iTunes 7 Headaches!

Last week, Apple released iTunes 7, in conjunction with other changes in the iTunes Music Store. So far, it's given me many problems. I've read about what other users are saying about iTunes 7, most of it being negative. I've read everything from "iTunes 7 is the biggest memory hog in history" to "iTunes 7 made a paperweight out of my brand-new iPod." Pardon me while I vent.

I installed iTunes 7 on the two computers at home, both Windows XP machines. On my computer (which I call Compy 786. I'll admit now that I'm a HomestarRunner.com fan), it wasn't as big a memory hog as some people have said, I did experience one MAJOR problem: iTunes wouldn't recognize my iPod. I searched Apple's knowledge base and found this. I tried it, and it worked…once. Subsequent attempts to get iTunes 7 to recognize my iPod failed. That's when I gave up. Good thing that the iTunes 7 installer made a backup copy of my iTunes library.itl file, even though I made my own backup copy of that and the corresponding .xml file. I downgraded back to iTunes 5.0.1 and restored my iPod to factory settings and re-synced it.

I installed iTunes 7 on another computer at home, this one being the one with a connection to the Internet (Compy 786 currently has no Internet connection). Before doing so, I added a song to my shopping cart using 5.0.1, and I was basically forced to upgrade, so I did. After upgrading, I commenced downloading. I ran into another problem. To basically describe what happened next, I'll express it in terms that appear in Mac OS X.

The application "iTunes" has unexpectedly quit.

So I reported the problem using the prescribed method, and I received an e-mail from iTunes Customer Service.

Dear Robert,

I'm sorry to hear that your purchase didn't download successfully. It looks like the content is still available in your account and awaiting download, so you should be able to restart the download by following these steps:

1. Make sure you're using the latest version of iTunes, then choose "Check for Purchases" from the Advanced menu.

2. Enter your account name and password when prompted, then click the Check button. Your purchase should begin downloading. If you receive an error message while downloading, try again after turning off any firewall or web-accelerator software that you may have installed...

I followed his instructions, even though the menu commands were different. It turns out the "Check for Purchases" item was in the Store menu, not the Advanced menu. but I found what he was talking about, and the song downloaded as it should.

I also found out another workaround, using the following commands.

net stop "iPod Service"
pause

This basically stops the iTunes service. I don't remember the exact process, but I got iTunes 7 not only to recognize my iPod, but to sync with it. Then it started to analyze the songs on my iPod for iT7's gapless playback feature. It's a nice theory, but I've yet to experience it for myself. There was an error generated in the process, and after I had ejected the iPod from the computer, and went to Settings > About, I got the following:

ROBERT M
Songs	0
Capacity	18.5 GB
Available	11.8 GB
Version	3.1.1
etc.

Yup. iTunes 7 turned my iPod into a paperweight. So, I reverted back to 5.0.1, and tried to get iPod Updater 2006-06-28 to work with it. The hard disk would spin and then it would click. And this click was an abnormal click, not the usual clicks. Anyways, after working with many Macs at both Queens College (where I have a major issue regarding the number of Macs on campus computer labs) and the Apple Store, using the Disk Utility app, I was able to get iPod Updater to recognize my iPod on Compy 786. I restored and began re-syncing.

While doing so, I discovered a way to get it to sync. It's a line from a G Love & Special Sauce song. The line is "Stick it in the fridge." The name of the song it comes from is Cold Beverage, but what I needed was a cold iPod. I put the iPod in the fridge, and lo and behold, it worked! I was able to sync and load my songs onto my iPod! Worst case scenario averted…for now.

Bookstore Blues… or Lack Thereof

Classes started last week, and today I went to pick up my textbooks. I always go a few days after the first day of classes, as the rush to buy books dies down a bit. Anyways, I had a psychology book I was looking to get rid of also. I looked online at the college bookstore's web site to see if there were any psychology classes using the book. As far as I saw, there weren't any. So I went to the bookstore to see for myself. They always have an external bag check in the cafeteria during the first couple of weeks of classes due to the obviously high demand. I went to take out the book I was looking to sell and put away some more stuff into my bag. I did this at a table near the end of the queue, in the 90 seconds it took for me to have everything ready, the queue had doubled in size. So I get on and check my bag in. Then I go downstairs to the bookstore, and I discover another queue. This one was to get into the bookstore itself. And this was a LONG one. It was moving as if it were a ride at an amusement park, letting 10 to 18 people in every 3 or 4 minutes. A person could take 3 round trips on the Franklin Avenue Shuttle in the time it would take to stand on that queue. Then I noticed that the bookstore's "back door," the entrance to the buyback and online order office, was empty. Since I intended to sell the book I was holding, I jumped in there. Another lady in front of me had two books she was looking to sell. Two books, purchased for classes presumably in the spring, and both returned no value. My one book returned $34, about 39% of the price I originally paid for it, but at least I got something for it. To complete the buyback process, i.e. get the cash, a person needs to give the receipt issued at the buyback desk to the cashier, who dispenses the money. Once I did that, I went back to the books. I grabbed the book I needed for my computer science class and paid for it. I left the bookstore with my book while the folks were still on the queue. My psychology book was the "extra passenger" I needed to use the book store's "car pool lane."

At least I now have that book.