iPod

I have to say this up front - Songbird is still in “Developer Preview”, which according to the developers means it’s “an incremental release to our proof-of-concept”. I think that’s their way of saying the software is somewhere between Alpha and Beta, which is to say it’s not at all a ‘finished’ product. While using Songbird to sync my iPod I came across all sorts of problems, so I can’t warn you strongly enough to proceed at your own risk. There’s a very good chance that all of your songs will get wiped from your iPod, so if that’s not something you’re willing to risk, don’t proceed.

This tutorial will take you though the steps to use Songbird to sync the music on your computer to your iPod. [click to continue...]

Now that you’ve installed Amarok in Ubuntu, you’ll want to use it manage your iPod. This tutorial will take you through the steps to do just that, and it will also show you how to make Amarok the default program that launches when your iPod is connected. [click to continue...]

This tutorial will guide you in using Rhythmbox to manage your iPod in Ubuntu. The steps are specific to Ubuntu Feisty Fawn (7.04) and Rhythmbox 0.10.0. [click to continue...]

As the title suggestions, the following is a list of my favorite iTunes addons/plugins. I hope that even a seasoned iTunes user will find one or two in here that they’ve never heard of/used before. And I should mention, they’re all free - and many are open source.

1. Symphonic - locate and open songs faster than ever
2. ScrobblePod - nice iScrobbler alternative
3. iTuneMyWalkman - for non-iPod owners (mobile phone & other MP3 players)
4. ByteController - menu bar controller w/ excellent skins
5. iTunes Album Playlist Creator - self-explanatory
6. GimmeSomeTune - all-in-wonder iTunes supercharger
7. DockArt - replace the boring iTunes dock icon w/ album art
8. iTunes-LAME - create higher quality MP3s w/ iTunes
9. Visualizers: iVisualize and Magnetosphere - everyone loves a good visualizer
10. iSpazz - must be seen to be believed

[click to continue...]

You’ve downloaded a show or two from DimeADozen and now you want to convert the ape files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using Windows. note: this is another tutorial in the Beginners guide to lossless audio series. [click to continue...]

You’ve downloaded a show or two from DimeADozen and now you want to convert the ape files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using OS X. note: this is another tutorial in the Beginners guide to lossless audio series. [click to continue...]

Now that almost everyone knows what RSS is, I figured I’d review a few of the ways you can read RSS feeds. With a heavy emphasis on cross-platform and/or open source, here are 20 (albeit somewhat brief) reviews of the free RSS readers available. Links to download, screenshots and system requirements are included with every review.
 

Name	Type	Supported Platforms
Alertbear	client
Attensa for Outlook	client
Blam	client
BlogBridge	client
Bloglines	web
Firefox	client
Google Reader	web
Netvibes	web
Newsgator Online (Ajax beta)	web
QuickRSS	client
Rojo	web
RSS Bandit	client
RSSOwl	client
Sage	client
Shrook	client
Straw	client
ThinFeeder	client
Thunderbird 2.0	client
Vienna	client
Vista Media Center RSS Reader	client

[click to continue...]

Windows Explorer, the default file manager for Microsoft Windows, hasn’t really changed all that much over the years. Below you’ll find reviews, screenshots and links to download 10 11 12 14 15 different alternatives. [click to continue...]

You’ve downloaded a concert or two from http://bt.etree.org and now you want to convert the shn files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using Microsoft Windows. [click to continue...]

You’ve downloaded a show or two from http://bt.etree.org and now you want to convert the shn files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using OS X. [click to continue...]

This tutorial will guide you in extracting the audio from a DVD and then converting it into an .mp3 for use w/ your iPod or MP3 player. All of the software used in this tutorial is free. [click to continue...]

note: the OS X version of this tutorial can be found here.

You’ve downloaded a concert or two from http://bt.etree.org and now you want to convert the flac files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using Microsoft Windows. Read on [click to continue...]

You’ve downloaded a show or two from http://bt.etree.org and now you want to convert the .flac files to .mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using OS X. Read on .. [click to continue...]