Ask iLounge 8-7-09

Article

Ask iLounge offers readers the opportunity to get answers to their iPod-, iPhone-, iPad-, iTunes-, or Apple TV-related questions from a member of the iLounge editorial team. We'll answer several questions here each week, and of course, you can always get help with more immediate concerns from the iLounge Discussion Forums. Submit your questions for consideration using our Ask iLounge Submit Form. We reserve the right to edit questions for grammar, spelling, and length.

The most asked question at iLounge.com:

How do I copy content from my iPod/iPhone onto my computer?

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The Complete Guide to iPod, Apple TV and iPhone Video Formats

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The Complete Guide to iPod, iPhone and Apple TV Video Conversion (Mac)

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The Complete Guide to iPod, iPhone and Apple TV Video Conversion (Win)

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And now, for this week's Ask iLounge column:

Hi there. I just read some great advice from your site about moving files other than just the music to an external hard drive. Of course, before I read it, I tried on my own to move just the album art to my hard drive. When that didn’t work and I lost a bunch of my artwork, I asked for it to download again. Now that all of my iTunes data is neatly on my external hard drive, the album art folder has doubled in size.

Is there a way to get rid of the duplicate downloaded artwork without losing the artwork that I have copied and pasted from various other sources? I have spent many hours filling in missing artwork with my own images and/or correcting the downloaded artwork.

- Wendy

Actually, clearing out the downloaded artwork is relatively straightforward: simply exit iTunes and delete the “Album Artwork” folder from within your iTunes folder entirely and this will take care of clearing out your automatically downloaded album artwork as well as any cached copies of any artwork you’ve added manually yourself.

The key here is that when you add artwork to a track directly via copy-and-paste or through the track info dialog box, the artwork is actually stored within the tags for the MP3 or AAC file itself, and only a copy is cached in the iTunes “Album Artwork” folder for faster access. On the other hand, artwork downloaded automatically through iTunes is not embedded into the tracks themselves, but only stored in the iTunes “Album Artwork” folder structure.

In fact, if you look inside the “Album Artwork” folder, you’ll see two sub-folders: Download and Cache, representing these two types of album artwork. Although you could just delete the “Download” folder to remove downloaded artwork, it is possible that the content of your Cache artwork folder has been duplicated as well, taking up additional disk space unnecessarily.

The Album Artwork folder will be recreated the next time you restart iTunes, and any artwork contained in your tracks will be re-cached by iTunes and stored in the “Cache” folder. You can then manually re-download any missing artwork from the iTunes Store as you normally would.

I have an odd-ball scenario that I simply don’t know about: My old iPod was stolen and I am considering replacing it with an iPod touch. One of my questions is related to syncing with Outlook 2007. I know it will sync, but my problem is that my copy of iTunes (with the music library) is on my home PC while all of the contacts and calendar that I need are on my work laptop. Can you sync an iPod touch with one computer for the media content and another computer for the contacts and calendar? I’m trying to see if I can eliminate an HP iPaq Pocket PC if I get an iPod touch as a replacement instead of just an iPod.

- Greg

Actually, you can do this quite easily. The settings on the “Info” tab are handled independently of the Music and Video settings, so you can easily sync your media content from one computer and your contact and calendar info from another.

To do this, simply start by setting up your iPod touch on your primary iTunes computer that contains your media content. Configure all of the settings for Music, Movies, TV Shows, Podcasts and Applications. Do not enable anything on the “Info” tab, which would be where your calendar, contact and bookmark sync settings are specified. Once you’ve set up your iPod touch for your media content and synced it, you can then connect it to iTunes on your work computer and select the “Info” tab to specify your calendar and contact sync settings.

Once this is configured, your iPod touch will automatically sync media content with your home computer and your calendar and contact info with your work computer. Further, you could even set the iPod touch to “manual” mode, which works the same as it does for any other iPod; in this mode your media content is managed manually and you could therefore add content from either computer, but your contact and calendar information will continue to be synced automatically from the last computer you had configured it on (ie, your work computer).

By using your tutorials and a free application I was able to transfer songs that were saved on my iPod back to my computer after I had lost everything. The music folders are now located under Documents & Settings/Owner/My Documents/My Music and each time I try to play a song on my computer for the first time I have to “locate” the song in that file folder. Is there an easy way to put my music files back into an iTunes library that iTunes recognizes instead of having to locate each song I’m trying to play? I have an external hard drive where any CD’s I download are saved. Can I drag and drop the folders from My Music to the external hard drive I specifically have my iTunes save new CDs to? Will that put everything
back into an iTunes library? Thanks.

