US20090063521A1

US20090063521A1 - Auto-tagging of aliases

Info

Publication number: US20090063521A1
Application number: US12/145,258
Authority: US
Inventors: William Bull; Ben Rottler
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc
Priority date: 2007-09-04
Filing date: 2008-06-24
Publication date: 2009-03-05
Also published as: US8560950B2; US9557877B2; US20090063975A1; US20140095998A1

Abstract

Media players and associated methods are described that may allow a user to organize content or other media assets based on information associated with content. A media player or portable media device, can include features for automatically tagging content or other media assets with aliases. A media player may receive content that has already been tagged with a given alias. The media player may determine a macro genre for the content in response to a set of rules. The rules may include criteria for classifying content into one or more macro genres. The media player may generate information associating the macro genre with the content.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/969,850, filed Sep. 4, 2007 and entitled “Auto-Tagging of Aliases” and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/969,846, filed Sep. 4, 2007 and entitled “Advanced Playlist Creation,” the entire disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.
This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Atty. Dkt. No. 20750P-003710US), filed and entitled “Advanced Playlist Creation,” the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Electronic devices, such as portable media players, cellular phones, personal digital assists (PDAs), and the like, are prevalent in today's marketplace, as are the peripheral electronic devices that support their use, such as docking stations and the like. As competition in the personal electronics marketplace becomes ever more heated, consumers have become more demanding in terms of both the functionality and use of such devices.
One popular function can be the storage and output of content, such as music, images, photos, and movies. Improving compression methods, like MPEG-standards, may result in less storage capacity required making it more convenient to store tens of thousands of songs and photos, and several full-length DVD quality movies. Moreover, distribution via the Internet may make it easier to obtain multimedia content.
Typically, content can associated with information (such as an MP3 ID tag) that describes, for example, the title of song, the album, the artist, a genre, and the like. This information can be provided by a user before the content is stored on a media player or on a portable media player, or maybe provided by a distributor before providing the content in the marketplace. However, the reliability of this information associated with the content is often suspect. For example, in the case of genres, different users or providers can classify the same content in a different genre, where different category of the genre.
Accordingly, what is desired is to solve problems relating to how content or other media assets are tagged, some of which may be discussed herein. Additionally, what is desired is to reduce drawbacks related to different sources of information about content or other media assets, some of which may be discussed herein.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to media players. More particularly, to techniques for auto-tagging of aliases associated with content.
In various embodiments, an electronic device, such as a media player or portable media device, can include features for automatically tagging content or other media assets with aliases. A media player may receive content that has already been tagged with a given alias. The media player may determine a macro genre for the content in response to a set of rules. The rules may include criteria for classifying content into one or more macro genres. The media player may generate information associating the macro genre with the content.
In some embodiments, a media player or portable media device may determine a set of synonyms indicative of one or more genres in response to metadata associated with content. The media player may allow a user to create a set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on the set of synonyms. Alternatively, the media player may automatically build the set of rules. In further embodiments, a media player or portable media device may determine a set of connections or relationships. For example, connections or relationships may associate artists, albums, etc. to given genres. The media player may use a set of rules to classify content into the one or more macro genres based on associations provided by the connections or relationships. In still further embodiments, the media player may determine a set of connections to a band associated with content. The media player may create a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres based on the set of connections to the band.
Accordingly, in various embodiments, a media player or portable media device, may modify or update pre-existing information associated with content. The media player may “scrub” the information to remove one or more portions of malformed data, spelling error, or the like. The media player may store the modified information, including any macro genre information, with the content. The media player may store tagging information with the content.
