Connecting old Windows-formatted iPod to a Mac

I have just been given an old iPod by a friend and I'm trying to synch it with my iTunes.
It's been formatted for Windows and I've got an iBook G4. I'd like to update it, but it tells me that my only option is to restore the whole thing.
So, I have tried to restore the iPod, but it tells me I need to connect the iPod using firewire. I have a firewire connectino for the iPod, but My iBook doesn't seem to have any firewire ports.
What do I do? Is there some kind of firewire to USB adaptor that I can use to restore the iPod?
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me!
IBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.9)

It's been formatted for Windows and I've got an iBook G4. I'd like to update it, but it tells me that my only option is to restore the whole thing.
An iPod other than the iPod shuffle in the FAT32 format cannot have its firmware updated on a Mac without doing a restore.
So, I have tried to restore the iPod, but it tells me I need to connect the iPod using firewire. I have a firewire connectino for the iPod, but My iBook doesn't seem to have any firewire ports.
See this article to locate the FireWire port on your computer.
Is there some kind of firewire to USB adaptor that I can use to restore the iPod?
No. Devices exist which have both USB and FireWire ports, but they do not support data exchange between the technologies.
(20650)

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Connecting a Windows formatted ipod to a Mac

My ipod used to be connected to a PC, but since a couple of days i got a mac; and when i plug it in, itunes recognizes it but then freezes. I cant use itunes anymore or access my ipod unless i unplug it. i tried quickly restoring my ipod before it freezes, but i dont have time. HELP

It's been formatted for Windows and I've got an iBook G4. I'd like to update it, but it tells me that my only option is to restore the whole thing.
An iPod other than the iPod shuffle in the FAT32 format cannot have its firmware updated on a Mac without doing a restore.
So, I have tried to restore the iPod, but it tells me I need to connect the iPod using firewire. I have a firewire connectino for the iPod, but My iBook doesn't seem to have any firewire ports.
See this article to locate the FireWire port on your computer.
Is there some kind of firewire to USB adaptor that I can use to restore the iPod?
No. Devices exist which have both USB and FireWire ports, but they do not support data exchange between the technologies.
(20650)

Possible to move itunes from windows formatted ipod to a mac?

I would like to move all my music from my windows formatted ipod to my mac book. Ive tried looking up info but get lost around the parts that only specify moving itunes from mac ipod to a windows...

If you have any iTunes Music Store purchases the transfer of purchased content from the iPod to authorised computers was introduced with iTunes 7. A paragraph on it has been added to this article: Transfer iTunes Store purchases using iPod
The transfer of content from other sources such as songs imported from CD is designed by default to be one way from iTunes to iPod. However there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve music files and playlists from your iPod. I use Senuti but have a look at the web pages and documentation for the others too, you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos and games as well. This is just a small selection of what's available, you can also read reviews of some of them here: Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
Senuti Mac Only
PodView Mac Only
PodWorks Mac Only
iPodDisk PPC Mac Only (experimental version available for Intel Macs)
iPodRip Mac & Windows
YamiPod Mac & Windows
Music Rescue Mac & Windows
iPodCopy Mac & Windows
There's also a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to a Mac or PC. The procedure is a bit involved and won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's available at this link: Two-way Street: Moving Music Off the iPod
If your iPod is set to update automatically you need to take care connecting to an empty iTunes. You can use a keyboard command to prevent your iPod auto-syncing with iTunes. While connecting the iPod to the computer on a Mac hold down the Option and Command (⌥ and ⌘ Apple) keys. This will stop the iPod from auto-syncing with iTunes and it will appear in the source list. Wait until you are sure the iPod has mounted, and that it will not auto sync and then you can let the keys go. This may take between 20 to 30 seconds depending on your computer: iTunes Keyboard Shortcuts for OSX
Your iPod should appear in the iTunes source list from where you can change the update setting to manual and use your iPod without the risk of accidentally erasing it. Also when using most of the utilities listed above your iPod needs to be enabled for disc use, changing to manual update will do this by default. Check the "manually manage music and videos" box in Summary then press the Apply button: Managing content manually on iPod
Keep your iPod in manual mode until you have reloaded your iTunes and you are happy with your playlists etc then it will be safe to return it auto-sync. I would also advise that you get yourself an external hard drive and back your stuff up, relying on an iPod as your sole backup is not a good idea and external drives are comparatively inexpensive these days, you can get loads of storage for a reasonable outlay.

Can i plug windows formatted iPod classic in Mac os x

can i plug windows formatted iPod classic in Mac os x

Yes, but it won't sync as fast as a Mac formatted iPod.
(77437)

Windows formatted iPod on a Mac - how to update?

I am new to Mac (finally). I have a Windows formatted iPod (video). Therefore my iPod update button is grayed out. Is there a way to reformat my iPod to Mac? If no, what problems will this cause down the road?
Macbook Mac OS X (10.4.8)

To reformat your iPod for Mac, you need to Restore it on the Mac. (This will erase it entirely.)
You cannot do a software update on a Windows formatted iPod from the Mac, which is why the Update button is greyed out.