- Evelyn

The problem here is that iTunes stores the full path to each of your media files in the iTunes library, and when it can’t find the file in that location, it falls back to asking you to locate the file yourself. Before it does this, however, it will make one other attempt to locate the track in the standard location where iTunes would store your music by default, specifically in your iTunes Music folder, organized into sub-folders by Artist and Album.

Your iTunes Music folder location is specified under your iTunes Advanced preferences tab, and by default would be a folder named “iTunes Music” under the main iTunes folder on your C: drive. However, if you’ve previously specified another location, such as a folder on your external hard drive, this means that iTunes will fall back to looking for the music in that location instead of looking for it in the location where you’ve stored the recovered files.

Basically, to solve this problem easily, you need to put the files back where iTunes would expect to find them. If you’ve recovered them to a standard ARTIST\ALBUM\SONGNAME file system structure, then you’re probably already most of the way there, and might be able to get away with just copying then en masse to your external hard drive, or resetting your “iTunes Music folder” path in your iTunes Advanced preferences back to your C: drive location.

A useful tip for getting your tracks organized in the way that iTunes wants to see them is to let iTunes re-organize the tracks for you by re-importing them into a new, separate iTunes library. The idea here is that the iTunes application will always organize your tracks in the same way, regardless of which iTunes library database you’re using. On the basis of this, you can create a new iTunes library database to work with, import all of the tracks into that new, dummy library and let iTunes organize them for you, and then switch back to your original iTunes library database.

You can create a new iTunes library without affecting your existing library files simply by holding down the SHIFT key (Windows) or OPT key (Mac) when starting iTunes. iTunes will prompt you to either choose or create a new library.

Simply choose to create a new iTunes library and specify a path for the new library database. Note that even in a new library, all of your iTunes preferences remain the same, so your preferred iTunes Music folder path will apply to both libraries. As part of this process, make sure that the “Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library” option is enabled under your iTunes Advanced preferences:

Once you’ve created a new iTunes library, simply re-import all of your music as you normally would, by selecting File, Add to Library or dragging and dropping the music into iTunes. As iTunes imports your tracks, it will copy them into your iTunes Music folder location, as specified in your iTunes preferences. organizing them into the proper folder structure in the process.

Once this process has been completed, close iTunes and restart it again while holding down the SHIFT/OPT key to bring up the library selection dialog box, and select “Choose Library” and switch back to your original iTunes library database. With all of the files having been copied and re-organized by iTunes, your primary library should now have no problem locating your music.

Thanks in advance for answering this question. I currently have an iPhone 3GS and a fourth-generation iPod nano using the same account in iTunes on my Windows computer. Can I also use an iPod touch on the same account? A total of three devices? Thanks.

- Richard

Absolutely. In fact, there is no practical limit to how many iPod, iPhone or Apple TV devices can be connected to the same iTunes library. iTunes treats each device distinctly, with its own configuration and synchronization settings, so you can easily sync different types of content and different playlists to each device, or even manage some of your devices manually while synchronizing others automatically.

You can even connect multiple iPods or iPhones to your computer simultaneously, subject to how many USB ports you have available. Each iPod or iPhone will show up as a separate device in iTunes, and you can manage each one simply by selecting it from the device listing on the left-hand side, in the same way you would manage a single iPod or iPhone. iTunes can even sync all of your devices in parallel.

For the purposes of illustration, the image above shows three iPhones, an iPod touch, an iPod classic, three iPod nanos, three iPod shuffles and two Apple TV devices, all connected and synchronizing with the same iTunes library simultaneously.

I want to upgrade my iPod to the newer version of the iPod nano but I am worried that I won’t be able to sync the new iPod with my current iTunes and that I will have to start from scratch. I’m under the impression that only one iPod can be synced to an iTunes library at any one time. Can anyone help before I lose 1,000 tracks??

- Rachel

Upgrading to a new iPod will definitely not be a problem. As illustrated above, iTunes can not only handle more than one iPod syncing to the same iTunes library, but can even handle many at the same time. A given iPod can only automatically sync with a single iTunes library, but a single iTunes library can support many iPods.

