Syncing iPod over USB2 Cable?

what version of iPod? what version of iTunes? Mac?

i have a mini, latest iTunes and panther. i can sync no problem using a USB cable...

hmm... that's strange. i even have a rev. A PB, which only had USB1 and i was still able to sync ok with the USB cable included. (very slowly, of course...)

quit iTunes, plug in the mini and see if it launches. otherwise, launch iTunes yourself and see if the mini shows up. if it doesn't, hmm... check around preferences?

you might need to have the Mac plugged into the wall... that's a possibility because USB may not be set to supply enough power otherwise?

USB doesn't give enough power to power or charge iPods, while FireWire does. The warning from Apple was simply to warn you that the iPod would be running on battery power while syncing and could lose some of its data if its battery ran out of charge mid-sync.

The reason Apple didn't support USB 2 syncing via Mac was simply a selfish one - i.e. Apple invented FireWire and wants people to use that instead (same reason why Apple computers didn't get USB 2.0 ability until mid 2003 because Apple wanted USB2 to fail versus FireWire, but of course they eventually saw sense).

USB 2 ability was added to iPods in the first place to make them more attractive to PC users. This is because most PCs don't come with FireWire ports as standard (most Dells don't, for example). Eventually Apple saw sense and added USB 2.0 support for Macs with 10.3.4 which explains why it now works for you.

Normally, it is best to use FireWire because then you can charge the iPod while it is connected to your Mac. FireWire also has a faster sustained transfer speed even though USB 2.0 is theoretically faster at its peak.