Yeah, That's Right, I Bought an iPod...for My Wife

[Jason Dunn]

The Dunn household underwent a radical paradigm shift over the holidays that Digital Media Thoughts readers will probably be interested in given my historical stance: the very first Apple product was introduced into our world. It's something I've managed to avoid for, well, my whole life: going back to age 10 even my Apple IIe was a clone (a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_128">Laser 128</a>). There are reasons why I've avoided Apple products in my adult life, but they're not worth going into here.<br /><br />For Christmas 2005 I purchased my wife a <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2005/09/16/dell-dj-ditty-now-available/">Dell DJ Ditty</a> for using while she was working out at the gym (she's highly dedicated, going five times a week, the polar opposite of me). The Ditty, in a pink silicon case attached to a pink armband, made for a great workout partner for Ashley. She had no real complaints about it, although I personally found the interface and controls to be less than optimal.<!><br /><br /><span><b>First Contact</b></span><br />At any rate, in November 2006 we found ourselves in a Best Buy in Hawaii, and Ashley saw the new iPod Shuffle for the first time. The Ditty was about the same size as the old iPod Shuffle, but this new Shuffle was radically smaller - and Ashley instantly fell in love with it. Like most people (and women in particular) she responds to technology in a visual level, while I wonder what bit rate of video files it can play. I knew instantly that I was going to be buying her one for Christmas, but first I wanted to make sure iTunes would play nicely with my infrastructure at home. Remember my <a href="http://www.digitalmediathoughts.com/index.php?topic_id=11460">questions about using iTunes</a> back in December? They weren't so "innocent" - I was looking for a solution to a problem I knew I was going to have. As you can tell from that thread, I never really found a good solution (but I did get a tan from all the flames).<br /><br /><span><b>First Thoughts</b></span><br />So what do I think of the Shuffle? I'm <i>quite</i> impressed by it. From a purely hardware point of view, Apple managed to keep only the bare minimum on the player, and 1 GB is enough storage to keep my wife happy with the variety of music (once I figured out how to transcode the music down to a smaller file size - my 256 kbps MP3s are big). For the purpose that Ashley uses it for, it really doesn't need a screen. The battery life is great - Ashley only recharges is once a week or so. She did comment, however, that it was frustrating not knowing how much battery life the Shuffle has left because there's no screen. Apparently it has died on her a couple of times while she's been working out. The Shuffle sounds good, looks good, and is incredibly easy to use. <br /><br />iTunes continues to be the problem however - there's no way to easily get music into it once I've added it to my NAS drive because it won't monitor folders for new content. I'm hopeful that once I get a new NAS product, iTunes will be able to access the library directly off it, and this problem will vanish. I still find iTunes unintuitive, sluggish, and generally ugly. I do like the ability to view the album art visually however, and it picks up the embedded art in my MP3 files, so that's a plus.<br /><br />And there you have it: I bought an Apple product. Is this the first of many? Doubtful, but one never knows what the future will hold...<br /><br />[As a side note, Christmas 2005 was when my family bought my father an iPod Nano, and this year we all chipped in again to purchase my younger sister an iPod Nano. My parents asked about the Zune, but I knew it wasn't the solution my sister was looking for, so I recommended a 4 GB iPod Nano. See? I'm not blinded by bias, even if I don't like the products myself.]<br /><br /><i>Jason Dunn owns and operates <a href="http://www.thoughtsmedia.com">Thoughts Media Inc.</a>, a company dedicated to creating the best in online communities. He enjoys mobile devices, digital media content creation/editing, and pretty much all technology. He lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada with his lovely wife, and his sometimes obedient dog. It felt...strange...buying an iPod.</i>

[ctmagnus]

I love the iPod hardware but, like you, I still find the importing process to be largely unintuitive. Apparently it's possible to drag a folder full of music from Windows Explorer onto the iTunes window and get it into iTunes that way but I have yet to try it for reasons relating to a nfg computer and a repair shop that likes to take its time.

One thing I would like to see in iTunes is folder monitoring. I keep all my music in D:\Artist\Album\Artist - song title.mp3 and iTunes will not automatically pick up new file's I've added there. I have to go through a several step process and for some reason I've got an album that has the album art associated with some tracks on the album but not the rest.

