CD application capable of reading CD-Text?

[dbminter]

I was wanting to get some recommendations for what PC software to use that recognizes CD-Text on a disc. Windows Media Player doesn't seem to do it, and, with ImgBurn capable of adding CD-Text to a CD, I wanted an application that plays CD that can take advantage of this. Thanks!

[ianymaty]

http://bmproductions.fixnum.org/index.htm?http://bmproductions.fixnum.org/moreprogs/wmpcdtext.htm

[dbminter]

Thanks! I downloaded it and installed it. Haven't tested it yet. Really should do that.

[dbminter]

Tested it! It choked on my ancient CD-Text CD-RW. I forget what made it. It's a Sony 650 MB like 4x or something like that. It read in the disc name correctly but displayed jumbled garbage ASCII for the track name. But, it did fine on a test disc I made with ImgBurn.

[dbminter]

Have had weird behavior with ripping CD tracks with WMP since installing this plugin. First, it's returned weird results like naming the last track in the list the name of the CD Disc name. Second, some description text appears as random garbage, even though the discs were created by ImgBurn where I set the desired CD-Text to what I wanted. The third one is the weirdest.

 

 

Seems that in WMP is open, the target folder's contents appear and disappear at random! Directories that were deleted randomly reappear. Folders that were renamed from Unknown artist to something else switch back to having Unknown artist as the folder name. Files moved into subfolders are there at one time and then gone at another.

 

 

Now, this indicates to me more than likely it's a drive problem. That it's dying or has an error on it. I ran a test on both the partition and the entire drive itself and got no errors. However, the drive is connected by SATA, of which I've had problems with starting with over a year ago. So, I can't say it's not a problem with the SATA connectors. I can't say just because I installed this plugin that it would be the problem.

[dbminter]

Had it happen again, this time with image files and with WMP not even open at the time. It was with some Thumbs.db files that were lying around in some old graphics file directories. The files were in duplicate subfolders within a folder, so, I moved them to the parent folder and deleted the contents of the subfolder by deleting the subfolder. I manually deleted the Thumbs.db files because they weren't of use to me. I then moved the root folder to a USB HD, but the move asked me if I wanted to move the system file Thumbs.db. There were multiple such files from directories I had already deleted. I said no to moving the files, but checked the folders after it was done. Sure enough, the subfolders in that folder that I had deleted manually were back with Thumbs.db files that I had manually deleted previously!

 

 

This time, it was a different partition, but, on the same HD. Thus, the SATA cable was the same and the same SATA connection was being used as with the previous encounter with this random undeletion and renaming. So, it has to either be

1.) a problem with Windows

2.) a problem with the HD

3.) a problem with the SATA cable

4.) a problem with the SATA connection on the mobo

5.) a problem entirely with the mobo on with the SATA port is.

 

 

See, this is why I hate my life and will mostly likely try to end it again! It never stops with me! Dying burners, dying Playstations, dying dying dying! The only thing that doesn't die is me! I have to keep on going!

[LIGHTNING UK!]

The thumbs.db files are created automatically by the OS. The second you browse a folder with pictures in, it'll just make another one.

 

You can turn off the creation of thumbnails via the folder options, a reg setting, group policy etc... it all depends on which OS you're running.

 

They might even be coming from a 3rd party app that's being used to enhance what the OS is already capable of - i.e. offering to provide thumbnails for formats that the OS doesn't support.

 

If you have a problem with folders coming back after you've deleted them, run chkdsk on the drive and make sure you haven't just pressed ctrl+z or something to 'undo' the delete operation.

 

If they come back and you can't delete them again, it's probably just windows getting confused... it does that from time to time. A restart will fix it (assuming it's not something that requires chkdsk).

[dbminter]

The thumbs.db files are created automatically by the OS. The second you browse a folder with pictures in, it'll just make another one.

 

 

I thought Thumbs.db was removed for Windows 7. I've not seen it in my folders that have had graphics files in them. These files were very old. The file may have even been created by Vista. I don't know.

