iTunes 5.0

As C.K. mentioned iTunes 5.0 is out and about, plus it is available for download (Mac and PC, natch). So what's new in 5.0? The biggest difference is that the application looks different. Apple is calling it 'streamlined'; I like to think of it as closer to nirvana.
Other new features:
- Searchbar: like Spotlight for your tunes, only it isn't
- Smart shuffle: even more randomer!
- Sync from Outlook: You know, the PC only email client?
- Playlist folders: and a chorus of angels sings.
- Parental Control: never trust your children
- Album reviews: Apple knows what you should listen to.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Emil Heinsen said 4:05PM on 9-07-2005
One word: LOVE!
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Dominic Frascella said 4:08PM on 9-07-2005
why is itunes still green?
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sam said 4:12PM on 9-07-2005
is there anyway to wipe that glossy sheen off the status/timeline area? i like to have my computer information presented to me without imagining a plastic bubble inbetween us.
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sam said 4:13PM on 9-07-2005
on the other hand i'm happy they're moving away from the brushed aluminum.
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Gordon Werner said 4:17PM on 9-07-2005
anybody find a m4p from apple that has lyrics included yet? (Lyrics tab available when you "get-info" on a particular track
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Klemens said 4:20PM on 9-07-2005
Why are podcasts shown in the main library? There doesn't seem any way to get rid this. That's the only negative thing to me.
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motech said 4:20PM on 9-07-2005
anyone notice these other features,
edit - show duplicates (woo hooo)
anddd
file - new folder
wtf does folders do?
gotta figure thato ut.
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James Depew said 4:40PM on 9-07-2005
Though I know its an evil word to utter around these parts, but the Windows counterpart now includes the release version of QuickTime 7 (now up to 7.0.2).
Up until today only Preview Release 3 had been available. The HiDef performance of Preview Release 1 was horrid on PCs and with the arrival of PR3 was smooth as silk even on my 2 year old laptop - really looking forward to seeing if there are any further enhancements to this final release.
Funny there is no apparent way to get either without the other (iTunes/QuickTime).
Oh, and don't worry my mac is on order ;-)
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Pip said 4:47PM on 9-07-2005
Is it still Carbon and eating 20% CPU time while playing?
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Scott McNulty said 4:54PM on 9-07-2005
motech, the dulicate thing has been in iTunes for a little while now, though it is still pretty cool.
As for folders, they are what you put playlists in.
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triplight said 4:51PM on 9-07-2005
Gapless playback? Ability to rip tracks with fade-in and/or fade-out, like MusicMatch? Get artwork for tracks I've ripped from my own CDs? Convert protected tracks to other formats (if possible)?
Improving the interface is always welcome, but this is update is pretty thin, IMO. At least JHymn stills seems to work.
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Tohru Okai said 4:53PM on 9-07-2005
Lyrics support in Get Info on tracks is so nice. I'm sure there will be scripts and utilities to autofill those Lyrics section!
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Wheels said 4:56PM on 9-07-2005
One word: FUGLY.
You know, I do some menial website creation for people, businesses, and myself, and, while the graphics I create are descent, I am pretty far away from being a professional graphic artist. But you know, looking at the top control bar of iTunes 5, especially the squared-off window where the song information is, with the hideously designed reflection/shading, I don't feel as bad as I did. In that area of the app, iTunes 4 has it all over iTunes 5. I would've never expected something that looks this child-like to come out of Apple.
Overall, I like 5 over 4 because of the added features. I like the search feature and the fact that you can select what category you'd like to search in in midstream. The folders for playlists is a nice addition. And I like the smaller, but just as legible, fonts that allow you to see more information - playlist titles, song info, etc .
But IMHO, it looks as if the graphics were a quick throw-together. I know I'll get used to it, though, as I keep using the better program.
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Mark said 4:56PM on 9-07-2005
Oh dear lord that's disgusting. They actually managed to make something worse than brushed metal. Amazing.
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David Moss said 4:58PM on 9-07-2005
Anyone know why the Importing preferences (choosing the MP3 or AAC encoder) have been moved to an Advanced section? I wanted to check it hadn't reset to AAC by default and thought I'd lost them!
In general, I like the new UI style (though I'm still on Panther so it's a bit out of place), and like that the information bar now shows remaining time as well as elapsed time.
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Guillermo said 5:07PM on 9-07-2005
So, any chance Apple will release a firmware update for iPods? Those playlist folders are nice, but they're kinda worthless if I can't use them on my iPod.
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filthy said 5:11PM on 9-07-2005
wait, so the general concensus is "wah wah wah, its not exactly how i would have it, wah wah"? i like it.
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Halt said 5:25PM on 9-07-2005
A new feature is the 'Skip when shuffling' in the options section of the info dialog. If it does what I think it does you can finally skip those iTrip sounds and still have the available on your iPod.
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Ross said 2:13AM on 9-08-2005
"Sync from Outlook: You know, the PC only email client?"
I must be missing something really weird. Why would I want to sync emails with my music app? Is the Sync for the phone? Why isn't it in iSync? Please help before my brain explodes.
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Halt said 5:48PM on 9-07-2005
OMG, it seems they forgot to include a way to change the new 'Skip when shuffling' options for multiple songs at once just like in earlier versions you couldn't change the checked state of multiple songs. One would think they learned from that mistake. Guess not. Forget about changing it for 200 iTrip sounds.
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