I used the default setting, which is Append mediums to target release.
I have found some tutorials on YouTube, but I’m not fond of them. Each one that I have watched has had what sounds like a 14-year-old girl (that is, a high-pitched female voice) explaining the topic while loud music is playing in the background. When I was young, I had hearing like a bat. At 72, I have difficulty hearing her words over that music. In any event, a comprehensive example in the How To section would be better for me because I can open the example on an iPad and refer to it while entering the data on my computer.
I think try again and don’t cancel your edit.
I think your previous edits were correct but you cancelled them before they applied (it takes 1 week of pair review voting period).
I think IvanDobsky found the secret in that screen with Medium 2 and arrow keys, but I don’t know where to find that screen. When I wanted to identify some medleys, I had to use arrow keys to set the order of the songs in the medley. MusicBrainz would not let me type the song’s number directly, which is what I have done with the merge function. With medleys, the arrow keys are in plain sight. With release merge, they are not apparent, and the instructions do not mention them.
That Old Arlen Magic, Disc 01
Medium 1 is now medium 2 (will be medium 2 in merged release)
That Old Arlen Magic, Disc 02
Medium 1 is now medium 1 (will be medium 1 in merged release)
Is it normal that you put Disc 01 as disc 2 in the target and Disc 02 as disc 1 in the target?
It seems you should cancel and redo the other way, unless I mistake.
For that SECOND release, edit the RELEASE on the normal RELEASE editing page. On the TRACKLIST tab you can shuffle your CDs around and set a different order
Looking at your screenshot, I think your discs will at least appear in the correct release now, and you may have to shuffle the order afterwards. (Something a little weird may be happening on that Merge Releases page… something I bypass by just setting my medium numbers before clicking the Merge Release)
IMO, pre-editing release medium order can be useful in some cases but not in this simple case, where it is easier to just assign proper medium indexes on merge edit page.
@Landlubber you should wait to have added all 5 discs and then only you merge them, no?
Because each merge edit will take 1 week, you will never end or it will be less simple if you don’t do it with a single edit.
I tried again. The goal is to merge Disc 02 into Disc 01. Actually, the goal is to combine the two discs in a single release without any more references to disc numbers. FYI, this album has only 2 discs.
Merging two discs should not be this hard. In my experience, computer software is a nightmare without clear instructions, preferably with examples. And database software is worse nightmare than word processing software.
Is there a way for me to reply to you and Ivan in the same email?
If something was confusing in the guide you followed, let us know how we can improve it, specifically! Or even make a wiki account and get stuck in. New eyes are invaluable.
I am making a series of short tutorial videos to cover actions like this, merges is on the list. Hopefully it will cover your issues, but most likely it will need some finessing via input from new users as well.
A bigger item on the to-do list is to better surface help and documentation items in the interface, but that may take ‘some time’ yet, as it’s probably connected with a planned redesign.
I found the How To instructions for merging releases confusing because of some apparent contradictions. For example, do the Disc 01 and Disc 02 labels in the release titles disappear automatically, or must the user do something to accomplish this? What I suggest is that the instructions go step by step with examples showing data entered in the appropriate box or boxes. I mentioned some of this earlier in the chain. Try not to send users to some other page for additional information. Try not to have too many situations in the rule. For example, Release Merge has a two-disc rule followed by a rule for cases where a third disc needs to be merged with the other two. I seem to recall another rule after those. I also commented about the YouTube videos earlier in the chain.