iTunes Addons

iTunes is not the best or even one of the faster music players out there but it is definitely one of the most popular ones. If you're using iTunes as your primary music player then here are some addons to improve your iTunes experience. On the other hand, if your iPod is the only reason you keeping it then check out some equally good alternatives in our iPod Tools roundup.

(1) iTunes Sync - Sync iTunes with other MP3 players

iTunes Sync - Synchronize iTunes with other MP3 players

Here is something for those who use iTunes but not an iPod. iTunes Sync is a Windows only program that lets you sync iTunes with any other MP3 player, regardless of what brand it is. For similar Mac alternative see iTuneMyWalkman.

(2) iTunes Library Updater - Sync iTunes with any Folder(s)

The iTunes Library Updater gives you the freedom to sync iTunes with music folders of your choice. Tell the app which folders you want to monitor and it will add them to iTunes library, and sync all the changes that you make to them. In other words, if you add a new file to one of the folders it will also appear in your iTunes library. Works both with music and video files.

(3) Nutsie - Access your iTunes Library remotely [No Longer Available]

I have already mentioned Nutsie in Sync tools for office workers. Nutsie takes your iTunes library file and creates an online copy of it. At the end, you will be ble to access your music library from any web enabled PC or mobile phone.

(4) Foxy Tunes - Control iTunes from your Browser

Control iTunes Directly from the browser

Do you listen to music while browsing web? FoxyTunes allows you to control almost any media player (incl. iTunes) directly from the browser toolbar. Apart from standard buttons such as play, pause, volume controls etc, you also get one click access to lyrics search, artist bios, album art and so on. Works both with Fierfox and Internet Explorer.

(5) Moody - Organize your Music by Mood

Moody

This little iTunes addon lets you easily organize your music by mood. You can create shuffle mixes based purely on the "feel" rather than genre. Although it takes a little effort to tag your tracks it's really worth it. See Moody video demo here.

(6) G Force - iTunes visualizer

G-Force is a really cool visualizer that works with most of the popular music players, including iTunes. I am not really sure about what you get with the paid version but the free one is pretty good as well. It starts with the GForce Premium ad but that disappears in about 5-10 seconds.

(7) Playlist Vault - Backup Playlists

Backup iTunes playlists

Quick online backup and recovery service for your iTunes playlists. Playlist Vault will NOT backup music files but only your playlists so that you can recover them later in case they are accidentally erased.

(8) Bit-tunes (Top Albums) - Donwload 'Top 100' albums

Bit-tunes is a continuously updated source that lists torrents for 'Top 100' music albums from the iTunes Music Store.

(9) iGain (Windows)

iGain is one of a kind addon that computes the overall loudness for each track in your music library and then adjusts the track's volume so that your tracks or albums appear to play at approximately the same volume. No need to constantly adjust the volume of your PC when switching from track to track.

(10) iSproggler (Windows) / iSproggler (Mac) - iTunes addons for Last.fm

In case you're on Last.fm, these two lightweight addons can send iTunes playing information to your Last.fm account. You can learn more about Last.fm here.

(11) [NO LONGER WORKS] TheFilter - Automatic Playlist Generator

If you have thousands of songs and need a smart app to generate playlists then try TheFilter. It's quick and fully automated. In their own words : "Our Advanced Recommendation Technology makes great playlists quickly and easily from your music collection."

(12) [NO LONGER WORKS] SimplifyMedia - Share iTunes Library

Conveniently share your music library with friends and let them stream your songs from wherever they are. You don't have to be on the same network. Similarly you can access and stream music from friends.

(13) Other cool stuff

That's about it... As always, if there is something out there that I missed let me know in comments.