iPod Question

[Horrorshow]

My kids have one. What I'm wondering, as I haven't been able to sit down and figure it out on my own yet, is about uploading files to it. My son seems to think that you need to keep all the songs uploaded to the iPod on your harddrive in iTunes, and that if you don't, the iPod will delete them as well upon the next upload from itunes. Something is wrong with this assumption, I'm sure. Help me out here please.

[tiktok]

You put music on the iPod via iTunes.

You can set iTunes to synchronize your iPod to the songs in iTunes whenever it's connected. This would result in (potentially) music being erased from the iPod, not from the computer.

You can never move music from an iPod to your computer. Well, you can, but you have to get some hacked out utility to do so--iTunes is designed to prevent that.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by tiktok

You put music on the iPod via iTunes.

You can set iTunes to synchronize your iPod to the songs in iTunes whenever it's connected. This would result in (potentially) music being erased from the iPod, not from the computer.

Okay, but there must be a way to keep uploading new songs through iTunes into the iPod, and then being able to delete the songs from your harddrive afterward, right?

In other words, one time when we uploaded songs, I deleted them from the computer afterward. The next time I hooked up the iPod it noticed that the songs were deleted from the iTunes folder and deleted them from the iPod as well.

[tiktok]

Yes, even if you have iTunes set to automatically sync the iPod to the iTunes library on the computer, you can still manually erase songs from the computer.

I would recommend turning off the automatic sync option if you're going to be manually deleting songs from iTunes and want to keep them on the iPod afterwards. You can manually add the songs to your iPod.

[Billy Claire]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

Okay, but there must be a way to keep uploading new songs through iTunes into the iPod, and then being able to delete the songs from your harddrive afterward, right?

There's not supposed to be... the ipod is supposed to mirror your playlist in itunes. To properly manage your ipod you're supposed to maintain your songs on your computer...

Billy

[jwsamuel]

Depending on how you have iTunes set, your son is correct. If you have iTunes set to automatically sync with the iPod, as soon as you connect the iPod, iTunes will automatically start to make the iPod a duplicate of the iTunes folder on your hard drive.

That means if you delete a file from your hard drive, iTunes will delete it from your iPod too.

The way around that is to set iTunes to give you manual control of the files on the iPod.

Jim

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by jwsamuel

The way around that is to set iTunes to give you manual control of the files on the iPod.

Jim

I finally got around to finding this information on the iPod manual. It seems to me that having it set to manual operation is the best way to operate the software, and the best way to upload to the iPod. I mean, who wants to keep all those files on your harddrive anyway? In this mode you can also add and delete seperate songs at will.

[jed]

Originally Posted by tiktok

You can never move music from an iPod to your computer. Well, you can, but you have to get some hacked out utility to do so--iTunes is designed to prevent that.

http://www.ipodaccess.com/works great for this purpose.

[benmeza]

Like everyone said - you just need to set iTunes to manual update. After you have done that, when you open up iTunes with your iPod connected it will allow you to "see" your iPod drive and you can add files from your computer's hardrive or delete files from the iPod's drive.

There is a utility that allows you to use your iPod drive as a removable storage drive(ie. let's you pull songs off the iPod). I haven't toyed with it yet(I got 10 gigs still before I even have to worry about that) but a friend of mine has used it and said it was a pretty easy program to use.

[lenny]

i delete all the songs out of my library after i load each cd into the ipod.
that way, i import a full cd to the itunes library, i use ctrl+a to select all, then drag and drop em all in one shot onto the ipod. when i load the next cd, i delete the library (ctrl+a, then right click and clear em all in one shot) before i start.
when i listen to music off the ipod at home, i just leave it in the cradle and play tunes off the ipod with itunes.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by Billy Claire

There's not supposed to be... the ipod is supposed to mirror your playlist in itunes. To properly manage your ipod you're supposed to maintain your songs on your computer...

