Hello timbo slice,

Try this:

1. Close all programs completely.
2. Open up iTunes.
3. Click on your 'music' to show all the songs in your library.
4. Select all (apple+a Mac) (ctrl+a PC).
5. Right click on the highlighted area (PC) or Ctrl+mouse button on the highlighted area(Mac).
6. Select 'get info' from the drop down menu.
7. Click 'yes' when asked if you want to edit multiple items.
8. Click 'ok' at the bottom of the edit page.

Now completely quit iTunes and open SSL.

Any luck?

yes i've tried that several times and it doesnt work. the files aren't "not found" anything new just don't appear at all.

Once you rescan your tags in iTunes do you see any exclamation points next to any of your files in iTunes?

no not at all, everything plays fine in itunes. It's mad weird all of a sudden serato stopped recognizing any changes i make in itunes whether its create a playlist or add a song to my itunes library (which serato usually recognizes). I've added about 40 songs to my itunes library that won't "sync" with serato. All of the old songs/playlists appear and work fine. i've tried various versions of serato and all give the same issue... only thing i can think of is itunes 9.0.1.

What type of files are they? mp3, aac?

You can check by creating a 'Kind' column in SSL.

1. Open iTunes.
2. Click the 'edit' colum (PC) or 'view' column (Mac).
3. Click 'view options'.
4. Check the 'kind' box.
5. Scroll all the way to the right side of the iTunes main library screen.
6. Click on the 'kind' column ( on the actually word 'kind') to group the various file types together.

is this a person or a robot because i'm not finding your responses very helpful

they are all mpeg audio files though

yo sorry if i insulted but im real frustrated please help

Really?

I'm just trying to get down to the bottom of it.
I see your using Snow Leopard which could be the problem.
Your also using the new version of iTunes and Quicktime which could be the problem.
My guess is if you reverted back to an old version of iTunes everything would be back to normal.
I was trying to find a solution other than reverting your iTunes.
If your willing to revert to an older version of iTunes that might be the easiest remedy.
You can download an old version of iTunes for Mac here --> en.kioskea.net

I would uninstall the current version of iTunes first.
Let us know your findings.

i don't know man i'm having all sorts of problems.. i've tried every combination of every recent version of serato/itunes with eachother and i can't seem to get anything back to normal. now my itunes is all f'd up everythings a mess it sucks.

Timbo. For my gig machine i've stuck with previous versions of iTunes, OSX and Quicktime...I've resisted (as have many others who RELY on their machines to make a living) in updating..just for the sake of...well.... updating.


For my test machine at home, i HAVE updated everything...Snow leopard,iTunes and obviously quicktime and ive seen your problem on this machine amongst many others......


Roll back your changes to when it worked fine mate and wait for the Rane/Serato guys to Ok official support before you leap ahead then get frustrated 'cause things aren't going your way. Be realistic -Rane/Serato cannot preempt every change Apple are going to make to their OS,itunes etc. I'm sorry if my post isn't helping you, but all we seem to be reading here is posts like this of people not following Rane/Serato advice then running back here complaining.

i'm not complaining i just want to get it figured out. I realize you guys can't make everything instantly compatable and that's fine. but i just wanted to get back to normal and i can't seem to get back.. no matter what serato/itunes i use, nothing works properly. does quicktime directly affect scratch live? and what about snow leopard, what should i do about that?

Have you tried using the 1.9.2 Public Beta yet? --> scratchlive.net

If not, please update to it and let us know if that fixes anything for you.

Remember, you can have more than one version of SSL on your computer-->

Mac users - before installing, rename the existing application file as above (like "Scratch LIVE 1.9.1") - you have to be admin to rename it. (If you aren't admin, you can copy it to another location, and then rename it.) Even though the Public Beta version is already named to indicate which version it is, you need to change the name to stop it being overwritten by the next version you install, for example by changing "Public_Beta_1" to "PB1".

no luck. serato is missing about half of the itunes library and won't reflect any changes in itunes.

