How do I get my iTunes library onto my new computer when my old computer died?

Question

How can I upload my iTunes library onto my new computer from my iPod or iPad? our old computer died and now I cannot move my iTundes library from my iPod or iPhone onto the new iTunes. Anyone have a workaround for this?

Answer 1

It depends on what you mean by "died".
If the old computer is a Mac, you can try starting it up in "Target Disk Mode" - it doesn't attempt to start up like a computer, it pretends to be an external hard drive so it might work even if your old computer still has power (even if it's otherwise unusable). You then use a firewire cable (or or firewire to thunderbolt adapter) to plug the old computer into the new one, and can copy the music off the old hard drive.
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Or, if you're handy with a screwdriver, open up the old computer and take the old hard drive out. How easy that is depends on what model computer it is. You can then pop the hard drive into an "external enclosure" (about $20 from any computer parts store), plug that into your new computer's USB port and copy away - and you even get to keep using the old hard drive as an external hard drive. But that's assuming it really is the computer that "died" and not the hard drive itself.
Finally, if it's the hard drive in the old computer that died, but the computer itself is still good, you can try using a utility like DiskWarrior or TechTools Pro to try to recover the old hard drive, then use one of the above methods.
if you want to copy the music directly from you ipod, you can try these instructions - How to transfer music from an iPod to your computer | How To - CNET