Another tech question: eliminating music from my iPod?

[Eve]

With your help, I have been putting my old albums and cassettes into iTunes and then my iPod--with the result that iTunes tells me my iPod is full and I can't transfer anything more into it.

Now, I have plenty of crap on my iPod I never listen to and will happily delete--but how? The iPod help menu is no help, nor are any of the iTunes drop-down menus.

Anyone have any idea? I mean, this can't be an unusual thing to want to do.

Thanks!

[lieu]

Unless there's a new version, my understanding is that all list management is done on iTunes via your playlist(s). You can't delete/remove anything via your iPod. You make the desired modifications in the iTunes playlist and then download that to the iPod, effectively overwriting the old one.

[Dallas Jones]

Open ITunes on your computer and find your music library. You should see a list of songs wth a box checked next to each one. Uncheck the songs you want to remove then plug the IPod in and let it sinc.

The uncheck songs will be remove from the pod but remain on the computer. If you want them again recheck the box and sinc again..

[Shoeless]

I don't believe I have ever "synced" my iPod. I have always manually managed the music I have loaded on it.

To delete something from my iPod, I click on my iPod in iTunes and it shows me what is currently stored on there. Then I just select and delete what I want to remove. If you want to delete an entire album, click on the first track, hold the shift key, click on the last track, and everything in between should be selected. Then just hit the Delete key to delete.

To add new music to my iPod I just select it the same way in my iTunes Library then drag and drop into the iPod.

[Eve]

Thank you--I will try these tomorrow. Thus far I can access my "library" in iTunes, but have not been able to see a list of what is on my iPod--I obviously am missing some very simple step.

[Dallas Jones]

Originally Posted by Eve

Thank you--I will try these tomorrow. Thus far I can access my "library" in iTunes, but have not been able to see a list of what is on my iPod--I obviously am missing some very simple step.

I was posting by phone earlier, now that I have ITunes up on my computer I can offer a better answer.

Leave your IPod disconnected while you open iTunes. At the top of the menu once you get iTunes open you should see Library, and under that Music with a musical note icon. Double click should bring up all the songs, with the little checked boxes. It should work the same way if you have individual play lists set up, just open them and either check or un-check the songs you want.

All of your songs are stored in iTunes on the computer, you don't need to keep them on the iPod. Each time you open iTunes and then connect your iPod you should see a brief message saying 'Syncing iPod, do not disconnect". You don't need to do anything, it will sync and update the music files each time it is connected while Itunes is open.

You will figure it out.

[Eyebrows 0f Doom]

Originally Posted by Dallas Jones

All of your songs are stored in iTunes on the computer, you don't need to keep them on the iPod. .

If you want to listen to them on the iPod, they need to be on the iPod.


If you set it up to manually manage your music, you can just delete it from the iPod tab in iTunes, no need to worry about libraries.

[Dallas Jones]

Originally Posted by Eyebrows 0f Doom

If you want to listen to them on the iPod, they need to be on the iPod.

Yes, but Eve said the her iPod was full of songs, some that she didn't want to hear, and she couldn't put any more on it.

The best way to clear all this up is to use iTunes rather than sit there and fiddle with the little iPod. If she were to take the time to clear songs directly on the iPod, they would all be reloaded once she plugs the pod back into the computer.

iTunes is where you manage what ends up on the iPod.

[Garfield226]

A pretty important question is: What kind of iPod is it?

A followup is: If it's an iPod Touch, is it running iOS 5?

Because if so, you can delete individual songs from the iPod by swiping across them and hitting Delete, just like with emails.

[Eve]

Originally Posted by Dallas Jones

Leave your IPod disconnected while you open iTunes. At the top of the menu once you get iTunes open you should see Library, and under that Music with a musical note icon. Double click should bring up all the songs, with the little checked boxes. It should work the same way if you have individual play lists set up, just open them and either check or un-check the songs you want.

