Since downloading Ventura 13.0, syncing mp3s and WAVs to Google Drive with the Google Drive desktop app as become intermittent. Sometimes it behaves, sometimes it just doesn’t upload to Google Drive or if I replace a file, it renames it with a 0 at the end of it’s original name and adds the replacement as a separate file. Is there a work-around or a setting that needs changing somewhere that I can use? I’ve been on to tech support at Google who were next to useless and tech support at Apple who were a bit better as far as service goes but just as clueless. I record audiobooks for a living and now the only way I can know that the right files have been saved is to save everything to downloads on my Mac then upload each file to Google Drive instead of just saving straight to Google Drive through Audacity. If anyone can help, please do.
I record audiobooks for a living and now the only way I can know that the right files have been saved is to save everything to downloads on my Mac then upload each file to Google Drive instead of just saving straight to Google Drive through Audacity.
That is the correct and recommended way to work with External, USB, Thunderbolt, Network, or Internet Drives.
Audacity always assumes that its drives can do all of its jobs, no matter which jobs you pick. Can you imagine trying to critically synchronize tracks in multi-channel, music overdubbing when your drum track is on an iCloud drive in Cincinnati? That’s an extreme example, but not that extreme.
You noticed that sometimes your transfers work OK and sometimes they don’t. Yes. That’s correct.
Companies are very firm that their internet drives and storage are “just like” your internal drive. They’re wrong. I remember having to fight off iCloud connections with a stick when they first came out.
“No, dear, I know they’re not as stable as you keep insisting they are.”
Koz
And as a complete side issue, you do have high quality backups or archives of your work, right?
Being an obsessive engineer, I keep WAV copies of my raw readings or performances and the submitted masters.
One recommendation if you consistently have troubles recording to your computer (many complaints on the forum), is stop using the computer. Record to a stand-alone sound recorder (not voice recorder) and transfer the files over to the computer for editing and submission. As a side benefit, that gives you a perfect quality backup of your performance on the recorder’s memory.
I’m not making this up. “My Computer/Audacity crashed and took the last three chapters of my book with it.” But that’s only inconvenient because I have the raw performances in a separate location.
Would we have heard of your work? Advertising is forbidden on the forum…unless an elf asks you.
Koz
Hi Koz, Audacity worked fine through Google Drive for years. I just saved the mp3s and WAVs direct to Google Drive using the Google Drive desktop app. More than 140 audiobooks, thousands of chapter files so, no, I’m not doing anything wrong. Saving everything to downloads on my Mac then uploading each file to Google Drive is not the correct way to work with Google drive, that’s why they have the Drive for desktop app, so you can save directly to Google Drive though This problem only started after I downloaded Ventura 13.0.
Ventura 13.0
More than 140 audiobooks, thousands of chapter files
Is this an M1 Mac?
Which OS did you start with? Monetery 12? Are you backed up? Could you Restore to an earlier OS if you had to?
I just saved the mp3s and WAVs direct to Google Drive
But not iCloud? Any reason for that? Is iCloud stable on your machine? Do you post to clients on Google Drive?
I don’t know of any similar forum postings. If you find one, post back.
Conspiracy Theory has it the security and safety offerings in Ventura are stiffer and just don’t like some of your production postings.
Can you make it worse? Does the size of the production matter?
sometimes it just doesn’t upload to Google Drive
Developers/Programmers have “Moonphase Errors.” Those are the best. “Sometimes, when the moon is quarter full on a Thursday…”
My best guess is do something evil. Overload the machine. Try to upload two things at once. Get it off Top Dead Center.
The video people have a “Filling Up” error. “I’ve been producing videos since the middle ages and now, suddenly, it stopped working (when my drive filled up).”
Run Go > Utilities > Activity Monitor and see what the top few things are taking up time or space.
I know this is old news, but do you occasionally shut the machine down? Not Restart, Apple > Shutdown… Does it take forever?
Koz
Do you get the RBBOD? (Rotating Beach Ball Of Death).
Koz
I know you’re waiting for me to tell you which button to push to make it all better.
I got nothing short of the advice to see if you can break it. It helps a lot if you can say “I can make the problem a lot worse when I [some condition or setting].”
If Google and Apple couldn’t figure it out, it means you are probably doing something unique. There is no shortage of contamination problems. For example, Zoom users find that its stiff processing and management can get stuck and affect a simple voice recording.
Post back if you do turn up solutions, or a way to change the problem, or discover any associated problems.
Koz
I think you are on the right track - this looks like a Google/Apple related issue. There is nothing inherent in Audacity that should limit it’s functionality with WAVs and MP3s.
However, as koz mentions, do not use internet drives for your audacity .aup3 projects.
Here is a report by a user who is also having problems between Google Drive and Ventura 13.0 (albeit not with Audacity). Perhaps you can try some of the potential solutions reported there: Is there a patch or new installer for Drive for Desktop for MacOS Ventura 13.0? - Google Drive Community