You’re at no risk of losing any tracks in this process either as long as these are stored in your iTunes library. If you’ve been managing your iPod content manually and deleting music from your computer after transferring it to your iPod, then you will need to copy these tracks from your old iPod back into your iTunes library before you can add them to your new iPod. If you’re in this situation, you can check out our iPod 201 article on Copying Content from your iPod to your Computer for some tips on how to do this. Once the tracks are in your iTunes library, however, you can just sync them to your new iPod in the same way as you would have synced them to your original one.

Note that each iPod gets its own synchronization settings, so when you first connect your new iPod nano, you will be prompted as to whether you want to sync your content automatically and you may have to customize your sync settings further. Your new iPod begins as a clean slate as far as iTunes is concerned, but you can very easily tweak the sync settings in iTunes to get it set it up to store the same content as you have on your existing iPod.

My wife and I have just got iPhones but we only have one iTunes on one computer. I have activated mine and am getting my wife’s in the post on Monday. When I go to activate hers on iTunes will it automatically copy all my settings to her phone or will I be able to have two separate set ups. Similarly, will it only copy all the same music over to her phone that is on my phone or can we set different sync options.

- Jon

iTunes will treat each iPhone as a separate device, with its own configuration settings. As illustrated above, when you connect your wife’s iPhone, it will appear in the iTunes Devices section separately, and you can configure her settings in iTunes in terms of what information to sync in much the same way as you’ve already configured your own.

Any content in your iTunes library can be syncing to either or both of your iPhones, although you will need to configure the sync settings for each iPhone individually. This also includes choosing which applications you want to store on each iPhone. Application data and the configuration settings on each iPhone will be stored separately on each device, although iTunes will store a backup for each of your iPhone separately in the event that you ever need to restore this information. These backups include all of the information and configuration settings for each iPhone with the exception of the actual media content, which of course should already be stored in iTunes and therefore re-synced to the iPhone from there. You can view the backups that iTunes has stored for your iPhones by choosing the “Devices” tab in your iTunes preferences:

Note that if you are syncing both iPhones automatically, some of the metadata such as ratings and play counts for your media content will also be shared between both iPhones. This means that if your wife listens to a song or applies a rating to a song on the iPhone, that will be reflected in your iTunes library and on your own iPhone. Likewise, the iTunes Store account you are using on your computer will be configured as the default iTunes Store account on both iPhone devices, although you can manually log out and log into another iTunes Store account directly on the iPhone itself if you so desire.

Ask iLounge Archives:

2-3-12: Deleting pictures from Photo Stream, Transferring Apps to a new iTunes library, Apple Universal Dock and iPhone 4S, Getting Track Names after CD Import, Video Playlists on the iPad

11-25-11: Removing music after activating iTunes Match, Smart Playlists and iTunes Match, Backing up data from an iPhone, Syncing MP3s to an iPod nano, Migrating Playlists to a new Computer

11-11-11: Configure Apple IDs on family iOS devices, Recovering lost audiobooks, Unable to disable passcode lock on iOS devices, Buying an iPod for audio-only use, Preventing deleted tracks from coming back from an iOS device

11-4-11: iPhone 4S storage capacity doesn't match, Transferring HD video from iPhone 4S to a computer, Recovering photos from iPod touch, Notification Center and iMessage in iOS 5

10-21-11: Using iCloud's Find My iPhone on older devices, Batch deleting photos in Camera Roll, Using iTunes Gift Cards internationally, Audiobooks and iCloud, Merging contacts from two devices into iCloud

See the rest of the Archives...

10-7-11: iPhone 4S battery life, New features in iPhone 4S, Buying iPhone 4S Unlocked, iPod nano and Nike+ Kit, Purchasing iPhone 4S for use abroad

9-30-11: Opening iTunes library from external hard drive, Moving Playlists to iPod, Downgrading iOS on iPod touch 2G, Playing Playlists in iTunes, Problems with iTunes opening automatically when connecting an iPhone

9-23-11: iOS 5 release and OTA installation, Transferring Purchases to iTunes, iPad and iPhone charger compatibility, iPod touch and regional App Stores, Find My iPhone and Remote Lock/Wipe, Previous iTunes Libraries Folder

