Yep, I'm still on the hunt for a great way to blog music.
My goal: Post music from a playlist named Epic on my iPod to my blog. (This is a favorite playlist of mine with movie and trailer music that's, well, epic sounding).
First, I decided to give the feature-rich service LastFM another try. Here's the breakdown.
The good.
- I can create playlists and name them. As I listen to tracks on iTunes I can add them to the playlist I've created by launching the LastFM software and clicking the playlist button while the song is playing.
The bad.
- I have to download and install their software. This isn't so bad but I have to have to launch it with iTunes at the same time and toggle between the two in order to build my playlist. I have iLike software installed and it integrates directly into the iTunes player. This doesn't seem to be the case with the LastFM player.
- I can't import a playlist from iTunes. I have to click on each track and then add it to the playlist. It's a little cumbersome, especially if tracks are already organized in iTunes where they could be easily imported.
- Each playlist has to have 15 songs before a widget can be created. I started adding tracks only to realize that my playlist wasn't long enough. One word. Ridiculous. A playlist should be any number I choose.
The really, really bad.
- Not all songs can be used. Only five of the songs I selected could be added to my playlist. The other eight songs could not be used.
- Not all tracks are full length. 4 of those 5 songs I was able to use were not complete tracks. They were only 30 second previews. What the frak? I want to share music. That sort of implies that I want to share the ENTIRE track, not just 30 seconds of it.
Frustrated, I continued searching for a new service. I discovered one called iMeem. Here's the breakdown.
The good.
- This service lets me upload music (mp3 format) from my computer. It also supports video and photos.
- I can upload graphics/cover art to accompany music tracks.
- I can create custom music playlists.
- I can embed a playlist on my blog or on the profile page of one of my social networks.
The not so good.
- The only music file formats accepted are mp3s. Unfortunately I can't upload music that I purchased from iTunes. This is because Apple sucks and insists on holding purchased music hostage through their m4p format. Seriously, why am I still using iTunes to buy music?
- Uploading music takes time. But it's worth the extra work to create custom playlists.
- Associating songs with playlists and changing icons for songs is a little cumbersome. A bulk organizer would speed things up a bit.
In the end, I managed to convert my iTunes tracks and upload my files to iMeem. It took some time and some real determination but I was finally able to create the playlist I wanted share on my blog. Here it is. Tada!
Edit: I just realized this morning that some of the songs will only play for 30 seconds. You CAN listen to the full tracks (that you have uploaded) but you have to be logged in to an iMeem account first. I didn't notice last night because I was logged into my account. Arrrg. Looks like I will have to continue my hunt for a way to share music. I knew this was too good to be true.
The Epic Playlist
