# Ipod Nano Won't Override This One Podcast **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 10, 2011, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683 "2011-12-10T00:36:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2011, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/1 "2011-12-10T00:36:29Z")
I get the This American Life podcast. There is one cast that has been on my Nano for a year now. For some reason, it refuses to overwrite this one program, while all other episodes overwrite normally with new material whenever I synch. (My other podcasts act normally as well). Any ideas? I know this isn’t exactly a serious emergency, but I’m sick of its stupid face and would like to delete it. In case anyone’s wondering, the episode that won’t overwrite is “[Family Physics](http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/214/family-physics).” ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2011, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/2 "2011-12-10T01:22:38Z")
Right click on that episode in iTunes. “Allow auto delete”. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/3 "2011-12-10T16:34:39Z")
> [@tellyworth](#): > > Right click on that episode in iTunes. “Allow auto delete”. Thank you! You have no idea how excited I am to try this. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/4 "2011-12-13T03:01:12Z")
So when I did the above, the podcast was already set to allow automatic overwrite. I turned it off, then on again for good measure. When I synched tonight $#@! Family Physics was still there. Anyone have another idea? ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2011, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/5 "2011-12-13T04:48:23Z")
If you want a quick-and-dirty way to keep it off your iPod, but still have it available on your computer for future listening, you could always uncheck the little box next to the podcast in question. Then go to the settings screen for your iPod nano and check the box that says “Sync only checked songs and videos”. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/6 "2011-12-14T00:12:14Z")
> [@MikeS](#): > > If you want a quick-and-dirty way to keep it off your iPod, but still have it available on your computer for future listening, you could always uncheck the little box next to the podcast in question. Then go to the settings screen for your iPod nano and check the box that says “Sync only checked songs and videos”. I’ve tried that to no avail. The problem is, the episode is already on my iPod (and has been since last December) and iTunes won’t overwrite the file with anything else. So telling it not to load the file doesn’t change anything. ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/7 "2011-12-14T00:46:00Z")
Not an expert, but can’t you go to the podcast list in iTunes (in the Detail View), right click on that podcast, and choose “Delete”? When it asks if you want to permanently delete it, say yes. Then delete it on the iPod. J. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/8 "2011-12-14T01:09:34Z")
> [@jharvey963](#): > > Not an expert, but can’t you go to the podcast list in iTunes (in the Detail View), right click on that podcast, and choose “Delete”? When it asks if you want to permanently delete it, say yes. Then delete it on the iPod. > > J. You can’t delete a podcast from the ipod side (as far as I can tell - the menu you get when you hold the center button down on a podcast does not include “delete”), but I will try that just in case. ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/9 "2011-12-15T06:33:17Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > You can’t delete a podcast from the ipod side (as far as I can tell - the menu you get when you hold the center button down on a podcast does not include “delete”), but I will try that just in case. I don’t know the iPod, but with the iPad and iPhone if you slide your finger horizontally along the podcast listing, a “delete” button will appear. You then press that button to delete the podcast. Maybe the iPod works differently. J. ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/10 "2011-12-15T07:06:34Z")
> [@jharvey963](#): > > I don’t know the iPod, but with the iPad and iPhone if you slide your finger horizontally along the podcast listing, a “delete” button will appear. You then press that button to delete the podcast. Maybe the iPod works differently. > > J. The iPod works that way too. But if you don’t delete it on your computer, it will reappear on the iPod the next time you sync. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/11 "2011-12-15T13:58:55Z")
I suppose there’s always the “nuke it from orbit” approach: reset the iPod entirely by hitting the “Restore” button in iTunes. You might want to delete the offending podcast from your computer before you do this. This all seems a bit drastic, though. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/12 "2011-12-15T14:24:31Z")
> [@jharvey963](#): > > I don’t know the iPod, but with the iPad and iPhone if you slide your finger horizontally along the podcast listing, a “delete” button will appear. You then press that button to delete the podcast. Maybe the iPod works differently. > J. Mainly the iPod Nano has no touch screen function, so any instruction that includes “touch-and-do-[anything]” doesn’t apply literally . When you select the podcast, using the center circular button (which is the only way to select an item on the nano), “delete” is not an option that is listed. > [@](#): > > The iPod works that way too. As far as I can tell, this is incorrect; there is no way to delete a podcast directly from the device. if I’m wrong, someone please explain how to bring up the option to delete, using very small words. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-nano-wont-override-this-one-podcast/605683/13 "2011-12-15T19:15:30Z")
I just typed in “IPod delete podcasts” to Google and got a couple of interesting results: [http://forums.ilounge.com/podcasts-podcasting/174888-how-do-you-delete-old-podcast-episodes.html](http://forums.ilounge.com/podcasts-podcasting/174888-how-do-you-delete-old-podcast-episodes.html) [http://www.ehow.com/how\_5761912\_remove-podcasts-ipod.html](http://www.ehow.com/how_5761912_remove-podcasts-ipod.html) You may get even more specific results if you put in the “IPod Nano” to the search command. J.