A further understanding of the nature and the advantages of the inventions disclosed herein may be realized by reference of the remaining portions of the specification and the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to better describe and illustrate embodiments and/or examples of those inventions disclosed herein, reference may be made to one or more accompanying drawings. The additional details or examples used to describe the accompanying drawings should not be considered as limitations to the scope of any of the disclosed inventions, the presently described embodiments and/or examples, and the presently understood best mode of these inventions.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a media player that may incorporate embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system for tagging content into macro genres using rule sets in one embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a simplified flowchart of a method for automatically tagging of aliases in one embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram for generating macro genre rule sets in one embodiment according to the present invention;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are block diagrams illustrating macro genres in one embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for processing a song/album in one embodiment according to the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of a computer system that may incorporate embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In various embodiments, an electronic device, such as a media player or portable media device, can include features directed to assisting a user organize a collection of content or other media assets. For example, a user may interact with a media player to organize songs, movies, photos, or other media assets in a media library. Tags or other metadata associated with the content may include malformed data, misspellings, or other data inconsistent with how the user desires to organize content. The media player may organize the content for the user using macro genres.
The media player or portable media device may determine a macro genre for content based on the pre-existing metadata associated with the content. The media player may generate information associating content with a macro genre base on a set of rules that classify content to one or more macro genres. The rules may include rules for identifying genre synonyms and placing content into macro genres based on synynoms. The rules may include rules for identifying macro genres base on associations, connections, or relationships that may be determined from the content. Accordingly, content or other media assets that may include no information, incorrect or malformed alias, or bad tagging information may be automatically organized for the user.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of media player 100 that may incorporate embodiments of the present invention. In general, a media player stores content and/or media assets, such as audio tracks, movies, or photos that can be played or displayed on the media player. One example of media player 100 can be the iPod® media player, which is available from Apple, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. Another example of media player 100 can be a personal computer, such as a laptop or desktop.
In this example, media player 100 includes processor 110, storage device 120, user interface 130, and communications interface 140. Processor 110 can control various functionalities associated with media player 100. Media play 100 may output audio content, video content, image content, and the like. Media player 100 may also output metadata or other information associated with content, such as track information and album art.
Typically, a user may load or store content onto media player 100 using storage device 120. Storage device 120 can include read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), non-volatile memory, flash memory, floppy disk, hard disk, or the like. A user may interact with user interface 130 of media player 100 to view or consume content. Some examples of user interface 130 can include buttons, click wheels, touch pads, displays, touch screens, and other input/output devices.
Media player 100 can include one or more connectors or ports that can be used to load content, retrieve content, interact with applications running on media player 100, interface with external devices, and the like. In this example, media player 100 includes communications interface 140. Some examples of communications interface 140 can include universal serial bus (USB) interfaces, IEEE 1394 (or FireWire/iLink®) interfaces, universal asynchronous receiver/transmitters (UARTs), wired and wireless network interfaces, transceivers, and the like. Media player 100 may connect to devices, accessories, private and public communications networks (e.g., the Internet), or the like, using communications interface 140.
In one example, media player 100 can be coupled via a wired and/or wireless connector or port to output audio and/or other information to speakers 150. In another example, media player 100 may be coupled via a wired and/or wireless connector or port to output audio and/or other information to headphones 160. In yet another example, media player 100 may be coupled via a wired and/or wireless connector or port to interface with an accessory 170 or a host computer 180. The same connector or port may enable different connections at different times.
Media player 100 can be physically inserted into docking system 190. Media player 100 may be coupled via a wired and/or wireless connector or port to interface with docking system 190. Docking system 190 may also enable one or more accessory devices 195 to couple with wires or wirelessly to interface with media player 100. Many different types and functionalities of accessory devices 170 and 195 can interconnect to or with media player 100. For example, an accessory may allow a remote control to wirelessly control media player 100. As another example, an automobile may include a connector into which media player 100 may be inserted such that an automobile media system can interact with media player 100, thereby allowing media content stored on media player 100 to be played within the automobile.