Billy

That's no way to run a computer, loaded up with 5000 song files. They take up too much space. That would slow any pc down and turn it into a piece of crap real quick. No, I have to get the song files off the pc.

[tiktok]

Modern hard drives are so big, 5000 songs isn't a problem. And Mac OS X defrags the HD every time you update your system software (once or twice a month). My Windows system at work has around 200,000 (non iTunes) files on it, so I don't think that my music library is going to tip the balance. If you've got an older system with a smaller HD, maybe.

[Billy Claire]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

That's no way to run a computer, loaded up with 5000 song files. They take up too much space. That would slow any pc down and turn it into a piece of crap real quick. No, I have to get the song files off the pc.

Well, for me, the songs in my ipod are the same that I listen to when I'm working on the computer so it's all good...

[Bill]

I haven't bought an iPod, but I couldn't imagine leaving the songs on my hardrive. I mean I can buy a 60 GB iPod. My computer has 60 GB. If I filled my computer with songs and transferred them to the iPod, I'd have no room left for programs or anything--just a duplicate of all the songs I already had on the iPod.

So I'd have to run it in manual mode. Unless typical laptop computers start coming out with drives that are several times the size of an iPod's.

And yes, I could quickly fill a 60GB iPod. I collect old radio shows on MP3.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by Bill

I haven't bought an iPod, but I couldn't imagine leaving the songs on my hardrive. I mean I can buy a 60 GB iPod. My computer has 60 GB. If I filled my computer with songs and transferred them to the iPod, I'd have no room left for programs or anything--just a duplicate of all the songs I already had on the iPod.

So I'd have to run it in manual mode. Unless typical laptop computers start coming out with drives that are several times the size of an iPod's.

And yes, I could quickly fill a 60GB iPod. I collect old radio shows on MP3.

Exactly. I've been getting interested in my son's iPod, so I plan on getting one myself eventually (though I think I'll go for the Dell DJ instead). I know I'll come close to filling it up, too. I could never leave the files on my HD. The iPod is 20gigs; my harddrive is 80 (and that size still isn't bad for this day and age). That means I'd fill up a quarter of my pc's space with music files. That's idiotic. I will only be listening to my own CD's when not listening to the iPod anyway. I'd have no reason at all to leave the files on my pc except to transfer them to the iPod. If your primamry thing to do with a pc is listen to music, then I guess that's okay, but I need free space for too many other things. The mp3 files would only get in the way.

[lenny]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

If your primamry thing to do with a pc is listen to music, then I guess that's okay, but I need free space for too many other things. The mp3 files would only get in the way.

even if this is the case, it's easy to play the music with the ipod docked to usb, and they stay on the ipod's storage

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by lenny

even if this is the case, it's easy to play the music with the ipod docked to usb, and they stay on the ipod's storage

Okay, then that's even more reason to empty your harddrive of the files after uploading.

[jwsamuel]

Originally Posted by Bill

My computer has 60 GB. If I filled my computer with songs and transferred them to the iPod, I'd have no room left for programs or anything--just a duplicate of all the songs I already had on the iPod.

I have a 40GB iPod and it is halfway filled...with about 5,000 songs. My PC has a 200GB hard drive, so I partitioned off 40GB of it and use that exclusively for iTunes songs.

I also got a compact flash card reader for the iPod. When I am out shooting with my digital camera, I can empty the card onto the iPod and keep on shooting. Then when I get home, I transfer the photos from the iPod to my PC.

Jim

[TheGoodTexan]

I've got a 40 gig iPod that I use with 2 different computers - 1 at home and 1 at work. I've got iTunes loaded up on both computers, and I can easily load any song from either computer, into the iPod, then dump it on the other computer. It's not a big deal...you just treat it like any other file: Save as... and drop on to the iPod. Then open it from the iPod drive on the other computer. Add it to iTunes if you want to...or don't.

You just have to bypass iTunes altogether. iTunes won't let you do this.

