iTunes: Arrow icon showed up next to Library search box after creating Apple ID

[doxavita]

After creating an Apple ID in iTunes, I closed and relaunched the app.

This time there was an Arrow icon to the right of the library search box. (this is from the library side of iTunes, not the store part..)
I quickly noticed this difference and clicked on the arrow itself.
I don't remember the exact phrasing, but I got a prompt asking something about "automatic downloads"
I didn't think much about it and clicked on "No". Then there was a little box left which I just ended up closing. After that, that Arrow was gone.

What exactly was this all about? What exactly did I do?
If needed in the future, is there a way to revert this choice?

Thanks

 

[ApfelKuchen]

The arrow was pointing down, correct? Right below the button you may also have seen a small, horizontal progress bar (when you're actually downloading). Nothing to worry about.

If you have available downloads (say, apps you purchased and downloaded on your iPhone that have not been downloaded to iTunes), that button appears. Click it, and you get the downloads pop-up window. It has an "allow simultaneous downloads" check-box. That means more than one file can be downloaded at the same time. That's not the same as automatic downloads.

Automatic downloads means that, if you buy an app on your iPhone, the app will automatically be downloaded on your computer (or vice versa). You'll find the automatic downloads option in iTunes Preferences on the computer (iTunes menu > Preferences > Store on Mac, or Edit menu > Preferences > Store on Windows). On iOS devices the option is in Settings > iTunes & App Store on iOS devices.

From my perspective, Automatic Downloads is good to have on your computer, so that everything you may need to sync will be there when you need it (presuming you do sync to iTunes). On iOS... if several family members are all using the same account, you may not want to automatically get every game the kids buy, or every business app your spouse tries out.