9-2-11: Transferring iTunes library from Mac to Windows, Reading ebooks on iPod classic, Recovering lost password on iPod touch, Transferring music from a Windows iPod touch to a Mac, Backing up in iTunes 10.4

8-26-11: Updating playlists when consolidating iTunes files, Migrating from iPod touch to iPad, Buying and listening to music on multiple devices, Updating firmware on 4G iPod, Backing up iPhone without a computer

8-5-11: iCloud and Find My iPhone, Mac app for converting DVDs to iTunes, Clearing Sort Fields in iTunes, Importing MP3 audiobooks into iTunes, Creating iTunes library on external hard drive

7-29-11: Adjusting iPod touch ringer volume, iPod touch and wired networks, Consolidating information from two iPhones, Changing Apple IDs on an iPad, Track information not appearing when importing into iTunes

7-8-11: Using Start and End times with Apple TV, Sending Photos to Apple TV via AirPlay, Track Info greyed out in iTunes, iPhone upgrade eligibility, Downloading Album Artwork

7-1-11: Sharing multiple iTunes libraries on one computer, Burning MP3 CDs, Organizing audiobooks on iPod classic, Identify tracks not in any playlists, Copying content from a Mac-formatted iPod to Windows

6-24-11: FaceTime Edition: Costs for using FaceTime, FaceTime iPod model compatibility, Using FaceTime internationally, Using Multiple FaceTime devices in the same family, Missing FaceTime icon on iPod touch, Receiving FaceTime calls when out of coverage

6-17-11: Importing videos into iMovie for iPad, Switching to a new iPod touch, Transferring iTunes library database, User ID requirements for old iPod classic, Burning a CD from an iPod touch

5-20-11: Connecting an iPod to a stereo, Problems moving an iTunes library, Gifting apps, Problems joining CD tracks, Streaming AirPlay from a line-in source

4-15-11: Problems sending e-mail over Wi-Fi, Syncing iPhone content from different computers, Resetting a used iPod touch, Javascript on the iPad, Renaming an iOS device

4-8-11: Setting up an iTunes Store account for a child, Organizing Music Videos in iTunes, Album art missing on iPod touch purchases, Finding a serial number for a missing iPod, Purchases not syncing to iPod nano

4-1-11: Syncing existing apps to new iPad 2, iPod classic microphone compatibility, Recovering lost iTunes Store purchases, Recovering non-purchased content from iPod, Displaying unique artwork for compilation albums

3-25-11: Apple TV not showing Descriptions, Using a U.S. iPad 2 in other countries, Transferring iPod music to iPad 2, Audiobooks on iPod touch, Using an iPad on Windows

2-25-11: Redeeming iTunes Gifts on iOS, Finding MP3 tracks in iTunes, iPad Camera Connector on iOS 4.2, Backing up iTunes Playlists, iPad Video Formats and Battery Life

2-6-11: Removing playlists from iPod, 2G/3G iPod touch cases, iPod charging cables, Locating Apps folder, Transferring audiobooks to iPod

1-28-11: Car Bluetooth receivers, Editing Contacts on iPod touch, iPod touch shuffles songs, iPad and Bluetooth headsets, iPod touch and external keyboards

1-14-11: Transferring iPod classic from Mac to PC, Cover Flow on 30GB iPod, Transferring iTunes library between two external hard drives, iPod shuffle dock adapters, Connecting iPhone to a new iTunes library

11-19-10: Gifting Apps, Backing up Apps, Cleaning up old folders after moving iTunes library, FaceTime data usage, Storing iTunes videos on a different hard drive

11-12-10: Music videos play audio only, Advanced Smart Playlists, Transferring iTunes to another user account, iPhone 4 Case Program, Restoring a locked iPod touch

10-29-10: Viewing content on iPod from iTunes, Playing iTunes at a party, Viewing available space on iPhone, Recovering content from an iPod nano, Moving an iTunes Library to Windows 7

10-22-10: iTunes Store appears differently on another computer, Using iPod touch with an AV output cable, Transferring apps from iPad to iPod touch, Restoring iTunes from backup, Placing FaceTime calls with one e-mail address

10-15-10: Reorganizing content into a new iTunes library, Moving iPad+iPhone to a new computer, Hiding built-in apps on iPod touch, Missing built-in apps on iPod touch, Using iPod shuffle with older operating systems

