14
14
<title>Music</title>
15
15
<para>This section describes how to import, organize and use music, videos and
16
16
photos with Xubuntu.</para>
17
<section id="music-listen" status="review">
17
<section id="music-listen" status="complete">
18
18
<title>Listen to Music</title>
20
20
You can use <application>Exaile</application> (&exaile;)
21
and <application>Movie Player</application> (&totem;) to listen
21
and <application>Parole Media Player</application> (&parole;) to listen
22
22
to music on your computer.</para>
23
<para>Audio files will be opened in Movie Player when
24
double-clicked, but Exaile is better at handling large music
26
<para>Exaile is also able to play audio CDs and work with MP3
27
players. See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org/'>
23
<para><application>Parole Media Player</application> may open audio files
24
when they are double-clicked, but <application>Exaile</application> is
25
better at handling large music collections.</para>
26
<para>Initially, <application>Exaile</application> will not automatically
27
search for music files on your computer and you will have to manually
28
direct <application>Exaile</application> to your music files by doing
31
<step><para>Click &exaile;.</para></step>
32
<step><para>Press the <guibutton>Add Music</guibutton>
33
button or click <menuchoice><guimenu>Edit</guimenu>
34
<guimenuitem>Collection</guimenuitem></menuchoice>.
36
<step><para>In the <guilabel>Collection Manager
37
</guilabel> window, click <guibutton>Add</guibutton> and
38
choose the directory that contains your music files.
40
<step><para>Press <guibutton>Add</guibutton> again.
42
<step><para>Your selection will appear in the
43
<guilabel>Collection Manager</guilabel> window. If you
44
wish to add other locations of music files, press
45
<guibutton>Add</guibutton>, otherwise, press
46
<guibutton>Apply</guibutton>.</para></step>
47
<step><para>Your music collection should be visible under
48
the <guilabel>Collection</guilabel> tab.</para></step>
50
<para><application>Exaile</application> is also able to play audio CDs
51
and is compatible with MP3 players. See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org'>
28
52
Exaile website</ulink> for more information.</para>
29
<section id="music-missingmetadata" status="review">
30
<title>Song names/cover art are missing/wrong for some songs</title>
31
<para>Music player applications fetch cover art and other information about
32
songs from the Internet. If song names or cover art are missing, make
33
sure that you are connected to the Internet.</para>
34
<para>Sometimes, your music player may not be able to identify a particular
35
song or album correctly. If this is the case, you can add the correct
36
information manually by using a tag editor such as
53
<section id="music-missingmetadata" status="complete">
54
<title>Song Names/Cover Art Are Missing/Wrong For Some Songs</title>
55
<para>Music player applications fetch cover art and other
56
information about songs from the Internet,
57
<application>Exaile</application> attempts to retrieve
58
cover art from <ulink url='http://www.last.fm/'><emphasis>Last.fm</emphasis></ulink>.
59
If song names or cover art are missing, make sure that
60
you are connected to the Internet.</para>
61
<para>Sometimes, your music player may not be able to
62
identify a particular song or album correctly. If this is
63
the case, you can add the correct information manually by
64
right-clicking the music file displayed in
65
<application>Exaile</application>, selecting
66
<guilabel>Properties</guilabel> and entering the
67
appropriate information in the corresponding fields, or
68
use a tag editor such as
37
69
<ulink url="apt:cowbell">Cowbell</ulink> or
38
<ulink url="apt:easytag-aac">EasyTAG</ulink>.
39
Some music players even have their own tag editor.</para>
40
<para><emphasis role='strong'>If only the album cover art is missing for an album:</emphasis>
70
<ulink url="apt:easytag-aac">EasyTAG</ulink> since not
71
all music players have a tag editor.</para>
72
<para><emphasis role='strong'>If only the album cover
73
art is missing for an album:</emphasis></para>
43
75
<step><para>Find a picture of the album cover on the Internet.
