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I just upgraded to Natty and trying to start using Banshee instead of Rythmbox.

I noticed that Banshee put downloaded podcost under Podcast folder. I have a bunch of previously downloaded podcasts by Rythmbox which I would like to keep. I can move those files easily into Podcast folder for Banshee, but how can I associated those file to Banshee so Banshee recognized it as downloaded podcast?

I don't mind going down to nitty gritty changing config/meta file or database update if Banshee use database to store those info.

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3 Answers

up vote 6 down vote accepted

Thanks to information from MichaelMS, I google Banshee database and found out it is using sqlite. So I opened it up with Squirrel Client and to register downloaded podcast to Banshee, you need to update PODCASTENCLOSURES table.

The columns you need to update are:

  • LocalPath - this point to where the physical location of where the downloaded podcast
  • DownloadStatus - I set it to 3, assuming this meant downloaded..as that is what other downloaded podcast value that I'd seen.
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Unfortunately, there's currently no good way to import previously downloaded podcasts into Banshee's Podcast library. There's an open bug report requesting this, but it's been around for awhile, so I wouldn't hold your breath. In the meantime, you have a couple options:

  1. Re-Download Everything

    If your podcast collection is fairly small and all of the podcasts are still available online, the preferred method of importing them would simply be to subscribe to the feeds in Banshee and re-download the episodes you want. There are plenty of reasons that this might not be a realistic solution, but I thought I'd mention it for completeness.

  2. Create your own feed

    If you're familiar with xml (m3u or pls playlists might work too) and you have access to a webserver -- a local, private one would probably be best if you're dealing with copyrighted material -- you could create a custom feed with only the podcasts you want to import. Simply import that feed into Banshee, and you should be able to get all of the episodes correctly grouped with the rest of your podcasts. This came up on the mailing list recently, so that would be a good place to turn if you have questions.

  3. Dig around in the database

    Banshee's database is stored in ~/.config/banshee-1/banshee.db. If all else fails, you could try to open it with a database viewer and manually insert your podcasts. There are 5 tables related to Podcasts, but without being familiar with the database structure for podcasts, I can't tell you with any certainty how the tables are related and how much of the information is critical. That's definitely "make a backup copy first" and "do this at your own risk" territory. :)

Based on the mailing list discussion, #2 should be a pretty promising option. Hopefully you'll get something working.

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Thank you for the comprehensive answer. I had to say option 1 was something I was aware of. Option 2 is interesting, although that is quite a work around. Option 3 is the reason I ask this question. Hoping I can find more detail information on metafile or database structure that I need to change. -DJ –  DJ. May 9 '11 at 22:18
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If Rhythmbox knows about your podcasts (i.e. they show up on your Music list, being in your Music directory, with the Podcast genre, but not necessarily in your Podcasts tab), you can do the following:

From Banshee, go to Media -> Import Media. From the menu, choose "Rythmbox Music Player". This will import all of the tracks that Rhythmbox knows about, including your podcasts. They won't show up in your Podcasts tab, but they will show up in your Music list under the "Podcast" genre.

If these don't show up as normal tracks in Rhythmbox, you can do the following to get them to show up:

  1. Move your podcasts directory inside your Music folder.
  2. Wait for it to be scanned or close it, delete .local/share/rhythmbox/rhythmdb.xml and then restart it. (Warning: This will wipe out your radio stations & possibly other things, so save a backup first!)
  3. Podcasts should now show up in your Music with the Podcast genre (assuming that they were tagged correctly).
  4. Give Rhythmbox and Banshee the new location of your podcasts directory (inside your Music folder).
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