If you open SSL after updating to 1.9.2 and look in the lower left corner of the setup screen what version number does it say you have installed? The version number will be in parenthesis.

version 1.9.2 (19215)

where does scratch live read the files from when reading itunes library? is there any way i could just locate the missing files and put them into the correct folder?

The newest 1.9.2 beta is 19222.
Once you click on the link above it will take you to the 1.9.2 Public Beta section of ScratchLIVE.net.
At the top of that thread you will see, " The beta area is here" and a red serato.com link.
Click on that link to be taken to the Serato.com 1.9.2 Public Beta section.
From there, click on the release candidate 3 and scroll down to the bottom of the thread to see the current 1.9.2 (19222) link for download.
Install it and let us know your findings.

If that still doesn't work and your wanting a quick fix you could click the 'files' tab, locate your iTunes Music folder, and drag/drop that folder into the 'all' section of SSL.
That will import everything in your iTunes Music folder into SSL's database.

I've been having the same problem, although I seem to have lost all of my Playlists from iTunes also. It's pretty frustrating as I sub-genre my music using iTunes Playlists.

I've tried upgrading to the new Beta version and it recognises my iTunes library now (which it didn't before) but still doesn't recognise crates and I'm having to manually load tracks in as described above.

Fingers crossed a fix for this comes soon!

Oh aye, it's Vista I'm using with the latest version on iTunes.

StuFos,

Know that the iTunes library is now collapse-able and is collapsed the first time you open SSL after updating to 1.9.1.
If you see a little arrow to the left of the iTunes Music folder in the crate section of SSL click on it and your playlists should then show up.
If your still having issues please post in your own thread so we can keep this current discussion on track. Thanks:)

still no luck with the newest beta version. as far as temp fix it works to load songs in manually. For whatever reason it seems like scratch live is reading an old library file, that is one of the "previous itunes library" files. Is there any way i can change which file it reads?

stuFos,

Not sure if this is what you're talking about. But if you are missing your playlists in itunes itself, hold down alt when opening itunes and it allows you to choose an older library to load from. You can choose the most recent library that still has all your playlists.

Try this:

Make sure all programs are completely shut down.

1.Open your 'My music' folder(PC) or 'Music' folder(Mac).
2.Open your 'iTunes' folder.
3.Drag the 'iTunes Music Library.xml' file to your desktop.
4.Open iTunes.
5.Shut down iTunes.

After that delete your databaseV2 files on both your internal and external drives (if your using one) and then open SSL.

Any luck?

who is that directed to?

Sorry man.. that was for you:)

scratch live says "itunes library import complete." However, no media or CUSTOM playlists are visible in scratch live, only the standard playlists that itunes makes for you are visible(they are empty).

Shut down all programs completely.
Open your iTunes folder located in your Music folder.
Double click on the 'iTunes Library' file (it has an iTunes logo next to it).
This will open up iTunes showing you the library that SSL should be reading.
Do you see your files and playlists?

yup it shows everything perfectly in itunes.

yo what should i do with that file you told me to put on the desktop? "itunes music library.xml"

You can delete it.


Do all of your files play?

Also.. how many iTunes folders do you have in your Music folder?

yes all files play. just one "itunes" folder inside the music folder. Inside that there are several itunes files and folders. there's a bunch of "previous itunes library" files.

Try this:

Shut down all programs completely.
Open the iTunes folder.
Drag/drop the iTunes Library (iTune's database file that has a musical note icon next to it) to your desktop.
Open iTunes.
You should have an empty library at this point.
Now click on the 'file' column, then 'library' and then choose 'import playlist'.
Locate the iTunes Library.xml file stored in your iTunes folder and import it into iTunes.

Let it calculate the library again.
Once done, shut down iTUnes completely (I would suggest using the Apple/command + q) and then open SSL.

Any luck?

i don't want to mess up my library and lose all my playlists... that almost happened to me before and that would be a nightmare. The file that i am supposed to import back in.. is that the same one i drag to my desktop?

ok i tried dragging that file to my desktop and opening itunes. itunes does not open with a blank library.