44
76
<ulink url="http://www.amazon.com/">Amazon</ulink>
45
77
and other music retailers often display pictures of the album
46
cover; right-click it and click <guibutton>Save Image As</guibutton>
78
cover; right-click the picture and click <guimenuitem>Save Image As</guimenuitem>
47
79
to save it to your computer.</para></step>
48
80
<step><para>Rename the picture to <filename>cover.jpg</filename>
49
and copy it into the folder which contains the songs from the album.</para></step>
50
<step><para>Exaile and most other music players should display the correct
51
cover art when a song from the album is next played.</para></step>
81
and copy it into the folder that contains the songs from the album.</para></step>
82
<step><para><application>Exaile</application> and most other
83
music players should display the correct cover art when a song
84
from the album is next played.</para></step>
53
<para>Exaile and some other music players allow you to drag a picture onto
54
their cover art display area to change or add cover art for an album.</para>
86
<para><application>Exaile</application> and some other music players
87
allow you to drag a picture onto their cover art display area to
88
change or add cover art for an album.</para>
57
<section id="music-rip" status="review">
91
<section id="music-rip" status="complete">
58
92
<title>Copy from a CD</title>
59
93
<para>You can copy music from a CD to your computer so that you do not have
60
94
to have the CD in the drive to play songs from it. You can then copy
61
95
the songs to a digital audio player, such as an MP3 player.</para>
63
<para>Exaile stores ripped files in the Music folder (&music;).</para>
97
<para><application>Exaile</application> stores ripped files in the Home folder (&home-folder;).</para>
66
100
<step><para>Insert an Audio CD.</para></step>
67
101
<step><para>You will be prompted to choose which application to launch,
68
choose <guilabel>Open Exaile Music Player</guilabel>.</para></step>
69
<step><para>Click <guibutton>OK</guibutton>.</para></step>
102
select <guilabel>Open Exaile</guilabel>.</para></step>
103
<step><para>Press <guibutton>OK</guibutton>.</para></step>
70
104
<step><para>In the left hand pane, under <guilabel>Devices</guilabel>, click
71
105
the CD name you want to rip.</para></step>
72
<step><para>Click <guibutton>Extract</guibutton>.</para></step>
106
<step><para>Press <guibutton>Extract</guibutton>.</para></step>
74
<para>You can change the default file format used by Listen when copying
108
<para>You can change the default file format used by <application>Exaile</application> when copying
77
111
<guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem>
78
112
<guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>
79
<guimenuitem>Music</guimenuitem>
81
and change the <guilabel>Preferred Format</guilabel> to the format of
82
your choice. In future, all CDs copied to your computer will be copied
114
then select <guimenuitem>CD</guimenuitem> from <guimenuitem>Plugins
115
</guimenuitem> section. Change the <guilabel>Import Format</guilabel> to
116
the format of your choice. In the future, all CDs copied to your computer will
117
be copied in this format.
87
121
If an MP3 option is not shown in the <guilabel>Preferred Format
88
122
</guilabel> list, <ulink url='apt:gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse'>install the
89
123
<application>gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse</application> package</ulink> and restart
90
Listen. The option <guilabel>CD Quality, MP3 (.mp3 type)
124
<application>Exaile</application>. The option <guilabel>CD Quality, MP3 (.mp3 type)
91
125
</guilabel> should appear in the <guilabel>Preferred Format
96
<section id="music-burn" status="review">
130
<section id="music-burn" status="complete">
97
131
<title>Copy to a CD</title>
99
133
You can create your own audio CDs by copying music from your computer
106
To begin creating an audio CD, start Brasero (&brasero;) and select
107
<guibutton>Audio project</guibutton> from the main screen. Then, select
108
the songs that you want to add to the CD and add them to the project.
109
Finally, click <guibutton>Burn</guibutton> to copy the songs to a CD.
112
You will also need to select the maximum duration of the CD which you
113
inserted (e.g. 80 minutes), which can be done by clicking on the small
114
CD icon near the bottom of the window. Brasero will warn you if you
115
have selected more files than can fit on the disc.
118
See the <ulink url='http://library.gnome.org/users/brasero/stable/brasero-introduction.html'>
119
Brasero manual</ulink> for full instructions.
140
To begin creating an audio CD,
143
<step><para>Start <application>Xfburn</application> (&xfburn;).
145
<step><para>Select <guibutton>Audio CD</guibutton> or <guibutton>New
146
audio composition</guibutton> from the main screen.</para></step>
147
<step><para>Click <guibutton>Add</guibutton> to search and select the songs
148
that you want to add to the <guilabel>Audio composition</guilabel>.</para></step>
149
<step><para>You will also need to select the maximum capacity/duration
150
of the CD that you inserted (e.g. <guilabel>700MB / 80min CD</guilabel>),
151
which can be done by pressing the button to the left of the
152
<guibutton>Proceed to Burn</guibutton> button.</para>
154
<para><application>Xfburn</application> will not allow you to
155
press the <guibutton>Proceed to Burn</guibutton> button if you
156
have selected more files than can fit on the selected CD
157
capacity/duration. You will have to remove files or insert a CD
158
with a higher capacity/duration and select the corresponding
159
capacity/duration in <application>Xfburn</application>.
