Okay, let's establish first that I am barely computer literate. Daughter
has mentioned that she *might* want an iPod. She's still debating (with
herself) whether it's really worth the cost for her. (Since she recognizes
that one will more than blow the gift $$ total for Christmas - and she's not
sure that she'll use it as much in whatever her next job is. But she
wouldn't object if one just fell into her lap.)

So I went to www.geek.com . And I know even less now than I thought I did.

She works from a PC and I got the impression that iPods, while they are
Macs, can also somehow be compatible with PCs. Is that true?

Are the minis large enough? What about the Dell competitor at around 5GB?

She could really use one now while she's traveling all around the country
doing interviews. But assuming she gets settled someplace with a real job
(chem prof), will she really use it enough to justify the cost? (Figure it
as her parents spending the money that *could* have bought a new couch for
the new apartment after she moves.)

I mean, it plays music. Okay, so does my stereo. Or even a portable CD
player.

It will store and transport her computer data. She has a laptop Dell.
Okay, the iPod is much smaller and lighter but if she's not on the move a
lot, is it really all that great? (I'm not a geek. I'm a semi-practical
mother. So forgive me if that seems like a stupid comparison.)

Anybody got one? Love it? Hate it? Mini?

Thanks,
~~Judy

"Judy" wrote in message
...

She works from a PC and I got the impression that iPods, while they are
Macs, can also somehow be compatible with PCs. Is that true?

They're perfectly compatible with either Mac or Windows pc. iTunes, the
program that stores and allows purchases of music, is also the program that
syncs with iPod. Its a free download and a pretty nice program. The only
problem would come from her wanting to sync her iPod to both a Mac and a pc
as the iPod isn't setup for that. It'll do either but not both without
requiring a reformat of the iPod hard drive. If she's just going to use a
Windows pc she'll be fine. I've done both (since I have two Windows
machines and two Macs) and learned that you can't sync the same iPod to both
platforms without reformatting it.


Are the minis large enough? What about the Dell competitor at around 5GB?

Yes for just music. No if she wants to store fairly large amounts of data
on it as well. I have a 40gb iPod (regular size) and my daughter is
getting the 5gb pink mini for Christmas. My iTunes (music) library consists
of 634 "songs" equaling 1.8 days of listening time at 2.82gb of space. I
put songs in quotes because I actually have a large classic audio book in my
iTunes library which is 33 chapters long. So I guess I really have 601
songs. Anyway, that's alot of music and would only take up 70% of a 5gb
mini. I also store my Mac hard drive backup on the iPod as well as files I
want to keep as individual backups.

She could really use one now while she's traveling all around the country
doing interviews. But assuming she gets settled someplace with a real job
(chem prof), will she really use it enough to justify the cost? (Figure
it
as her parents spending the money that *could* have bought a new couch for
the new apartment after she moves.)

Well the nice thing about iPod, specifically since its an Apple product, is
that it'll hold its value for a very *long* time as long as you don't have
it engraved. All Mac/Apple products hold value like they're Jaguars or
Cadillacs. She could sell the iPod, in good condition, next year and get at
least half the initial cost back out of it, probably a little more. Since
digital music and portable media are the big things of today, and will
likely continue to be prominent issues for the next several years, the cost
is worth it IMO.

I mean, it plays music. Okay, so does my stereo. Or even a portable CD
player.

Yes but can you take your stereo and all of your cds/tapes/records
everywhere you want to go and have it be so small and weigh so little? With
a portable cd player you still have to tote your cd collection around or
just limit yourself to one or two artists. The nice thing about iPod and
iTunes is that you can load your entire music collection into your computer
and it gets digitally transfer over to that little iPod. Without looking to
be sure I think you can also store data on the iPod mini which means she can
carry pictures (won't be in color though), Word, Excel or other files around
with her.