In various embodiments, content stored on media player 100 may be automatically tag into one or more macro genres. A macro genre can represent a different way of classifying, categorizing, or organizing content. A macro genre may provide a super-set view, being a more generalized description of content.
Typically, when content or other media assets, such as songs/albums are imported into a music library, the aliases (e.g., genre) associated with the songs/albums can be different from those preferred by a user or pre-existing in the media library. For example, many different songs may be of the “electronica” genre, but may have aliases such as “electronica funk,” “electronica freak,” or “electronics classical.” Additionally, content often may be described in this manner using smaller and smaller micro-genres or categories. For example, when the user scrolling through genres, the listing may be littered with many different aliases that all can belong to the same genre. However, for the average user this can be annoying, and may make it difficult to create a playlist based on a particular genre when content is obtained from a variety of sources.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of system 200 for tagging content into macro genres using rule sets in one embodiment according to the present invention. System 200 can be embodied in hardware and/or software. In some embodiment, system 200 may be embodiment as media player 100 of FIG. 1. In this example, tagging engine 210 can receive content 220 and generates modified content 230 in response to one or more rules 240.
In various embodiments, tagging engine 210 may be embodied in software, hardware, or a combination of the like. In one embodiment, tagging engine 210 may be resident on media player 100. In another embodiment, tagging engine 210 may be resident on host computer 180. Tagging engine 210 may further be hosted by a service provider or content distributor.
In general, content 220 may include audio data, video data, images, photos, multimedia information, textual information, or the like. Content 220 may further include information associated with content, such as metadata, tagging information (e.g., MP3 ID tags), subtitles, and the like.
Rules 240 can include any set of conditions, criteria, and thresholds. In various embodiments, rules 240 may include information that classifies content into one or more generalized or high-level categories. These generalized or high-level categories can be called macro genres. A rule or rule set may written by a user or be provided by a content or service provider. In some embodiments, a media player or portable media device may automatically generate a rule or rule set in response to user input or user interactions.
In one example of operation, tagging engine 210 may receive an audio file for a song or audio book. The audio file may include audio information in addition to metadata, such as tagging (or alias) information. Tagging engine 210 may analyze the tagging information stored within the audio file in response to rules 240. Based on rules 240, tagging engine 210 may associate the audio file with one or more macro genres.
In some embodiments, tagging engine 210 may generate a mapping between the audio file and the one or more identified macro genres. In various embodiments, tagging engine 210 stores information indicative of the one or more identified macro genres as tagging information in the audio file. Tagging engine 210 may interact with other media applications or a media library to update metadata associate with the song file.
In another example, tagging engine 210 may receive metadata associated with a video file for a movie or music video. Tagging engine 210 may analyze the metadata in response to rules 240. Tagging engine 210 may then associate one or more macro genres with the video file. A user may be prompted to accept the identified macro genre or, alternatively, the content may be automatically updated.
FIG. 3 is a simplified flowchart of a method for automatically tagging of aliases in one embodiment according to the present invention. The processing depicted in FIG. 3 may be performed by software modules (e.g., instructions or code) executed by a processor of a computer system, by hardware modules of an electronic device, or combinations thereof. FIG. 3 begins in step 300.
In step 310, rules are received at classify content into macro genres. As discussed above, a rule or rule set may include information that classifies content into macro genres. The information may include synonyms, associations, mappings, or the like. In one example, a software program used by a user to load content onto media player 100 engages in communication with a service provider. The software program may download rules from the service provider that classify content into macro genres. In another example, a user may create one or more rules that classify content into macro genres with a user interface associated with media player 100.
In step 320, information associated with content is received. For example, a media manager may read tagging information, metadata, or the like, from a file associated with content. In another example, a content library that maintains a database of information associated with content may be queried.
In step 330, a macro genre is determined based on the information associated with the content in response to the rules that classify content into macro genres. For example, one or more words may be extracted from the information and compared to keywords associated with macro genres through the rules. In another example, artist information, album information, band information, and the like, may be compared against lists of artists/albums/bands that have been pre-categorized into one or more macro genres. Based on the rules, media player 100 or host computer 180 may compare the information associated with the content to the pre-categorized macro genres. In yet another example, connections or relationships developed by user or algorithms may provide an indication of one or more macro genres.
