How to use your embedded album art from iTunes (the easy way)

[GodEater]

You quoted the problem.  ??  You CAN'T always put .bmps into the BASE folder.  THE BASE folder...BASE.  Not the folder the .mp3 resides in.

For example If you have:

Music>>Artist>>Album>>name.mp3

You cannot put a bitmap with the artist, album, or mp3 name in the MUSIC folder and it actually work.  It won't.  Been there and done that.  Doesn't work, at all, ever.  Not in any way.  

MUSIC is the BASE folder.  

The wiki page for album art uses no such term, so I've no idea what you're talking about here. It quite clearly states where you can put your album art files :

The pictures can be stored in the same directory (.) as the track or in the parent directory (..)

There is no mention of the word "base" there, and in any case the term "base folder" that you use is one you've just invented - it has no definition in computing.

[blueskip]

Finishing up
Move all the BMP's into the base directory of your music library.
Make sure you are running the latest version of the Album Art + BMP Resize Patch

I guess I was the only one to read to the BOTTOM of the page.  Directory or Folder.  It makes no friggin difference.  I'm greatly resisting the urge flame a couple of you at this point.  I READ the wikki or I wouldn't have commented.  

[soap]

This procedure was posted by ryan2632 on the forums (original topic here). I haven't tested it so I can't guarantee it will work as expected.

Yep - that method is out of date.
I might have worked with the original album art patch, but will not work with the album art implementation found in stock builds.

Why (instead of getting increasingly short tempered and inflammatory), didn't you explain exactly what lines you were following - and discuss the contradictory statements found in that wiki page in a constructive manner?  For that line clearly contradicts the description found earlier in the page of where album art is to be placed.

[MarcGuay]

I guess I was the only one to read to the BOTTOM of the page.   

That was taken from something someone posted in the forums and has a pretty clear disclaimer at the top saying it isn't guranteed to work... Just sayin'...

[crzyboyster]

So are you guys saying that this album art extraction method doesn't work with the latest build? I have ALWAYS used it and it works fine with the current stock builds that I always use...

[MarcGuay]

So are you guys saying that this album art extraction method doesn't work with the latest build? I have ALWAYS used it and it works fine with the current stock builds that I always use...

I think it's just the described location for the album art that "doesn't work".

[Chronon]

Putting the album art in the Music directory IS the parent directory (..\) if the files are stored in Apple's weird obfuscated structure.  I think that's the hitch here.  If you try this with a Music\Artist\Album\*.mp3 structure then the Music directory is too many levels deep.  With the original iPod structure you have e.g. Music\F01\*.mp3.

[MarcGuay]

If you look at the original post that the info in the wiki was gleaned from, it actually says this:

1) Move all the BMP's into IPODDRIVE:\iPod_Control\Music

[soap]

If you look at the original post that the info in the wiki was gleaned from, it actually says this:

1) Move all the BMP's into IPODDRIVE:\iPod_Control\Music

Thank you very much MarcGuay for tracking down the source of the confusion.

I have made an attempt to clarify the wiki entry and explicitly remind readers of the limited places Rockbox will look for album art.

[crzyboyster]

I added another useful tip using this technique on the wiki:

Generating Album Art of different sizes

   1. Instead of putting in

      D:\art\

      you can put in

      D:\art\.100x100

   2. Change the album art size in the same window to the album art size you inputed in the step above. This will generate out album art images with a name such as "cover.100x100.bmp".
   3. You can do this multiple times and generate out different sizes this way for pictureflow and different WPS'.

Hopefully that helps someone.

[MarcGuay]

I like to think of the Rockbox website as a digital version of my imaginary Uncle's cluttered basement and of myself as a detective from a 1950s pulp novel trying to piece together all the clues.  (Minus all the sassy dames).

blueskip:  I hope there's no hard feelings, I know how frustrating it can be to manuevre this mountain of ever-evolving information.  I think the key is to move very slowly, watch your step, and of course fix any mistakes you come across along the way (at least that way you don't feel like you're part of the problem).

[blueskip]

Why (instead of getting increasingly short tempered and inflammatory),...

Two days three hours each, after working 8 hours and driving 3.5 hours to work and trying diligently to straighten this out only to come to a dead end and getting a comment like this....

