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gunnar · Jul 5, 2005, 03:16 PM

I recently purchased a 20GB iPod for a friend and loaded up 15Gigs of songs for him. However, his computer is Windows and when he installs iTunes it wants him to reformat the iPod. Is there a way he can do this without losing the songs. Secondarily, is there a way to get the songs off onto his Windows PC, then reformat as needed?

SoBayJake · Jul 5, 2005, 11:38 PM

If you loaded it up from your Mac, it will be formatted for a Mac. Windows can't read iPods formatted for Macs.

I think to do what you want, he needs to have all those songs first on his computer in iTunes, then sync with that computer, and allow it to reformat the iPod.

Wiskedjak · Jul 5, 2005, 11:45 PM

Originally Posted by gunnar

is there a way to get the songs off onto his Windows PC, then reformat as needed?

MacDrive

Randman · Jul 6, 2005, 01:48 AM

Just use ethernet and create a network. Built-into OS X.

monkeybrain · Jul 6, 2005, 04:01 PM

Got a related question (sorry to hijack the thread, but I thought it would be best to keep it tidy in here, and from what I read MacDrive is the only way to get music off a Mac formatted iPod onto a pc).

Anyway, my question: I'm getting an iPod mini next week and I was wondering if it was possible to format it on my Mac for use on Windows (to whatever format windows uses, fat or something like that is it still)? Or can you only format it as windows on a pc?

I was wondering because I want to use it holiday on my girlfriend's laptop to transfer music onto it and to save any files or pictures we take.

Cheers!

By the way, I don't have access to a pc at the moment, that's why I ask.

Wiskedjak · Jul 6, 2005, 05:13 PM

Originally Posted by monkeybrain

Anyway, my question: I'm getting an iPod mini next week and I was wondering if it was possible to format it on my Mac for use on Windows (to whatever format windows uses, fat or something like that is it still)?

The only way I can think of to format your ipod in FAT through a Mac, and still be usable as an iPod (MacOS can format drives to FAT, but it will no longer function as an ipod), would be to use a Windows emulator.

Randman · Jul 6, 2005, 10:41 PM

You can use an iPod as an external hard drive on a PC and Mac by enabling disk usage. But you can't use an iPod with a Mac and a PC for music playing.

Wiskedjak · Jul 6, 2005, 11:17 PM

Originally Posted by Randman

You can use an iPod as an external hard drive on a PC and Mac by enabling disk usage. But you can't use an iPod with a Mac and a PC for music playing.

What do you mean? I can play music off my Windows formatted iPod on both my Mac and my PC. When my iPod was Mac formatted, then I couldn't play music off it through the PC, but MacDrive could see the files and copy them to the PC. What's more, Mediafour has a product called XPlay that will allow you to play music from a Mac iPod on a PC.

Randman · Jul 7, 2005, 12:12 AM

Play music, yes. Upload music and sync? No.

Ambassadeur · Jul 7, 2005, 01:45 AM

Originally Posted by Randman

You can use an iPod as an external hard drive on a PC and Mac by enabling disk usage. But you can't use an iPod with a Mac and a PC for music playing.

Of course you can. Just format it for windows (FAT32) and you can use it on both mac and pc for all the uses it's intended for (playing music, syncing etc.).

monkeybrain · Jul 7, 2005, 10:39 AM

Originally Posted by Ambassadeur

Of course you can. Just format it for windows (FAT32) and you can use it on both mac and pc for all the uses it's intended for (playing music, syncing etc.).

Cheers, so if I can get my hands on VPC (I think my brother has it) or a pc is FAT32 the correct file-system to format it to? I think I just use the iPod software for Windows right?

God, why can't these pc's read Mac discs? So primitive, good old Macs are multilingual.

Wiskedjak · Jul 7, 2005, 10:48 AM

Originally Posted by Randman

Play music, yes. Upload music and sync? No.

I can upload music to my iPod from both my Mac and my PC.

iLikebeer · Jul 7, 2005, 06:39 PM

Originally Posted by Wiskedjak

I can upload music to my iPod from both my Mac and my PC.

Yeah, I formatted my iPod to Fat16 or 32? using my parents' PC a few weeks ago. It works with PC and Mac iTunes, but you need to sync up the libraries first with iPodrip etc. or you will lose songs that have been added and aren't already on both libraries.

It will ask something like do you want this iPod to be associated with this computer each time you go back and forth. Now that mine is PC formatted and works with both, I'm going to try using the disk usage to store added songs so i don't have to use the 3rd party software for the new additions between libraries.