Comments on: Rant: Can we fix iTunes now, please?

iTunes is a kitchen sink, and it's starting to get smelly. Can someone clean it out? Apple?

[roblamb]

Marketing has driven the current state of iTunes. Keep the focus on one thing. As Apple has added products and features; iPod, Music Store, Movies, TV, Podcasts, iPhone, Apps, etc. iTunes was the most obvious hub.

As for the UI, Apple is doing a pretty good job packing all this in one app and making it easy to use.

Eventually, Apple will need to break up these elements. They're probably working on this already, and knowing Apple, they probably already have the names trademarked.

[planblove]

I haven't upgraded my itunes in about a year and so far I'm all good. I have a last gen 30gb model and I know most of the updates so far have been for the iphone and ipod touch. So now, I won't upgrade unless it finally tells me I absolutely have to. Besides i only use it for itunes anyway.

[albertsoler]

Apple will *not* listen -- this much I am certain. Even so, I will add my voice to all the well deserved complaints. This happens time and time and time again with every publicly traded technology company. They take a really good idea, like iTunes, or Acrobat Reader and wreck it to the point where people are forced to find alternatives. (Foxit, anyone?) Even Hewlett Packard is responsible for their atrociously bloated device drivers/software. These companies continue to add *unnecessary* bloat to these once good ideas for the single-minded purpose of deluding their stockholders that their products have been *improved*. So, equal blame has to be placed on the stock holders for not taking these companies to task.

My experience with iTunes has been tepid at best and tepid for only very brief periods. The rest of the time is filled with frustration.

I received a Touch as a gift last year and I really do love it. But, iTunes has been such a nuisance. Let's put aside all the problems I've had when ever I updated the Touch's firmware. The only features I want or need from iTunes are: syncing, access to the store -- and yes, it's still the most logical conduit for firmware updates. That's it!

Am I wrong? Isn't there an option to play content either from iTunes or QuickTime? Do we need both? Do we need either? Have you tried playing a $2 Star Trek episode from you computer? Plays beautifully on the Touch -- completely unwatchable from either iTunes or QuickTime. So, why force us to install that stuff?

This last update I did, I discovered that some *new* features had been added: Bonjour and MobileMe. I uninstalled Bonjour and disabled the MobileMe service because I haven't yet found a way to remove it. I did kill it from auto starting from the registry. The next time I started iTunes it warned me that it could not find Bonjour and that I wouldn't be able to share my content with my friends --- scr** my friends!!! Let them buy their own cr**!!! If they want to listen to my stuff, they are very much welcomed to come over for a visit. Or, I can bring my Touch over to their place and we'll have a blast! I have no interest in either of these features and I'm certainly not interested in bogging down my already over-loaded PC. (That's right -- I'm a PC.)

I agree with Molly. I will go even further and insist on an iTunes SuperLite (syncing, store-front and update conduit -- period.) But, it isn't going to happen. It really, really isn't going to happen.

[Ian_Morris]

I've always hated the way iTunes treats Windows users like second-class citizens. We should all remember that the ENTIRE success of the iPod is attributable to iTunes becoming available on Windows.

Apple just don't seem to care though, both Quicktime and iTunes are slow as hell on the PC and it's frankly the reason I stay away from both of them. I use VLC for Quicktime trailers -- it can play HD on much slower PCs than BloatTime can. For music, I use Winamp.

My MP3 players are a Nokia N95 -- which is drag-and-drop and a Sony HD5, which uses Sonicstage. And let me tell you, despite the claims, SS is really no worse than iTunes. Especially if you use playlists instead of having a large media library.

Anyway, Apple should take this problem seriously, most people with an iPod or even iPhone are using it on a PC, rather than a Mac. iTunes needs to be fixed, or the company is going to run into a wall sooner or later.

[doctorzal]

Lets be fare, I remember when Mac users were treated like second class citizens. People would look at us and snicker. It wasn't so long ago. Even Norton Utilities abandon us, stating that Mac was dead and Windows was the only way to go. Itunes makes sense. It keeps everything organized in one nice simple place. If you don't like something, you can remove it. No need to go hunting for files in obscure places. Everything is where you can find it. She nevers says it but I think she is running iTunes on windows. It took about 5 minutes to downlond on broadband, and no restart was needed. Having been forced to use window for work, I know that most of these problems people are complaining about are due to windows love of hiding it's components in obscure flies forcing you to hire "a professional" to remove it's software (cause just when you think you've removed it, bam after restart, it's back in full force from that reinstall hidden somewhere on your hard drive)

[Joliet Eddie]

25 minutes to download an iTunes update? I run Vista with broadband and have never had that happen. You on dial up or what? I've kept the iTunes and iPod software on automatic update and so far, so good. Synching seems fast enough and trouble free. I like the audio/video/podcast/online store combination in one software. Makes things simple.

[Joliet Eddie]

25 minutes to download an iTunes update? I run Vista with broadband and have never had that happen. You on dial up or what? I've kept the iTunes and iPod software on automatic update and so far, so good. Synching seems fast enough and trouble free. I like the audio/video/podcast/online store combination in one software. Makes things simple.

[ace10134]

haha i use a Zune, so i have no problems with apple's horrible software or their attempt to secretly infest all of our computers with Safari, just so that they can say, 80% of people are using Safari, when 79% dont even know its on their computer. That's just insane of them to put a web browser with a music player!! their not even the same thing!

So yea i use Zune and the Zune Software is awesome. It looks great, works real smoothly, and i'll try booting it up here and i'll tell you how long it takes...7 seconds, and thats including fully loading all of my album art. And with my Zune Pass, i can download as many songs as i want for only $15 a month. Its an awesome deal, especially since my dad and brother also use it, so were really only paying $5 each for unlimited music.

