Method for normalizing media metadata

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

accessing a directory containing music files, the music files having metadata associated therewith;

accessing the metadata associated with the music files;

for the metadata associated with the music files, performing the following operations:

checking the metadata for an artist name in a “last name, first name” format;

checking the metadata for a mixed up track title and artist name;

checking the metadata for artists that appear in multiple genres;

using approximate string matching, checking the metadata to identify potential matches for known artists with other known artists in a reference database; and

using approximate string matching, checking a combination of the artist name and an album in the metadata for approximate matches, wherein a report is generated when one of the operations identifies an error or inconsistency in the metadata; and

generating a report of a final list of all unique artists and all unique albums found in the metadata associated with the music files.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises:

checking a binary checksum of raw media data in the music files for duplicates and generating a report of any duplicates found.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises:

detecting missing auxiliary metadata associated with the music files and generating a report if any missing auxiliary metadata is detected.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3 , wherein the missing auxiliary metadata includes a cover art image for an album folder.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 3 , wherein the method further comprises:

detecting formatting issues within the metadata for the music files and generating a report identifying any formatting issues detected.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , wherein the method further comprises:

using a set of string transformations to compare two non-equivalent strings.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 , wherein the method further comprises:

comparing the metadata for a music file to a location of the music file in a file system.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7 , wherein the method further comprises:

collecting the metadata for the music files for analysis.

9. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing a program which, when executed, instructs a processor perform the following operations:

access a directory containing music files, the music files having metadata associated therewith;

access the metadata associated with the music files;

for the metadata associated with the music files, perform the following operations:

check the metadata for an artist name in a “last name, first name” format;

check the metadata for a mixed up track title and artist name;

check the metadata for artists that appear in multiple genres;

use approximate string matching to check the metadata to identify potential matches for known artists with other known artists in a reference database; and

use approximate string matching to check a combination of the artist name and an album in the metadata for approximate matches, wherein a report is generated when one of the operations identifies an error or inconsistency in the metadata; and

generate a report of a final list of all unique artists and all unique albums found in the metadata associated with the music files.

10. The computer-readable media of claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise:

checking a binary checksum of raw media data in the music files for duplicates and generating a report of any duplicates found.

11. The computer-readable media of claim 10 , wherein the operations further comprise:

detecting missing auxiliary metadata associated with the music files and generating a report if any missing auxiliary metadata is detected.

12. The computer-readable media of claim 11 , wherein the missing auxiliary metadata includes a cover art image for an album folder.

13. The computer-readable media of claim 11 , wherein the operations further comprise:

detecting formatting issues within the metadata for the music files and generating a report identifying any formatting issues detected.

14. The computer-readable media of claim 13 , wherein the operations further comprise:

using a set of string transformations to compare two non-equivalent strings.

15. The computer-readable media of claim 13 , wherein the operations further comprise:

comparing the metadata for a music file to a location of the music file in a file system.

16. The computer-readable media of claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise:

collecting the metadata for the music files for analysis.

17. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

accessing a directory containing music files, the music files having metadata associated therewith;

checking raw media data in the music files for duplicates and generating a report of any duplicates found;

detecting missing auxiliary metadata associated with the music files and generating a report if any missing auxiliary metadata is found;

detecting formatting issues within the metadata for the music files and generating a report identifying any formatting issues detected;

comparing the metadata for a music file to a location of the music file in a file system and generating a report if any errors or inconsistencies are found; and

collecting the metadata for the music files for analysis;

accessing the metadata collected for analysis;

for the metadata associated with the music files, checking the metadata, using approximate string matching, to identify potential matches for known artists with other known artists in a reference database; and

generating a report of a final list of all unique artists and all unique albums found in the metadata associated with the music files.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 , wherein the checking of the raw media data in the music files for duplicates includes checking a binary checksum of the raw media data in the music files for duplicates.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 17 , wherein the method further comprises performing the following operations for the music files:

checking the metadata for an artist name in a “last name, first name” format;

checking the metadata for a mixed up track title and artist name; and

checking the metadata for artists that appear in multiple genres.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19 , wherein a report is generated when one of the checking operations identifies an error or inconsistency in the metadata.