10-8-10: Using Apple TV with different iTunes accounts, Setting up Apple TV on a different computer, Streaming content to Apple TV from other sources, Merging iTunes Store accounts, Importing music as audiobooks

10-1-10: iOS Calendar integration, Moving iTunes completely to an external hard drive, Automatically tagging imported movies, Recurring billing on iPad 3G, Transferring data to new iPad

9-24-10: On-The-Go Playlists with iOS 4, Using multiple iPods on one PC, Moving Apps and Artwork folders to external hard drive, Transferring Apps from iPod touch to iPhone, Syncing Genius Mixes to iPhone 4

9-17-10: Using iPhone 4 without cellular service, iPhone screen remains active during calls, Re-downloading Apps, Reset passcode on iPod touch, Copying audiobooks to iPod

9-10-10: Disk Use on iPod nano 6G, Using an iPhone and iPod touch on the same iTunes library, About iPod touch 4G Apps and Battery Life, Moving iTunes Library to a new Windows 7 PC, Upgrading to a new iPod touch

8-27-10: Using iPad 3G GPS without a data plan, Setting up iPod without installation CD, Movie Rental options don't appear in iTunes, iTunes prompts to remove apps from iPod, Recovering content from iPod touch

8-20-10: Accessing Internet Radio from iOS Remote app, Converting an iPod touch from Windows to Mac, Home Screen Wallpaper not available in iOS 4, Transferring non-purchasd content to a new computer, Managing multiple iTunes Libraries with different preferences

8-13-10: Restoring iPod touch onto iPhone, iPhone 3G only plays monaural audio, Corrupt iPod Photo Cache, Sharing Apps between family iPods, Not all songs transfer to iPod, Unknown playlists in iTunes

7-30-10: Transferring playlists from iPod touch to iPhone, Tracking Changes in Word Docs on iPad, Alarm Clock apps for iPhone, Problems connecting to iTunes Store, Transferring video from iPod nano 5G

7-23-10: Upgrading to a new iPhone, Using GPS car kit with Bluetooth stereo, Viewing podcast info on iPod classic, Deleting Apps from iTunes, Cleaning up content on iPod marked Other, Finding a lost iPod touch

7-9-10: Transferring iBookstore purchases between devices, Transferring files manually onto iPod touch, Sending e-mail attachments from iPhone, Transferring apps from iPhone to iPad, Selecting music to sync to iPhone

7-2-10: Accessing iTunes U on iPad, Transferring video from 5G nano to iPad, Compilations and Artist listing on iPod classic, Backing up and erasing iPhone 3G, Downloading podcasts outside of iTunes, iPhone 4 Retina Display apps on iPad

6-11-10: iPod touch prompts for old iTunes password, SMS message storage on iPhone, 3G iPod and iM600 speakers, Adding music from iPod nano to iPhone, Converting tracks in iTunes and iPod, Syncing selected music to iPad

6-4-10: iPad 3G and International use, Extra authorized computers in iTunes, Adding music to multiple iTunes libraries, Adding purchased music to iPod from another computer, Problems playing back CDs burned in iTunes, Large amount of Other content on iPod

5-14-10: Storing iPhone apps in a different folder, Removing games on iPod classic, Transferring videos from iPod nano, Continual iPod charging, Bluetooth A2DP support on iPad, Resetting iPod touch password lockout

4-30-10: Updated ID3 tags in iTunes, Problems downloading free updates from iTunes Store, Transferring Keynote files to iPad, Opening iTunes library from external hard drive, Restoring iPod and content, Syncing iPod to a new computer

4-23-10: Converting lossless tracks for iPod, Repairing corrupted iPod filesystem, Syncing existing apps to a new iPad, Streaming iTunes Radio in the car, iPads and iTunes Store authorization limits

4-16-10: Pairing iPod touch with Bluetooth headsets, Adding lyrics in iTunes for Mac, Restoring playlists on a new computer, Upgrading iPod touch to 3.0, iPod touch shows iTunes logo, Adding playlists to iPhone

4-9-10: Copying text from iBooks, Using iPad without Wi-Fi access, Syncing one iPad to multiple libraries, Setting up an iPad as a gift, Conserving space on iPod, Gifting an iPod touch, Syncing and backup up iPhone Notes

3-19-10: Restoring iPhone from Backup, Sharing Apps on multiple iPhones, Syncing Recently Added playlist, Older iPods and firmware updates, iPad and Remote Desktop control apps, iPhone Sync Cable compatibility

