Its been a while since I updated the Applescripts for Spotify, it looks like Spotify now supports Applescript directly. So I present the new updated scripts here. Credit Aaron Lidman who first brought this to my attention.

Play Pause

 
tell application "System Events"
	set MyList to (name of every process)
end tell
if (MyList contains "Spotify") is true then
	tell application "Spotify" to playpause
end if
 

Next Track

 
tell application "System Events"
	set MyList to (name of every process)
end tell
if (MyList contains "Spotify") is true then
	tell application "Spotify" to next track
end if
 

Previous Track

 
tell application "System Events"
	set MyList to (name of every process)
end tell
if (MyList contains "Spotify") is true then
	tell application "Spotify" to previous track
end if
 

Preface: This post is a direct result of a very heated discussion with the MI (Music Industry) on the following article at MI-Pro and as such is very MI centric and should be taken as such

Problem

MI Retail stores are fast failing in the UK, and its been happening for years not just because of the 'recession'. The common held wisdom that if you build a music store they will come and sample the wares and buy - bricks and mortar is good. However, as history is consistently showing the MI Retail sector isn't making much out of this philosophy. Maybe there are exceptions to the rule, but at large retails stores with their inherent overheads of staff and upkeep as well as stock - its a complete non-starter.
Read more...

It seems no matter how good a film is, the music that goes with the film is always under appreciated, while there are exceptions to the rule we really should pay more attention to the music, it will make or break a film.

I don't really know hoe I ended up collecting soundtracks, but two moments that really standout are; tracking down a piece of music used the in 2004 BAFTAs and another piece of music featured in the South Bank Show.

The music from the BAFTAs was probably the easiest to track down, I just emailed them. It took a couple of weeks but they emailed me back answer: Whisper of a Thrill - From Meet Joe Black - Thomas Newman. Within seconds the CD was bought and on its way. Its OK if you can email the people responsible and get them to tell you the music used but in the case of my second hunt, the emailing method wasn't so fruitful.

After watching the South Bank Show, I had the I must have that music moment and started on my merry way trying to track it down by google to no avail, I had some idea of who the composer could be Craig Armstrong or Thomas Newman, so I loaded the ITV website and sent them an email. I have found since then both ITV and the BBC hate these inquiries and just brush them off, Channel 5 usually give a better response. I got the typical response, "Due to the nature of the way we create our programming there is no record of the music for each program." I spent another few months searching, and had all but given up hope on finding the elusive piece of music, when i chanced upon a newly upload Craig Armstrong Album on iTunes. I had found it. Finding Beauty - Craig Armstrong within a couple of seconds it was downloaded.

I am sure that there isn't just me who has these little quests, I am also sure that many people unlike me will give up on finding the song they were looking for. I wish the BBC and ITV would setup websites that listed all the music from each program. I think music companies should be actively encouraging the publishing of music in film and TV, it would earn them some points and make some money.

Since my first encounter with the wonderful world of soundtracks my library has grown from a mere 5 hours to over 22 days (thats528 hours) So much so I now have so much music that the chances are that I hear a piece of music in a film or TV program, I will already have a copy in there somewhere.

The problem is finding it.

The more and more I deal with companies and managing networks and working with the wonderful world of windows server, the more and more I realise how poor many companies deal with IT.

Q: "What is the problem?"
A: "I don't really know, but we can solve it if we buy a new X "

Here in lies the problem, there a number of companies that get this crap answer. There is very rarely a person in the company who will take responsibility and make sure their current system works properly before trying new things or upgrading, at the end of the day new hardware is meant to be better right?. Small to medium businesses have less of a problem with this because the amount spent on IT directly effects there bottom line, and don't have deep pockets for IT to begin with.

The problem becomes even more pronounced when you get to a school or college. There are obvious complexities with these system your dealing with a couple of hundred computers and about 10 times as many users, but when anything goes wrong more money 'must' be spent to solve the problem. Inevitably the systems breakdown within a couple of weeks or even days, because the real problem wasn't tackled or even attempted to find a fix.

For the average user this is a minor or major frustration depending on which way you spin it, but for anybody interested or working in tech like me, its like having burnt sticks buried into the back of my eyes. It can't be too difficult to get it set up right in the first place, I like buying new tech as much as the next man (probably even more) but you have to realise somewhere along the line what you are proposing is costing someone a shed load of money and that money could be used better elsewhere, especially in schools.

--Rant Over--