coverity

TuneUp Companion intros Mac beta

TuneUp Companion has been getting a lot of attention for their iTunes plug-in for Windows, and now they're trying to drum up interest in the Mac version.

Basically, the plug-in powers up cover art discovery while cleaning up metatags, automatically discovering contextually-related Web content, and sniffs out upcoming concert information. I haven't yet had a chance to check out the Mac version yet, but keep in mind that it's a beta and there is likely some serious debugging needed.

In fact, the bugs aren't likely--they definitely exist. In the words TuneUp's media relations guru Andrew … Read more

Bookmarklet converts Web pages to CD sleeves

If you've got an old burned CD or DVD hanging around and want to give it a more attractive home than a 100-disc spindle where it currently resides, you should check out Liquid Mongoose. It's a simple bookmarklet you can save to your browser and call up any time you want to print out a protective (and attractive) cover.

It works for both audio albums and movies as long as you're accessing their information from either Netflix or AOL Music. Once on the album or movie's page you simply click the bookmarklet, then print out the … Read more

TuneUp recharges tracks and art in iTunes

UPDATED: Trial not limited to 30 days, clarified YouTube video embedding.

I'm not a big fan of iTunes for Windows. Even though I have an iPod, I haven't used its software sibling in nine months. (That'd be enough time for Apple to gestate a better version, you'd think.) However, iTunes addicts who just can't break away might want to take a look at TuneUp Companion, a neat little plug-in recently out of beta. It does a much better job of album art downloading, track tag repair and discovery, and tracking down concerts by your favorite … Read more

Marketing ploy of the year: 'Esquire's' digital E-Ink cover

In case you hadn't heard already, this morning Esquire officially unveiled the first "digital" E-Ink cover in paper magazine history at an event in a Borders store in Manhattan. The special cover, which helps promote/commemorate Esquire's 75th anniversary edition, is only incorporated into 100,000 copies, all of which are available only at newsstands for $5.99 a pop--that's $2 more than the usual price. Sorry, subscribers, you get a ho-hum nondigital version.

The whole venture is sponsored by Ford and its campaign for its new "crossover" vehicle, the Flex. The cover … Read more

TuneUp Companion cleans up iTunes

I use iTunes on both my Mac and Windows machines here at work. On my Windows box, it's not quite as smooth and takes up a few too many resources, but I still run it to listen to music from other users on my network. On my Mac, it couldn't be better, but I've found that the biggest problem I have with iTunes is not with the program itself.

In fact, even though it's mostly my fault, my music library is what gives me the most trouble. Like most people, I've gotten my music from … Read more

CoverItLive gets live video support, of a sort

My favorite liveblogging tool, CoverItLive (see Ultimate liveblogging tool: CoverItLive), is set to add support for live video Tuesday. But rather than launch its own video-streaming service, the system now lets authors insert video embeds from uStream, Qik, or Mogulus into a live blog.

This approach gives CoverItLive users flexibility, but at the cost of simplicity of use. The cool thing is that bloggers have a choice of video services. If you are live-blogging a speech, for example, and you have a good view of the stage, you can pop a Webcam onto your laptop and stream it to your … Read more

The 404 132: Where CBS is brought to you by The 404

Today's show is all about answering the questions that nobody is asking. These questions include: Is "doing the robot" considered cheating? If California legalizes marijuana, will we need to find a new co-host? Is the vibrating iPhone keypad a curse or a blessing in disguise? When will Amy Winehouse evolve into a Homo sapiens? How can we stop the Ninja Turtles from stealing our precious metals? Do the Netflix executives listen to The 404? Is there a problem that can't be solved with Viagra? All this and much much more, now brought to you by CBS … Read more

Browse Muxtape mixes with Cover Flow

Got a Mac and a Muxtape account? You've got to check out this mashup that uses the free Mac application Fluid to let you browse an entire group of people's Muxtapes without having to click on each one. Once you've linked up Fluid to Muxtape.com's front page, you'll see the track listings of each album in the Cover Flow area below the site. Clicking the thumbnail will take you right to the mix, which is far easier than simply clicking on people's mixes from Muxtape's front page and directory.

Setting up Fluid … Read more

Collect iTunes cover art with CoverScout

When Cover Flow for iTunes was first introduced, I was initially pretty excited. After all, who wouldn't want to browse through their music and movies by flipping through covers? It's almost like flipping through records or CDs at a music store. But once I got Cover Flow up on screen with iTunes, I was faced with something I'm sure a lot of people experienced--there were so few album covers associated with my music library, Cover Flow was almost useless. I've been able to add many covers to my library since, but I still had gaping sections … Read more

Laura Cantrell, 'Love Vigilantes': Free MP3 of the Day

Though she resides in New York, Laura Cantrell has genuine Nashville roots and a classic country heritage, which comes across clearly through her warm, rootsy recordings. On her travel-themed '08 covers collection "Trains and Boats and Planes," she blends her penchant for purebred honky-tonk with new takes on pop, folk, and country forget-me-nots, including New Order's "Love Vigilantes."