All of your songs are stored in iTunes on the computer, you don't need to keep them on the iPod. Each time you open iTunes and then connect your iPod you should see a brief message saying 'Syncing iPod, do not disconnect". You don't need to do anything, it will sync and update the music files each time it is connected while Itunes is open.

You will figure it out.

Oh, dear, I'm afraid that didn't work at all. I went into my iTunes library, unchecked all the songs (a lot of them!) I wanted to unload. Then hooked up my iPod, and it said it was synchronizing.

But all the unchecked, deleted iTunes songs are still on my damn iPod.

[Eve]

Originally Posted by Garfield226

A pretty important question is: What kind of iPod is it?

A followup is: If it's an iPod Touch, is it running iOS 5?

Because if so, you can delete individual songs from the iPod by swiping across them and hitting Delete, just like with emails.

It's "8GB," according to the back, and I'm afraid I have no idea what "iOS 5" means.

[Pork Rind]

There have been, dunno, three suggestions here (uncheck boxes, manually delete, update playlist) and while they're all technically correct, how you have your iPod setup matters as not every method will work given your sync settings. For example, I could check or uncheck boxes all day long and it wouldn't make a difference as I have iTunes setup to sync playlists, and to ignore the check boxes.

What would be most helpful here would be that next time you connect your iPod to iTunes, cick on your iPod in the 'devices' area of the left hand panel in iTunes. Then, in the center of the iTunes window, you should see info about your iPod. Along the top of that info panel, you should see a variety of tabs...

'Settings', 'Info', 'Apps', 'Tones', 'Music', 'Movies' and so on.

Select 'Music', and tell us what it says in the area 'Sync Music'. That'll help narrow it down.

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by Eve

Oh, dear, I'm afraid that didn't work at all. I went into my iTunes library, unchecked all the songs (a lot of them!) I wanted to unload. Then hooked up my iPod, and it said it was synchronizing.

But all the unchecked, deleted iTunes songs are still on my damn iPod.

When you plug in your iPod, find it in the list of devices on the left and click on it. You will then see the setup screen for the iPod. Down near the bottom is a series of check boxes. One should say something like "don't sync unchecked tracks." make sure that this is correctly marked and then click the sync button in the bottom right.

[Eve]

Thanks! I will try this and let you know how it goes. You guys are so much more useful and step-by-steppy than the damn manuals or iPod "help sites!"

[panamajack]

Perhaps a related question - how would you prefer to have the music loaded on the iPod?

The basic assumption is that all music is acquired on the computer and loaded into iTunes on the computer. (This is the easiest to deal with). Possible options from there:

• When the iPod is plugged in, all new music will go to it by default. If the iPod is 'full' of music, you selectively remove music from it that you don't want on there.
--• Optionally, older music is removed automatically. You never get bothered by warnings.
----• Some older music you manually select is preserved; if full, you need to trim this list.
[ Good if you are more often listening to newly acquired songs. ]

• The iPod contains a set of music that you decide on the computer; when plugged in, it will automatically update to that set.
--• new music is added automatically, but if there is too much in the set, you'll need to fix it.
--• You decide what new music to add, possibly removing music as needed.
[ Good if you have a lot more music than can fit on the iPod, or a specific set of songs you want to keep.]

• You determine exactly what is on the iPod and when it goes there.
[ Good if you like the feeling of control, or need to use it with different computers/libraries.]

Some of these options can be combined, so if you describe an approach, we can try to help you with it.

[Eve]

OK. I plugged in my iPod and the "automatically sync songs to my iPod" selection is clicked, as it was before. The only other box is for syncing photos.

I go to the pull-down menu and under "file," "sync iPod" will not light up and cannot be selected.

Under the edit and preferences menu, there is no selection for syncing, oddly enough.

There is no selection anywhere for "don't sync unchecked tracks."

[Acsenray]

There should be four check boxes at the bottom center of your iPod screen. You might have to scroll down to see them.

