In addition to having a ton of music on my Apple iPod, I also have a copy of it all on my laptop, which is great. Any time I want I can plug in my headphones and listen to it while working. Except there are some songs that I just don't want to show up when I'm in "shuffle" mode in iTunes. Can I mark them as not eligible for play during a shuffle?...

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I've been hearing rumors for months about Apple releasing a tablet computer but they give me very odd looks when I ask about it at the Apple Store. Then at Christmas dinner someone told me that it's on the way and it's going to be called the iSlate. What? How could they know, and what's your best information about what an iSlate will be?...

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I have an iPod shuffle and it's pretty neat, though of course I'd love to have a tiny screen on it. Problem is, a lot of the time the music that iTunes drops onto the iPod isn't what I want. I do aerobics, and there's nothing that's a buzzkill faster than a slow song in the middle of a workout!...

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One of the many different gizmos we were given at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show was a slick little portable speaker system from long-time audio component firm Altec Lansing. Imagine a device not much bigger than a 2-inch tall Coke can that you can plug into your iPod or laptop and you've got an idea of what the orbit M speaker looks like....

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I got a great gift from my folks, an Apple iTunes gift card. Nice. And I have an iPod. What I don't have is any clue how to redeem an iTunes gift card. Help!...

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(two questions in the same entry, conveniently enough) hi dave i took my ipod to school and some kid opend my backpack and stole it. I was wondering if you can get a new one at the store you bought it at if ur under the year they give you once you buy it in case something happends to it. thanx Q: Someone stole my Sony PSP and I'm so frustrated! It took me a...

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Hi Dave, I was looking at your site on how to download music onto a mp3 player. I am buying one for my friend for her birthday and didn't want to get a really expensive one (she just wants it for when she runs) so I am looking at one other than iPod. I want to load it with music for her from cd's (I have a lot) but don't know how to do that....

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I recently purchased a new iPod; the Apple Nano 8GB, in silver. I don't use my iPod very often. But when I do...I do!! It is billed as the most popular music player in the world. I can understand why......

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A pal of mine was telling me how he'd had some problems with his Sony PSP and that as a result of a particularly bad moment to have his battery die, it was now "bricked". What does that mean?...

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Searched for a few things on your site and I hit pay dirt! Thank you. I'm am nonetheless uncertain on how to pick a MP3 player. I don't know what factors to take into consideration in order to guide my choice. What do you suggest? I'll use it mostly to listen to music on the train as I commute to work. I'm no tech wiz and one of the first things I'll need to master...

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I had my old Mac laptop, an iBook, stolen and now that I have a new one, I realize that I can't get the music off my Apple iPhone which is driving me crazy! Is there some way to sync the iPod music and video portion of my cellphone without having to start from scratch again?...

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Hi Dave, was wondering if you had any advice for me? I've been given an old iPod which has been formatted by a Macintosh. Is there any way of reformatting it for Windows XP. I've just downloaded Itunes 4.7 and when I plugged the thing in via firewire it came up with a restore option. However it comes up with "Only windows formatted Ipods can be restored". Is there a way of changing it over?...

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Dave, I saw your earlier article about how to convert a DVD for your iPhone, but that was written for Windows XP users [see How to put your DVDs onto your iPhone]. Do you have a similar article about how to convert DVDs on a Mac OS X system? I don't have a PC around......

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I forgot the code to unlock the maximum volume limit on my iPod nano, is there some way to hack around it or otherwise get rid of it? I can't even hear my music when I'm on the bus!...

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[This is the second part of a series of high tech buyer's guides we're releasing here at Ask Dave Taylor to help address many of the questions that we receive about confusing new technologies and gadgets. The first article addressed a core HD question: HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. This second article looks at the rapidly evolving world of personal media players and other ways you can enjoy video on the go. We hope you find this...

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I got my hands on a tiny new Apple iPod Shuffle, 2nd generation, and it's amazingly cool, but I'm a bit baffled by what all the different flashing patterns mean. Is this some sort of Morse code or something? Help!...

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Do any of the following describe a problem you're having with your iPod? My iPod nano won't power on! My iPod mini won't shut down or is frozen! I can't get songs to transfer from iTunes to my iPod! My iPod doesn't show up in iTunes at all? My Apple earbuds or headphones don't work with my iPod shuffle? Or is something else wrong and you just figure it's time to send your baby, your...

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I'm thinking about buying an Apple iPod and was actually contemplating the Dell DJ until I read that Dell's discontinued their own brand of MP3 player. Now there's another device on the horizon, the Microsoft Zune. Darn. What can you tell me about the Zune, Dave? I mean, should I wait until Christmas and buy one, or just stick with a tried-and-true iPod?...

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My son is really into what he calls "speed metal" and I call horrible loud noise. Even when his headphones are clamped to his head I can hear the guitars and singers screaming into the mic. I seem to recall that Apple added some system whereby I can limit the maximum volume on his iPod so he doesn't go deaf by the time he's 17, but I can't figure out how to do it. In...

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I have a new Apple iPod that I've been playing with on my brother's PC, but now I want to pair it to my iMac. Every time I try to do that, though, it refuses to do anything and I'm ready to toss it out the window! Rather than do that, can you please tell me how to proceed? At this point I don't care if I lose the music on the iPod either, since...

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