In step 340, the identified macro genre is associated with the content. For example, media player 100 may generate a mapping between the content and the macro genre in a content library. In another example, host computer 110 may store information indicative of a macro genre with a file storing the content. Existing tagging information may be scrubbed or modified with the information about the macro genre. Accordingly, content from different sources may be automatically categorized or organized as desired by a user. FIG. 3 and in step 350.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram for generating macro genre rule sets in one embodiment according to the present invention. In this example, information 410 can represent information associated with content. For example, information 410 may include information indicative of “ARTIST 1,” “ARTIST 2,” “ARTIST 3,” “ARTIST 4,” “BAND 1,” “BAND 2,” “BAND 3,” “BAND 4,” “GENRE 1-A,” “GENRE 2-A,” “GENRE 3-B,” “GENRE 4-B,” “GENRE 5-A-B.” “ARTIST 1” may be different from “ARTIST 2.” “BAND 1” may be different from “BAND 2.” “GENRE 1-A” may be different from “GENRE 2-A,” however, each genre may share a portion of information in common (e.g., “A”). “GENRE 1-A” may be different from “GENRE 3-B,” which may be different from “GENRE 5-A-B.” “GENRE 5-A-B” may share a portion of information in common with “GENRE 1-A” and with “GENRE 3-B” (e.g., “A” and “B”).
Using portions of common information in block 410, in various embodiments, one or more synonyms may be determined in block 420. For example, tagging engine 220 of FIG. 3 may collect the names of artists and bands, in addition to pre-existing genres associated with content to be processed. Tagging engine 220 may determine synonyms for the names of the artists, the bands, and the genres. For example, one genre may be called “electronica freak” and another genre may be called “electronic funk.” Tagging engine 220 may determine that “electronica freak” and “electronica funk” are potential synonyms for the “electronics” genre, the “freak” genre, and the “funk” “genre.”
In various embodiments, a number of factors may be used to determine the weight of a synonym, such as “electronica.” The weight may promotes a category associated with the “electronica” synonym to the level of a generalized high-level description of a macro genre.
In various embodiments, associations between artists/bands may be determined in block 430. For example, tagging engine 220 may determine that a particular artist/band is classified by one or more sources (such as a commercial music service or a social networking site) into a predetermined genre. In another example, tagging engine 220 may determine that one or more artists/bands released music during a predetermined decade or time period, which may be represented by a macro genre.
In further embodiments, macro genre rule sets can be generated in block 440. In one example, tagging engine 220 may analyze metadata associated with content to determine synonyms and potential associations to generate one or more rule sets that classify content into macro genres. Accordingly, content may be automatically classified/reclassified using the rules sets into generalized high-level descriptions called macro genres. Classification may occur with or without user intervention. Furthermore, the automatic classification allows a user to easily access content stored on a media player, portable media device, or multimedia content manager using the macro genres.
FIGS. 5A and 5B are block diagrams illustrating macro genres in one embodiment according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 5A, a portion of information associated with content (e.g., information in block 410 of FIG. 4) may be generalized into macro genre 510. Connections and/or associations 520 may be represented in one or more rules that classify content into macro genre 510. For example, one or more rules may be generated that, if one or more are satisfied, associate macro genre 510 with content that has been attributed to “ARTIST 1,” “ARTIST 4,” “BAND 2,” “BAND 4,” “GENRE 2-A,” “GENRE 1-A,” and “GENRE 5-A-B.”
Referring to FIG. 5B, a portion of information may be generalized into macro genre 530. Connections and/or associations 540 may be represented in one or more rules that classify content into macro genre 530. For example, one or more rules may be generated that, if one or more are satisfied, associate macro genre 530 with content that has been attributed to “ARTIST 2,” “ARTIST 3,” “BAND 1,” “BAND 3,” “GENRE 3-B,” “GENRE 4-B,” and “GENRE 5-A-B.”
FIG. 6 is a flowchart for processing a song/album in one embodiment according to the present invention. FIG. 6 begins in step 600.
In step 610, information is received associated with the song/album. For example, an audio file may be read to determine tagging information stored within the audio file. In another example, alias information may be downloaded from a website. The information may include the title of the song, the artists, the album, bitrate information, encoding information, user tags, or the like.
In step 620, the information is filtered in response to one or more rule sets to determine a macro genre. For example, the information may be filtered to collect textural information, such as words. One or more synonyms may be matched to the words in response to the rules. In another example, connections between an artist, band, group, or the like, associated with the audio file may be determined and matched in response to the rules. The macro genre may be determined if one or more of the rules in the rule sets are satisfied.
Optionally, in step 630, the information associated with the song/album is scrubbed. For example, malformed data, user entered data, incomplete data, or the like, in the information can be modified, updated, or removed to clean the information. In various embodiments, metadata associated with content may be completely rewritten with updated metadata determined in response to the rules. Alternatively, one or more portions of metadata may be scrubbed.
