Ludwig von Drake


Jestyr

Member
Does anyone have a clean scan of the lp artwork from this release they could post a jpg of? I'm gutted that the artwork is not provided on iTunes for these collections and would love to have artwork to put in with my blank CDR.
 

almandot

Member
It is included. Play a song and click the 'show artwork button' you can double click it to get a bigger popup
 

Jestyr

Member
When I click 'get artwork' the message in the little window says 'artwork not modifiable' and nothing appears at all.
 
Speaking of Ludwig Von Drake, there are differences in the Spectrum Song on this album and on the version released in the Classic Disney sets. Same style, but a few words/instrumentals are altered.

Can anyone clear up what each recording was used for?

Thanks!
 

Jestyr

Member
It worked like you said, almandot, however it simply offers up a larger picture with no option to print, copy or save the image. I decided to do a print screen and edit in paint.

I still think it's irresponsible of Disney not to provide a pdf file of the artwork, formatted for CDR jewel cases for the iTunes consumer, especially considering this was already made available to customers of the Wonderland system at Disneyland.
 
Make a playlist of the album, select that playlist and then "Print."

In the subsequent dialog box use these settings:

Print = CD Jewel Case Insert
Theme = Single Cover

"Prints a single cover from the songs in your selected playlist or library. Uses the album artwork from the selected song. The back also features the album artwork. Prints in full color."

All of this information (and more) is available via iTune's built-in help.


~HWH
 

Jestyr

Member
Thank you, Howard - your suggestion worked beautfully. Although the insert it produces is slightly smaller than a standard insert. Please forgive my ignorance over iTunes (non-intuitive) artwork printing process.

I have to say I still feel mostly slighted by the whole iTunes thing in general, considering they provide 'sound files' in lesser quality than CDs of the same price and 'manufacturing' my own disc and artwork saves me no money at all.

I wish Walt Disney Records would just continue manufacturing real music products.
 
Thank you, Howard - your suggestion worked beautfully. Although the insert it produces is slightly smaller than a standard insert. Please forgive my ignorance over iTunes (non-intuitive) artwork printing process.

I'm glad you were able to print your jewel case insert. You may wish to check your printer settings, as I just printed a sample insert and it was exactly the same size as those used for traditional CD releases.

I have to say I still feel mostly slighted by the whole iTunes thing in general, considering they provide 'sound files' in lesser quality than CDs of the same price and 'manufacturing' my own disc and artwork saves me no money at all.

I wish Walt Disney Records would just continue manufacturing real music products.

It is debatable if the audio is of lesser quality as the iTunes files in question were encoded directly from the source material. The compact disc 16 bits/44.1 kilosamples per second format isn't without problems either.

Lastly, as each Wonderland Music CD cost $15.98 plus tax, I'd say you saved quite a bit of money on your purchase. While you desire a CD-R copy with artwork, I dare say the vast majority of customers don't take that extra step?and don't incur the additional expense(s).

I imagine many people here share your wish that the company continue to release CDs. Still, one has to wonder how many "traditional" copies of 'Professor Ludwig von Drake' they'd actually be able to sell.

Best,


~HWH
 

MusicMoose

New Member
Regarding the concept of "Real Music Products"...

Remember, in the very near future, CDs and DVDs will cease to exist in physical form, going the way of LP's, 45's and videotape. Everything will probably be bought and sold digitally. I wouldn't be surprised if books and magazines vanish in the same way. Music and bookshops of the future may be more like cyber-cafes, with all browsing done on screens.

Sounds icky, yeah, but money talks. The UPS guys will be overjoyed not to have to deliver crates of books and CDs. And it'll save paper!

I love what's happening with music distribution. The music quality of iTunes sounds great to me (they'll probably improve it as technology becomes faster and cheaper and I still won't be able to hear the difference). My CD collection is now in storage and I've got thousands and thousands of great music tracks in a device the size of a couple of fig newtons that I can carry anywhere, buy individual tracks for, and access anytime.

That's not a bad tradeoff. It's the world of tomorroooooow! :)
 

Jestyr

Member
I don't really know how to respond to this without getting into a more heated debate. You're obviously both of the 'iTunes converted'. Suffice to say, I went through quite of bit of consternation to get the covers to print the correct size - finally copitulating that it wasn't going to happen and cutting a slightly too large print-out of the image down to fit the jewel case.

The encoded sound files are indeed of lower quality than compact disc as once once they are converted from the analog source to digital format the original sound wave is already truncated and the futher compression standard used by the iTunes system compresses the already truncated digital file down to a further reduction. Much sonic detail is lost and yes, most consumers won't 'notice' because we have been conditioned to accept the current standards of all entertainment media (digital television included). iTunes hopes that the consumer responds to quantity over quality and convenience over characteristic. At the risk of sounding like the 41 year old 'back in my day' guy, this is just another part of the 'dumbing down' of Americans.

Just my two cents.
 

MusicMoose

New Member
Hey, Jestyr. Good two cents.

I wouldn't call myself one of the "converted." Let's just say that I think that, currently, the gains outweigh any loss. And the sound quality will improve as technology advances. But the days of "hard copy" commercial CDs are waning. This is not a "dumbing down." One could say paying $17 - $20 for a CD is dumb (and I've certainly done my share of *that* over the years!) Audiophiles will have to wait a bit longer for perfect $500 headphone quality, but it will come.