And the other thing: If you have an mp3 file with embedded album art, iTunes still creates the album art file in ...\My Documents\My Music\iTunes\...

[ghostppc]

Even the new Ipod phone doesn't have you googoo :painting: eyed? What will Apple have to make to take you over to the dark side? :P

[Phronetix]

Cool. You know, I will always maintain, that in my opinion, the only thing dumber than being a fanboi is being an anti-fanboi. Nothing is ever as great or as terrible as the hype created by either sides. Apple is a magnet for extreme views, there is no question.

You have seemed to me to be an equal opportunity critic. I think you (understandably) word your criticism more diplomatically when it is aimed toward the folks in Redmond. I challenge anyone to try to demonstrate that you pull any punches though.

Good luck. You know, you may wanna monitor your internet connection though... she may be eyeing a shiny white macbook before you know it. :lol:

[Macguy59]

Jason. Have a look at this page (http://lifehacker.com/software/itunes/hack-attack-automatically-sync-itunes-to-any-folders-175161.php) for a way to have iTunes monitor (sync) folders

[Janak Parekh]

One thing I would like to see in iTunes is folder monitoring. I keep all my music in D:\Artist\Album\Artist - song title.mp3 and iTunes will not automatically pick up new file's I've added there.
I think it's safe to say that you will never see folder monitoring in iTunes. Most iTunes users use the program itself to manage music, and avoid the filesystem entirely. Additionally, I've heard few calls for folder monitoring; it's just not that high a priority amongst iPod/iTunes users, compared to, say, a video iPod, gapless playback (which has finally been fixed), etc.

--janak

[Jason Dunn]

Even the new Ipod phone doesn't have you googoo eyed?

I can certainly appreciate the hardware design of the iPhone - and I really like the visual aspects of the interface - but for me a hardware keyboard is a must-have in order to process email, post in my forums, etc. The iPhone is going to suck at entering text, no matter what Jobs might say. It would take a LOT to get me to set aside my Windows Mobile phones.

[jeffd]

meh, if you want small, id have chosen the iriver s10. ;)

http://dapreview.net/comment.php?comment.news.3836

[Jason Dunn]

Jason. Have a look at this page (http://lifehacker.com/software/itunes/hack-attack-automatically-sync-itunes-to-any-folders-175161.php) for a way to have iTunes monitor (sync) folders

Thanks, I've seen that before but never implemented it. I'll give that a try this week.

[Macguy59]

The iPhone is going to suck at entering text, no matter what Jobs might say. It would take a LOT to get me to set aside my Windows Mobile phones.

Meh having used Palms and PPC's I'm used to on screen keyboards and had gotten pretty fast using them. My biggest concern with the iPhone is durability (well that and the fact Cingular only).

***long quite trimmed by moderator JD***

[Jason Dunn]

I don't really want to re-ignite the flames from my last post on iTunes, but you're not giving me any choice with your rhetoric...

I think it's safe to say that you will never see folder monitoring in iTunes. Most iTunes users use the program itself to manage music, and avoid the filesystem entirely.

"MOST". And there you have one of the reasons why I so strongly dislike Apple. There are smart ways to introduce advanced features into a product without introducing complexity for users that don't need that feature, but Apple is so arrogant in their assumption that their way of doing things is the only valid way...it just infuriates me. It also ticks me off when people apologize for this attitude that Apple has, as if they're on Apple's payroll as apologists.

I have over 700 CDs, I'm NOT going to rip and store all of it on ONE computer with ONE hard drive using ONE software program. Apple needs to pull it's head out of it's ass and realize that the world has changed and we live in a multi-computer, networked world. What people like me want isn't difficult at all, and wouldn't change how iTunes worked.