If you rename the whole iTunes folder and then open iTunes is it completely empty?

do you guys think you will come out with a fix or patch for this?

I'm not convinced its an issue with SSL yet.

Please answer my question above and we'll go from there.

ok. No itunes still opens with all files. I renamed the folder to my last name when i tried it. Please note that itunes is opening from a "previous itunes library" folder as it states across the top of the itunes program when running. I do not know which folder exactly it is opening from as there are several previous libraries. Nor do i know why it is opening from this folder. I do know that whenever i download music it is still automatically shared with the itunes--> itunes music folder as i have set in the preferences.

Ok.. we're starting to narrow down the problem.
If you open your preferences... where is iTunes looking for the iTunes Music folder?
What is the file path?

if you are referring to the "itunes media folder selection" box under the advanced tab in preferences then: before i started this discussion it was looking in users / (me) / music / itunes / previous itunes libraries / itunes music

but before i started the discussion i corrected that to....

users / (me) / music / itunes / itunes music

this is where all new and old files are currently stored and copied to after downloading.

Please upload your iTunes Library.xml file to this thread via the 'attach a file' link.
You will find that file in your iTunes folder and it will have a piece of paper icon next to it with some scribble on it.
That should help shed some light as to what is going on.

i had moved that out to my desktop as directed to before. so there was no longer one in the folder but here is the one from my desktop which i believe is a bit outdated....

is there any limit to the amount of songs scratch live can hold? that seems to be part of the problem it only loads around 3500 songs (manually, not through itunes). i think its taking the most recent ones.

Hi timbo slice,


No there's no limit, it's probably loading songs that are in crates, or songs that you have imported directly into your library without using iTunes.

It sounds like your system is now in a rather confused state, and it might take a little bit to get things sorted, so please bear with us and we'll try to help you fix things. I'm probably going to need to ask a few questions, I'll only ask things I really need an answer to so I need you to be clear with your answers and ask me about anything you don't understand. Please don't rush ahead and move a whole lot of files around or things may get worse. If you copy each question into your reply and answer just underneath it will be easier to see clearly what's happening.

My impression is that this isn't a problem with Scratch Live at all, it sounds like the whole issue lies with iTunes - where it's reading your iTunes library from, and where it's writing the XML export file to. It sounds like iTunes had trouble updating its library when you upgraded to 9.0.1 and defaulted to a library file in some other location. Once we get that right again, everything should just work.

First let's get you working with iTunes 9.0.1 and Scratch Live 1.9.2 (the final version released last week is build 19222 so even if you installed 19222 as a beta that's still ok). If you're using any other version please update to iTunes 9.0.1 and Scratch Live 1.9.2 now.

Next let's find out which files/locations iTunes is using right now for the library files. Scratch Live simply reads the "iTunes Music Library.xml" file from wherever iTunes tells it, so if iTunes tells us to use some old version of the file that it's not updating anymore that's why your changes weren't coming across.

To make things clear, there are TWO files we're looking at here:
1) The "iTunes database" itself, this is called "iTunes Library" in Finder.
2) The "iTunes XML" file, this is called "iTunes Music Library.xml" in Finder.
Both files normally live in the main "~/Music/iTunes/" folder.

Now for the questions:

1) Do you currently have both "iTunes Library" and "iTunes Music Library.xml" in the main iTunes folder?

2) Take note of the time on your computer clock. Open iTunes, and make some changes to a playlist (like make a new one and add a couple of tracks to it), then quit from iTunes. Take note of the time again.

3) Check the "Modified" time property of both the iTunes database and XML files (in the main iTunes folder). They should both show whatever time it was when you did the previous step. If the files were there in step 1), what date/time do they show?

4) If the files weren't there, try to find an iTunes database and and XML file with a Modified time that matches the time of the iTunes session in step 2). You might find one or both of them in the "Previous iTunes Libraries" folder. There's a chance that the database file might now be called something slightly different, if iTunes is using one of the backup databases for example. If you manage to find them, post the location of the folder that each of them is in...