See here -- http://ipod.about.com/od/howtos/ss/s...me_songs_2.htm

[Acsenray]

By "iPod screen" I mean the screen you get in iTunes when you click on your iPod under "devices" on the left. The choices aren't under any menu items on the menu bar. They're there in the center of the screen.

[Eve]

No luck. When I plug my iPod into iTunes, I get a screen that gives me:

Automatically sync songs to my iPod
Automatically sync photos my iPod

And that's it. No other options. What do I do to just goddam empty my stupid iPod, so I can manually click and drag song by song back into it from iTunes?

[Acsenray]

Are either of those checked?

[Eve]

I've both checked and unchecked the "sync music" box, it has synched, and not made a damn bit of difference.

[Acsenray]

It's very difficult ti figure this out without seeing your screen. From your description there seems robe a bunch if options missing. I've never seen an iTunes screen with no other options.

[Eve]

Oh, dear.

Well, it's not like my iPod isn't working, I just can't add any more music to it. I guess I will have to buy a second iPod. Which would be insane and I can't afford that anyway.

[Boyo Jim]

Let's see if we can do this one step at a time.

My info applies only to iTunes on IBM machines. I do not know if it is relevant to MACS.


1. Open iTunes.

You should see a list of items down the left haf of the sscreen, with category headings of MUSIC, STORE, and PLAYLISTS.

2. Plug in your iPod.

After a few seconds you should see a new category heading of DEVICES appear, just above PLAYLISTS.
Below that heading will be an item called "Owner's iPod"

3. Select "Owner's iPod"

The list of songs on the right half of your screen should disappear and be replaced by a screen with a menu at the top that includes SUMMARY, MUSIC, and probably some others that aren't relevant here.

4. Select SUMMARY (though you are probably already on that page by default)

You'll see a picture of the iPod and some ID information near the top, and some "Options" to slect near the bottom.

Now you have some choices to make. One choice you can make right here, and the other I'll get to next.


OPTION 1: The best choice is you want to reduce your music song by song

One of the options to select is "Synch only checked songs and videos".

If you check this box, and then uncheck some of your music later in your library or in your playlists, they won't be on your iPod after the next time you Synch, and you'll free up some space.

FYI, if you do this and later Unselect this option, all the individual songs you unchecked will go back to your iPod again after the next Synch, but they won't play in a roation of a playlist or a shuffle unless you specifically select them. Unchecking music is more or less telling iPod to "Ignore thes unchecked songs unless I specify otherwise." You can make them behave like all the other songs is you re-check the little boxes for them song by song.


OPTION2: the best choice if you eant to reduce your music by categories, or groups or albums.

Select "MUSIC" from the menu at the top.

You will see a thing that says "SYNCH MUSIC", and two choices below it. One is "Entire Music Library" and the other is "Selected Playlists, Artists, Albums and Genrres"

If you make the latter selection, four boxes will appear and you can select to Synch all your Rock music, or all your favorite bands, or your favorite albums, etc.

BONUS!! If you hold down th CONTROL key while clicking on any of the check boxes in a list, EVERY item on the list will be checked. This is important, because, let's say you have a thousand songs by 500 artists. If you want to get rid of twenty artists, you use this CONTROL shortcut to select them all, and the uncheck the twenty artists. Otherwise you would have to check all the 480 artists individually that you want to keep.

[Acsenray]

Originally Posted by Eve

Oh, dear.

Well, it's not like my iPod isn't working, I just can't add any more music to it. I guess I will have to buy a second iPod. Which would be insane and I can't afford that anyway.

I'm not sure that buying a new iPod would solve your problem. It sounds like you have something set wrong. Follow those step by step instructions and report back.

If that doesn't work, it might be worth it to take your laptop and iPod to an Apple Genius. Alternatively if your pod is still under warranty your get get a genius to call you on the phone.

[Disgscen]

With your iPod plugged in, and while looking, in iTunes, at the songs on your iPod, select the songs you don't wish to have on your iPod.

If you can place these all in a single playlist, that's even better. Then select everything in the playlist.

Shift-Delete.