Huh?....I thought you couldn't copy music off of an iPod?

[SiliconAddict]

So I was playing around with disk mode on the iPod at work this afternoon at work. Plugged in the iPod. Found the disk, even though it took like 3 minutes.
I started browsing around the file system. Under \iPod_control\ there is a directory called Music and under that is a file structure from F00 - Fxx. I copied a file over to the local hard drive, disconnected the iPod, and tried playing the music. No problems at all. I thought Apple designed the iPod so you couldn't copy music from the device without external "tools".

 

[Phat_Pat]

mac makes it difficult although windows allows you to do that...

trying doing that on a mac

 

[cazlar]

Well, I guess it's not that much harder on a Mac - some programs (like TinkerTool) will let you see all the hidden files, or you could just copy them with terminal. The 3rd party programs just make it easier to do it. As far as I know, Apple hasn't gone after any of these programs except iPod Download (as it was an iTunes plugin which therefore breaches the iTunes SDK agreement).

 

[cluthz]

Its just as easy on the mac.
Use cmd-shift-G and type in /Volumes/"your ipod"/ipod_control/

Then you are good to go...

You can also use the terminal.
The iPod_control folder i just an hidden folder, its because apple has to follow some rules by RIAA or some other copyrights..

 

[Loge]

The various third party tools are mostly front ends over the relevant terminal commands. Apple intentionally did not make it as easy as an option in iTunes, I guess, as a concession to the content providers. However, it is good to know the music files are just files on a hard drive and can be recovered if necessary (such as following computer hard drive failure).

 

[AmigoMac]

A single change in the finder preferences file lets you see those hidden files. of course, you control the music but you have an agreement, it's your honor! , as long as you don't modify the iTMS DRM, apple and the RIAA will *accept* you in the society.

 

[wide]

i find it weird that all apple does is make the folder "hidden" when the ipod is formatted for windows. when i was browsing the ipod on my dell, Explorer showed 3 folders, but the status bar said there were four. so i went to CP and enabled hidden folder view.

it really helps if you want to take your songs off the ipod onto a new computer. i tried two programs for music copying and none of them worked, so i had to open up all 50 of those Fxx folders. apple really ought to let you copy your music directly from itunes (yeah, i know...piracy), or at least provide some easy way to get your music from an ipod to a computer (none of the third-party programs work that well, for me at least).

 

[abhishekit]

I had previously transferred songs using terminal. But the folder names on the iPod are weird , just numbers. So its hard to find a song.

 

[Rincewind42]

i find it weird that all apple does is make the folder "hidden" when the ipod is formatted for windows. when i was browsing the ipod on my dell, Explorer showed 3 folders, but the status bar said there were four. so i went to CP and enabled hidden folder view.

It's all Apple does on the Mac too

it really helps if you want to take your songs off the ipod onto a new computer. i tried two programs for music copying and none of them worked, so i had to open up all 50 of those Fxx folders. apple really ought to let you copy your music directly from itunes (yeah, i know...piracy), or at least provide some easy way to get your music from an ipod to a computer (none of the third-party programs work that well, for me at least).

I just enable FW Disk mode and copy my songs manually. Since iTunes renames everything and reorganizes them strangely I find it easier to deal with that way too.

 

[aethier]

yeah it is pretty simple on the mac too, you just have to navigate to the folder with all the "Fx" folders in it (with the terminal) then open that folder in GUI mode with the terminal, i am sure there is an easier way, but thats how i always do it [with the terminal] when i want to access files and folders that we aren't suposed to
atheir

 

[williamsonrg]

Is there any way to transfer my songs from my iPod (Windows formatted) to my iMac when I get it? Or should I just use my external HDD?

 

[dornoforpyros]

Yeah I found the exact same thing with my 40gb(windoze formatted) iPod that simply turning on "show hidden folders and files" allowed me to copy my music freely. So I dunno, I guess it's easier for apple to say music can't be copied and appeise the RIAA ppl when really hiding it aint really a fix.