3-12-10: Syncing iPod with new iTunes library, Excluding selected playlists from sync, Sharing iTunes content on multiple iPhones, iPad and iTunes sync options, Shuffle playlists on iPod classic, Creating iPhone ringtones

3-5-10: Running iTunes app on external hard drive, iPod shuffle shows no content, Switching Apple ID in iTunes, External microphones for 5G nano, Removing columns in iTunes, iPod Dock and Remote control solutions

2-26-10: iPad Edition II: Sharing files between apps, iPad font support, Connecting to projectors, Using external storage, Downloading third-party music, iBooks and dictionary support

2-19-10: Checkmarks in iTunes, Storing files on iPhone, Identifying songs not in playlists, Black Dock adapters, Transferring purchased apps from iPod touch, Reformatting iPod for Mac

2-12-10: Using iPod with purchased content in different countries, Playing WMV e-mail attachments on iPhone, Deauthorizing iTunes, iPhone background audio recording, Displaying photos via TV out, Transferring saved photos from iPod touch

2-5-10: Recovering iPod serial number from iTunes, Using apps on new iPod touch, Transferring apps to another iPod touch, iPod touch and apps requiring OS 3.x, iTunes Media Folder path and network drives, Backing up audiobooks to CD

1-29-10: The iPad Edition: Updating Apps for iPad, iPad Accessory compatibility, iPad and iPhone tethering support, AT&T Wi-Fi access, Annotation support in iBooks

1-22-10: Recovering iPhone apps, Joining Audiobook tracks, Cleaning up after iTunes Consolidation, Moving iTunes to an external hard drive, Recovering iTunes onto an external hard drive, Burning CDs from an external hard drive

12-18-09: Audiobook Burn Limits, iPod touch audio quality, Adding a second family iPod to iTunes, Accessing iPod Diagnostics Mode, Track numbers appear in track names, Syncing playlists to iPod

12-11-09: Resetting iTunes authorizations, iPod capacity for audiobooks, iPod docks and line-out, Audio output from iPod shuffle, Resuming playlists on iPod touch, Syncing newer iPods with older versions of iTunes

12-4-09: Syncing iPod with no Internet access, Syncing a replacement iPod, Removing synced photos from iPhone, iPhone and iPod external batteries, Transferring photos from iPod nano to computer, Saving iTunes before an OS reinstall

11-27-09: Identifying purchased tracks in iTunes, iPhone 3GS Airplane Mode requirement, Advanced Smart Playlists in iTunes 9, Restoring iTunes from external hard drive, iTunes Store country restrictions, iPod nano 5G speaker compatibility

11-20-09: Sharing iTunes libraries between two user accounts, Enlarging text on iPhone 3GS, Transferring an iPod to a new user, iPhone shuffles when walking, New 8GB iPod touch models, Transferring purchases from a remote iTunes library

11-13-09: Syncing different contact info with two iPhones on the same computer, iPod shows no content, Syncing music and videos in playlists, Exclamation marks next to tracks in iTunes, Playing podcasts on 3G iPod shuffle.

11-6-09: Storing iPod software updates, Playing an iPod continuously, Transferring play counts to a new iTunes library, iPhone backups, Klipsch S4i earphones

10-30-09: Authorization problems with iPod touch, Changing Grid View background in iTunes, iTunes library and Music Folder are different sizes, Older iPods and firmware updates, Reconciling two different iTunes libraries, Syncing multiple devices to one iTunes library

10-23-09: Using a laptop with an iTunes library on an external hard drive, Transferring YouTube videos to iPod, iPod touch accessibility settings, Disabling Shake to Shuffle on iPod nano, Purchased songs fail to download from iTunes Store, Charging and powering off iPhone

10-16-09: Moving iTunes to a new computer, Transferring contacts from Blackberry to an iPhone, Disabling iPhone Backups, Using AV cables for audio only, Problems syncing photos to iPod touch, Memorex iFlip and iPhone compatibility

10-9-09: iPhone OS and external keyboards, Adjusting ratings in a remote iTunes library, Excluding tracks from Genius Mixes, Moving iTunes library out of My Documents, Playlist folders on iPod touch, Refreshing random Smart Playlists

