Comments on: iTunes Art http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/ Technology and Mac geekery. One part exuberance, two parts obsession. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 13:49:53 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Ymsefisen http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-134342 Ymsefisen Wed, 24 Oct 2007 19:46:36 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-134342 www.discogs.com has a lot of cover art. It's probably easy to make an interface for it as well, searching through their database and fetching artwork. http://www.discogs.com has a lot of cover art. It’s probably easy to make an interface for it as well, searching through their database and fetching artwork.

]]> By: Dave http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-59978 Dave Thu, 14 Sep 2006 07:29:47 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-59978 A new database would be a good idea, but you would have the problem of people uploading crap quality images. No one would ever agree on a standard. And unless a lot of people used it the database would be pretty small. Sites like Amazon, Walmart and iTunes have hundreds of people working on the site and has gradually been built up over the year, not an overnight thing. I used to use AllMusic.com, then moved to Amazon...I will check Walmart and Coveralia out. A new database would be a good idea, but you would have the problem of people uploading crap quality images. No one would ever agree on a standard. And unless a lot of people used it the database would be pretty small. Sites like Amazon, Walmart and iTunes have hundreds of people working on the site and has gradually been built up over the year, not an overnight thing.

I used to use AllMusic.com, then moved to Amazon…I will check Walmart and Coveralia out.

]]> By: Command-Tab » iTunes Art Redux http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-59742 Command-Tab » iTunes Art Redux Wed, 13 Sep 2006 06:04:55 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-59742 [...] Now I can stop wracking my brain trying to figure out just how their new artwork system works. [...] [...] Now I can stop wracking my brain trying to figure out just how their new artwork system works. [...]

]]> By: Joel http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-55936 Joel Mon, 04 Sep 2006 19:00:54 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-55936 thanks for the info. Very interesting. Seriously though... it's not like Apple is loosing money on the bandwidth. I get teh feeling they made a bunch of people mad for no apparently good reason. thanks for the info. Very interesting. Seriously though… it’s not like Apple is loosing money on the bandwidth. I get teh feeling they made a bunch of people mad for no apparently good reason.

]]> By: Collin http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-48951 Collin Fri, 18 Aug 2006 03:57:41 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-48951 I really don't think that a database with user-submitted artwork would be a good solution. It would take ages for users to upload the artwork everyone would need, and never mind the possibility of being sued for copyright infringement. It's just...a lot of work, a lot of dependence on people exporting and uploading artwork for free, and very little payoff. I really don’t think that a database with user-submitted artwork would be a good solution. It would take ages for users to upload the artwork everyone would need, and never mind the possibility of being sued for copyright infringement. It’s just…a lot of work, a lot of dependence on people exporting and uploading artwork for free, and very little payoff.

]]> By: Jonny http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-48625 Jonny Thu, 17 Aug 2006 16:56:26 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-48625 What we need is someone to set up a website which is a database for artwork. People who have bought tracks off itunes simply copy and paste the artwork into a paint program and save the file, then submit it to the site. That way they're all the high quality images from itunes but they're not owned by them. I can't do it because I don't have a clue about setting up websites, but if someone did it would eventually have most covers on. What we need is someone to set up a website which is a database for artwork. People who have bought tracks off itunes simply copy and paste the artwork into a paint program and save the file, then submit it to the site. That way they’re all the high quality images from itunes but they’re not owned by them. I can’t do it because I don’t have a clue about setting up websites, but if someone did it would eventually have most covers on.

]]> By: Olly http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-37198 Olly Wed, 02 Aug 2006 12:20:20 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-37198 I've always thought it'd be nice if when ripping a CD it downloaded the album art from iTunes and added it in like it does with ID3 tags from the CDDB. I'd bet that it's the record companies that don't want them doing that more than anything, though. I’ve always thought it’d be nice if when ripping a CD it downloaded the album art from iTunes and added it in like it does with ID3 tags from the CDDB. I’d bet that it’s the record companies that don’t want them doing that more than anything, though.

