Author Topic: Lost count of songs played  (Read 1830 times)

[email protected]

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Starting MusicBee today, it did something it doesn't usually do.

I was asked to pick.... well, I can't remember what exactly, I guess a library, but I was given two directories as a choice.

I apparently picked the wrong one. Because although the songs are still there, and also the dates and times for "Played last on" (sorry if I am a bit sketchy, I translate from German) are still there, the song count is set back to 1 for every song I ever played since installing MusicBee in September '21.

I was unable to switch back. Does anybody have an idea what choice MusicBee demanded and where I can change it back?

Mayibongwe

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Not saying this is a solution...but it seems to me that for now, all you want is to go back and choose the other library that was mentioned by MB.
To do that, you have to hold down "shift"  while opening MB. You'll then be asked to select a library. You can then choose the other one and see if it has the data you're expecting.
Favourite song at the moment:   Decode by Paramore

[email protected]

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Thank you. That was the screen I had been looking for.

Mayibongwe

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I'm guessing you've now selected the other library. Does it have the correct play counts and everything?
Favourite song at the moment:   Decode by Paramore

[email protected]

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I'm guessing you've now selected the other library. Does it have the correct play counts and everything?

I tried. However, it said "not located" for the other library. I am not aware of it, but with some action I must have deleted that file.

Following message was: "Library file: 'MusicBeeLibrary.mlb' is missing - this library is no longer valid. Create a new library and re-add your music tracks

Mayibongwe

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Can you check what the "date added" is for one of those songs with the incorrect play counts...
I'm thinking that this had something to do with the files being moved outside MB and then added back without using MB's "locate missing files".
Favourite song at the moment:   Decode by Paramore


Mayibongwe

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Unless you had backups of your library, I'm not sure if at this point you'll be able to recover the previous play counts.
What I'd suggest going forward is that you install the portable edition of MB, if that's not what you're currently using. (and then update to the latest version)
This installation type allows you to have all your MB files under one parent folder. So backing up MB will be really easy (in preparation for unforeseen events like this)

As far as my experience goes, you could have lost your play counts as a result of two things:
1. Maybe the songs were moved/renamed without using MB's built-in File Organizer (that results in MB not knowing where the files are. So data like play count is lost along the way)
2. Maybe the library you were using before also got moved/renamed/deleted...it's the only thing to me that explains why you got that "choose music library" dialogue box on startup

As for the empty "date added" fields, I honestly have no idea what may have led to that. Maybe someone else here does and will comment on it.
I haven't been here long enough to know if this is something that gets reported frequently. But if this was a technical issue with MB, it would have been picked on long back.

I don't recommend using the current library for future use...since it's missing things like dates added.
Consider my suggestion at the start of this message of starting again on a clean slate with a portable version that gives you 'more control' over your MB files.
Besides the two scenarios mentioned above, this is not something you can expect to happen again.
Favourite song at the moment:   Decode by Paramore

Mayibongwe

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...and then update to the latest version
I linked the profile of one of the moderators on this forum. Latest versions of MB are always available on their signatures.
Favourite song at the moment:   Decode by Paramore

[email protected]

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Thank you very much for your suggestions. I really appreciate it. I will follow this idea and go for the portable version.

It doesn't kill me to have lost the counts, although I like that feature and it really works better for me than on WINAMP, which I used previously.

SonicRings

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Thank you very much for your suggestions. I really appreciate it. I will follow this idea and go for the portable version.

It doesn't kill me to have lost the counts, although I like that feature and it really works better for me than on WINAMP, which I used previously.

Word of advice: if you use last.fm, MusicBee can import your play counts automatically so you'll never lose them again. It even accumulates plays when you listen to the same songs on other devices.