163
<step><para>Finally, press <guibutton>Proceed to Burn</guibutton> to
164
copy the songs to a CD.</para></step>
167
See the <ulink url='http://goodies.xfce.org/projects/applications/xfburn'>
168
Xfburn website</ulink> for more information.
122
171
<section id="music-portable" status="review">
123
<title>Portable music players</title>
172
<title>Portable Music Players</title>
125
Xubuntu will work with most portable audio players, including iPods.
126
Normally, all you have to do is plug the player into your computer and
127
then use Listen to copy songs to and from the player. The audio
128
player should appear in the <guilabel>Devices</guilabel> section of the
129
list which is underneath the <guibutton>Play</guibutton> button.
131
See the <ulink url='http://www.listen-project.org/wiki/'>
132
Listen website</ulink> for
174
Xubuntu will work with most portable audio players, including <trademark
175
class="registered">iPods</trademark>. Normally, all you have to do is
176
plug the player into your computer and then use <application>Exaile</application>
177
to copy songs to and from the player. The audio player should appear in
178
the <guilabel>Devices</guilabel> section of the list that is underneath
179
the <guibutton>Play</guibutton> button. See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org'>Exaile website</ulink>
180
for more information.
135
182
<section id="music-portable-ipod" status="review">
136
183
<title>iPod</title>
146
193
<section id="music-portable-mtp" status="review">
147
194
<title>MTP Media Players</title>
148
195
<para>A number of MP3 players, such as those produced by Samsung use
149
Media Transfer Protocol(MTP). These devices, when used with the correct
196
Media Transfer Protocol (<acronym>MTP</acronym>). These devices, when used with the correct
150
197
driver, often appear in Windows as a media device but can be accessed as a USB
152
<para>Xubuntu supports these devices but requires two steps:</para>
199
<para>Xubuntu supports this protocol and
200
<!-->According to LP: #136061 a fix was released for MTP support, so is the installation of mtpfs necessary?
154
202
<listitem><para>Install the <ulink url="apt:mtpfs"><application>mtpfs</application></ulink>
155
203
and <ulink url="apt:mtpfs"><application>mtp-tools</application></ulink> packages.</para></listitem>
156
<listitem><para>Open &listen;.</para></listitem>
204
<listitem><para>Open &exaile;.</para></listitem>
157
205
<listitem><para>Click <menuchoice><guimenu>Edit</guimenu><guimenuitem>Plugins</guimenuitem></menuchoice></para></listitem>
158
206
<listitem><para>Tick the <guilabel>Portable Players - MTP</guilabel> plugin.</para></listitem>
159
207
<listitem><para>Click <guibutton>Close</guibutton>.</para></listitem>
161
<para>Your device will now be displayed in the left hand pane under <guilabel>Devices</guilabel>
209
your device will now be displayed in the left hand pane under <guilabel>Devices</guilabel>
162
210
when connected.</para>
165
<section id="music-convert" status="review">
166
<title>Converting audio files</title>
167
<para>When you copy music from a CD onto a computer, it must be stored in a
168
specific <emphasis>audio format</emphasis>. The default format used by
169
Listen is Ogg Vorbis (<filename>.ogg</filename> or
170
<filename>.oga</filename>).
213
<section id="music-convert" status="complete">
214
<title>Converting Audio Files</title>
215
<para>When you <emphasis>rip</emphasis> or copy music from a CD
216
onto a computer, it must be stored in a specific <emphasis>audio
217
format</emphasis>. The default format used by <application>Exaile
218
</application> is the Free Lossless Audio Codec or <acronym>FLAC</acronym>
219
(<filename class="extension">.flac</filename> file type).
173
Not all portable audio players are able to play files in the Ogg Vorbis
174
format; for example, iPods cannot play this format. In order for your
175
player to recognize your songs, you must convert them to a format which
176
it supports. Nearly every player on the market supports the MP3 format,
177
so this is usually a safe bet.
222
Not all portable audio players are able to play files in the
223
<acronym>FLAC</acronym> format; for example, iPods can not play
224
this format. In order for your player to recognize your songs,
225
you must convert them to a format that it supports. Nearly every
226
player on the market supports the MP3 format, so this is usually
180
230
You can convert existing audio files to other formats using
182
232
format can be selected in the Sound Converter preferences.
185
You can change the default file format used by Listen when copying
235
You can change the default file format used by
236
<application>Exaile</application> when ripping CDs. Click
188
<guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem>
189
<guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>
190
<guimenuitem>Music</guimenuitem>
192
and change the <guilabel>Preferred Format</guilabel> to the format of
193
your choice. In future, all CDs copied to your computer will be copied
238
<guimenu>Edit</guimenu>
239
<guisubmenu>Preferences</guisubmenu>
240
<guisubmenu>Plugins</guisubmenu>
241
<guimenuitem>CD</guimenuitem>
243
and select the encoding format from the list labelled
244
<guilabel>Import Format</guilabel>. In the future, all CDs
245
copied to your computer will be encoded in this format.