]]> By: Dave http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-36538 Dave Mon, 31 Jul 2006 14:52:46 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-36538 Hey Collin. A few random thoughts. The MD5 must include info specific to a particular album so you can't mod the album title in the URL to access others. Probably includes the timestamp to make sure you can't build a permanent repository/communal web site mapping albums to fixed URLs (they're no good after a week.) Might want to include the size info in case you have separate super-hi-res images. All of the above is included as part of the URL so I'd just use that in the MD5. Now, to make harder to reverse engineer include other hidden, possibly static, more probably somehow dynamic (calculated?) info in the MD5. Dissecting iTunes would be the only way to discover that. If this is intended as a generic method to protect access to iTMS URLs I'd suspect the base URL up to the MD5 is used as the only core data so it could easily be applied to any URL. As long as I'm relying on this to protect my URLs in general I'd also put a lot of work into the hidden data to make it very hard to reverse engineer, and include a per application (album art, lyrics, etc) tag in the MD5 just to confuse things a bit more. Or maybe none of the above ;-) Hey Collin. A few random thoughts.

The MD5 must include info specific to a particular album so you can’t mod the album title in the URL to access others.

Probably includes the timestamp to make sure you can’t build a permanent repository/communal web site mapping albums to fixed URLs (they’re no good after a week.)

Might want to include the size info in case you have separate super-hi-res images.

All of the above is included as part of the URL so I’d just use that in the MD5.

Now, to make harder to reverse engineer include other hidden, possibly static, more probably somehow dynamic (calculated?) info in the MD5. Dissecting iTunes would be the only way to discover that.

If this is intended as a generic method to protect access to iTMS URLs I’d suspect the base URL up to the MD5 is used as the only core data so it could easily be applied to any URL. As long as I’m relying on this to protect my URLs in general I’d also put a lot of work into the hidden data to make it very hard to reverse engineer, and include a per application (album art, lyrics, etc) tag in the MD5 just to confuse things a bit more.

Or maybe none of the above ;-)

]]> By: Jaron Brass http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-35792 Jaron Brass Sat, 29 Jul 2006 07:37:30 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-35792 Some friends and I picked up on this awhile ago and they've blogged it. Fortunately, I managed to populate the majority of my music collection [for the Mac mini + Front Row] before they yanked the plug. Heck, I even borrowed the source to integrate into my own site! For some good news, I do know a bunch of guys on the iTunes, iTMS and iLife product teams from my years at Apple, and I've put my feelers out to see if there's anything they can tell me "off the record." While I agree Apple is in the right to restrict access [notice that low-res versions still work], it's somewhat unfair when consumers purchase newer Macs with Front Row and have crappy, low-res album art littering the interface. The answer is out there. Only time will tell if we can beat it. Some friends and I picked up on this awhile ago and they’ve blogged it. Fortunately, I managed to populate the majority of my music collection [for the Mac mini + Front Row] before they yanked the plug. Heck, I even borrowed the source to integrate into my own site!

For some good news, I do know a bunch of guys on the iTunes, iTMS and iLife product teams from my years at Apple, and I’ve put my feelers out to see if there’s anything they can tell me “off the record.”

While I agree Apple is in the right to restrict access [notice that low-res versions still work], it’s somewhat unfair when consumers purchase newer Macs with Front Row and have crappy, low-res album art littering the interface.

The answer is out there. Only time will tell if we can beat it.

]]> By: Collin http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-35675 Collin Fri, 28 Jul 2006 23:45:06 +0000 http://www.command-tab.com/2006/07/27/itunes-art/#comment-35675 Ah, that's true. WalMart.com, of all places, has 500x500 pixel artwork that's decent. Occasionally, I find that they don't have a lot of the artists I'm looking for. Maybe that's my fault for having unusual tastes in music ;-) Ah, that’s true. WalMart.com, of all places, has 500×500 pixel artwork that’s decent. Occasionally, I find that they don’t have a lot of the artists I’m looking for. Maybe that’s my fault for having unusual tastes in music ;-)

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