Tuesday, September 11, 2007

• iPhone Ringtones - What Did iTunes 7.4.1 really do?

  [UPDATE: iTunes 7.4.2 is OUT.  I guess its true. Apple has finally CLOSED that particular door. I guess we're relegated to other methods. Mac users, try iToner. Windows users, iPhoneRingToneMaker.
  http://www.ambrosiasw.com/utilities/itoner/
  http://www.efksoft.com/products/iphoneringtonemaker/
  Other than that, get AppTap at http://iphone.nullriver.com/ and after installing it, you can download free software directly to your iPhone. One of these is called "SendSong", and lets you specify any song as your ringtone. Come on Apple, you really can't stop it.]
  
  [UPDATE: I've done a bit more testing, and it doesn't seem like .m4r files will sync with iTunes, whether they have the stik atom or not.  Apparently there is something more about .m4r files, that is specific to iTunes.  My guess is that .m4r files are expected to be "protected".  Hopefully, Apple does not specifically shut off support for syncing  iTunes compatible ringtones created by 3rd-parties (whether individuals or Independant publishers who wish to distribute free ones).  That would be a black eye to their image, in my opinion.]
  
  FREAKY FRIDAY
  Last Friday morning, on September 7th, I accidentally came across a procedure that allowed anyone to create a ringtone and have iTunes sync it to their iPhone.  I posted it to MacRumors under the alias "Cleverboy", and the news ripped around the Internet sending over 1,500 visitors to my blog over the course of the day.  Almost before the clock had struck 12 am, and in line with the predictions of some, Apple had released an update to iTunes, rendering the procedure ineffective.  Amidst a swirl of interest, someone else found that they could modify the procedure to get the same results. 
  
  Most assumed that Apple would eventually "correct" that as well, given that they were planning to make ringtones available for purchase this week.  It bothered me a bit, because it seemed at the time that the only explanation, was that Apple wanted to stop people from making ringtones.  It's possible this is true, but there might be another explanation.  They could simply have technical reasons for wanting to insure that people didn't use iTunes to create an unholy "mess" by simply "renaming" a file (regardless of media type). --Instead, maybe they're enforcing a little bit of "intention" into the implementation of ringtones.
  
  DISCOVERY
  I just found YET ANOTHER way to create iTunes compatible ringtones.  This method is probably the LAST WORD on this topic, because I think most other methods currently circulating around the web are somewhat more dubious and intricate (hacking).
  
  REQUIREMENTS
  It requires special software, but that software is free and after testing it, it seems to work flawlessly.  It's somewhat techy, but a non-techy version could be created very very easily.
  
  BACKGROUND
  Here's what I did.  I bought a ringtone, "Geek in the Pink" by the illustrious Jason Mratz.  I analyzed the file for all the iTunes specific metadata, and it contained what is refered to as a "stik" atom of type "14".  iTunes uses this "atom" of data to differentiate the different types of content in its system.  I'd tried this over the weekend, but I didn't realize iTunes would "skip" a few numbers.  Previously, the stik list was comprised of the following types/numbers:
  

  (0)  Movie
  (1)  Normal
  (2)  Audiobook
  (5)  Whacked Bookmark
  (6)  Music Video
  (9)  Short Film
  (10)  TV Show
  (11)  Booklet
  

  
  Here's what the atom tree of my official iTunes ringtone looked like:
  

  Atom "¬nam" contains: Geek In the Pink
  Atom "¬ART" contains: Jason Mraz
  Atom "aART" contains: Jason Mraz
  Atom "¬alb" contains: Mr. A-Z
  Atom "trkn" contains: 3 of 12
  Atom "disk" contains: 1 of 1
  Atom "cpil" contains: false
  Atom "pgap" contains:
  Atom "tmpo" contains: 0
  Atom "¬too" contains: iTunes v7.4.1.2, QuickTime 7.2
  Atom "----" contains:  00000000 00000840 0000039E 00000
  Atom "----" contains:  000016BA 00001663 0000B588 0000A
  Atom "gnre" contains: Alternative
  Atom "¬day" contains: 2005
  Atom "apID" contains: xxxx@xxxx.com (iTunes account email)
  Atom "cprt" contains: Gäù 2005 Atlantic Records/ATG
  Atom "cnID" contains: 0
  Atom "rtng" contains: Inoffensive
  Atom "atID" contains: 0
  Atom "cmID" contains: 0
  Atom "plID" contains: 0
  Atom "geID" contains: 0
  Atom "sfID" contains: 143441
  Atom "akID" contains:
  Atom "tvsn" contains: 0
  Atom "tves" contains: 0
  Atom "stik" contains: Unknown value: 14
  Atom "purd" contains: 2007-09-11 10:50:53
  Atom "covr" contains: 1 piece of artwork
  

  
  PROCEDURE - ONE STEP
  I then took a file I'd recorded myself, and saved as an AAC, and applied the same "stik" metadata to the file using a program called Atomic Parsley.  The syntax was pretty simple.  It was:
  
  # AtomicParsley mmbop.m4a --stik value=14
  
  Binaries of AtomicParsley are available for both MacOS and Windows.  Moreover?  AtomicParsley is open source, so anyone can integrate its procedures into their own GPL software and be iTunes compatible (note the license designation in this sentence).
  http://atomicparsley.sourceforge.net/
  
  The program outputted the new file, and I double-clicked on the file.  The file immediately appeared in my ringtone list, and after syncing, it appeared on my phone without one iota of complaint.  --NONE.
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  What I'm saying though, is that this process could easily be converted into a drag and drop application (like iRing for example).  It could be done with Applescript or Automator (MacOS), Windows Scripting Host or even a bat file (Windows).  In fact, I could create one that is cross-platform pretty easily, and even make it auto-convert mp3 files into aac files so that it can accept the necessary metadata.  The interesting part, is that you don't even need to rename the extension when the "stik" is in place, as any AAC with the ringtone metadata designation will now work and sync in iTunes as a ringtone.  Funny, huh? [Update: In fact, do not change the extension to.m4r, this can cause issues.]
  
  WHAT REALLY HAPPENED WITH iTUNES 7.4.1?
  It appears, for now, that all Apple did last Friday was require the "stik" atom, before allowing a file to be "recognized" in iTunes as something it is allowed to put onto the iPhone.  They really didn't do much else.  The reason the file gives the error it does, is simply because it does not have the correct metadata assigned to it.  All the hoo-hah over iTunes updates etc, appear to be unjustified.  I feel a little silly.  I even tried this on Saturday morning, but I didn't think to try stik values 12-15 on 4 separate files as I should have.  
  
  That would have immediately solved it, and I think the subsequent logical conclusions would have eliminated a LOT of belly-aching and chatter.  As a frame of reference, iTunes uses metadata to designate something a "TV Show" for your iPod, as opposed to a "Movie".  While an audiobook can be set by changing the extension, apparently Apple decided to only honor the "metadata" for ringtones, similar to the way "TV Shows" do not exist as a separate extension type.
  
  Cheers.
  
  http://digg.com/apple/iPhone_Ringtones_What_Did_iTunes_7_4_1_really_do
  

  • 11:06 PM
  • 20 eprops
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