In step 640, the macro genre is associated with the song/album. For example, in step 650, the macro genre is stored with the song/album. In one example, a content library may be updated to associate the macro genre with the song/album. In another example, the macro genre may be added to the alias information or tagging information stored with the song/album. FIG. 6 ends in step 660.
FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of a computer system 700 that may incorporate embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 7 is merely illustrative of an embodiment incorporating the present invention and does not limit the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. One of ordinary skill in the art would recognize other variations, modifications, and alternatives.
In one embodiment, computer system 700 includes processor(s) 710, random access memory (RAM) 720, disk drive 730, input device(s) 740, output device(s) 750, display 760, communications interface(s) 770, and a system bus 780 interconnecting the above components. Other components, such as file systems, storage disks, read only memory (ROM), cache memory, codecs, and the like may be present.
RAM 720 and disk drive 730 are examples of tangible media configured to store data such as audio, image, and movie files, operating system code, embodiments of the present invention, including executable computer code, human readable code, or the like. Other types of tangible media include floppy disks, removable hard disks, optical storage media such as CD-ROMS, DVDs and bar codes, semiconductor memories such as flash memories, read-only-memories (ROMS), battery-backed volatile memories, networked storage devices, and the like.
In various embodiments, input device 740 is typically embodied as a computer mouse, a trackball, a track pad, a joystick, a wireless remote, a drawing tablet, a voice command system, an eye tracking system, a multi-touch interface, a scroll wheel, a click wheel, a touch screen, an FM/TV tuner, audio/video inputs, and the like. Input device 740 may allow a user to select objects, icons, text, and the like, via a command such as a click of a button or the like. In various embodiments, output device 750 is typically embodied as a display, a printer, a force-feedback mechanism, an audio output, a video component output, and the like. Display 760 may include a CRT display, an LCD display, a Plasma display, and the like.
Embodiments of communications interface 770 may include computer interfaces, such as include an Ethernet card, a modem (telephone, satellite, cable, ISDN), (asynchronous) digital subscriber line (DSL) unit, FireWire interface, USB interface, and the like. For example, these computer interfaces may be coupled to a computer network 790, to a FireWire bus, or the like. In other embodiments, these computer interfaces may be physically integrated on the motherboard or system board of computer system 700, and may be a software program, or the like.
In various embodiments, computer system 700 may also include software that enables communications over a network such as the HTTP, TCP/IP, RTP/RTSP protocols, and the like. In alternative embodiments of the present invention, other communications software and transfer protocols may also be used, for example IPX, UDP or the like.
In various embodiments, computer system 700 may also include an operating system, such as Microsoft Windows®, Linux®, Mac OS X®, real-time operating systems (RTOSs), open source and proprietary OSs, and the like.
FIG. 7 is representative of a media player and/or computer system capable of embodying the present invention. It will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many other hardware and software configurations are suitable for use with the present invention. For example, the media player may be a desktop, portable, rack-mounted or tablet configuration. Additionally, the media player may be a series of networked computers. Moreover, the media player may be a mobile device, an embedded device, a personal digital assistant, a smartphone, and the like. In still other embodiments, the techniques described above may be implemented upon a chip or an auxiliary processing board.
The present invention can be implemented in the form of control logic in software or hardware or a combination of both. The control logic may be stored in an information storage medium as a plurality of instructions adapted to direct an information-processing device to perform a set of steps disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. Based on the disclosure and teachings provided herein, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate other ways and/or methods to implement the present invention.
The embodiments discussed herein are illustrative of one or more examples of the present invention. As these embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to illustrations, various modifications or adaptations of the methods and/or specific structures described may become apparent to those skilled in the art. All such modifications, adaptations, or variations that rely upon the teachings of the present invention, and through which these teachings have advanced the art, are considered to be within the scope of the present invention. Hence, the present descriptions and drawings should not be considered in a limiting sense, as it is understood that the present invention is in no way limited to only the embodiments illustrated.
The above description is illustrative but not restrictive. Many variations of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the disclosure. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined not with reference to the above description, but instead should be determined with reference to the pending claims along with their full scope or equivalents.

