Chapter 9. Making the Most of iTunes

IN THIS CHAPTER:

Customize Which Information Columns Are Displayed

Control iTunes from the Dock, Dashboard, or System Tray

Train iTunes to Play Your Favorite Music

Adjust the Global Equalizer

Adjust Equalizer Settings for Individual Songs

Add a Third-Party Visualizer

Automatically Download Album Art

It's the little extra features that make iTunes more than a simple music playerfeatures designed not just to emulate the music-playing experience you would get from your CDs, but to enhance it in new ways never possible before the advent of digital music. By skillfully using the info tags, you can sift through your music to arrange it for playback just the way you want it. Taking advantage of iTunes' integration into both Windows and Mac OS X, you can control the playback and rating of your music from locations such as the System Tray and the Dock without going anywhere near iTunes itself. The result of weaving your computing in with your music enjoyment leads to a jukebox application that "learns" how to serve up music according to your tastes.

To complete the picture, iTunes lets you micromanage the finer points of playback of individual songs, selecting equalizer settings to enhance each one for its own musical profile. You can even install third-party Visualizer add-in software to create just the right visual atmosphere to go with the auditory treat in which your dedication to your music results, and to automatically download album art to add to your music without manual interaction.