IDEA: CD jewel case insert file list

[wetsmellydog]

I originally posted this in the main software forum but did not get any responses for known programs that do just this. An excel or word macro can be considered.

I am finally having time to start to put my CD collection into the digital age. ( have close to 400+ albums! Most are from overseas when I traveled.)

I am having a hard time finding a stand alone program to print the track info on a jewel case insert. I searched the forums and found only one program that looked promising but did not meet my needs. My Epson printer has a built in disc printer with software so I do not want to invest in disc label software just to print jewel inserts. Once upon a time, REAL had a program that produced nice fanfold inserts but it was part of the REAL PLAYER software. All I want to do it to list the track info in two or more rows on the insert. Because I am archiving to DVD, there are quite a number of tracks and info to print.

Thanks,
Larry

[Renegade]

I almost responded to your first post...

You will have a hard time there.

First, there are no "inserts" that you can print on. (Correct me if I am wrong -- I've never seen one.) So you can't just print one out.

You will then end up printing on something that you need to cut out. So, count on that. 400+ times. Yuck.

I'd say just look for some kind of printing template.

This is not the kind of thing that most software developers will want to program because the lack of media for inserts makes it more of a niche market. That makes it unprofitable. So...

Now, I could be wrong entirely. I've just never seen anything like that. Seen lots of CD label software, and even know some of the developers that make it. But not for inserts.

Let's hope that someone here can trump my ignorance there.

[wetsmellydog]

I almost responded to your first post...

You will have a hard time there.

First, there are no "inserts" that you can print on. (Correct me if I am wrong -- I've never seen one.) So you can't just print one out.

You will then end up printing on something that you need to cut out. So, count on that. 400+ times. Yuck.

I'd say just look for some kind of printing template.

This is not the kind of thing that most software developers will want to program because the lack of media for inserts makes it more of a niche market. That makes it unprofitable. So...

Now, I could be wrong entirely. I've just never seen anything like that. Seen lots of CD label software, and even know some of the developers that make it. But not for inserts.

Let's hope that someone here can trump my ignorance there.

Renegade, thanks for the reply and sorry for the confusion.

I am not looking to print on pre-cut / formatted jewel inserts but on plain paper that can be cut / folded into the proper size.
The 400+ number is the amount of CD's but they will be converted to mp3 format and archived onto DVD's. ( hopefully reduced to a manageable amount of Discs and physical space. )

Once upon a time I did have a program that did this but after a few system crashes and new computers, I have been unable to find it or a suitable replacement.

[4wd]

Couldn't you use Word, (or equivalent), along with a template ?

That's what I've done for the last 10 years or so.

[f0dder]

The 400+ number is the amount of CD's but they will be converted to mp3 format and archived onto DVD's. ( hopefully reduced to a manageable amount of Discs and physical space. )

If you're going to digitize your music collection, you really ought to use a lossless format - yes, it takes up more space, but considering how much work it is ripping 400+ CDs, it's stupid not doing it right from the get-go... Also, consider using external harddrives instead of DVDs, it's a lot easier to manage, and faster - and probably better chance of surviving several years. Optical media has a tendency to go fubar after not so many years, whereas a not-often-powered-up harddrive should last a long time.

For the jewelcase thing, I think old versions of Word Perfect had a template for it - but it's been like 10+ years since I printed one of those . If you do choose to go down the optical media road, get yourself an A4 paper guillotine, it'll be well worth the cash.

[jgpaiva]

yes, it takes up more space, but considering how much work it is ripping 400+ CDs, it's stupid not doing it right from the get-go

+1!  Also, isn't the €/GB relation much better in hard drives than DVDs? With the money you spare in using hard drives, you can buy more space to use a better encoding for the CDs

[f0dder]

yes, it takes up more space, but considering how much work it is ripping 400+ CDs, it's stupid not doing it right from the get-go

+1!  Also, isn't the €/GB relation much better in hard drives than DVDs? With the money you spare in using hard drives, you can buy more space to use a better encoding for the CDs

Not sure about that - last time I looked, el-cheapo DVD-Rs were a bit cheaper than harddrives (at least when looking at drives with USB connectivity). But you really do want +R instead of -R (which tend to be a bit more expensive? Again, it's been a while since I looked), and if you want the stuff to last, you don't want el-cheapo.