It will store and transport her computer data. She has a laptop Dell.
Okay, the iPod is much smaller and lighter but if she's not on the move a
lot, is it really all that great? (I'm not a geek. I'm a semi-practical
mother. So forgive me if that seems like a stupid comparison.)

Anybody got one? Love it? Hate it? Mini?

As I said, I have the white iPod 40gb and my daughter is getting the pink
iPod 5gb. I also have two laptops & two towers (one of each Mac & Windows)
and I use mine alot. I play my iPod over my car stereo speakers via a $30
FM transmitter, take it with me to appointments where I may have a wait,
store computer backups on it and plan to use it when I get back into the
gym. For me those capabilities plus the fact that they hold value well
meant it was worth the upfront cost to me.


--
Tara

In article ,
Judy wrote:
She works from a PC and I got the impression that iPods, while they are
Macs, can also somehow be compatible with PCs. Is that true?

Yes, but. Where does she acquire music from? Right now if
she buys music online, the only one that's iPod compatible is
Apple's iTunes store (which is pretty good). If she's
loading music from CDs it's not an issue. Anyway, yes,
while the iPod was initially only Mac-compatible they've
made it Windows-compatible, too.

Are the minis large enough? What about the Dell competitor at around 5GB?

What's "large enough?" The minis are actually pretty huge,
by my reckoning, but if she has a ginormous music collection
and wants to put the entire thing on the same device, bigger
would be better. As far as going with a competing product,
one of the things about the iPod is that it's got incredible
cachet. It's a cult device. I'm not sure that someone who
specifically wants an iPod would be quite as thrilled with
something else.

She could really use one now while she's traveling all around the country
doing interviews. But assuming she gets settled someplace with a real job
(chem prof), will she really use it enough to justify the cost?

My portable music device is a minidisc player. I work from
home so really the only time I use it is when I travel, or
sometimes I hook it up to the car stereo. However, it
really, really improves travelling, both because it's
relaxing to listen to something you find relaxing (how's
that for wisdom?) and because planes these days are
disgustingly overcrowded and underserviced and being able to
listen to your own music creates a bit of a bubble around
you, giving you the illusion of having a little more
personal space than you've actually got.

But yeah, with pretty much anything from Apple you end up
paying a premium for good design.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

"War is heck" -- American Family Association

"Tee" wrote in message
...
They're perfectly compatible with either Mac or Windows pc.
It'll do either but not both without
requiring a reformat of the iPod hard drive. If she's just going to use a
Windows pc she'll be fine.

Okay, that makes sense. I don't see a problem there.

Yes for just music. No if she wants to store fairly large amounts of data
on it as well.

Since she mentioned not only music but also data from her computer, I'd say
she's thinking the bigger one.

She could sell the iPod, in good condition, next year and get at
least half the initial cost back out of it, probably a little more. Since
digital music and portable media are the big things of today, and will
likely continue to be prominent issues for the next several years, the
cost
is worth it IMO.

Especially if the cost is a Christmas present from Mom and Dad? ;-)

Thanks for the information. I think I understand a little better now what
she's talking about. And I think I'm going to make sure she really, really
wants one. I might take a chance on the mini, figuring that she'd use it
enough to justify that, but I think what she's thinking is the big one and
for that investment she needs to really need and want it. Her traveling
should be much less - unless she and the BF are on opposite coasts or
something - and likely most of her traveling will be by car, allowing room
for the bigger and heavier things she already has.

~~Judy

"Melinda Shore" wrote in message
...
If she's
loading music from CDs it's not an issue.

This would be my guess so we're okay there.

Anyway, yes,
while the iPod was initially only Mac-compatible they've
made it Windows-compatible, too.

I'm guessing there are Macs around her at the lab but her own computer is a
PC so that's where her data would be stored.

The minis are actually pretty huge,
by my reckoning, but if she has a ginormous music collection
and wants to put the entire thing on the same device, bigger
would be better.

