Playlist options¶
Open File → Options… → Playlist to configure Playlist (all files), Playlist (selected files), and Generate playlists…. A playlist stores references to audio files; creating one does not copy or transcode the music.
New to this?
Use .m3u8 and relative entries for a Unicode playlist that can move with its album folder. Keep the filename-confirmation dialog enabled until destinations are predictable.
Write extended info¶
Defaults to on. Extended info supplies a duration and display label in addition to the file path. The default Extended info format string is:
For ARTIST=Juniper Vale, TITLE=Harbour Lights, the label is Juniper Vale - Harbour Lights. A player may use this label without rereading tags. If tags later change, regenerate the playlist to update stored labels. Disable extended info for a consumer that expects paths alone; the consumer decides how it uses optional labels.
Relative entries¶
Entries relative to working directory (if possible) defaults to on. OpenTag attempts relative paths instead of full machine-specific paths. For a playlist beside an album's files, 01 - Harbour Lights.flac is easier to move than /Music/Juniper Vale/Harbour Lights/01 - Harbour Lights.flac.
The actual output location and common filesystem roots determine whether relative paths are possible. Paths across different Windows drives cannot always be represented relatively. Test a generated playlist after moving its folder as a unit; a relative playlist still breaks if its audio files are moved independently.
Automatic playlists¶
Create playlist automatically after saving tags or renaming files defaults to off. Enable to regenerate the configured playlist after those operations. Automatic creation uses the saved configuration without asking for a filename each time.
Use a stable filename and confirm the selection/list scope before relying on this for a collection. A tag edit can otherwise have the extra effect of rewriting a playlist. Errors in automatic creation are reported separately; a successful tag write is not proof that the playlist also succeeded.
Filename of playlist¶
Defaults to %_directory%.m3u8. The value is a filename format string, and may include a relative or absolute path. Relative output names are placed under the working directory. A folder called Harbour Lights therefore supplies Harbour Lights.m3u8 with the default.
Loaded-playlist placeholders can reuse its name/location:
| Placeholder | Meaning |
|---|---|
%_playlist_filename% |
Loaded playlist's filename without extension. |
%_playlist_filename_ext% |
Loaded playlist's filename including extension. |
%_playlist_folderpath% |
Loaded playlist's containing folder path. |
These describe a loaded playlist, not whichever audio file is selected. Without that context, choose a filename that does not depend on them.
Encoding and extension¶
| Extension | Output |
|---|---|
.m3u8 |
UTF-8 M3U, suitable for Unicode names. |
.m3u |
M3U using the Windows ANSI codepage on Windows. On macOS/Linux, Windows-1252 is used only when OpenTag can read it back unchanged; otherwise UTF-8 is used. |
.pls |
PLS playlist. |
For example, a filename containing © would become the Windows-1252 bytes
C2 A9, which also form valid UTF-8 for the different text ©. OpenTag uses
UTF-8 for that case and for characters outside Windows-1252. .m3u8 always
uses UTF-8. Check the receiving player as well as loading the playlist back
into OpenTag.
Write BOM for UTF-8 playlists (.m3u8, .pls) defaults to off. Enable only when the target reader needs a byte-order mark for encoding detection. This setting is independent of Export's BOM option.
Confirm the filename¶
Show confirm filename dialog defaults to on. OpenTag first evaluates the configured filename format string, then shows the proposed path. Text entered into this confirmation dialog is a literal filename: new placeholders typed there are not evaluated.
For example, change the configured format string to %album%.m3u8 if the album should supply the name. Typing that same expression into the confirmation field instead asks for a name containing those literal characters. Automatic playlist creation bypasses this dialog.
Don't create directories¶
Defaults to off. Relative and absolute playlist output paths can create parent folders. Enable Don't create directories to require the destination folders to exist already. This prevents unexpected folder creation; it does not disable writing into an existing folder or turn a playlist into an audio copy.