Rip and Organize approx. 500 Compact Discs to USB Hard Disk

I have a large collection of Compact Discs. Back in 2003 I ripped them all to MP3, but unfortunately at a very low bit rate. I would like to re-rip all of these CDs to Apple Lossless format, but I simply don't have the time. That is where you come in.

This task requires you to come to my house in Watertown to pick up 3 U-Haul "Small Boxes" of CDs, totaling approximately 500 discs (I counted about 450 jewel cases, but rounded up to account for multi-disc albums) as well as an empty USB hard disk. It will also require that you are comfortable with both music and album artwork that could possibly be considered 'obscene'. While the majority of the music/art is not 'obscene', there are language and occasionally images that would not be safe for work or children. If this is a problem, this task is likely not for you.

First you will need to obtain enough CD sleeves to hold all of the discs you rip. I like the "Univenture ViewPak XG Black 1 CD Sleeve" from Sleeve Town (http://www.sleevetown.com/plastic-cd-sleeves.shtml).

After ensuring the bottom of each disc is clean, you will then proceed to rip each disc to Apple Lossless format. You can use whichever tools you are comfortable with to accomplish this task (iTunes, XLD, etc), providing they support ripping directly to Apple Lossless. Files should be organized on the disk in directories for Artist/Album/Track. For example:

David Bowie/Low/01 Speed Of Life.m4a

Once you have ripped each disc, you will need to ensure the metadata tags
are correct. The metadata I am interested in includes:

* Track Name
* Artist
* Album Artist (for compiliations or collaborations)
* Album Name
* Track Number (X of Y)
* Disc Number (X of Y)
* Year (if available)
* Part of a Compilation
* Album Artwork (if good scans available online, use those, otherwise scan artwork yourself)

Don't feel the need to provide any metadata beyond that list. For
instance, I don't care about song lyrics in my metadata.

If the jewel case is a standard transparent jewel case with a charcoal
colored tray, you will then place each disc and the albums booklet in a
sleeve and dispose of the jewel case. If the case is NOT generic (funky
colors, cardboard, etc), please set it aside for me to decide what to do
with. I'd love if you found a way to reuse the empty jewel cases, and if
you can somehow sell the empty cases, feel free to keep the proceeds.

When you are finished, you will return the discs and the hard disk to me
in Watertown.

Required equipment:

* A location to do this work
* Computer with CD drive
* Scanner (or access to one) for scanning artwork unavailable online

TaskRabbit won't let me choose a 'completed by' date beyond 12/27, but I will be unavailable that week until the morning of January 1st.