 

 

You can turn off the creation of thumbnails via the folder options, a reg setting, group policy etc... it all depends on which OS you're running.

 

 

I hadn't turned it off in Windows 7 because, as I said earlier, I thought Thumbs.db was no longer a part of the OS. As you can tell by the very fact that I can see Thumbs.db I have some advanced Explorer settings that let me see hidden and system files. I know what I'm doing usually so I don't like things to be hidden from me. I know what to delete and what to leave alone.

 

 

Hence why the files reappearing bugs me. It happened with MP3's, folders, and now Thumbs.db. I deleted Thumbs.db and it never returned until after I started moving those files over. And, I had viewed the files after I deleted Thumbs.db, so, I don't see Windows 7 recreating them. In fact, I thought Windows 7 had moved the Thumbs.db database file into some kind of arcane area in the Windows folder.

 

 

They might even be coming from a 3rd party app that's being used to enhance what the OS is already capable of - i.e. offering to provide thumbnails for formats that the OS doesn't support.

 

 

The only thing I can think that might do that is K-Lite Codec Pack I think offers some kind of preview enabled for some files. But, those would be movie files and not still image files like I've encountered above. I think, anyway.

 

 

If you have a problem with folders coming back after you've deleted them, run chkdsk on the drive and make sure you haven't just pressed ctrl+z or something to 'undo' the delete operation.

 

 

I've run CHKDSK on the first partition with the MP3's and used Partition Master's check on the entire drive itself and they returned no errors.

 

 

If they come back and you can't delete them again, it's probably just windows getting confused... it does that from time to time. A restart will fix it (assuming it's not something that requires chkdsk).

 

 

I restarted the last time when the MP3's kept reappearing after deletion, being deleted when I never deleted them, folders being renamed back to the old folder names after I renamed them, and deleted folders returning. So, that doesn't help. Never does, of course.

 

 

I still am, unfortunately, leaning toward something wrong with the SATA connections. The only common link between my optical burners misbehaving after they've been connected for a while and the drive with the weird behavior is they all connected to SATA on the mobo.

[dbminter]

I did a little digging. Thumbs.db was removed in Windows Vista. So, these files must have been generated during the reign of our Lord XP.

 

 

Beginning with Windows Vista, thumbnail previews are stored in a centralized location on the system. This provides the system with access to images independent of their location, and addresses issues with the locality of Thumbs.db files. The cache is stored at %userprofile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer as a number of files with the label thumbcache_xxx.db (numbered by size); as well as an index used to find thumbnails in each sized database.

 

However, when browsing network shares with write permission, Windows Vista and Windows 7 store a Thumbs.db file in the remote directory instead of using the (local) central thumbnail cache. This can cause issues when deleting remote shares, as the directory will become locked for a period of time when selected as Windows Explorer automatically creates a remote Thumbs.db file.

[ianymaty]

Did you changed the folder for ripping in WMP? Change it back to default.

 

Do you sinchronized that folders to a Blutooth device?

 

Throw an eye to Startup for programs that you might not want to run in background once with Windows start. Here's a nice proggie http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/what_run_in_startup.html

[dbminter]

I did change the Destination folder, yes. It was working fine before that, too.

 

 

As for any unwanted startups, I've been using MSCONFIG for like a decade now. I even have my Services optimized, disabling the never used ones and putting the rarely used ones to only start when called.

[dbminter]

I'm still a little worried about the SATA thing. The SATA burner craps out during Verify after burning a VIDEO_TS compliant image to rewritable discs, where it had been writing them fine. I can burn the same image to the same rewritable in my USB burner, so, I'm not entirely sure on my SATA side since last year I had problems booting from my SATA HD from time to time as well as problems booting from bootable media in the SATA optical drive.

 

 

So, soon, I'm going to swap out the SATA cables for the HD and burner in question to rule that out, replace the SATA burner with another one that is a copy of it, and see how the drive handles.