Once we have confirmed what's going on I can help you get things back in the right place.

Now for the questions:

1) Do you currently have both "iTunes Library" and "iTunes Music Library.xml" in the main iTunes folder?

2) Take note of the time on your computer clock. Open iTunes, and make some changes to a playlist (like make a new one and add a couple of tracks to it), then quit from iTunes. Take note of the time again.

3) Check the "Modified" time property of both the iTunes database and XML files (in the main iTunes folder). They should both show whatever time it was when you did the previous step. If the files were there in step 1), what date/time do they show?

4) If the files weren't there, try to find an iTunes database and and XML file with a Modified time that matches the time of the iTunes session in step 2). You might find one or both of them in the "Previous iTunes Libraries" folder. There's a chance that the database file might now be called something slightly different, if iTunes is using one of the backup databases for example. If you manage to find them, post the location of the folder that each of them is in...

Once we have confirmed what's going on I can help you get things back in the right place.


1) I checked the path ~/music/itunes and both the xml and database file are there. I know that the xml file had previously been on my desktop and I recently moved it back in there. Before I proceeded to step 2, I checked the last modified dates. On the xml file it was 10/16/09 and on the database file it was 10/21/2009. Today is 10/30/09 and I have made changes in itunes after both of those listed dates.

2) 3:46pm on 10/30/09 i created a playlist and added five tracks. Quit itunes at 3:47pm on 10/30/09.

3)both files in the main folder still show the same dates as they did when i checked them in step 1 (i.e., xml = 10/16/09 and database = 10/21/09).

4) I have found several xml and database files (3 .xml files and various database files with different dates in each of their filenames). No versions of either the xml or database file that i have located show the modified date from the session in step 2.


Thank you for taking the time and consideration to help me. This is very frustrating.

1) I checked the path ~/music/itunes and both the xml and database file are there. I know that the xml file had previously been on my desktop and I recently moved it back in there. Before I proceeded to step 2, I checked the last modified dates. On the xml file it was 10/16/09 and on the database file it was 10/21/2009. Today is 10/30/09 and I have made changes in itunes after both of those listed dates.

2) 3:46pm on 10/30/09 i created a playlist and added five tracks. Quit itunes at 3:47pm on 10/30/09.

3)both files in the main folder still show the same dates as they did when i checked them in step 1 (i.e., xml = 10/16/09 and database = 10/21/09).

4) I have found several xml and database files (3 .xml files and various database files with different dates in each of their filenames). No versions of either the xml or database file that i have located show the modified date from the session in step 2.


Thank you for taking the time and consideration to help me. This is very frustrating.

Wow that's really odd, it has to be somewhere...

Can you find it using a Spotlight search in Finder, by looking for "iTunes Library" - or is that what you've already tried?

If you can find the library that's currently being used, try this:

- Close iTunes if it's open.

- Copy both the database and the XML file from Music/iTunes/ into some other folder - for example make a folder inthe Previous Libraries folder called "October 09" and copy the files into that.

- Copy the current library and XML file from wherever you find them into the main iTunes folder (overwriting the originals).

- Now open iTunes and immediately after you click/double-click to open it, hold down the Option key. A dialog will pop up asking you to "Choose iTunes Library".

- Click "Choose Library..." and navigate to your Music/iTunes folder. Select the (now most recent) "iTunes Library" file and open that. If you accidentally double-click the iTuens folder and there's only one library file in there it will do this automatically, but if you want to be sure, select the file itself.

- Now make a small change in the library like you did before, then close iTunes. Check the dates on the database and XML file.

- Try opening Scratch Live and see if things are sorted now.

If you absolutely cannot locate the current library file anywhere at all, you could try using the same trick to force iTUnes back into using the library dated 10/21/09, although you'll lost any changes you made since then.

