I just bought an 80 Gig Classic Ipod, Duers - what should i expect...

[skooooo]

...from it? Can you tell me all the cool things you do with your ipod? Like I know listen to music, but do you download podcasts, etc.? just looking for cool ideas for when i get it. thanks

[Duer 157099]

1. Audiobooks!

Check your local library, you'll be surprised at how many they have available these days. Sometimes they are even available as mp3 downloads.

I've recently gotten such great books as Perkins' two books (Confessions of an Economic Hitman, and The History of the American Empire), Tom Hartmanns book "Screwed", Molly Ivan's "Bill of Wrongs" etc etc etc.

[grace0418]

3. I walked into Half Price Books a few weeks back and they had David Sederis' ENTIRE

library of audiobooks in one pack for $25. It was I think 22 cds of his short stories, which I already own in book form, but hearing him read them is soooooooooo much funnier if that's possible. That was the biggest score I've found so far.

[Duer 157099]

4. Wow.... great score!

I think I have a couple of his titles on audio, but haven't listened to them yet.

Now I just need to figure out how to "speed listen" :D

[grace0418]

2. I have the 80G as well and I LOVE it!

I have my entire record collection stored on it, with a whole slew of playlists for every mood (my husband can only store about half our collection on his iPod). I download tons of podcasts. I subscribe to NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me and This American Life. When we were traveling to Europe, I downloaded Italian language podcasts to brush up on my Italian. I also downloaded walking tours for the trip as well as a couple movies, some audio books, and a few tv shows for the flights and trains. There are TONS of free and low-cost podcasts to download for any of your interests: science, nature, sports, literature, politics, history, art, music, comedy, etc.

I can't live without it now. Enjoy!

[quakerboy]

5. I dunno about the classic, but my nano

gives me a sweet game of Solitare.

[JCMach1]

6. Enjoy your proprietary Apple machine...

:(

I wouldn't take one if you gave it to me!

Sorry, I am self-confessed anti-corporate computing troll.

[KatyaR]

7. I love mine, but

it's a mess if you're trying to find one song in particular. I find that multiple playlists work best for me.

I love the podcasting most. I also convert a lot of clips from Olberman, the Daily Show, etc., and keep them on my iPod. I really don't get to use it as much as I'd like, but I love having all that music and infomation available if I need something to do for a few minutes.

There are lots of political podcasts on iTunes, and several have video podcasts as well--Democracy Now and Bill Moyers Journal are two that come to mind. "Best of the Left Podcast" is a good one, too--it has clips from various shows and is always entertaining. And of course, you can subscribe to AAR, NovaM, and The Young Turks if you lean that way. I love being able to listen to Rachel Maddow whenever I want.

If you drive, you'll want to get a FM transmitter so you can listen in your car. You can get one that runs off the iPod battery or one that plugs into your cigarette lighter. They may make battery-operated ones--I'm not for sure.

Enjoy!

[skooooo]

8. This is great information...thanks!

Sounds like I have a lot to discover. I'm definitely behind the curve when it oomes to this.

[KatyaR]

11. One other thing--the iPod Book 3.0 is definitely worth downloading:

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/sitenews/comments/download-now-the-free-ipod-book-30-by-iloungecom/

I didn't know anything about iPods when I bought mine, and this was a big help. It also has lots of info about accessories, etc., which came in handy as well.

[Mutley]

9. I only have a Nano, but

yeah, podcasts. I get a bunch of stuff from NPR and CSPAN, Bill Maher (since I never seem to be able to catch the show on television), and a few radio show podcasts that I like (some political, but most not).

I tried audiobooks, but I just can't get into it. I tend to zone out and miss what's going on. :D

But you might like them.

[Bragi]

10. I got the same one for Xmas...

I love it. I put most of my album collection on it (193 albums so far) and it barely took 10 gigs of space. I also download several CBC news and program podcasts daily.

My conclusions:

The best thing about the IPOD is that it made my entire album collection easily accessible. This is huge for me. I am rediscovering all kinds of good music I own but almost forgot I had.

The next best thing about IPODs are making and using playlists, which is really what it's all about. It's so easy to do (I use Itunes) and really enhances my enjoyment of music.

Finally (true confessions) I love buying new music from Itunes. It is so damn easy to pick up music I hear on radio that I like.

Enjoy.

- B