This looks potentially helpfull:
http://itlu.ownz.ch/wordpress/?page_id=6

[I'm really hoping this will all be a moot point if the HP MediaSmart server supports iTunes properly]

[ghostppc]

I can certainly appreciate the hardware design of the iPhone....
Eh....same here. It's nice, but I can't get by without the tactile keys of my old smartphone.
meh, if you want small, id have chosen the iriver s10. ;)
http://dapreview.net/comment.php?comment.news.3836
oh man, another shiny little toy that my eyes are too bad to see, but still i want!!!! :smilecolros:
I don't really want to re-ignite the flames from my last post on iTunes........
Flame away!! :) I use Itunes with my Ipod video, and in the beginning I thought it was great for organizing all my folders. And in some aspects it still is. But as my library blows up, it's spread across several drives on different computers and external drives. Which has become a bit frustrating.

[Janak Parekh]

"MOST". And there you have one of the reasons why I so strongly dislike Apple. There are smart ways to introduce advanced features into a product without introducing complexity for users that don't need that feature, but Apple is so arrogant in their assumption that their way of doing things is the only valid way.
I won't disagree with your assertion of arrogance. Steve exudes it during a keynote. ;) The fact that I'm essentially "stuck" buying one line of hardware for my notebooks and music players verifies this fact, no?

I do take issue with a few of your assertions:

1. Re Introducing advanced features: there often are smart ways, but most companies don't know how. Techies introduce features and then worry about the UI later. There are a few exceptions -- recently, I've found Gmail to be one of them. It's extremely simple in its UI, but has a surprising amount of power. I don't think WMP is a good example. I've found its user interface, especially when working with playlists and mobile devices, daunting.

2. That only Apple, in particular, does things their way. If you look at Microsoft, they're quite tied into doing things their own way, too. I can talk about Windows compatibility with UNIX, Mac OS, or Microsoft's rapid shifting on file formats to the point that even their own mobile devices aren't compatible with it, or Microsoft's ditching their own open WMA ecosystem for the closed Zune model. Does Apple tie the experience down further? Yes. Does Microsoft give you choice? Not nearly as much as I would like.

3. That users really care. The marketshare numbers show that most users don't care. The power users might, but is Apple selling to them? Not necessarily. With the exception of the Mac, I think Apple has geared their products to the average consumer. And, despite that, they get enough of the power user market anyway. It's a small niche that wants more. If anything, Apple has found that tying down the experience helps in user perception. Look at the population that's upset at Zune's WiFi, which is a great feature in theory but not in practice. The iPod doesn't even pretend to have WiFi to start.

It also ticks me off when people apologize for this attitude that Apple has, as if they're on Apple's payroll as apologists.
Apple's populist appeal and design do generate a scary group of fanboys, no doubt about it. Here's the latest scary example. (http://www.tuaw.com/2007/01/21/found-video-mac-beautiful/) If you've seen my other posts, though, you know I'm hardly one.

I have over 700 CDs, I'm NOT going to rip and store all of it on ONE computer with ONE hard drive using ONE software program.
Here's the amazing fact: people have bought more than 700 CDs on the iTunes Music Store. At this point, I have 400+ full albums, completely set up and indexed by iTunes, and it's enough for me. And I'm a power user. The group that needs more features and flexibility are a small one. (BTW, keep in mind that one doesn't need to use iTunes to populate the iPod; there are other open options.)

--janak

[Jason Dunn]

1. Re Introducing advanced features: there often are smart ways, but most companies don't know how.

I'm quite confident Apple could figure it out - they know how to design smart GUIs. Enough said.

[Dyvim]

Welcome to the iPod family! :D

I got a new shuffle myself for Xmas - it's so cool looking and great for workouts or just listening to tunes while grocery shopping.

I used to be anti-iPod (using media players on my Pocket PCs instead and managing music on my desktop with WMP), but then my wife gave me an iPod mini she got for free through some promotion at work. I gave it and iTunes a try (had no trouble importing all my WMP-ripped music to iTunes in one fell swoop by merely dragging my Music folder and dropping it on iTunes) and have never been back to WMP since. Now I own 4 iPods and use them with speaker systems around the house instead of having a stereo (I'm no audiophile). I'm still amazed that I can fit all my 400+ CDs onto a device as small as an iPod (the 60 GB version) and carry them with me anywhere (this of course would apply to any hard-drive based DAP not just iPods).