Is Zune any good?

[editor]

The iPod won't touch your WMAs. Convert them to plain old MP3's and you'll significantly reduce your headaches now and in the future.

One of the problems with WMA files is that as Windows Media changes versions it sometimes leaves older files unplayable. Less than two years ago Microsoft was pushing its "Plays For Sure" campaign to reassure people that their WMA files would play in any portable music player bearing that logo.

Then the Zune came out and left all those people in the dust, unable to play their music.

Find a way to convert your files to MP3's and you won't have to worry about it with Zune, iPod, or anything else you buy.

[KimberlySayWhat]

I'm in the process of burning my WMA's to CD's and then ripping them into iTunes. Don't cringe. It sounds just fine to me. I'm doing it the only way I know how. It's a bit tedious is all.

Converting WMA directly to MP3 sounds like too much trouble.

[KimberlySayWhat]

In iTunes, when you label your music according to genre, will they sync that way into your ipod?

I ask this because in my iTunes, under Playlists, there is a playlist titled "90's Music". It was there when I downloaded iTunes; I assume everyone's iTunes was/is that way. Two of the albums I have in my iTunes library were released in the '90s but they are not 90's music. I labeled them according to their genre (soundtrack and 70's), but I can't change their release year which are both from the '90s which is why they're appearing under "90's Music".

[editor]

In iTunes, when you label your music according to genre, will they sync that way into your ipod?

Yes. What you have in iTunes is what you'll have on your iPod.

I ask this because in my iTunes, under Playlists, there is a playlist titled "90's Music". It was there when I downloaded iTunes; I assume everyone's iTunes was/is that way. Two of the albums I have in my iTunes library were released in the '90s but they are not 90's music. I labeled them according to their genre (soundtrack and 70's), but I can't change their release year which are both from the '90s which is why they're appearing under "90's Music".

What you're seeing is a demonstration of Smart Playlists. As you add music, anything that has a release date in the 1990's will automatically be added to that list. You can delete it if it doesn't suit you. It's only there to get you thinking about how you might want to create playlists for common themes and to give you an example of how it might be done.

[memebag]

Yes. What you have in iTunes is what you'll have on your iPod.

Unless you set iTunes to manual mode, right? I played with iTunes for the first time this week and was a little shocked at how hard it was to use. I've always been told that Apple made everything easy, but deleting a track from an iPod is non-intuitive.

[KimberlySayWhat]

Thank you, editor. I deleted the playlist.

memebag, I think you have to delete tracks in your iTunes and then sync your library again. You can't delete or make changes directly from the device.

editor:

Yes. What you have in iTunes is what you'll have on your iPod.

One time my cousin was over and he synced his iPod from my computer. All of the music files on my computer automatically went into iTunes and onto his iPod. Do you need to set it a certain way for manual syncing? I'd rather it not be automatic. Will it give me an option?

My current player did that to me once and it was a mess.

[memebag]

memebag, I think you have to delete tracks in your iTunes and then sync your library again. You can't delete or make changes directly from the device.

You can keep content in iTunes and delete it from a specific device by going to manual mode. It's described in the PDF manual on Apple's site.

One time my cousin was over and he synced his iPod from my computer. All of the music files on my computer automatically went into iTunes and onto his iPod. Do you need to set it a certain way for manual syncing? I'd rather it not be automatic. Will it give me an option?

Yes, I think it's at the bottom of the "Summary" tab for a given iPod device in iTunes. There are 3 modes: full auto, playlist and manual. In manual mode, you get to pick what goes to the iPod. It seems like that ought to be the default configuration, since many people will have content on their computers that they don't want on their iPod.

[KimberlySayWhat]

memebag:

Yes, I think it's at the bottom of the "Summary" tab for a given iPod device in iTunes. There are 3 modes: full auto, playlist and manual. In manual mode, you get to pick what goes to the iPod.

Ok good. Thanks!

It seems like that ought to be the default configuration, since many people will have content on their computers that they don't want on their iPod.

Yeah, it should be. I wish I could in and set it for manual in advance.

[editor]

Unless you set iTunes to manual mode, right? I played with iTunes for the first time this week and was a little shocked at how hard it was to use. I've always been told that Apple made everything easy, but deleting a track from an iPod is non-intuitive.

I had that problem when I first made the switch from Windows to Mac. It's a mindset thing. I had to stop thinking about the iPod as being a device that I control directly, and start thinking of it as just a portable part of the computer.

In other words, I had to start thinking of my computer as a central repository for all of my media. The iPod is just a way of taking a portion with me. If I want to delete a song, I kill it from iTunes. If I want to make sure a particular artist doesn't show up on a particular iPod, I adjust its playlist to exclude that artist.

Using a Mac is a different way of thinking (I guess that's why they used to have the slogan "Think Different"). It took about six weeks before I really felt comfortable and turned off Windows for the last time.