There is no mention of the word "base" there, and in any case the term "base folder" that you use is one you've just invented - it has no definition in computing.

if you still have patience, you're a better man than me.  I think we can all agree "base" is the term that was used now.  

I didn't make it up.

I think the right way to word the wikki would be to say "the .bmp file cannot be more than one directory above the .mp3 file or rockbox will not find it."

Unless I'm mistaken that is how this works.  

My .mp3 files are in iPod_Control\Music\artist\album\  and my .bmp files were in the Music folder so if I understand correctly everything that has been said the wikki is still misleading even after the change if users are not told the .mp3 files cannot be more than one subdirectory down from the \Music folder.

That said...

I cannot put the .bmp files into the \Music file unless manually move the contents of ~1500 files and delete the artist folders.  So I have exactly the setup described earlier as working perfectly:

Music\artist\album\.mp3 + .bmp

There's only one glitch.  I don't have album art in many of these files because for whatever reason they didn't export.  The art is there embedded however whether it was exported or not.  

So what program will ignore the embedded album art and view the non embedded art to fix this? (that's confusing even to me)

[soap]

My .mp3 files are in iPod_Control\Music\artist\album\  

That is not the normal iTunes/iPod structure, is it?  

and my .bmp files were in the Music folder so if I understand correctly everything that has been said the wikki is still misleading even after the change if users are not told the .mp3 files cannot be more than one subdirectory down from the \Music folder.

The wiki clearly states, after my editing, (the change you are referring to)

NOTE: This method does NOT work if your music directory structure is more than two folders deep.

Your structure is more than two folders deep.
Album=1, Artist=2, Music=3

...It was written assuming you were using the iTunes database directory structure.

You are apparently not.

So I have exactly the setup described earlier as working perfectly:
Music\artist\album\.mp3 + .bmp
There's only one glitch.  I don't have album art in many of these files because for whatever reason they didn't export.  The art is there embedded however whether it was exported or not.  

Use any of the programs listed in the wiki, or any of the other programs available to download album art.  Most scan the album tags of songs on a folder by folder basis, present you with what the program determines to be the proper album cover, and then allows you to save it (typically as one of the common names, such as folder.jpg).
Now you have a folder.jpg in each and every album folder.  Then use the scripted conversion routines mentioned in the wiki and earlier in this thread (IIRC) to convert and rename the files in place.  No manual moving, no manual renaming.


Correct me where I am wrong.

[blueskip]

Just forget it.

I'll write an entry if necessary sometime this week that will work for ANY structure being used less I am mistaken.  No bought software all freeware.  It took me long enough but I finally figured it out on my own.

I orginally was using apple file structure.  I'm not anymore.  So yes you are correct about that.  

I will also explain where to get software for less than $20 to convert apples file structure into a normal format ready for drag'n'drop.  I don't know of freeware that will do it - yet.  I'll look into that more before I write it.

I'm almost certain this method will work for any file structure in use.

Thanks to everyone.  

[soap]

I will also explain where to get software for less than $20 to convert apples file structure into a normal format ready for drag'n'drop.  I don't know of freeware that will do it - yet.  

Foobar2000 for Windows, and most every other free tagging program can rename files based upon their tags.  
Files in the iTunes directory structure have tags.  
Most taggers allow you to rename them in complex ways, including the creation of directories and subdirectories based upon the music's metadata tags.

Most all the free iTunes replacement software packages can also do this (create a "normal" directory from the iTunes database):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_iPod_Managers

I'll write an entry if necessary sometime this week that will work for ANY structure being used less I am mistaken.  No bought software all freeware.  It took me long enough but I finally figured it out on my own.

See the "Rockbox art converter script" just added to the wiki by Frederic Hoffmann. http://www.rockbox.org/twiki/bin/view/Main/AlbumArt#Format_conversion.
A free and extremely easy looking way to batch convert folder.jpgs into cover.bmps.
Should work with any directory structure (once you have the album art as files).

Want album art as files?
See http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=29876 for one of literally dozens of free programs to download album art, for free.


None of these tools cost money - all of these tools are just one free example in each category.  I'm willing to bet my bottom dollar there are also free tools (in most cases superior to pay tools) for Mac and for the extraction of embedded album art into folder.jpgs.