Moving from a Windows formatted iPod to a Mac formatted ipod

First of all, forgive me if this is a repost, as I know I have seen the resolution before, but am unable to find it.
I currently have an iPod 80GB classic, with about 40GB of music on it. I have recently purchased an iMac and want to move to a MAC formatted ipod. That is, connect and manage the ipod in a MAC environment instead of Windows.
I also want to back up all my music on the ipod to my MAC itunes library to ensure my music is all in one place.
Once all is said and done, I want a MAC formatted ipod, and not have lost my music on the ipod by reformatting it.
Thank in advance.
How can I accomplish this?

*I have recently purchased an iMac and want to move to a MAC formatted ipod.*
You need to restore it in iTunes for Mac
*I also want to back up all my music on the ipod to my MAC itunes library to ensure my music is all in one place.*
To copy everything (including purchases)to the Mac there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve the music files and playlists from your iPod. I use Senuti but have a look at the web pages and documentation for the others too. You can read reviews and comparisons of some of them here (you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos and games as well):
Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
Comparison of iPod managers
A selection of iPod to iTunes utilities:
Senuti Mac Only (iPod Touch & iPhone compatible)
PodView Mac Only
PodWorks Mac Only
iPodDisk PPC Mac Only (experimental version available for Intel Macs)
TuneAid Mac only (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
YamiPod Mac & Windows
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPodRip Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Music Liberator Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iGadget Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
Floola Mac & Windows
Music Rescue Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iRepo Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
iPod Access Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
TouchCopy Mac & Windows (iPhone and iPod Touch compatible)
There's also a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to a Mac or PC. The procedure is a bit involved and won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's available on page 2 at this link: Copying Content from your iPod to your Computer - The Definitive Guide
*Once all is said and done, I want a MAC formatted ipod, and not have lost my music on the ipod by reformatting it.*
Copy the songs to the Mac first then restore the iPod in iTunes for Mac.

Windows-Formatted Ipod Files to Mac

I just got a new Macbook (very nice!).
I thought transferring files from and reformatting my windows-formatted ipod would be a huge process, but this what i did.
I connected my external disk mode ipod (not on auto-sync) to my new macbook.
1) To my SuRPRISE, itunes read it!!! I was listening to music on my windows-formatted ipod on my macbook.
Macbooks read windows-formatted ipods! I also read on this forum that a windows-formatted ipod work on both Windows XP oS and OS X Tiger.
Q: WHY would anyone, then, format their ipod to Macintosh?
2) Then another suprise!!
I opened the hardrive of my disk mode ipod.
I clicked on "Ipod Control" (which I though was supposed to be a "hidden file") opened the file "Music"
36 different folders with all my music dispersed randomly in each.
I copied all folders on to my hardrive.
Go to Itunes.
Go to "File" "Add to Library" all the files of randomly dispersed music. Then itunes automatically organized all those random files in my itunes library and macbook hardrive.
In a few easy steps, all the files on my ipod, all 23 Gigabytes of music was copied onto my Macbook.
That's crazy!!!
Almost too good.
Q 2: Is this risky? I own all that music, paid for out of my own pocket? I'm not going to get any cooky viruses just because I didn't do the file transfer according to the manual?
Macbook Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Q: WHY would anyone, then, format their ipod to Macintosh?
Two major reasons.
1. A Mac cannot perform a firmware update to a Windows-formatted iPod. You can sync music to it without any problem, but if you ever need to upgrade the iPods firmware when an update is released, you won't be able to.
2. A Mac-formatted iPod will perform a whole lot better on a Mac than a WIndows-formatted iPod does. It will mount faster, and data transfers will be faster as well.
Q 2: Is this risky? I own all that music, paid for out of my own pocket? I'm not going to get any cooky viruses just because I didn't do the file transfer according to the manual?
No risk at all. This is a very common way to rebuild your iTunes library if it ever gets corrupted or deleted. There's also a handful of third-party applications available which basically provide a nice front-end and automate this process.

Transferring Music from a Windows Formatted IPOD to a MAC

I'm trying to transfer my music from my IPOD (which is Windows formatted) to my new Mac. My PC crashed and I, unfortunately, never backed up my Music Library. So, now I've bought this new Mac and want to transfer my songs without restoring the IPOD and losing all my music. Any suggestions as to how I can do this?
Thanks!

same thing happened to me. I purchased iPod Access from the internet (for about $15). This program will let you transfer your music and playlists from your iPod to your library

Importing songs from Windows-formatted iPod to a Mac

Because everyone knows that FireWire is a **** of a lot faster than importing from CD... When I run BrokenHelix with the iPod attached, the iPod doesn't register with the computer, so I can't import that way. I have a PC, but got a Mac to take to college, and I'd like to change the formatting. Anyone have any suggestions?

If the music is still on the PC this is what you'll want to get it on to your mac http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300173
then, one that's done you can use the iPod updater (in/Applications/Utilities on your mac) to format the iPod for your mac. but the windows formatting should still work on the mac.

