Is it possible to manually manage music but sync ONE playlist?

[Sabu]

Hi y'all,

I have a feeling this isn't do-able, but it never hurts to ask, right?

I really like managing my music manually on my iPod. However, I do have one particular playlist on my Mac that I would love to sync and update on my iPod whenever changes are made.

Is this possible at all? It doesn't seem to be possible with iTunes's native settings, but perhaps there is a script or a third-party plugin that accomplishes this sort of thing?

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that someone has had this kind of issue before and has found a solution. Cheers!

[cjmnews]

You can use sync to playlist and select the playlist you want. Then in te same music tab you can scroll to the bottom and select the music you want to manually manage at the bottom.

[Sabu]

Thanks for the response, cjmnews. But I don't think I'm seeing what you're talking about?

I'm in the Music tab, and I have checked "Sync Music." This allows me to use the option of "Selected Playlists, artists, albums, and genres."

Below that I have all of the playlists I would like to sync checked-- but there are no other options that allow me to manually sync other things. At least not in this "Music" tab. Is that what you were suggesting, or am I misunderstanding you?

[cjmnews]

Darn. I was trying to answer without iTunes in front of me. Must have been a previous version that had a manually manage music section at the bottom. I even found a picture of it on Google.

So no, it is not really possible easily.

You can do the following though:
Sync the playlist to your iPod, then turn on manual management, then drop on the music you want. The playlist will still be there.

Next time you want that playlist updated, connect your iPod, and click the sync button.
I found the reference: Question about syncing playlists while iphone4 set to "manually manage"

[rockmyplimsoul]

I believe that section only shows up once you start manually adding some items, in addition to the playlist(s) you auto-sync to.

Just auto-sync the playlists you want, then manually drag and drop additional items to your device like you're used to. Once you do that, then on the Music page where you choose your sync options you'll see a section way at the bottom titled "Manually Added Items".

You'll also sometimes see iTunes purchases in this category, if you buy direct to your device.

[Sabu]

@rockmyplimsoul
Ah ha! Thank you for pointing that out (and I'm sure for easing cjmnews's mind)... that indeed works.

However, even given that solution... it doesn't really give me the kind of control I'd still like to have over my music library on my iPod. I think I may simply be looking for a management style that iTunes wasn't built to accommodate. I'll look for another way around for what I'm trying to do.

Thanks again to both of you for your help!

[rockmyplimsoul]

As a final suggestion, instead of manually managing the contents of your device you can manually manage the contents of a playlist, then auto-sync to the playlist.

Wrap your head around that -- let the playlist represent what you want on your iPod. The level of manual control is exactly the same, but you get the benefit of (a) less prone to duplicated items, (b) if you ever have to restore your iPod you don't have to re-do what you manually selected to be on it -- it's already defined in a playlist, and (c) song ratings and play history from your iPod keep your library updated.

Of course, in addition to this playlist that defines what you want on your iPod, you can also sync any other playlist that you want on there.

[Sabu]

Thanks again, rockmyplimsoul. That solution also won't really let me do what I'd like to do-- but I love the concept! I really enjoy hearing other ways of conceptualizing file management. (I know that sounds facetious, but I honestly do!)

[bwh79]

Originally Posted by Sabu

Thanks again, rockmyplimsoul. That solution also won't really let me do what I'd like to do-- but I love the concept! I really enjoy hearing other ways of conceptualizing file management. (I know that sounds facetious, but I honestly do!)

What do you want to do, that that won't let you do? It's always been the best solution for my purposes.

[Code Monkey]

Yeah, short of

1) routinely adding and removing content to an iPod from more than one computer

or

2) ... oh yeah, there is no #2

There is absolutely no amount of control Sabu is imagining that using playlists doesn't give you compared to manual management.

[Sabu]

I appreciate the thoughts, y'all.

I think the challenge is that I don't like to keep my music library on my computer, for the most part. That's what makes manual management just about my only option.

I do have ONE playlist I wouldn't mind keeping on my hard drive and syncing, but that would preclude me from adding other music to my ipod without having it already on my hard drive. (I also like to make playlists of music on my ipod, shift them around, etc., and I do use it on several computers--at home and at work)

Manual management is just fine for me. I was looking for an automatic solution to a small request, but it's really not too big a deal for me to do it by hand.

[rockmyplimsoul]

Originally Posted by Sabu

I think the challenge is that I don't like to keep my music library on my computer, for the most part. That's what makes manual management just about my only option.

Yikes, I hope you have your music somewhere else other than just your iPod, you're just one hiccup away from losing it all after having to restore the iPod (not if, but when).

[Sabu]

Originally Posted by rockmyplimsoul

Yikes, I hope you have your music somewhere else other than just your iPod, you're just one hiccup away from losing it all after having to restore the iPod (not if, but when).

Ha! I do. I have an external drive I keep my music backed up on. Of course nothing is ever truly safe, but I back that drive up every so often, too, so I have a few redundancies and it's all seen me through a few dead iPods. All is good.

[Code Monkey]

I guess the part I can't wrap my head around is why you're doing this. My library is, just for music, over 200GB, a stupidly large music library by most standards. It exists on 2 different hard drives in my computer so if one fails there's a redundant backup that I can switch to in less than 5 minutes. Even with 400GB devoted to just the music on my computer, I still have well over 2TB left over for everything else, and this is not a high end rig by any stretch of the imagination.

Even if you're using a laptop, $100 will buy you an external that will comfortably hold over a TB of data.

I'm just trying to imagine what possible good reason could you have for making everything about managing your iPod more difficult on purpose?

[ScoobZ]

Originally Posted by Code Monkey

I'm just trying to imagine what possible good reason could you have for making everything about managing your iPod more difficult on purpose?

I think I remember a document mentioning something about a ball gag and music management. LOL!!

;-)