How did that go?

yes i tried searching for it in finder. No luck. What if i try exporting the current library and using your directions on that xml file? I'll move out the current ~/music/itunes - xml/database files to another location and export the new xml in their place. I can create the xml file, but do you know if itunes will automatically create another database file?

also, please note that scratch live is currently not showing ANY files through itunes. It only shows empty standard itunes playlists (that is - recently added, top 25 most played, recently played, etc.).

i've located a current database file. I've relocated it to the ~/itunes/music folder and itunes is now loading from there. all i need now is a current xml file in that folder. any ideas how to get itunes to create one that will work with the current database file?

sorry for all the posts --

Scratch live is now telling me "itunes library not found." I am running scratch live 1.9.2 (19222) and itunes 9.0.1.

ok so i've now lost all my playlists in itunes by messing around with these files trying to coordinate them properly. ive ended up rebuilding my itunes library by adding in all my files manually. even by creating a new database and xml file and loading all songs, the xml file does not update (that is - the modified time does not change) and it does not match up with scratch live.

Hi timbo, it looks like a lot has happened here...

...

That's pretty much the reason I offered you the above advice. Let's try not to prolong our suffering here.

So you now have iTunes using a database in the main folder, is that correct?

My first piece of advice about trying to create an entirely fresh iTunes library would have been to test it after adding only a handful of songs, preferably by importing some fresh from a legitimate audio CD to avoid any mess-ups with bad metadata that can happen with downloaded files of dubious origin.

If you really want to try and get your old library back and you haven't destroyed or lost the files:
- Quit iTunes if it's running.
- Copy (don't just drag it) the most recent library backup (named something like "iTunes Library mm-dd-09" from the Previous iTunes libraries folder into the main iTunes folder.
- Rename "iTunes Library" to "iTunes Library new".
- Rename the file you copied from "iTunes Library mm-dd-09" to "iTunes Library".
- Open iTunes.
- If you don't see something resembling your old library now then you'll have to make do with a fresh library - quit iTunes, and reverse this process.

The XML file doesn't need to be created, under normal circumstances iTunes will create this file in the iTunes folder if it doesn't exist, so I'm really at a loss for an answer about what's happening with that. Maybe it's just unable to overwrite the file that's there already...

If you want to see where iTunes thinks it's supposed to be writing this file, locate the <home>/Library/Preferences/com.apple.iApps.plist file in Finder and open it with a text editor.
Under "iTunesRecentDatabasePaths" it should say "~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music Library.xml" and under "iTunesRecentDatabases" it should say something like "file://localhost/Users/andy/Music/iTunes/iTunes%20Music%20Library.xml
",where "andy" is replaced with your username.

Please, please don't try modifying anything inside these files unless you're specifically instructed to, these files are hidden away like that for a reason and chances are that things will just end up worse if you start messing around in there, iTunes will probably just overwrite this value if you change it anyway. If you get into any deeper trouble, I'm afraid we'll have to get you to take it up with Applecare, as this clearly isn't a problem with your Scratch Live software and we've pretty much run out of options.

This really is the last thing I can think of that might help, it's quite a severe operation but it sounds like the only option:

If you now have a valid database in the main folder (date/time of "iTunes Library" updates when you change something), try this:

- Close iTunes if it's open.
- Delete the XML you made but leave the "iTunes Library" database where it is.
- In Finder, go to your <home>/Library/Preferences/com.apple.itunes.plist and rename it by adding a dash or two to the end of ".itunes", before ".plist".
This will make iTunes open as if it was run for the first time, apart from the fact that there's already a library there.
If this all goes wrong, quit iTunes, delete the new plist file that gets made when you run iTunes and rename the old one back to what it was.
- Now run iTunes again and answer "no" to all of the questions the wizard asks about finding your music etc.
- Close iTunes and see if the "iTunes Music Library.xml" files gets generated now.

If that worked, you'll need to go back through the Preference menu inside iTunes and set things up the way you used to have it.

I'm off for my vacation in a couple of hours, back on Nov 23, so this is the last I'll be able to contribute to this thread until my return. Good luck!

ok thanks for all your help. i think i'm gonna bring it to apple and see what they say as i've tried most everything you've suggested besides the ".plist" suggestion. i did manage to get a fairly recent library back but still no xml file. enjoy your vacation! thanks again.