OK...
I don't have the Media Folder in my Music folder...
all my stuff, music, videos etc. are in:
"/Users/deekay/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music"
... why the difference... no idea, it's always been that way.
QUOTE
Also, do you have "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to Library" checked?
No... never! I'll check it if and only when "I" want to, which is not often. I do have it set to "ask to import a CD" when I insert one... so and then it's my choice. I do have a lot of my CDs in there, but they aren't what's causing the problem. I don't know if I'm seeing things or what but it ain't just store purchases I've got (and there's too many of those... NO MORE!) but it seems to take the liberty of "upgrading" my music at times. I'm sure not all the iCloud crud is from purchases in any case. I don't GIVE iCloud permission to do a thing so???
As for the rest of your post... well... YEAH!!! Exactly so...
As I said it even took the liberty of sticking some sound files in the folder I use for temporary purposes I was listening to and didn't plan to keep in my Library! But would it let me load the ones I'd decided to keep... not on your life!
... and then I had to dig to see where to turn OFF shuffle which it for some reason thought I would like... I DON'T.
On top of all that... one album I had bought in the store... cannot be completely downloaded via iCloud because of some missing URL or whatever... I've lost the album!
In any case... I don't intend to buy another single thing from the iTunes store!
*edit**
Oh... BTW... I've got some things that are precious to me... I'm not trusting them to iTunes at all anymore... I'm going to set up VLC playlists for them... it doesn't move anything anywhere... the original files stay where you all put them!