I think she's thinking more than just music storage. And I'm guessing her
data has graphics. So it appears we're probably beyond the minis. I'm not
clear on it, but I think it was her intention to be able to not shlep her
laptop all around the country for presentations at interviews.

As far as going with a competing product,
one of the things about the iPod is that it's got incredible
cachet. It's a cult device. I'm not sure that someone who
specifically wants an iPod would be quite as thrilled with
something else.

I know what you're saying there. She's pretty practical about such things -
*I'm* more likely to go for the name - but I also know that when you're
buying presents that someone else has requested that you buy what they
requested. Never second guess that something else is just as good.

My portable music device is a minidisc player. I work from
home so really the only time I use it is when I travel, or
sometimes I hook it up to the car stereo. However, it
really, really improves travelling, both because it's
relaxing to listen to something you find relaxing (how's
that for wisdom?) and because planes these days are
disgustingly overcrowded and underserviced and being able to
listen to your own music creates a bit of a bubble around
you, giving you the illusion of having a little more
personal space than you've actually got.

She is very likely to sleep from before takeoff until the runway approach at
the next stop. But you have me wondering if she even has a portable CD
player anymore. If she doesn't, that might be a compromise to get her the
music for travelling while she makes up her mind - maybe by her birthday in
the spring or by next Christmas - whether she really wants the iPod. Just
putting those headphones on tends to discourage the chatty person sitting to
you.

But yeah, with pretty much anything from Apple you end up
paying a premium for good design.

I have no objection to paying for good design. I'm even willing to pay more
if it means that I don't have to work as hard at determining if it's "just
as good" when I know I'm clueless. For instance, Sony loves me. (But then
I really *do* prefer their picture tube.)

But I'm thinking she maybe wants a new couch or a washer and dryer for the
next house more than she needs an iPod. She's going to have to really be
sure before I get out the Visa card.

~~Judy
(still hoping she ends up someplace wonderful that's also relatively
nearby!)

This article will give you step-by-step instructions on how to
successfully obtain your free iPod using freeipods.com for as little as
$1. Many think that this site is a scam or a pyrimid sceam. A scam no,
a pyrimid yes, a sceam no. You do have to put forth some sort of effort
to get a free iPod. You must get five friends or relatives to do
exactly the following...


Step 1: Click here to go to the free iPod site.
http://www.freeiPods.com/?r=12541248
To participate in this great offer you must live in the US


Step 2: Use an email address at the bottom of the page and choose a
password. (they will send you email, so please use a secondary account)


Step 3: Fill out all required shipping information. This tells them
where to send your iPod.


Step 4: (Do not exit at this point) This is the part that over 90% of
the people start thinking: "Maybe this isn't for real." They present to
you 10 different "optional" offers. These are not any of the real
offers needed to complete the getting the iPod.


Step 5: Skip all of the previous offers and you get to the refer
friends page. You can start sending emails to your friends here or skip
this step and do it later.


Step 6: Complete an offer. This is where real companies like AOL, Real
Networks and more are advertising through freeIpods.com. This is what
makes them successfull. Choose an offer and purchase or sign up.
(Choose the RealNetworks Real Rapsody. This cost $1...yes $1 dollar for
30 days. Cancel anytime. Even if you forget its only $10 a month after
the first month. For signing up they also give you 5 free songs to
burn. This is the best offer. Nothing is free, but an iPod for a dollar
and a little work is worth it. Some offers change. There is always one
offer where you pay next to nothing or just sign up for a 30 day trial.


Step 7: Get your friends to do the same thing. Even if you don't
complete it you get to download five songs.


Note: Completing an offer and not signing up your friends is what they
are counting on. It is more likely you get intreagued and then give up.
This doesn't mean that it is a scam. All you must do it finish. If this
still sounds to good to be true then go pay $300 for a new iPod. Have
patience and good luck.


If you haven't started yet. Get your iPod here!!!
http://www.freeiPods.com/?r=12541248