iPod help wanted - CDs to iPod!

[PeckhamRose]

My iPod - everytime it syncs from my entire library to the iPod which it does NOT need to do.

I uncheck everything except what I need to go on the iPod and it won't do it.

I switched to manual syncing.

Now I find all the CDs I ever put on the iPod have disappeared and only that music I have purchased is being synced on, every time.

I have to reinput all my CDs. I am soooo irritated!

What have I done wrong? Why won't my copied CDs stay IN my ipod and seem to disappear everytime I put something new on?

Grrrr.

All help appreciated.

[Brendan]

I feel your pain. I have no idea how that I-Tunes witchcraft works.

[kpc]

Link to Apple.

Nightmare. Thought you could do this by changing personal settings when you connect iPod to sync (from memory).

Don't know if this link may help.

[SeanMacGabhann]

Methodical approach required

Which is your itunes home folder?

is this the same folder where you ripped your cds to?

[Brendan]

Home folder!? Ripped!? Methodical!?

Fucking witchcraft.

[mockney piers]

It all works but there are foibles. My main issue is that my home folder is an extrnal drive and if I forget to switch it on before power up iTunes gets all uppity and chnages it's home drive (the apostrophe in it's is another example of apple thinking it knows better btw).

Basically hit the library... Consolidate library thing and make sure you have enough space and make sure you know where everything is. All my music apart from the pilotlight single is ripped from my CDs to the horror that is MP3.

[PeckhamRose]

Sighhhhhhhhhh

Thanks guys and gals.

I basically copied all my CDs again and am still doing it.

They were not in the library (anymore). If only there was a button that says "Copy all your music from your CDplayer / hard drive / iPodLibrary / Elsewhere on to your iPod/Sony Music stick Yes / No / what"

then I'd be happier. Simply having a 'sync' button is stupid!

[SeanMacGabhann]

I think thy could be needless effort pr. Where are you copying the CDs to in the pc?

[PeckhamRose]

Nope on to the ITunes library thing.

[Horsebox]

PR, your CDs will ALREADY be stored *somewhere* on your PC. You just have to find out where it is and redirect itunes to read your music from this location, rather than copy all your CDs again.

Your music is not copied to itunes, as such, rather itunes reads it from a directory in windows..

Hope this makes sense.

[PeckhamRose]

Thanks. It makes sense but it's not right. I mean, I have checked and the music is nowhere else on my laptop. Just in the CD and the Library. I am indeed having to copy all the CDs again and that's slowly working. I also tried (but only when invited to by the window that came up) to make a back up to a DVD but it wouldn't copy!

[ruffers]

Ditch itunes, wipe all appleness off your ipod and http://www.rockbox.org/ it.

It's what I did.

[PeckhamRose]

I looked at the website but did not understand what it was telling me. And it seems to be written for people who already have an ADvanced understanding. I'm quite good, but not brilliant at this. Thanks anyway.

[RosieH]

Sorry to highjack PR, but can I add another itunes question.

To save space on my crappy old laptop, I transferred my entire itunes library over to my external hard drive. I dropped said hard drive and now it seems to be fecked. Is there a way I can transfer what's on my ipod back onto my laptop, or onto a new external drive.

They don't make it easy do they?

[Horsebox]

Rosie, try yamipod free software. It allows you to move music back from your pod to pc.

http://www.yamipod.com/main/modules/home/

[mockney piers]

I got an external harddrive to back up my photos and mp3s.

Then i got another one to periodically back that one up too.

One day I'll get round to burning everything to something less magnetic, probably Blu-Ray.

It's the only way to be safe.

PR, you're tunes are on your PC somewhere.

Try right clicking on a song in the library and clicking "Get Info"

At the bottom of the first tab it will say Where:

You can right click on that and click "Copy Path"

you can then copy that path, which will look something like this

K:\music\Music\Panda Bear\Person Pitch\04 Im Not.mp3

into explorer.

Delete the song reference (ie K:\music\Music\Panda Bear\Person Pitch\) and it will open up the directory.Most of your music will probably be hanging about in the vicinity

[Sue]

mockney piers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I got an external harddrive to back up my photos

> and mp3s.

> Then i got another one to periodically back that

> one up too.

>

xxxxxxxxx

I also back up to an external hardrive, but use Carbonite as well - automatically backs up everything as it's created or edited.

Costs around ?30 a year but I consider that worth while for total peace of mind. Have already been able to restore some files I stupidly permanently deleted by mistake (don't ask :-$ )

[PeckhamRose]

Thanks all for your advice specially mockney piers. I tried your advice but couldn't find any. Basically I think at some point I deleted everything in the library bar that I had purchased.

I have now put all my CDs back on the computer and in to my iPod.

I am not very keen on iPod since - when it is attached to the laptop/computer - you can not click on the iPod and see what is IN your iPod. You have to physically detach the iPod to see what is on it. I'm bored now. Going for a skid/walk taske some photos. Listening to Alan Parsons Project....

Note to self: LEAVE THE LIBRARY ALONE!