9-25-09: iTunes 9 and Shopping Cart, Restoring iTunes to an external hard drive, Using an HTTP Proxy over 3G, Problems transferring movies from iTunes to IPhone, iPod touch shuffle mode, Using an iPhone without a SIM card

9-18-09: Recovering unlisted media content from iPod, Repeat and continuous video playback on iPod touch, iPhone 3G vs 3GS, Customizing iTunes sorting, Rebuilding an iTunes library, Removing artwork from iPod in iTunes 9

9-11-09: Genius Mixes and iPod classic, Drag-and-drop content to iPod, Sharing home libraries in iTunes 9, Using an iPod without iTunes, Waking to a playlist on iPod touch, Kensington LiquidAUX, Disabling Geotagging Warnings

8-28-09: Consolidating Multiple iTunes Libraries, iPod touch Bluetooth headset compatibility, iPod holds less than advertised number of songs, Transferring media between iTunes Store accounts

8-21-09: Recover Contact/Calendar info from iPod touch, Connect iPod without automatic sync, Managing On-The-Go playlists, iPhone and Stereo Bluetooth Support, Sharing an iTunes library between multiple users on the same computer, Disabling Shake-to-Shuffle on iPod nano

8-14-09: Syncing iPod touch apps and data with a new iTunes library, Automatically adding media files to multiple iTunes libraries from a network share, Downgrading to iTunes 7, iPod nano and disk mode, Displaying release dates on iPod, Playing iPod through TV USB port

8-7-09: Clean up album artwork in iTunes, Syncing media content and calendar/contact info from different computers, Reorganizing recovered tracks in iTunes, Using multiple iPods and iPhones on one computer

7-31-09: Using an iPod and a Zune, iPod and on-TV menus, Backing up Notes from IPod touch, Sharing an iTunes library between a Mac and a PC, Waterproof earphones, 3G iPod and iPhone Accessory compatibility, Shure earphones

7-24-09: Displaying recent plays on web site, iPhone and car integration, iPod classic TV output, Renaming iPhone, Sound quality on different iPod models, iPod shuffle accessory compatibility

7-17-09: Transferring saved application data to new iPhone, Recovering Content from Mac iPod on Windows, iPhone 3GS and charging accessories, Recreating Recently Added playlist, Restoring old iPod touch, Track sorting on iPod classic

7-10-09: Passwords on iPod touch, iPod headphone jack problems, Tagging tracks imported from CD, Adding chapter markers to audiobooks, first-generation iPhone and stereo Bluetooth, Nike+ shoes

7-3-09: iPhone Recent Calls list and location info, iPod touch Bluetooth audio support, Car interface fails after 3.0 upgrade, iPhone battery life, iPhone stereo audio recording,

6-26-09: Recovering a dead iPod touch after 3.0 update, Battery Percentage Display on iPhone 3.0, Options hidden after 3.0 update, iPhone locked after 3.0 update, Managing videos on iPhone, iPod classic accessory compatibility

6-12-09: Conserving power on iPhone, Syncing iPhone Notes, Syncing Apps on new iPod touch, Block pop-ups in Safari, Syncing new iPhone, Playing multiple albums

5-29-09: Sorting tracks in iTunes, iPhone Bluetooth Headset Dock, Recovering Mac-formatted iPod on Windows, Screen damage on 4G iPod nano, Syncing purchased tracks back to iTunes, Managing a class set of iPods

5-22-09: Syncing iTunes content between computers, Importing music into iTunes, Re-transferring apps from a new iTunes library, New iPods and charging accessories, Using multiple iTunes libraries

5-15-09: Starting out with an external hard drive, Syncing playlists manually, Recovering lost iPod serial number, Music count vs Playlist count, Multiple iTunes Store accounts on the same computer, Optimizing album artwork

5-8-09: Organizing audiobooks, Problems transferring purchased items back to iTunes, Keeping played podcast episodes on iPod, Transferring iTunes library to a new computer, iPod shows no content, Using a new iPod with an existing iTunes library

4-24-09: Playing iTunes purchases on a non-networked computer, Finding iPod manuals online, Sharing an iTunes library between separate user accounts, Equalizer on iPod shuffle, Recovering content from Apple TV, Screenshots on iPod touch

4-17-09: Converting tracks to higher bit-rates, Using iPod with non-iTunes content, Using iTunes with an external hard drive, Expired rentals don't delete on iPod, Using only part of a song, Restoring 4G iPod stuck on AC adapter icon

