I know I have asked before but I cannot locate the thread using search. What does iTunes use for tagging? A proprietary standard?
I ask because I am interested in doing the following: Importing my MP3s, tagged in DBPoweramp with ID3 V 2.2 tags, into iTunes.
Having iTunes retrieve this info, including song and album names too long for ID3 V1, artwork, comments, etc.
Once iTunes has this information and uses it as its "tag", then using the iTunes function to convert the ID3 V2 tags to ID3 V1 to strip the ID3V2 from the file
iTunes proprietary tagging should still maintain the artwork, long song names, etc to display on my iPod (fields that ID3 V1 cannot handle.)
The file then has 2 tags, the proprietary apple tag (for iTunes ad the iPod) and ID3V1
Does this sound realistic?
I keep reading bad things re: ID3V2.2
Full Version: iTunes Tagging vs. ID3 V1 and V2
I think I-Tunes doesn't actually use its own form of tagging, but rather it stores all the information in a database.
Yep iTunes keeps song info into the iTunes database. That info will be only available to iTunes (and apps that tap into the iTunes database) after you convert the tags to ID3v1.
What did you hear exactly about ID3v2.2? Which program do you use for ID3v2.2 tagging?
What did you hear exactly about ID3v2.2? Which program do you use for ID3v2.2 tagging?
iTunes (and the iPod) uses ID3 v1 and v2 for mp3 tagging. Don't mass delete your ID3v2.x tags, it's generally a bad idea.
As default iTunes uses v. 2.2 (where do people get the idea that it uses a proprietary format?). From what I gather, there's nothing bad about version 2.2, but if there is, you could always convert them from within iTunes:
Man, i didn't think anyone used 2.2. 2.3 is the defacto standard.
Actually, for MP3, iTunes uses whatever it finds in the file itself. It attempts to not change the tag to a different version. So if there's an ID3v2.3 and an ID3v1 in the file, it'll update both of them and leave them as those versions.
For brand new MP3 files that it creates, it adds an ID3v2.2 tag to the file. And as Busemann points out, you can tell it to convert the ID3 tags on any file to a specific version and it will try to do so.
It does have a couple of bugs with regards to tagging, however. The Comment field that it adds to ID3 tags after it does its SoundCheck scan is nonstandard. It's also sometimes flat out wrong, using the wrong version type (like adding a COMM field to an ID3v2.2 tag, which uses three byte field identifiers instead of four byte identifiers). They may have fixed this in later iTunes versions though, I have not checked recently.
Edit: But no, it doesn't add any proprietary tags to MP3 files. It uses ID3 entirely. The "special" tags it does add take the form of ID3 comment fields, albeit somewhat non-standard ones. It also adds one nonstandard field into ID3v2.3 files: TCMP, for the Compilation flag.
For brand new MP3 files that it creates, it adds an ID3v2.2 tag to the file. And as Busemann points out, you can tell it to convert the ID3 tags on any file to a specific version and it will try to do so.
It does have a couple of bugs with regards to tagging, however. The Comment field that it adds to ID3 tags after it does its SoundCheck scan is nonstandard. It's also sometimes flat out wrong, using the wrong version type (like adding a COMM field to an ID3v2.2 tag, which uses three byte field identifiers instead of four byte identifiers). They may have fixed this in later iTunes versions though, I have not checked recently.
Edit: But no, it doesn't add any proprietary tags to MP3 files. It uses ID3 entirely. The "special" tags it does add take the form of ID3 comment fields, albeit somewhat non-standard ones. It also adds one nonstandard field into ID3v2.3 files: TCMP, for the Compilation flag.
QUOTE(Otto42 @ Jun 16 2005, 09:01 AM)
Actually, for MP3, iTunes uses whatever it finds in the file itself. It attempts to not change the tag to a different version. So if there's an ID3v2.3 and an ID3v1 in the file, it'll update both of them and leave them as those versions.
Exactly. If you have old ID3v1 files, they will stay that way until you add artwork or use the grouping field for instance. In these cases it will update the files to ID3v2.2 automatically.
In earlier versions it would just ignore the changes you made if the tag version wasn't compatible..
QUOTE
It does have a couple of bugs with regards to tagging, however. The Comment field that it adds to ID3 tags after it does its SoundCheck scan is nonstandard. It's also sometimes flat out wrong, using the wrong version type (like adding a COMM field to an ID3v2.2 tag, which uses three byte field identifiers instead of four byte identifiers). They may have fixed this in later iTunes versions though, I have not checked recently.
I have noticed this as well. Does it harm the file in any way? Also, is there anyway to embed the encoder name somewhere so that it shows on the summary screen? When I use iTunes Lame, it shows ENCODED BY: UNKNOWN on the summary screen.
QUOTE(bawjaws @ Jun 16 2005, 04:51 AM)
Don't mass delete your ID3v2.x tags, it's generally a bad idea.
Why?
QUOTE(ezra2323 @ Jun 16 2005, 05:52 PM)
Also, is there anyway to embed the encoder name somewhere so that it shows on the summary screen? When I use iTunes Lame, it shows ENCODED BY: UNKNOWN on the summary screen.
If you use ID3v2.3, at least, it'll show the contents of the TENC field there. Tag&Rename shows this as the Encoded By field as well.
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