Apple's iTunes Home Sharing - great, but where's my remote control?

Friday September 11th, 2009

By Adam TURNER

The ability to pull songs off other computers sounds handy but, in typical Apple style, it's only half a solution.

The new Home Sharing feature in iTunes 9 means you can access the songs on other computers on your local network running iTunes. You can copy them across the network into your iTunes library, even if the songs were purchased using a different account (as long as you're authorised for that account). Even this Apple cynic has to admit the Home Sharing feature in iTunes 9 is very good, and I've written more about it today on my Sydney Morning Herald blog Gadgets on the Go. I've also laid the boots in over the lack of Blu-ray playback in iTunes 9.

The reason why I'm so interested in Home Sharing is because the Lady of the House has ripped a few of our CDs to her netbook which I haven't ripped to my MacBook. I could stream them from her iTunes by enabling sharing in the preferences, but of course that requires her computer to be in the house and powered up with iTunes running. Now I can just copy them across once using Home Sharing and be done with it.

Another option is to keep a shared iTunes library on a network drive, but when the flaky iTunes 8 broke this feature on my MacBook I thought it best not to inflict it on other members of the household who want streaming music that "just works". iTunes 8 was a dog that also had some AirTunes bugs, but these seem to be fixed with iTunes 9.

What's really frustrating is that I can remotely control iTunes on another computer using my iPhone, but I can't remotely control iTunes using iTunes on another computer. What I mean is; I can use the remote app on the iPhone to play music from the good lady's netbook to the lounge room speakers via AirTunes. I can't control her netbook the same way from my MacBook. Why isn't this feature built into iTunes? Why can't I use my iTunes to control her iTunes and get it to stream to speakers around the house? Maybe it'll be in iTunes 10. Maybe not.


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17 comments

Comment from: Stephen WITHERS [Member] Email
Can we get past this "no Blu-ray in iTunes 9" business, please?

There was never any good reason to suspect it would be there in the first place. You don't use iTunes to play DVDs, so why would you expect it to play Blu-ray discs?

And I don't get the idea of controlling someone else's copy of iTunes. If you have access to the music on their system, play it on yours (via AirTunes if necessary).
11/09/09 @ 17:23
Comment from: Adam TURNER [Member] Email
Controlling another computer is handy if you're using different computers to play different music in different rooms.
11/09/09 @ 23:10
Comment from: Big John [Visitor]
I like home sharing, I just wish it could reach back home when I'm away to get to the files.. Oh well, anyway my other big feature I want is the ability to print CD Labels. Has anyone seen anything that ties in to iTunes. It's frustrating!
12/09/09 @ 07:57
Comment from: Stephen WITHERS [Member] Email
"Controlling another computer is handy if you're using different computers to play different music in different rooms."

OK. I see what you're getting at.

VNC/Screen Sharing? Only as a workaround, though.
12/09/09 @ 11:22
Comment from: Chris Ford [Visitor]
I had the exact same complaint, especially since I use AirTunes to stream music around my apartment and like to be able to control my music wherever I am.

I have the Remote application on my iPhone, and I use iTunes Remote Control (http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/21518). It's a very bare-bones app, but it does an okay job. Apple should definitely work towards built-in remote control in iTunes 10.
13/09/09 @ 02:06
Comment from: Nick [Visitor]
I tried to sync up two of my computers for Home Sharing, but was having the error "Cannot create home share because this computer is not authorized for (insert email address)" I figured out you have to authorize the two computers by going into "Store" under the menu and choosing "authorize computer". It worked and now I'm able to Home Share.

Hope this might clear up any problems that people might have!
13/09/09 @ 07:23
Comment from: colin [Visitor]
i agree with the homesharing remote frustration! i have my music on my server donwstairs, my mac mini as my media center and hooked up to my stereo. i want the remote controlling the content through my itunes on my mini....

so dissapointing that they have not figured this out yet
16/10/09 @ 06:57
Comment from: Dan [Visitor]
I am also frustrated that I cannot stream iTunes to other compters. For me the reason to do this is not to play different music in each room but instead to play the exact same music (syncronized) in each room that has a computer. This is what I do with my airport express but those are $100 and sound quality is marginal. I would like to send music from one computer to all my other computers to set up whole house sound so as I walk from room to room the same music is playing (like for a party).
29/10/09 @ 02:02
Comment from: Andrew [Visitor]
If its a mac that you're controlling with just use remote screen sharing
02/11/09 @ 01:57
Comment from: Link Wheel [Visitor]
Great site and informative posts.
11/11/09 @ 15:16
Comment from: Episodes Online [Visitor]
Hey good post. I think there is no such feature updated about remotely controlling to another PC.Well if there is any such update please post it too. I have the same curiosity as yours.
11/11/09 @ 16:59
Comment from: Nickerbocker [Visitor]
I agree :). They could make it really simple: have an option in iTunes to make it act as an AirTunes host to any other iTunes on the network. If you select music from that computer's shared library, the AirTunes iTunes plays its own files. If you select something on your computer, the music is streamed to your AirTunes iTunes PC.

Screen sharing is too laggy! I use it only when I absolutely need to. The iPhone's Remote App is a lot slicker.

For my MBP, I use iTunes Remote Control (iTRC) which gets the job done. But a full iTunes integration of this feature would be killer.
22/01/10 @ 13:30
Comment from: http://www.printinghost.com [Visitor] Email
Yes it happenes. the option in Itune acts to host another on network. But shared library should be used there. You have developed a great platefrom for sharing knowledge and skills with eachother. Thanks again buddy.
18/02/10 @ 09:44
Comment from: Ric Wilson [Visitor] Email
You probably have already found this, but it is now completely possible and easy. Using the Remote app for the iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch - connect to the library of the computer you want to play music on (not the iTunes Home Sharing Host) - let's call this the Playback computer.

Make sure that the Playback computer is properly connected to the Home Share and can play music from the Home Share.

Using the Remote app, connect to the Playback computer, and then from the sources at the bottom of the Remote, chose More... then Shared and finally the specific Home Share you wish to use.

The Remote will now give you full control of the Home Share contents, but now on the Playback computer. Works great!
26/06/11 @ 04:39
Comment from: bran [Visitor]
Are there any recent additions? I just purchased a mac book and would like to be able to control iTunes on my PC as I see it on my PC. It has all of my music collection stored and is connected to my media sound system. I don't want the music playing through my laptop at all.

I might be missing something in iTunes that will allow me to do that or maybe there is an app.
If not, why hasn't iTunes built this in yet?

09/12/11 @ 13:56
Comment from: Adam TURNER [Member] Email
@ bran not that I've seen, but I haven't looked for a while
09/12/11 @ 14:31
Comment from: Nick Glass [Visitor]
I was also looking for a way to control iTunes from another computer, so ended up writing this:
http://code.google.com/p/tunesremote-se/

Hope that helps.
11/02/12 @ 21:58