198
If an MP3 option is not shown in the <guilabel>Preferred Format
199
</guilabel> list, <ulink url='apt:gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse'>install the
200
<application>gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse</application> package</ulink> and restart
201
Listen. The option <guilabel>CD Quality, MP3 (.mp3 type)
202
</guilabel> should appear in the <guilabel>Preferred Format
249
If an MP3 option is not shown in the
250
<guilabel>Import Format</guilabel> list, <ulink url=
251
'apt:gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse'>install the
252
<application>gstreamer0.10-plugins-ugly-multiverse
253
</application> package</ulink> and restart
254
<application>Exaile</application>. The option
255
<guilabel>MP3 (VBR)</guilabel> and <guilabel>MP3 (CBR)
256
</guilabel> should appear in the <guilabel>Import Format
203
257
</guilabel> list.
207
261
<section id="music-podcasts" status="review">
208
<title>Podcasts and Internet radio stations</title>
262
<title>Podcasts and Internet Radio Stations</title>
210
264
<emphasis role='strong'>Podcasts</emphasis> are pre-recorded shows
211
which you can download and listen to on your computer or portable audio
265
that you can download and listen to on your computer or portable audio
212
266
player. Thousands of podcasts are available and most can be downloaded
216
You can use Listen to download and play podcasts; select
217
<guilabel>Podcasts</guilabel> from the <guilabel>Library</guilabel>
218
section of the Listen window to get started. The
219
See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org/'>
220
Exaile website</ulink> has
221
further instructions. Alternatively, you may prefer to use a dedicated
222
podcast manager such as <ulink url="apt:gpodder">gPodder</ulink> or
223
<ulink url="apt:penguintv">PenguinTV</ulink>.
270
You can use <application>Exaile</application> to download and play
271
podcasts by following these steps:</para>
275
<guimenu>Edit</guimenu>
276
<guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>
277
<guisubmenu>Plugins</guisubmenu>
280
<step><para>In the <guilabel>Plugin</guilabel> window
281
located in the upper right is a list of the available
282
plugins for <application>Exaile</application>.
283
Select the <guilabel>Enabled</guilabel> box next to the
284
<guimenuitem>Podcasts</guimenuitem> selection to enable
287
<step><para>Click <guilabel>Close</guilabel>.</para></step>
288
<step><para>Click the <guilabel>Podcasts</guilabel> tab
289
then click on the <guibutton>Add Podcast</guibutton> button.
291
<step><para>Enter the URL of the podcast feeder (i.e.
292
http://fullcirclemagazine.org/category/podcast/feed/atom)
293
and press <guibutton>OK</guibutton>.</para></step>
294
<step><para>Double-click on any of the podcast selections
295
to start listening to it.</para></step>
297
<para>See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org'>Exaile website</ulink>
298
for further instructions. Alternatively, you may prefer to use a dedicated
299
podcast manager such as <ulink url="apt:gpodder">gPodder</ulink> or
300
<ulink url="apt:penguintv">PenguinTV</ulink>.
226
<emphasis role='strong'>Internet radio stations</emphasis> are live
303
<emphasis role='strong'>Internet Radio Stations</emphasis> are live
227
304
<emphasis>audio streams</emphasis>, similar to standard radio but
228
transmitted over the Internet. You can use Listen to listen to
229
Internet radio too; select <guilabel>Radio</guilabel> from the
230
<guilabel>Library</guilabel> section of the Listen window to get
232
See the <ulink url='http://www.listen-project.org/wiki/'>
233
Listen website</ulink> for
305
transmitted over the Internet. You can use <application>Exaile</application>
306
to listen to Internet radio too.</para>
308
<step><para>Select the <guilabel>Radio</guilabel> tab and choose
309
one of the many streams under the <guilabel>Shoutcast
310
Radio</guilabel> section or search the Internet for an audio
311
stream.</para></step>
312
<step><para>Click the <guibutton>Add Station</guibutton> button
313
and enter the URL.</para></step>
314
<step><para>Your inputted audio stream will appear in the
315
<guilabel>Saved Stations</guilabel> section.</para></step>
317
<para>See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org'>Exaile website</ulink>
318
for more details.</para>
237
<emphasis role='strong'>RealAudio streams</emphasis>, as used by some
238
Internet radio stations, are not supported by Listen. To listen to
239
this type of stream, <ulink url='http://www.real.com/linux'>
240
install RealPlayer</ulink>.