FLAC size depends on album length and the kind of music, some encode better than others. I think average size for me is ~400meg per album. That'd be less than 160 gigs for a 400-album collection. Buy two 500-gig external drives, and you can mirror the collection (store one with a friend in case your house/apartment burns down) AND you have plenty of room to grow.

[wetsmellydog]

WOW! Love the input! 

Yes I agree that the investment in a HD instead of DVD "could" be better, my luck with HD is flaky at best. I have cashed in on my HD warranties.

Now the type of encoding is also an interesting factor...but my reason for DVD and MP3 is.....all current and most past DVD/BlueRay players will play MP3 format music. So if I archive on something that can be played on something a few years from now it is better than trying to match an eide, sata, or ? (future HD format) down the road. I hope to hang onto the orignal CD's as long as the wife allows due to the storage issue.

Yes it could work in Word but I need to import a text file into a multi column word doc that could span multiple pages formatted to the size of a jewel case insert.
I have not had luck with that. I am open though.

I will see if I can find the CD I have that has the fanfold output from the REAL player and post that for reference.

Thanks again for the advice. 

[f0dder]

Yes I agree that the investment in a HD instead of DVD "could" be better, my luck with HD is flaky at best. I have cashed in on my HD warranties.

Everything dies eventually, hence the suggestion to keep two copies of the collection

Now the type of encoding is also an interesting factor...but my reason for DVD and MP3 is.....all current and most past DVD/BlueRay players will play MP3 format music.

Kinda-sorta makes sense, I guess, but I personally wouldn't sacrifice quality for that. Also, having to locate CDs/DVDs when you want to hear music? I ain't ever going back to that, proper media players ftw. I still buy CDs, but that's because I like artwork - if there were some decent DRM-free FLAC shops that also offered nice artwork, I'd consider scrapping the discs entirely.

So if I archive on something that can be played on something a few years from now it is better than trying to match an eide, sata, or ? (future HD format) down the road.

USB is going to be with us for quite a while. Yeah, probably not forever, but optical discs definitely don't last forever, either. I bet that, in order to be able to read them, you'd need to re-copy DVDs more than once before USB mass storage devices and the NTFS filesystem is no longer readable.

Also, even if you can't tell the difference between 320kbps MP3 and no-quality-lost FLACs today (I'll be honest and admit that I definitely can't on just about anything), who knows what quality audio gear you might purchase in the future? Better not throwing quality away

[jgpaiva]

Also, even if you can't tell the difference between 320kbps MP3 and no-quality-lost FLACs today (I'll be honest and admit that I definitely can't on just about anything), who knows what quality audio gear you might purchase in the future? Better not throwing quality away

+1! Also, music that may sound OK in bad hardware, may in fact sound terrible in good gear. Recently I had problems with some MP3s that sounded OK in my macbook's terrible speakers, but when I tried them on decent headphones, they gave me headaches due to background noise.

[nosh]

Some music doesn't deserve to be ripped to flac.  

On a slight tangent, production value has such a huge impact on sound quality. For instance, every track this artist releases, [the track linked to streams @128 kbps - the download's @320] sounds just as good, if not better than most mp3s and some lossless files I've heard.

[wetsmellydog]

Success!

I found the program I have been looking for. It is called MP3 Printer and can be found here; http://www.bynasoft.com/mp3print.php

It is a bargain for me @ $12.00

[MilesAhead]

I just noticed this thread. I think CDBurnerXP default insert printer does a track listing. I think if you burn as a "data" disc then it may copy the filenames and not convert the mp3 to CD audio format.  The default font is pretty small. You may be able to get 70 or 80 lines/filenames on the print out.

But if what you found is ideal then so be it. Other's looking for something similar may want to try CDBurnerXP since it's free.

btw even though it says "XP" I've had no trouble on Vista64 or W7 32 bit.

[JingleTom]

Given my luck with storing stuff on CDs/DVDs, I wouldn't use them even if my life depended on it. Use a large hard drive -- worst that could happen is that you'd have to digitize your whole collection again.

If you insist on DVDs and haven't found a decent labeler yet, try RonyaSoft CD DVD Label Maker. I know you mentioned you're looking for freeware stuff, but I doubt $20ish is a large investment