[shifuimam]

So I found this program that lets you add music to your Shuffle via drag-and-drop, instead of through iTunes. It's a very small application that will rebuild your iPod's database from the files stored in \Music\.

I decided that it would be really nice to be able to make a bunch of playlists in Winamp, each with about a gig of music, so that I could switch out the music on my shuffle with just a few clicks. A couple friends helped me write a batch file that lets me do just that, so I thought I'd share it with y'all.

Basically, what this does is delete everything in \Music\ and replace it with the files from the Winamp playlist. Then, it runs the iShuffle program to rebuild the database. Note that you need to change the drive letter to whatever you've set your iPod to use - mine uses S:\.

UPDATE
I spent the evening working more with batch files, and created a setup file to make this easier for others.

Download the ZIP file and put the iShuffle folder in your system root (C:\). If your system root ISN'T C:\, the registry entry won't work, but if you've managed to make your system root a different drive letter, you can probably figure out how to edit that registry entry yourself.

Run setup.bat and follow the on-screen prompts.

That's it. :)

If you decide to change the drive letter of your shuffle later, run ipod_letter.bat to update the script.

Get the program here.

[ibook_steve]

If you're not supposed to install software, how can you install Winamp? Unless you are saying these m3u files are self-contained playlists that include all the original music files. I'm not sure I see how this is easier or faster than simply selecting a particular playlist in iTunes to fill up the Shuffle.

Steve

[shifuimam]

Originally Posted by ibook_steve 

If you're not supposed to install software, how can you install Winamp? Unless you are saying these m3u files are self-contained playlists that include all the original music files. I'm not sure I see how this is easier or faster than simply selecting a particular playlist in iTunes to fill up the Shuffle.

Steve

Winamp Portable. It's Winamp, but completely portable. Basically, it's the application without the registry entries and other things. There are also portable versions of things like Firefox, OpenOffice, GIMP, Gaim, etc. It's actually a pretty cool thing - you can store applications for pretty much anything on a thumb drive, and take your apps and your settings with you. It's also excellent for working on machines that restrict you from installing software. I use portable Firefox and portable Gaim on my work laptop every day.

It really is faster, once you create the batch file, because you don't have to wait for iTunes to load up, especially when you have a large music collection. Also, if you're like me and simply prefer to not use iTunes, this is a viable alternative. The iShuffle application was already made by someone else - I just added the ability to very quickly send music to your shuffle by playlist.

Not only that, but because it DOESN'T use iTunes, it's very easy to find your music on your shuffle and copy it back to your computer.

I'm a huge fan of context menus in any OS. I like being able to access the commands I want, when I want them, without having to go up to a menu or a toolbar. Context menus + keyboard shortcuts make for much faster and more productive computing, at least for me. I doubt I'm alone in my computing habits, either.

Like I said, if it's not for you, ignore it. However, I created something that I found useful, so I just thought I'd share it.

[shifuimam]

Updated the first post - got rid of all the crap and made a batch file to set it up. Much easier.

shifuimam - iShuffle