Help re connecting my itunes to ipod

Question

My old computer crashes and we managed to save my itunes which is now set up on my new pc (software 7).
My ipod has all my tunes on but on older software i think.
Will I be able to connect my ipod to my new pc okay ?
Will I have to sync and do i need my ipod number to do that?
Do I have to restore first and will this not delete my songs on my ipod?
Can i sync without restoring ?
Help would be appreciated
thanks

Answer 1

If you managed to move all of your iTunes songs etc to your new pc then connect your iPod. If it is set to update automatically you'll get a message that it is linked to a different library and asking if you want to link to this one and replace all your songs etc, press "Erase and Sync" this will remove what's currently on there and load your rebuilt library.
If iTunes on your new PC is empty then connect your iPod and when you get the message that it is linked to a different library and asking if you want to link to this one and replace all your songs etc, press "Cancel". 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 a lot of the utilities 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
The transfer of non iTMS content such as songs imported from CD is designed by default to be one way from iTunes to iPod. However there is a manual method of accessing the iPod's hard drive and copying songs back to iTunes on Windows. The procedure is a bit involved and it won't recover playlists but if you're interested it's posted in this thread: MacMuse - iPod to iTunes
If you prefer something more automated then there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve the music files and playlists from your iPod. This is just a selection, you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos, photos and games as well. Have a look at the web pages and documentation, they are generally quite straightforward. You can also read reviews of some of them here: Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes
YamiPod Mac and Windows Versions
iGadget Windows Only
iPod Access Mac and Windows Versions
PodUtil Mac and Windows Versions
iPodCopy Mac and Windows Versions
TuneJack Windows Only
CopyPod Windows Only
Whichever of these retrieval methods you choose, 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 again.