

276,671 points

Mar 24, 2018 9:14 AM in response to Froissart

Thanks. 🙂

tt2

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Answer 8

Apr 1, 2018 9:29 PM in response to Froissart

FWIW, I was also unable to export playlists but found that if I selected not only the playlist I wanted to export but *also a song within it* the export playlist option became available.

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Answer 9

Froissart Author

Level 1

4 points

Apr 2, 2018 2:47 AM in response to felixfromrichmond

Yes, this works for me too.

The 'Burn Playlist to disc' option also becomes available when a song is selected.

Very interesting!

No doubt the Apple people will fix this eventually.

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