Karen_ > Hi Strephon. Welcome to Sony Online Support. I'm Karen. Please allow me a moment to review your concern. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Ok. Karen_ > Thanks for waiting, Strephon. Karen_ > Please provide some additional details so I may better understand your concern. Strephon Alkhalikoi > 1. Drag and drop from Windows Explorer to the player hides dates embedded in ID3 tags of media from the player. Date information on media transferred in this manner appears as "unknown" on the player.2. Sony Content Transfer 1.3 transfers all dates EXCEPT any date of 1899 or earlier. Those dates are hidden to the player. Non-Sony software such as Winamp and MediaMonkey transfer the dates without issue. Date information on media transferred in this manner appears as "unknown" on the player. Karen_ > Thanka for the information, Strephon. Strephon Alkhalikoi > No problem. I have some additional information for you, regarding some quick and dirty research I did here. Strephon Alkhalikoi > On further research on my end, I have determined that for some reason the implementation of the Media Transfer Protocol you are using is not transferring the tags properly. The aforementioned non-Sony programs properly transfer the ID3 tags to the player while under MTP. Using the Transfer software on a UMS/MSC unit such as the Sandisk Sansa results in a file whose ID3 tags transfer correctly and are completely visible to the player. Karen_ > Yes, Strephon. Please go ahead. Strephon Alkhalikoi > We posted at about the same time. Karen_ > Yes, Strephon. Karen_ > Thanks for the additional information. Strephon Alkhalikoi > You're welcome. I know I'm in the minority regarding pre-1900 dates, but it's irritating to me to have all my music properly tagged only to have the player report "unknown" for a date. Karen_ > Strephon, Content Transfer cannot be used for Windows Media Player contents. Karen_ > Contents with copyright protection also cannot be transferred. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Karen, where did Windows Media Player come into the discussion? I avoid WMP like the plague when it comes to media players. Plus...none of these files have DRM. They were ripped from my CDs. Karen_ > Thanks for the confirmation, Strephon. Karen_ > Please give me a moment while I get this information for you. Strephon Alkhalikoi > *nods* Strephon Alkhalikoi > Ok. Karen_ > Thanks for waiting, Strephon. Karen_ > May I know the Operating System installed in the Computer? Strephon Alkhalikoi > Windows 7, Home Premium, 32-bit. Karen_ > Please try playing the songs in Windows Media Player and let me know if the Album art and the Artist name appears. Strephon Alkhalikoi > I don't use album art at all. In Windows Media Player, the dates don't appear properly either, IF the piece of music is dated 1899 or earlier. I've had little success in Microsoft doing anything about it with Media Player, because they charge for incident support and I refuse to pay to have them fix Media Player. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Other than the dates Karen, everything appears properly. If the file has a date of 1900 or greater, the date displays on WMP. Karen_ > Thanks for the information, Strephon. Strephon Alkhalikoi > *nods* Karen_ > Please stay online while I discuss this issue with my Product Manager. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Ok. Karen_ > Thanks for waiting, Strephon. I'm sorry for the delay in rsponse. Strephon Alkhalikoi > It's allright. Karen_ > Are you able to playback the music files which are 1899 or earlier in the Walkman PLayer? Strephon Alkhalikoi > Files play fine in the player. The date is the only thing that isn't displayed. If I pull the music file OFF the player and look at its tags using tagging software I have here, the date is still in the file. So the transfer is not stripping the data from the file. It's simply hiding the date. Karen_ > Thanks for the confirmation, Strephon. Karen_ > Please stay with me. It'll be a bit longer. I'm still checking. Strephon Alkhalikoi > *nods* Karen_ > Thanks for waiting, Strephon. I really appreciate your patience. Strephon Alkhalikoi > It's a Sunday...not a lot going on. I have the time. Karen_ > Strephon, as I searched the possible aspects, it's required to contact our Next Level Hotline Support Team as they are specialized in such specific deadlock issues and will be able to provide additional troubleshooting steps. Karen_ > I assure you that they will be glad to assist you in resolving the issue. Karen_ > Would you like to have their contact information? Strephon Alkhalikoi > Yes. Karen_ > Please contact our Hotline Team at 1-239-768-7547 (U.S. only). Karen_ > The hours of operation are Mon-Fri: 8:00 am - 9:45 pm [EST] and Sat & Sun 10:30 am - 7:00 pm [EST]. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Ok. Thank you Karen. Karen_ > I'm really sorry that I was not able to resolve the issue, Strephon. Strephon Alkhalikoi > That's allright. It seems to me that it may not be Sony's issue in any case, since Windows Media Player does the same thing. You do use their included driver, correct, and not one of your own? Karen_ > Yes, Strephon. Karen_ > I'm glad that you understood the situation and we really appreciate it, Strephon. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Then I will also try to get a hold of them again, because your software isn't the problem, not when I can transfer a file properly through UMS. It seems their driver is the culprit. Strephon Alkhalikoi > You're welcome. You make a good product and I'm happy with it. Karen_ > Thanks Strephon. Strephon Alkhalikoi > Have a good day Karen. Karen_ > It was nice chatting with you, Strephon. Karen_ > You too. Karen_ > Good-bye and thank you for contacting Sony Online Support. Karen_ > Analyst has closed chat and left the room