Transfering music from a Windows formatted ipod to a Mac - is it possible?

I have a bit of an interesting problem. All my life I've used Macs, occasionally a PC, but I definitely prefer Macs. Anyhow, I currently have a PC, temporarially, I will be getting an iBook late Spring this year, and I have two iPods, a 4G formatted for Mac, with all my music on it, and a 5G formatted for Windows that I just got for Christmas.
Now, my question, when I get my iBook, I want to format the new iPod for Mac and put all my music from the 4G onto it. Getting the music off of my old iPod onto my iBook won't be a problem, however I've got quite a bit of stuff on the new iPod that I don't want to get rid of. Is there anyway to connect my new iPod to my PC and hook the PC up to my iBook and transfer the files that way? Burning everything onto a CD isn't an option, my PC is super old and doesn't have a CD burner, it also has less than 1GB of free space, and I have about 4GB of stuff on the new iPod that I want to transfer over.
Any ideas? I know that I can't connect both iPods together on the same computer to transfer files, particularly considering that one would be formatted for a different system....
Hmmm how difficult is it to transfer files from a computer with Windows XP to a computer with OSX anyway?

same thing happened to me. I purchased iPod Access from the internet (for about $15). This program will let you transfer your music and playlists from your iPod to your library

Getting my Windows formatted Ipod to update on a mac

I imagine this is a fairly common question, but I have been unable to update my windows formatted ipod on my mac. It tells me that I have to restore it to it's factory settings and reformat it to mac. This would seem to cause me to lose all my songs. Seeing as how I don't know of an easy way to temporarily store my songs on the desktop, I was wondering if there was a way to update without me having to lose all my songs.

I just found that I have this same problem. Does the solution you suggest meant hat once I download YamiPod I launch it on my Mac (keeping iTunes closed) and then connect my iPod? Do I then use YamiPod to copy my entire iPod library to my Mac, launch iTunes to reformat the iPod to a Mac, close iTunes and then use YamiPod to copy the songs previously on my iPod from my Mac back to my iPod?
Just trying to understand all this before I completely ruin everything and screw myself (I'm not so tech saavy).
Thanks.

Uploading/Importing 30 GB Windows formatted Ipod Playlist to my MacBook?

All the music on my iPod is from my old PC. I just want to connect my Windows formatted iPod to my MacBook and have all my music on there imported onto my iTunes and then update my iPod under my MacBook, but this seems to be too hard of a simple favor to ask. Does anyone understand or can help me out with my situation? Anything? I would really appreaciate it!
Thanksssss

Just hook the external hdd up to your MacBook Pro.
OS X will mount it as a usable volume when you connect it.
Nothing special you need to do.

Windows formatted iPod Mini

Hey everyone,
Basically, i came on here looking for info on how to change my windows formatted iPod Mini to Mac... and found how to do it! But I have one main concern, will a Mac formatted Mini still show up on a Windows machine? I know that my mini shows up on my mac at the moment formatted as windows, but still, will it work the other way round i wonder :S.
Cheers, Ben
iBook G4 - 12inch - 1.33GHz - 1GB DDR Mac OS X (10.4.7) 6GB iPod Mini in Green

An iPod formatted for Mac won't run natively on a PC because the Windows OS does not support the HFS Plus file system and therefore will not see the drive. However here are third party programs that will allow you to use a Mac formatted iPod on Windows, this is one for instance: XPlay 2

Windows formatted iPod and iPhoto?

Hey people,
is it possible to use my windows formatted iPod on a Mac and transfer photos using iPhoto?
Ian

Yes, it's possible.

ITunes shows my iPod Shuffle as windows formated after reformating to mac

iTunes on my Dual G4 MDD system still shows my iPod shuffle as windows formated after reformating it with disk utility. iTunes on my 12 inch PowerBook & ancient iBook both show this same iPod Shuffle as mac formated. All machines are running Tiger 10.4.9 with iTunes 7.2. The Dual G4 MDD system has my large iTunes library but so far I've not been able to sync my iPod Shuffle to this library. This large iTunes library works fine with my iPod G3 and my appleTV.
Power PC Dual 1Ghz G4 (MDD) Mac OS X (10.4.5)

I got this iPod Shuffle used. It had been formated in windoes fat32. Until I formated it with disk utility all my mac instances of iTunes showed it as windows formated and had the update and restore buttons grayed out with a warning that windows formated iPods couldn't be updated or restored on a macintosh.
After reformating the iPod, iTunes in both of my laptops recognized the iPod Shuffle as being macintosh formated and showed iPod Shuffle's software version 1.0.3 and the iPod Shuffle's serial number. But, my old G4 tower system's iTunes still shows the iPod Shuffle as windows formated with no software version available, no serial number and nasty errors occurring on attempting to sync.
I can sync to the much smaller iTunes library on my PowerBook but I realy do want to solve this mystery and sync to the larger and richer library on my old G4 Tower.

Connecting old Windows-formatted iPod to a Mac

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