3-27-09: Transferring iTunes library from XP to Vista, Using iPhone as an alarm clock, Splitting iTunes library across two iPods, Recovering iPod onto a computer with an existing iTunes library, Purchased TV Shows stuck in downloads folder, Tagging tracks as Audiobooks in iTunes 8

3-20-09: Using two iPods on a single computer, iPod shuffle 2G/3G accessory compatibility, Displaying TV Show seasons separately in iTunes, Playing iPod through secondary computer, Stopping iPod playback on iPhone, iPod touch 2G and Dock audio

3-13-09: iPod touch vs iPhone, Storing music only on your iPod, Problems transferring rented content, Managing content manually on iPod shuffle, iPod lyrics display, Playing video out to TV from iPhone

3-6-09: iPhone playback on other computers, Games on iPod classic and 5G, Transferring iTunes tracks to SD cards, Group compilations on iPhone, Transferring your iTunes library, iPhone Car Integration

2-27-09: Problems transferring iTunes content to external hard drives, Using an iTunes library database from an external hard drive, Converting Palm address book for iPod touch, How iTunes organizes music videos, Preventing iPhoto from opening when connecting an iPod touch

2-20-09: Video docks for 5G iPod, Connecting an old iPod to a new iTunes library, Downloading iTunes 8 on another computer, Erasing a used iPod and starting fresh, Recovering photos from an iPod, Tracking purchases in iTunes

2-13-09: Waterproof cases and sound quality, Upgrading to iTunes Plus with a manually managed iPod, Reinstalling games on the iPhone, iPhone 3G Dock options, Fixing album artwork problems, Display iTunes Applications category

2-6-09: iPod nano voice memo format, Buying iPods abroad, Skipping a playlist when shuffling, Adjusting playback speed of music tracks, Not all TV Shows syncing to iPod, Checking and unchecking multiple items in iTunes

1-23-09: Synchronizing contacts to iPod touch, Pairing iPhone Remote app, iPhone call audio via Dock Connector, Recovering iPhone apps, New iPods and charging, Remote control of Windows via iPhone

1-16-09: Creating Smart Playlists based on other playlists, Transferring or syncing an iTunes library between two computers, Converting Mac-formatted iPod to Windows, Using Artist and Sort Artist fields, Using an iPod on more than one computer, Importing audiobook CDs as audiobooks

1-2-09: Parents controls on iPod touch, Running iTunes from an external hard drive, Search feature on 5G iPods, Syncing videos to iPod touch, Safari problems on iPod touch, Other content on iPod shuffle

12-19-08: Keeping podcast episodes, iPod and TV USB inputs, Converting PC-formatted iPod to Mac, iPod touch e-mail accounts, Backing up iTunes to a hard drive, Managing and syncing iPod touch On-The-Go playlists

12-12-08: Classifying videos in iTunes 8, Sharing music between iPods, Sharing apps between iTunes libraries on the same computer, iH9 and iPhone compatibility, Recreating Purchased folder, Locating Music Videos

12-5-08: Creating custom slideshows for Apple TV, Optimal album artwork size, Transferring iPod touch from PC to Mac, Upgrading to a new iPod touch, Authorizing iPod Games on new computer, Managing iPod content manually

11-21-08: iPod keeps resetting, Organizing iPhone apps, iPod touch video accessories, iPod-compatible online music sources, Reordering playlists manually

11-14-08: Cover Flow on 4G iPod nano, Setting up iPod touch without Internet access, Internet radio for iPod touch, Apps button missing on iPod touch, mm50 speakers and new iPod models, Including Year field on iPod

« iPhone Gems: Mini Golf Wacky Worlds, Besieged + Spy Bot Chronicles

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Comments

1

I run iTunes on my office PC with my music stored on an external hard drive syncing with an iPod Classic.

Is there a way to have all, or the vast majority, of the iTunes files (music, album art, playlist info, etc.) stored on my external hard drive?

Everytime I log on/off my office PC it backs up the Documents and Settings folder to our network. Unfortunately it currently contains multiple iTunes folders and files. This adds time to the process, takes up extra back-up storage space and will eventually lead to iTunes being blocked as at some other offices I know of.

Thanks.

Posted by David E. on August 14, 2009 at 8:37 AM (PDT)

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