And the Zune player is awesome! Oh and by the way, the Zune Social is great. I can just go to the Social on my Zune and then see what my friends have been listening to, and then actually listen to the song that they just listened to, even though i never bought it for my device! And if i like it, i just click to add it to my Zune, all right from my portable Zune.

Apple is getting too cocky, they think everyone's just going to buy an iPod instead of looking at the better options, so Apple will just get lazy. Just like Microsoft did with Vista. Microsoft expected everyone to just drop everything and upgrade to Vista. So after a while Apple is gonna get their game together, but only if they have a reason, only if people start buying Zunes and other brand players.

So try a Zune, i bet you'll like it more than an iPod.

[dmuzaf]

I hate downloading this program it takes forever why can't they have a lite version for ipod users? Its slow and tends to freeze up when looking for an ipod, you'd have to be insane to use it as your primary jukebox.

[sting7k]

Updating itunes is probably the worst update process of any program I have ever used. It requires a restart, has to completely uninstall the previous version, deletes all shortcuts from before, and TAKES FOREVER! My computer is only 6 months old and iTunes is the only program that can slow it down, not even graphic heavy games slow it down, but iTunes just is too bloated. I don't like desktop icons and have a shortcut in the quick launch bar near start, that gets deleted every time I update iTunes and then I have to create a desktop icon, drag it down to the quick launch, then delete the desktop shortcut I just created. Some program that supposedly "just works".

[nickj1088]

ok, for one thing, if it takes you 30 minutes to download 60 mb, get a better job and faster internet. take care of that and you could address real problems with iTunes. Like its inability to recognize changes to the files and folders under its command in Windows. It does that on mac... is apple really that lame to deny its larger Windows iTunes fanbase?

[lonefrontranger]

huh. Count me in as someone who has no clue what she's ranting about. I'm running Tiger on a 2 and a half year old macbook and just bought a new ipod and have had zero trouble with it.

I'll add this as yet another reason why I switched to a Mac when MS was so late in releasing Vista. I've heard Windows users say iTunes sucks, well yea it does, and it's because Windows is hell to write software for. Not sure why you wouldn't just use Winamp like I did before I switched platforms.

[anilsudh]

Hi Molly,

You forgot about RingTones for the iPhone!!!!

[Andrew Denn]

20+ minutes?? Come on. It takes me maybe 10 minutes max to update on a mac mini with XP Boot Camp. Either yall have really crappy computers, or you have really crappy internet.

[thatchman1]

This author clearly doesn't get it. An average joe with a 6 meg DSL line can download this in fewer than 30 minutes, and install in about 3. Re index songs? What? Never seen that before. Hm. I dunno, someone sounds a little cranky. Maybe we could just modularize it like linux distros. That will fix the world for Apple users who don't know the first thing about how things work.

[t-zapp]

I recently bought one of the new 3G iPhones, my first Apple product. Being the 3G version, the activation was done at the AT&T store. I got a bit of a rude surprise when I tried downloading iTunes to my main PC at home (running Windows XP-Pro 64-bit, it's a dual core AMD CPU), & found iTunes would NOT support the 64-bit version of XP Pro! (It ONLY supports the 32-bit version of XP). I then tried downloading the 64-bit Vista version in it's place (from the horror stories I've heard, I have NO intention of upgrading the AMD machine to Vista, it's running stable under XP Pro). iTunes basically "wouldn't allow" me to install the 64-bit Vista version either. Have to do my syncing for music downloads through my girlfriend's PC, running 32 bit XP home, which is a bit of a pain. If Apple wants to win over more Windows folks (& I so far LOVE the iPhone!), they should support as many versions of Windows as possible.

[nickypickysticky8]

i think apple is all about having one product do everything... take for instance OS X Leopard. they totally bashed microsoft in the keynote address about having like 4 versions of their operating system.

[greggre]

OK this post is absurd. I just opened iTunes and it took less than three seconds. I was playing music within five seconds of double clicking the iTunes icon. Just because a program has many uses does not mean it is bloated. Your main complaint seems to be updates and registration. I have no idea how it can take you more than 5 minutes to 'register' a new device (ie.. add credit card info).

So maybe you are really talking about the updates. But wait a minute -- it takes you thirty minutes to download iTunes? a 60 mb file takes you 30 minutes to download? May I suggest the problem is with your internet connection and not iTunes?

There aren't updates 'every week.' More like twice a month max, and even then they are optional -- it asks 'Do you want to update.' Usually they take less than a few minutes and you're on your way.

Splitting iTunes up is not the way to go. Just confuses people.

[RRosal]

Funny, I never run into the issues mentioned here on my Apple Powerbook G4. I assume the majority of you griping on here and agreeing with the article are all using Windows, which right there is the first problem.

[DakkonA1]

"Maybe your problems stem from Apple trying to port their software to a flawed operating system"

Or you could take your blinders off and realize that much software runs great on windows? If iTunes doesn't run well on Windows, its much more likely because Apple's programmers were lazy and/or inexpert at coding for Windows.

I don't have an iPod and thus have have 0 incentive to install iTunes on my Windows machines. I've experienced it before, and I'd never use it for a music player or anything else. It's one reason why I've been cheering on the Zune and other players, hoping for a feature-full alternative to the iPod.

Part of my beef, however, is I want QuickTime on my system. Luckily, Apple does allow you to download a stand-alone installer. However, Apple Software Update doesn't bother to allow you to download stand-alone updates--every freaking time they only provide the iTunes+QuickTime bundle. If I want to stay with QuickTime only, I have to manually download it! Not to mention having to deselect Safari as well. This really annoys me, and makes me think even less of Apple products than I previously had.