And, yes, I'm gonna miss the cool little booklets that come with CDs. I still miss good ol' LP covers.

But, imagine this: A world where any song ever recorded is available within minutes for anyone who'd care to listen. A world where, when you move to a new place, you don't have to lug five crates of CDs with you.

Okay, you claim this is "quantity over quality." You have a point, but the sound quality ain't that bad, and it will get better. In the meantime, I'll take the quantity *now.* Life's short. I want to hear this archive material ASAP! :)

And, in the here-and-now, *this* is real: Anyone online can go to that online music store right now and buy a Ludwig Von Drake album that's been out of print (except for the Wonderland system) for decades! That's pretty cool...and it's just the beginning! Now, imagine if Randy started making Disneyland tracks available on an ongoing basis, and you could continually add new tracks to your growing DL music list...adding the new ones individually without having to pay again for tracks you already own.

You say buying music this way is "convenience over characteristic." I know what you're saying, and I agree, to a point. But where's the character in an out of print album nobody has access to? It's weird to imagine a music product without a case, without a cover. But does music *have* to have a cover? Before the days of recorded music, tunes only existed when they were performed live. Now, songs are being purchased, recommended and shared at the speed of sound! They're taking flight, free of the bounds of...

Holy cow, I sound like a 1960's Tomorrowland ride! Cue up "Miracles From Molecules!"

And just as a goofy side note, I'm typing this while listening to an awesome dixieland jazz version of "Swingin' on a Star," that I found on iTunes by playing around with the search engine. That's what an online music store can do best. Provide decent CD cover art files? Maybe not so much.

We're all on the same side, here, really. I think I'm just a bit more optimistic about the situation, because I can now listen to Thurl sing the Headless Horseman song. Anytime I want. Which is probably a lot more often than my family would like.

It's cool, an' it's gonna get better! Smile, darn ya! :) The glass is half-full! I'm even older than you, and I vividly remember the "fun" of returning multiple copies of a poorly-pressed LP until I finally got one without *too* many annoying pops and scratches. I wouldn't go back to those days for anything, though I do keep a few of my old LPs just because I like the cover art. :)
 

Dirk

Member
I am with Jestyr on this one ...

But just some short comments.

>>
But, imagine this: A world where any song ever recorded is available within minutes for anyone who'd care to listen. A world where, when you move to a new place, you don't have to lug five crates of CDs with you.
 
The encoded sound files are indeed of lower quality than compact disc as once once they are converted from the analog source to digital format the original sound wave is already truncated and the futher compression standard used by the iTunes system compresses the already truncated digital file down to a further reduction.
The fatal flaw in your reasoning is that the iTunes tracks in question are encoded to AAC from 24bit/96kHz source material. If the source were a 16bit/44.1kHz compact disc, you'd might have a point... but it isn't.


~HWH
 

MusicMoose

New Member
Dirk -

People should always back up their important hard drive files every now and then. Currently iTunes makes this really easy. This will get even faster and easier in the very near future - and not just through iTunes. Remember, I said *imagine.* Hey, CD's aren't indestructable, either.

Regarding availability and compatibility, we're just at the very beginning of this evolution. Things really will get better. Yes, I'm being optimistic here.

I think it's great that this thread has the Von Drake heading...I can picture him hosting this discussion! I'm envisioning his chalkboard drawing of a crashing hard drive.
 

Joseph

Member
I guess what it breaks down to for me is: given that the Disney company is probably not going to release most of these titles because there is not a big enough "market" for them, is it better to have the recordings available, even if the format is not ideal, or to not have access to them at all? I would answer that it's better to have something than to have nothing at all.
 
It's going to be interesting to see how many permutations of audio formats I'll experience in a lifetime--vinyl, cassettes, CD's, and now, "virtual music." As I try to catch up with some of the recent posts and try to educate myself with regards to itunes--never used it--yet, but looks like my hand's being forced--here's yet another question, using Ludwig von Drake as an example: will the itunes Ludwig CD-R be of the same quality as the CD produced by the Wonderland system?

a dinosaur crying out in the virtual wilderness.....
 

Jestyr

Member
It's going to be interesting to see how many permutations of audio formats I'll experience in a lifetime--vinyl, cassettes, CD's, and now, "virtual music." As I try to catch up with some of the recent posts and try to educate myself with regards to itunes--never used it--yet, but looks like my hand's being forced--here's yet another question, using Ludwig von Drake as an example: will the itunes Ludwig CD-R be of the same quality as the CD produced by the Wonderland system?

a dinosaur crying out in the virtual wilderness.....

You know, that's a really good question, Michael. Many of the burned CDs I purchased from the Wonderland Music system had serious digital...'aliasing' for lack of a better word and made some tracks sound as if they were recorded underwater. Also between some tracks there were horrible pops that occurred. I have several compilations with these problems. So, to answer your question, it may be that the iTunes files are actually of more reliable quality than the burned CDs bought from Wonderland, even though the iTunes files are actually inferior in actual sound quality to standard CDs.
 

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