[dbminter]

Actually, you know what? I'm tired of this. I've been having SATA related issues since March 2010. In like a year and a half, once I get this computer paid off, I'm replacing the whole thing. New burner in the new machine, I won't be putting in one of these apparently scarred by the SATA drives and instead putting in a new one, with new SATA cables for those drives. Besides, by then, a new Windows should be out, my USB is 2.0 and 3.0 should be in a new machine by then. My machine will be about 4 years old, which is the usual window I have to replace my machines in.

[dbminter]

This plugin does NOT work properly!

 

 

I had inserted my CD with CD Text on it and the plugin in WMP returned garbage text for the Track title. So, I recreated it using ImgBurn to create the new CD with CD Text. I had tested that disc on the old computer and the CD Text work. I inserted the SAME disk on this new PC to test it and it returned garbage text for the Track name! So, I recreated the disc using ImgBurn and tested it again. AGAIN the plugin returned garbage text for the Track name. So, either the plugin does not work or ImgBurn does not write CD Text properly to a disc. This plugin has been nothing but problems on 2 separate computers. ImgBurn rarely has a problem working. Ergo, I lean towards the plugin being the culprit.

[dbminter]

Actually, just discovered it DOES work. It just doesn't work very well. The automatic retrieval of CD Text returns the garbage text. Right clicking on the right pane and using the Read CD Text context menu option DOES return the correct CD Text.

[dbminter]

It also wants to automatically convert non leading captials to lower case in Track names even IF the option to convert uppercase to lowercase is disabled.

[dbminter]

For example, here's a returned value: ©‚þá€H`6¨þŽaÈ(Vž¾èpN¤4{È V˜>êO,4צÔzßc)Êž×(^tle Track 1: In The Navy

 

 

The text should ACTUALLY read: CD Text Test Title Track 1: In The Navy

[dbminter]

Now, this PROVES the plug in is fucked up! I repeatedly used the Read CD Text context menu and the Track kept switching back and forth between the garbage text I posted before AND what it was incorrectly STILL returning as Cd Text Test Title Track 1: In The Navy.

[dbminter]

Ripping returns garbage text data for MP3 file name! 01 ©‚þá€H`6¨ þŽaÈ(Vž¾èpN¤4{È V˜]êO,4 צÔzßc )Êž×(^¼{1ãTIÿvÀ&Ð · ¶‰¶æöÊÆ× Þ.mp3

[dbminter]

Reripped it. Got better but STILL INCORRECT name of 01 Cd Text Test Title Track 1- In The Navy.mp3. SHOULD be 01 CD Text Test Title Track 1- In The Navy.mp3

[dbminter]

OK, I've proven that there are some limitations and design flaws in it, but, it rudimentarily works. You just have to remember to use the Read CD Text context menu item to get proper CD Text and that even if you disable the automatic conversion of uppercase, it will still do the conversion. SHEESH! But, it beats installing something like Easy CD Creator 6 just to read CD Text.

[dbminter]

I'm just going to switch back to Winamp for playing audio CD's! I had switched off of Winamp because it stopped recognizing my CD drives to rip from. Now with all the limitations of this plugin coupled with the fact that Winamp now properly rips and plays on my drives, plus that it reads CD Text and reads it properly, I'll switch to Winamp. Now, Winamp is still bitching, though. One of my 2 CD drives does NOT show up in the Play context menu, but, I can select the drive for playing from the Media library.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

See if you can contact its author (the plugin I mean) and get them to fix it.

 

If you just want to see the CD-TEXT on a disc, you can use the 'View Media Information' button in Read mode.

[dbminter]

It's been like 2 years since the software was last updated, so, I'd doubt it would do any good.

[LIGHTNING UK!]

Yeah but it's software designed for 1 job... and if you think it's doing the job just fine, there's no reason to update it

 

All you'd have to do is get a screenshot of it returning junk and then explain that if you refresh it, it often corrects itself.