RandomMusic.applescript

-- Default duration of the playlist (in seconds)
property reqDuration : 3 * 60 * 60
-- List with source(s) of playlists to use.
property listMusicPlaylists : {"Music"}
-- Name of the playlist to create
property myPlayList : "RandomMusic"


set cntM to count of listMusicPlaylists

tell application "iTunes"
 set TrackCount to count tracks in (item 1 of every playlist)
 -- create playlist if it doesn't exist yet
 if not (exists playlist myPlayList) then
  make new user playlist with properties {name:myPlayList}
 end if
 
 -- ask user the required duration of the playlist
 set rslt to display dialog "Add to or replace the existing list? Enter number of minutes." default answer (reqDuration / 60) buttons {"Replace", "Add"} default button 2
 set reqDuration to ((text returned of rslt) as integer) * 60
 
 -- empty the playlist
 if the button returned of rslt is "Replace" then
  set thePlayList to item 1 of (every playlist whose name is myPlayList)
  set cntSongs to (count tracks in thePlayList)
  repeat cntSongs times
   delete item 1 of (every track in thePlayList)
  end repeat
 else
  -- action for 2nd button goes here
 end if
end tell

try
 tell application "iTunes"
  set durPlayList to duration of playlist myPlayList
  set LoopCnt to 0
  repeat while durPlayList < reqDuration
   set addFlag to false
   set cntSongs to 0
   set cntLoops to 0
   -- pick a playlist with music
   repeat while (cntSongs = 0)
    tell me to set ptrM to random number from 1 to cntM
    set selM to item ptrM of listMusicPlaylists
    set musicPlaylist to item 1 of (every playlist whose name is selM)
    set cntSongs to (count tracks in musicPlaylist)
    set cntLoops to cntLoops + 1
    -- prevent the repeat loop going infinite
    if (cntLoops > cntM) then exit repeat
   end repeat
   
   -- determine a Rating-threshold for the next song
   tell me to set rndm to random number from 1 to 99
   set cntLps to 0
   
   -- pick a song in the playlist
   repeat until (addFlag = true)
    tell me to set randSong to random number from 1 to cntSongs
    set selSong to track randSong of musicPlaylist
    -- get info on the selected song
    set {dbid, onoff, ratSong} to ({database ID, enabled, rating} of selSong)
    
    -- add the song to our playlist if:
    -- 1. the song isn't already in our the playlist
    -- 2. the song is enabled/selected
    -- 3. the song's rating is higher than the Rating-threshold
    if not (exists (some track of playlist myPlayList whose database ID is dbid)) and (onoff is true) and (rndm ≤ ratSong) then
     duplicate selSong to playlist myPlayList
     set addFlag to true
    end if
    
    set cntLps to cntLps + 1
    -- prevent the repeat loop going infinite
    if (cntLps > 5) then exit repeat
   end repeat
   set durPlayList to duration of playlist myPlayList
   set LoopCnt to LoopCnt + 1
   -- prevent the repeat loop going infinite
   if (LoopCnt > TrackCount) then exit repeat
  end repeat
 end tell
 say "ready"
on error the error_message number the error_number
 say "Oh, Bother. An error occured while compiling the playlist " & myPlayList
 my write_log("Error: " & the error_number & ". " & the error_message)
end try

on write_log(this_text)
 set myName to name of (info for (path to me))
 set the theLog to ((path to desktop) as text) & myName & " Log.txt"
 try
  open for access file theLog with write permission
  write (this_text & return) to file theLog starting at eof
  close access file theLog
 on error
  try
   close access file theLog
  end try
 end try
end write_log

RandomMusic.txt

==AppleScript for iTunes: Generate a Playlist of Random Songs
When I go for  a drive, I like to listen to music on my iPod. For that purpose I usually create a playlist in iTunes. I've been using an Applescript to randomly fill a playlist with music. I only need to tell it the total duration I need (usually 3hrs worth) and it throws songs into the playlist until the time-limit is reached.  But the problem was that occasionally I'd get playlists filled with songs that I don't like so much. Now for one or two songs, that's no problem. But when it gets more it tends to become annoying.

So, I looked at the script and tweaked it a bit. The Applescript below relies on the rating of the songs in your library. So, if you haven't rated your songs (between * and *****) then this script won't work. If you have, you'll find that the script will generate a playlist that tends to contain higher rated songs more frequently.