As far as keeping the update function set to manual...while in iTunes, right click on your iPod and select iPod Options. Then select "Manually manage songs and playlists". That's it.

Once you do that, you're managing the iPod playlist and the iTunes playlist seperately. Adding or deleting songs from one will not effect the other. You can then delete any or all songs off of iTunes without effecting the playlist on the iPod.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by TheGoodTexan

I've got a 40 gig iPod that I use with 2 different computers - 1 at home and 1 at work. I've got iTunes loaded up on both computers, and I can easily load any song from either computer, into the iPod, then dump it on the other computer. It's not a big deal...you just treat it like any other file: Save as... and drop on to the iPod. Then open it from the iPod drive on the other computer. Add it to iTunes if you want to...or don't.

You just have to bypass iTunes altogether. iTunes won't let you do this.

As far as keeping the update function set to manual...while in iTunes, right click on your iPod and select iPod Options. Then select "Manually manage songs and playlists". That's it.

Once you do that, you're managing the iPod playlist and the iTunes playlist seperately. Adding or deleting songs from one will not effect the other. You can then delete any or all songs off of iTunes without effecting the playlist on the iPod.

Thanks! Thanks to everyone else as well. You've all helped me answer my question pretty well. :D

[jwsamuel]

Originally Posted by TheGoodTexan

As far as keeping the update function set to manual...while in iTunes, right click on your iPod and select iPod Options. Then select "Manually manage songs and playlists". That's it.

Just remember to do it before you connect the iPod for the first time. The default is automatic update.

Jim

[Hucklebilly]

I have a 15 gig iPod, and probably 20 gigs in iTunes on my computer. When I think of all the time it took me to convert from vinyl to MP3, and all the CDs I borrowed from friends to add to my collection, there is no way I would go without a backup. If, god forbid, I lost the iPod, or it got stolen, I'd never be able to reproduce my song list. Computure storage is cheap. I just bought a 120 gig hard drive for $150 dollars. Call me obsessive, but I back up everything that is important to me.

[slack]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

That's no way to run a computer, loaded up with 5000 song files. They take up too much space. That would slow any pc down and turn it into a piece of crap real quick. No, I have to get the song files off the pc.

Huh? It's utterly typical for me to have 80GB+ media files on my Mac! But, I've had nearly a terrabyte of internal storage in one of my Macs and far more in external arrays.

Why should you not have 5000 songs on your computer? I have far more than that on this Mac, but it's configured thusly: OS and all apps one one int HD, digital media and all files on second int HD, ext FW backup HD. You should see the size of the media files this computer transfers on and off of that second HD, which is networked to a ReplayTV.

This machine is often streaming from that library thoughout our place, while I'm running 20 or apps (and an obscene number of browser windows with countless tabs within), and any effect on system performance isn't noticed. This machine being a dual proc G4 1GHz w/1.5GB RAM. But, we keep around 5000 songs on two G3 iBooks with no issues. That should not effect system performance in any manner unless the machine is simply underpowered, and is in fact the purpose of iTunes and a primary use of many users. But, that should not slow down a decent computer.

Btw, for standard form factor ATA HDs I switched completely to Western Digital Special Edition 7200 rpm (8MB cache) models a couple of years ago. They were the models that finally got me away from SCSI, and I recommend them above all others. Fast, quiet, and very reliable. I've had 20 or so WD SE's and no probs. Widespread post-production use, also no probs. Favoring WD for Serial ATA, but not endorsing anything yet.

[fullerplast]

There are some pretty nice alternatives out now, check out the Creative Zen Micro:

http://reviews.cnet.com/Creative_Zen...2.html?tag=top

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by fullerplast

There are some pretty nice alternatives out now, check out the Creative Zen Micro:

http://reviews.cnet.com/Creative_Zen...2.html?tag=top

Actually, I already put a Dell DJ on order. It's kind of a gamble because I don't even know much about it. It was just more convenient, as I went and stuck it on my Dell card. Being a Dell, I suppose it must be pretty good ... I hope anyway.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by slack

Huh? It's utterly typical for me to have 80GB+ media files on my Mac! But, I've had nearly a terrabyte of internal storage in one of my Macs and far more in external arrays. etc. .....

