Cleaning Up iTunes Library: Organizing Loose Tracks

When it comes to moving your CD library from spindles/cases and into digital format, iTunes has been a great tool to use for importing music. It's great to be able to quickly skip through your library of hundreds of albums as fast as you can scroll a mouse or swipe your finger.This saves us from searching through several spindles of music CD's and not remembering what tracks are on the CD or if the CD still plays without skipping. Migrating favorite memories such as music has been the thing to do for many people wishing to shrink their large libraries for a more mobile and faster option.

With saying all that, I find that one of the things that annoy me about the digital version of an album, is when loose tracks show up outside of an album. This happens when you have a track with a featured artist. All the tracks in the album need to have the same artist name for all the tracks to "move into"  its album title in Grid View.

In iTunes, when you have tracks show up separate from the albums, you could use a program like TuneUp to clean them up. TuneUp "automagically" moves lost tracks into the correct albums, leaving you with an organized music library. Without using a program like this, you would have to manually clean up your iTunes library yourself.

To manually clean up your iTunes library and organize loose tracks, search for an album that has loose tracks in Album View. Any tracks that have the artist's name with a featured artist, needs to be edited to only show the artist's name.

    Open iTunes.
    While in Grid View, search for albums that are loose. They can be easily identified by having guest artist names along with the artist name.
    Click on the names in the Artist Name column in Grid View.
    Once you edit the artist's name, you will notice the library updates and the loose tracks disappear.
    Change the iTunes view from Grid View to Album List.

TuneUp also allows you to acquire the missing album art for albums that imported without the cover art. You can manually run this in iTunes after imported a CD, or you can have TuneUp do it for you... for a cost! We are not affiliated with TuneUp and are not promoting it, however we have tested the software and it did a pretty decent job cleaning up my library. It was very fast and it found many missing artwork (The software has a set limit for trial use).

If you prefer the free way, you can do the following:

    Open iTunes.
    Select the Album you want the cover for.
    Click Advanced, then Get Album Artwork.

iTunes scans your library and tries to match the missing album cover for albums without a cover. iTunes does not always find a match! So good luck and happy cleaning!

Wadadli Technology LLC was starting in 2007. The company's focus is on Information Systems and Internetworking Technologies consulting. WadadliTech has a unique approach to working with clients on projects such as developing a content managed website to a wide-area network environment. Our primary market is the small business clients located in Maryland, however we do have clients in New York as well as over seas. If you are looking for network consultants in Maryland, try WadadliTech.

What Is Cosplay Anyway?

Cosplay is often misunderstood, and often brings up vague images of people dressed up in anime costumes. It can be interpreted in many different ways, but generally it refers to costume play or roleplay with anime or video game costumes. In the United States you can see cosplay in action at video game, comic and anime conventions. In Asia cosplay has a larger impact where it has influenced fashion, pop culture, and TV/street marketing.

Cosplay costumes have a large range that goes well outside of video games and anime. The intention is not to be symbolic of an idea or holiday but to actually replicate the character and play them yourself. Holidays like Halloween and Mardi Gras are generally not thought of as cosplay holidays because people dont actually live the characters and simply dress up. The level of detail in a cosplay outfit is also much higher than a store bought halloween costume.

The range of how detailed a cosplay outfit can get can vary from a upgraded costume kit to a custom made and tailored suit with full armor details, costume jewlry, and weapons. Cosplayers will often finish the look by using a wig, adding extensions to their hair, using hair dye and make-up. Contact lenses are also widely used to recreate anime or video game eye colors. Temporary or even real tatoo's are used to finish the look.

You can see cosplay in action at fan, comic, and video game conventions. Often these conventions have strict rules which the cosplayer must follow. These rules generally apply to cosplay weapons and outfits which are too revealing. The single largest event in the United States is the San Diego Comic-Con which is held every summer. Japan has many large expo's such as Comiket and the Japan Expo. At these conventions there will often be competitions where contestants present their cosplay and are judged for an award. Typically the contests require the cosplay outfit to be self made, the contestant must also have a skit prepared or have some sort of supporting act.

To help better understand what type of costumes are considered cosplay I will list some of the popular cosplay from this years comic-con. Of the video game cosplay, we found lots of Assassin's Creed, World of Warcraft, League of Legends, Metal Gear, Street Fighter, Zelda and the always popular Final Fantasy cosplay. For anime and cartoons there was Bleach anime, Dragonball, Durarara!, Air Gear, FullMetal Alchemist, Kingdom Hearts and of course Pokemon. There were also some good Hollywood movie representations with outfits from Kill Bill, Batman, Superman, Underworld, Resident Evil, Star Trek, X-Men and Lord of the Rings.

Will My Boss Get Mad At Me If I Support Obama?

The other day, I was talking to a fellow entrepreneur about politics and the challenges with class warfare. We also discussed the anti-capitalism crosstalk coming from our current political leadership. It seems as if this attitude has now encompassed all levels of our society. He told me that he was starting a new company, and he interviewed several people, and one gentleman had an incredible resume, but he also had a political sticker on his car. My acquaintance was ready to hire the applicant, but chose not to do so.

Okay so, this brings up a very interesting question, namely, is supporting a failing Obama Administration advantageous to your career path. At one point it seemed as if those that supported the previous administration lacked upward mobility, not that the former president was a bad president mind you, just that the media's perception had changed and along with it, the minds of a good number of Americans.

