Handling Multiple Versions of Same Songs in iTunes

[EatsWithFingers]

I'm glad to see that iTunes 6 has support for playlist folders (that has been on my wish list for some time now), but there is still one other feature that I would like to see implemented:

With the introduction of AirPort Express and AirTunes, a large number of people (including myself) now have two copies of their songs in iTunes - a high quality one for playing through their home stereo, and a lower quality one for playing on their iPod.

However, this means that you have the massive headache of not only importing two versions of the each song, but ensuring that things like ratings are consistent across both copies. Furthermore, the play count for a particular track is split across the two copies.

I would like to see Apple implement a system whereby you could tell iTunes that two songs were in fact the same song, and it would then handle the automatic syncronisation of song data. Additionally, you could specify which versions were to be copied to your iPod, and which versions to play - I have my AIFF versions on an external hard-drive, and my AAC versions on my laptop, so it would also be handy to be able to say "play the AIFF version if available, otherwise play the AAC version".

My life would be soooo much easier if iTunes had this feature!