It's all personal preference and what you're into, I suppose. I'm simply more into listening to the music I love. I don't need that much storage to do what I do with a computer, and certainly don't care about having that many musical files. My personal CD collection and what I feel important enough to put on an iPod to listen to when away from those CDs is all I need. I hope it stays that way; life is too short and precious to be too into storing music files, unless it was my financial business; but it isn't.

[eryque]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

That's no way to run a computer, loaded up with 5000 song files. They take up too much space. That would slow any pc down and turn it into a piece of crap real quick. No, I have to get the song files off the pc.

The amount of song files stored on your computer has absolutely nothing to do with the speed of the computer. It's a common misconception, but it's just not the case.

There are two exceptions to this rule: 1- your computer needs a certain amount of free hard drive space in order to run well because it uses it to swap information in and out of your RAM. A couple of hundred MB is usually more than sufficient. 2- If you don't defragment your drive regularly. This makes it take a little longer for your computer to access the files on the drive.

So what's the moral of the story? Keep the last 5% of your hard drive empty, defrag regularly, and load up the rest with music files :)

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by eryque

So what's the moral of the story? Keep the last 5% of your hard drive empty, defrag regularly, and load up the rest with music files :)

As I've said, no need for me to do so. I record my band and myself with my pc. That's all I need it for when it comes to storing music. I just need to put my faves of my cds onto my iPod. I listen to music in my car, and on my stereo and TV. I don't need music files on my pc.

[snoglobe]

I have recently become quite familiar with the inner working of the Ipod.

I have (had) one of the first generation 5GB models. I primarily used it for file storage and transfer between a number of Macs I have, as well as for listening to mp3's while walking the dogs.

I had replaced the battery with one I bought off ebay, that was fine.

Then one day, the hard drive pooched. I tried reloading the software numerous times, but it had bought the farm. So, as I was ceaselessly bashing my Ipod on the corner of my desk, it started to come apart. First the little wheel of the front, then part of the trim. I must say that little screen is bulletproof. It took a five or six well directed blows from a screwdriver and resulted in only a few tiny dents. The real exploration began when I inserted said screwdriver through the firewire port and popped it open. Once there, I was able to gut that thing like a trout. There's nothing like a good case of tech-rage to make your day.

As for Ipods, I would get another one in a heartbeat. And intend to.

[Horrorshow]

Originally Posted by snoglobe

As for Ipods, I would get another one in a heartbeat. And intend to.

They are nifty little things. Both my kids have one apiece. Anybody know anything about the Dell DJ? I bought one of those for myself instead of an iPod, just to be different. It should be arriving soon.

[Horrorshow]

What's better, mp3 or WMA'a, and why?

[tiktok]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

What's better, mp3 or WMA'a, and why?

Oh, that's an argument that'll go on forever. The summary, as I recall, was that wma's are smaller at equivalent quality level. After that you get into convenience issues of platform and software, and golden ears arguments about "depth of field" and exceptions to the Nyquist Theorem and what have you.

To me, music-player hard drive space doesn't matter at this point--they're all way bigger than anyone needs, so saving space doesn't really enter into the equation. I've got an iPod, so wma's are out of the question.

Most of the stuff you find on ptp networks is mp3 format, if you're concerned about that sort of thing.

I can't recall a piece of software that won't play mp3's, but WMA is tied to Windows Media Player. MP3's have no DRM, whereas WMA provides that option.

[Horrorshow]

As I've said, my two kids have iPods. I recently received my Dell DJ. The Dell, as usual, was the right choice. This thing is nice! :D

[tschommer]

Originally Posted by Horrorshow

What's better, mp3 or WMA'a, and why?

MP3s are better because they have nothing to do with Micro$oft.