If someone is a strong supporter of the Obama Administration then they perhaps also support the Affordable Health Care Act. If a small business entrepreneur is forced to participate in that program it could easily cost them $4500 more per employee. In many cases that would be enough to drive them out of business. If an employee supports such policies which can drive an entrepreneur out of business, then why should that entrepreneur support those employees with paychecks which in essence will be used against them if they donate to that particular political campaign? He shouldn't.

Do I fault my acquaintance for his mindset? No, I don't fault him, and although one could also make the case that if someone supports such poor management at the executive branch of our government, then maybe they should not be trusted with making legitimate decisions in a business, as businesses need to make a profit to survive.

Perhaps you might think this is too harsh, and that since we allow free speech in our country, an employer should not make that a qualification in the hiring or firing of a given employee. Whereas in spirit I agree with you, I dismiss that argument because there is no sense in supporting a part of the population which is working to undermine the free-market system putting companies out of business.

Are you beginning to see how the Obama Administration has totally divided our country? The reality is I am speaking from the heart. I truly believe that what's going on isn't right for America. I understand why my entrepreneurial friend is so upset. He is wondering if he will be in business next year. That is when and if he does launch a new business, one which could inevitably provide well over 50 new jobs.

Therefore, I don't blame him one bit for his decision. It makes perfect sense to me. If you are an Obama supporter perhaps you shouldn't tell your boss. I personally wouldn't tell anybody, as it could become a negative issue for your career path and future. Please consider all this and think on it.

Five Tips to Be a Successful Fashion Model

I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of great models over the years. This Spring, I had the pleasure of working with a young model. Rachel Sargeant is a model that has natural beauty and intelligence. She is also a young lady who understands that these attributes are not enough to reach success in the fashion world. Here are five attributes that other aspiring young models can learn from her:

1. Passion: a model must be passionate. When I met Rachel, I was struck by her enthusiasm and thirst for the fashion world. Agencies and photographers want to work with models that enjoy the photographic experience and want to participate in the creative process.

2. Attitude and Commitment: Rachel has a great attitude. She is committed to the journey to be a successful model. At a young age, she understands that it's a long road to success and she has made a commitment to the journey. This includes willingness to travel and leave friends and family behind. A model must have a good attitude and be open to the photographic process. This includes being open to experimentation in order to get the right angle and the right shot. After all, it takes a lot of hard work to capture the right image and it makes a big difference for agencies to work with someone who willing and unafraid to experiment.

3. Self-confidence: as a young model, you need to have self-confidence. Successful models set goals and are not afraid to go after them with a persistent fortitude. Rachel struck me as one who is comfortable in setting goals and not afraid to go after them with a determined purpose In the world of modeling, there are a lot of models and one should consider herself lucky if she is working with someone who is helping her though the creative process.

4. Self-love: There's a lot of pressure in the fashion world from staying thin and fit to alcohol and drugs. Here is an analogy. When you board a plane, the flight attendants are required to demonstrate what to do in case the oxygen masks drop from above. The first instruction is to put your mask on first. This is especially important because if you don't take care of you first, you will not be able to focus on your fashion career. As an aspiring model, you need to put yourself in a position of power. Rachel understands the importance of resisting peer pressure including staying drug and alcohol free.

5. Self-examination and continuous education: great models are not born, they work hard at what they do. As a model, you will make mistakes, your attitude will change and you will grow. If you don't take the time to examine yourself and your attitudes along the way, you will become stagnant. Rachel impressed me by wanting to constantly learn. She politely asked what I was looking for and she delivered. She wanted to be part of the process and constantly asked "what is it that I can do better?" She was very helpful and creative, and made good suggestions I was very pleased with the end results.

How You Can Find a Child Modeling Agency

Long ago, only adult females or males did modeling. Child modeling was unheard of and male modeling was not that common. Nevertheless, as the world became more liberal and with time, children began to appear as models in commercials, magazines and other avenues.

Today, these children models are used in many instances. For instance, companies that make baby products use the models to appeal to clients. Many young models later become supper models gracing countless runways and covers of famous magazines. Children need permission from their parents for them to get into the modeling industry.

Modeling agencies for children

There are countless of children who are struggling to make it big in the entertainment industry as models. Some of these kids go to great lengths to realize their dreams of becoming rich and famous. Some go through a vigorous exercise and strict dieting to maintain perfect bodies. Others even undergo cosmetic surgery to correct a physical attribute they do not like such as small breasts, long nose or eyes.

Due to the huge number of teen models, many modeling agencies for kids have come up to fulfill the need. These agencies play a major part in exposing and marketing the model under their management. It is almost impossible to make it in this industry without an agency.

Nevertheless, people have realized that modeling agencies are often sought after. Therefore, many fraud artists have come up who prey on unsuspecting victims and their families. Many families have been conned out of their fortune by these unscrupulous people.

Make sure that you find a credible modeling agency for kids to avoid this fate. Granted, this is not an easy task and often involves great efforts and patience. Parents or guardians can do a few things to make sure they find a good agency for their children.

Before you begin your search, you will need headshots of your child, a phone, internet and Ross Reports. It is wise to have at least eight prints of your child's headshot with his or her name on them. You will need to buy the Ross Reports where you will find a listing of all child-modeling agencies.

Highlight the ones that you have an interest in and do some research on them using the internet. Once you have settled on a particular agency, write a cover letter in which you explain that you are seeking representation of your child. Include the headshots and resume when sending the cover letter.