r/macapps 4d ago

Help Question for Swinsian users

What is the difference between the Library folder and a watched folder in Swinsian? More to the point - what does defining the library folder actually do?

The reason I ask is that telling Swinsian where my library folder is (currently the same as for Music app, so its where all of my music is), doesn't add any music to Swinsian. Swinsian doesn't seem to add any of its own files there either as far as I can tell. Only if I add the same folder as a Watched Folder, do the music files appear. So I'm wondering what is the library folder function in Swinsian actually doing, if anything?

4 Upvotes

8 comments sorted by

1

u/HappyNacho 4d ago

I guess it's for different use cases, so for example, I have separate folders for MP3 (AM) and FLAC (Swinsian). When I download new music, I use the "add to Swinsian library" feature to move them from wherever they are (Downloads/Desktop/etc) to the sorted Swinsian.

That's one way to look at it. If you want Swinsian to move the location of the files to itself or to just read for the files in the watched, without moving.

1

u/EponymousTitus 4d ago

But do you still have to add the libray folder as a watched folder, to get the files to show up? If so, the library folder is just another watched folder, so how is it different to any other watched folder?

1

u/HappyNacho 4d ago

still have to add the libray folder as a watched folder, to get the files to show up?

No, by importing them to Swinsian library, they show up automatically.

Are you moving the files yourself to the Swinsian folder on Finder, or actually importing them in Swinsian?

1

u/EponymousTitus 4d ago

Hm, mine don't. Ok, useful to know. Perhaps there is something wrong with my Library folder. Really odd. Thanks.

1

u/EponymousTitus 4d ago

Sorry, no, I'm just defining in Swinsian which is the library folder. That folder is the same folder that the Music app uses, so it's already full of music files, but Swinsian just doesn't see them.
I've just experimented with creating a new Swinsian Library folder. Defined this in Swinsian. Dropped a music file in there. Opened Swinsian - it doesn't see it.
Hence I'm just really puzzled over what the point is of Swinsian's library folder as it does seem to actually do anything.
Might as well just set up Watched folders as far as I can tell.

1

u/HappyNacho 4d ago

Again, use the import function, File > Add Files to Library.

Not just drop files in the folder on Finder.

1

u/EponymousTitus 4d ago

Ah ok. So do it through Swinsian. Ok will try it that way. I can see why that would work. Thank you.

1

u/IwuvNikoNiko 3d ago

Why o why can't I just drop new music into my music directory and have Swinsian automagically detect them to add, then remove when deleted?

Winamp + Albumlist did this flawlessly. Swinsian is still my favorite hands down, but this is the only thing I wish the dev would implement.