Claims

1. A method for tagging content, the method comprising:

receiving information associated with content;

determining a macro genre based on the information in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres; and

generating information associating the macro genre with the content.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a set of synonyms indicative of one or more genres based on the information; and

generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on the set of synonyms.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a set of connections to an artist associated with the content; and

generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on the set of associations to the artist.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a set of connections to an band associated with the content; and

generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on the set of connections to the band.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

modifying the information associated with the content to remove one or more portions of malformed data; and

storing the modified information.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the information associated with the content comprises tagging information.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the content comprises one or more of an audio file, a video file, an image file, and a photo.

8. A method for tagging content using a handheld electronic device, the method comprising:

receiving information associated with content stored on a storage medium associated with the handheld electronic device;

filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres to determine a macro genre for the content stored on the storage medium;

generating metadata for the content, wherein the metadata includes the macro genre; and

storing the metadata with the content on the storage medium.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

determining a set of synonyms in response to genre information in the information; and

classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of synonyms.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

determining a set of connections to an artist associated with the content; and

classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of connections.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

determining a set of connections to a band associated with the content; and

12. The method of claim 8 wherein storing the metadata with the content on the storage medium comprises:

modifying the information associated with the content to remove one or more portions of malformed data based on the metadata; and

storing the modified information.

13. An apparatus for organizing content, the apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory configured to store a set of instructions which when executed by the processor becomes operational with the processor to:

receive information associated with content;

determine a macro genre based on the information in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres; and

generate information associating the macro genre with the content.

14. An portable media device comprising:

a storage medium configured to store content; and

a processor configured to:

receive information associated with content stored on the storage medium;

filter the information in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres to determine a macro genre for the content stored on the storage medium;

generate metadata for the content, wherein the metadata includes the macro genre; and

store the metadata with the content on the storage medium.

15. The portable media device of claim 14 wherein the processor is configured to filter the information in response to the set of rules by determining a set of synonyms in response to genre information in the information and classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of synonyms.

16. The portable media device of claim 14 wherein the processor is configured to filter the information in response to the set of rules by determining a set of connections to an artist associated with the content and classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of connections.

17. The portable media device of claim 14 wherein the processor is configured to filter the information in response to the set of rules by determining a set of connections to a band associated with the content and classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of connections.

18. The portable media device of claim 14 wherein the processor is configure to store the metadata with the content on the storage medium by modifying the information associated with the content to remove one or more portions of malformed data and storing the modified information.

19. A computer readable medium configured to store a set of code modules which when executed by a processor of a computer system becomes operational with the processor for tagging content, the computer readable medium comprising:

code for receiving information associated with content;

code for determining a macro genre based on the information in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres; and

code for generating information associating the macro genre with the content.

20. A system for tagging content, the system comprising:

means for receiving information associated with content stored on a storage medium associated with the handheld electronic device;

means for filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to a set of rules that classify content into one or more macro genres to determine a macro genre for the content stored on the storage medium;

means for generating metadata for the content, wherein the metadata includes the macro genre; and

means for storing the metadata with the content on the storage medium.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the means for filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

means for determining a set of synonyms in response to genre information in the information; and

means for classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of synonyms.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the means for filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

means for determining a set of connections to an artist associated with the content; and

means for classifying the content into at least one macro genre using the set of rules based on the set of connections.

23. The system of claim 20 wherein the means for filtering the information using the handheld electronic device in response to the set of rules comprises:

means for determining a set of connections to a band associated with the content; and

24. The system of claim 20 wherein the means for storing the metadata with the content on the storage medium comprises:

means for modifying the information associated with the content to remove one or more portions of malformed data based on the metadata; and

means for storing the modified information.

25. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

means for generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on a set of synonyms.

26. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

means for generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on a set of associations to an artist.

27. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

means for generating the set of rules that classify content into the one or more macro genres based on a set of connections to a band.

28. The system of claim 20 wherein the information associated with the content comprises tagging information.