MetaChat - Ask MeCha - iTunes silliness

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07 May 2008

Ask MeCha - iTunes silliness Help me obi-wan MeCha→[More:]

OK, the r2d2 robot projector thing has still got me drooling, but let me try and focus for a moment.

I have iTunes installed on my work laptop (a Dell Latitude D820 running Win XP SP2 if it matters). iTunes automagically chose H:\My Music\iTunes\iTunes Music as its music store place. H: is a mapped network drive which the IT Gods have deemed to be "My Documents", therefore it's not available when I'm not plugged into the network.

I should be able to change the location via the preferences screen, but trying to do so just freezes iTunes when the "Browse For Folder" screen pops up and I have to ctrl-alt-del to shut it down.

Does anyone know how I can change this location manually? Because of restrictions on our computers, I installed it in a directory that I can access, but I cannot access the registry. I cannot access add/remove programs from the control panel, so cannot uninstall it. I have tried re-installing, but this doesn't let me change the music files location (I assume because of the already installed copy).

My iPod appears to have died, so I want to be able to listen to music on the train to drown out the seething tides of humanity that are slowly driving me insane :-(

post by: dg at: 22:28 | 11 comments

If you can't change the music files location in iTunes, can you access

1. Control Panel > Adminstrative Tools > Computer Management > Storage > Disc managemnt and

2. right-click to change the "drive letter and paths" assigned to your LOCAL Drive/My Documents/iTunes to "H?"

posted by MonkeyButter 07 May | 22:42

No, can't access that. Next?

posted by dg 07 May | 23:16

New data - now that I am not plugged into the network, I can access Disc Management, but I can't add a new drive letter. I can map another path to C:, which seems to create some kind of recursive path, containing the contents of C:, that scared me into removing it straight away (I'm sure it was fine, but I'm wary of doing anything that would require an explanation to the IT Gods. Again).

I can now also access Add/Remove programs, but get an error message when trying to uninstall saying "invalid drive H:", which stops the uninstall process.

posted by dg 08 May | 02:43

You can manually change the deflat My Documents location to your local drive by
--a. Right-click on the My Docs icon (desktop) and select Properties.
--b. In the Target tab, click on Move
--c. in the new window, select XP's defalt My Docs location:
Local Root Drive:\Documents and Settings\User Name\My Documents

But I think iTunes is getting hung up looking for the H drive. If you can get back on the network, maybe uninstall can find the H drive. Then you can uninstall and change the defalt My Docs folder before you re-install.

posted by MonkeyButter 08 May | 03:29

I don't have a My Documents icon on the desktop (or any other icons).

When I'm on the network, I can't access the control panel, so can't uninstall (I can't access/find the uninstall icon that is usually placed in the Start Menu on install).

posted by dg 08 May | 05:15

Oysh! Well, that's all I got. Sorry I couldn't help.

posted by MonkeyButter 08 May | 09:54

This is enough to get me out of lurk mode !

If you press down and hold the shift key immediately after starting iTunes, it should pop up a window allowing you to change the location of or create a new iTunes library.

If I try to hold down the shift key while starting iTunes, Windows does strange icon-selecting things - just press down the key right as soon as you see the hourglass cursor.

posted by rfs 08 May | 10:45

glad you came out, rfs! Just so you know, dg is down under (geographically! dirty-minded little bugger.), so it's the wee hours for him right now.

posted by taz 08 May | 13:02

Hiya! rts. Thanks for learning me something.

posted by MonkeyButter 08 May | 15:11

Thanks rfs! That did the trick. You're my new hero!

*puts rfs on pedestal*

posted by dg 08 May | 15:38

I'm glad it helped !

posted by rfs 08 May | 16:19

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