320
<emphasis role='strong'><trademark class="registered">RealAudio</trademark>
321
streams</emphasis>, used by some Internet radio stations, are not
322
supported by <application>Exaile</application>. To listen to this type
323
of stream, refer to <xref linkend="video-realplayer"/>.
244
327
<section id="music-download" status="review">
245
<title>Download music from the Internet</title>
328
<title>Download Music from the Internet</title>
247
Many websites which allow you to buy music online and download it onto
330
Many websites that allow you to buy music online and download it onto
248
331
your computer are designed to work with Microsoft Windows only. As a
249
332
result, some services will not work with Xubuntu.
252
335
Xubuntu is able to play most audio formats, including MP3, WMA and AAC.
253
336
However, it does not support the various DRM (Digital Rights
254
Management) schemes which stores sometimes use to restrict access to
337
Management) schemes that stores sometimes use to restrict access to
255
338
their music. If you download audio files which are DRM-restricted, they
256
339
are unlikely to work in Xubuntu. In particular, nearly all music from
257
the iTunes music store is DRM-restricted and so cannot be played.
340
the <trademark class="registered">iTunes</trademark> music store is
341
DRM-restricted and so cannot be played.
260
Two services which offer unrestricted (DRM-free) music are
344
Two services that offer unrestricted (DRM-free) music are
261
345
<ulink url="http://www.jamendo.com">Jamendo</ulink> and
262
<ulink url="">Magnatune</ulink>. You can buy songs from both of these
263
stores online, or directly from within Exaile if the appropriate
264
plugins are enabled (see the See the <ulink url='http://www.listen-project.org/wiki/'>
265
Exaile website</ulink> for more information).
346
<ulink url="http://www.magnatune.com">Magnatune</ulink>. You can buy songs
347
from both of these stores online.
348
<!--> I don't believe this function is available with Exaile
349
or directly from within
350
<application>Exaile</application> if the appropriate
351
plugins are enabled (see the See the <ulink url='http://www.exaile.org'>
352
Exaile website</ulink> for more information).</!-->
333
419
The microphone input may have been muted or its volume reduced
334
420
in the system settings.
339
Right-click the speaker icon on the panel at the top of
340
your screen and select
341
<guilabel>Open Volume Control</guilabel>. If you do not
342
have a speaker icon on your panel, press
344
<keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>F2</keycap>
346
<userinput>gnome-volume-control</userinput> and click
347
<guibutton>Run</guibutton> instead.
352
When the Volume Control opens, click
354
<guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem>
355
<guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>
357
and make sure that all of the items related to the
358
microphone settings are checked. Click
359
<guibutton>Close</guibutton> to return to the volume
365
Under the <guilabel>Playback</guilabel> tab, make sure that
366
all of the microphone settings are unmuted and that their
367
volume is set high enough. If a microphone is muted, a
368
speaker icon with a red cross over it will be displayed
369
underneath its volume slider; click that icon to unmute the
375
You may also find it necessary to change other settings to
376
get your microphone to work properly. For example, the
377
<guilabel>Mic Boost</guilabel> and
378
<guilabel>External Amplifier</guilabel> settings under the
379
<guilabel>Switches</guilabel> tab and the
380
<guilabel>Mic Select</guilabel> setting under the
381
<guilabel>Options</guilabel> tab can all affect the volume
424
Click the speaker icon on the panel at the top of
425
your screen to open <application>Mixer</application>. If you
426
do not have a speaker icon on your panel, press &mixer;.
429
Check that your specific sound card is selected in the
430
<guilabel>Sound Card</guilabel> field.</para></step>
431
<step><para>Press the <guibutton>Select Controls</guibutton>
432
button and make sure that all of the items related to the
433
microphone settings are checked. Click
434
<guibutton>Close</guibutton> to return to the volume
435
control.</para></step>
436
<step><para>Under the <guilabel>Playback</guilabel> tab, make
437
sure that all of the microphone settings are unmuted and that
438
their volume is set high enough. If a microphone is muted, a
439
speaker icon with a red cross over it will be displayed
440
underneath its volume slider; click that icon to unmute the
441
microphone.</para></step>
442
<step><para>You may also find it necessary to change other
443
settings to get your microphone to work properly. For
444
example, the <guilabel>Mic Boost</guilabel> and
445
<guilabel>External Amplifier</guilabel> settings under the
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<guilabel>Switches</guilabel> tab and the
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<guilabel>Mic Select</guilabel> setting under the
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<guilabel>Options</guilabel> tab can all affect the volume
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of your microphone.</para></step>