subject: ID3 Tag Editing - Use an MP3 Organizer to Manage Your Music Library [print this page] ID3 Tag Editing - Use an MP3 Organizer to Manage Your Music Library
Originally, music was sold in record form, followed by tapes, and then CDs. Back then we didn't have to worry about ID3 tag editing. Eventually, we reached the digital age, and most music collections are now entirely digital, whether the songs be ripped from CDs, purchased through online music stores such as iTunes or Amazon, or downloaded from the internet at large.
But once you have your collection, how do you find the song you're looking for? By using software such as Apple's iTunes, you can collect all your music in one place, and then "tag" the files with information, making it easy to sort and find the song you're looking for. Songs are commonly tagged with information like the song name or track number. Online stores usually include this information for you, but unfortunately that can't always be the case. Often, when ripping CDs or downloading songs, the tags are nonexistent, leaving only a vague or "Track 01" from "Unknown Album" Clearly, this makes finding the song you want very difficult.So you see why ID3 tag editing is so important to managing your music.
There are two ways to remedy this. The first is to edit every ID3 tag by hand. Play the track, and try to identify it, then go into the song's information and add any details you can remember. At minimum, you'll want to include the song name, album and artist name, and genre. Additionally, you may also want to include album artwork, lyrics, or other information.
However, there are several drawbacks to this method. Songs may become mislabeled, such as being incorrectly spelled, or given the wrong name altogether. Even small differences like abbreviations, if inconsistent, can make it hard to find the right song. This is also a very time-consuming process if you have more than a few songs. Looking up song information online can provide more consistent detailed, and accurate results, but also takes longer, as you must look up each song yourself.
This option is fine if you only add a few songs at a time, but what if you've recently imported, say, your entire CD collection, and you don't have the time to go through them all? There are several software options that can automatically work through any untagged or under-tagged songs, scanning them and then checking them against their database, in order to quickly edit id3 tags, with consistent information, and even remove duplicate songs. If you've got a lot of songs to tag, buying such software may save you a lot of valuable time.
If your music collection is a mess and full of "Track 01" and "Unknown Artist" you can fix mp3 tags automatically in minutes!
Fix mislabeled music, download album art, and get concert alerts with the best mp3 tag editors on the market. (Tuneup Media Companion and Tidysongs) Click the link above or copy and past this URL in to your address bar for a full Tidysongs vs Tuneup Media comparisson, complete with a video tutorial on how to use the software.
