iPod and iTunes Hacks

Diagnose iPod Problems

Sometimes, things go wrong in iPod-land. This hack shows you how to figure out what the problem is.

It can happen to the best of us. You wake up one day, take a quick shower, and head off to work. On the subway, you pull out your iPod and hit play. Nada. Nothing. Your iPod is dead. Before you break into a cold sweat trying to figure out where the closest Apple store is, think back to this hack. While it won’t solve every iPod problem, this hack will give you access to the troubleshooting tools Apple’s technicians use to fix and diagnose problems.

On Hold?

The first thing you should check when your iPod appears to be dead is the Hold button. Don’t be insulted; we’ve all done it—cursed out the iPod and all things digital until we realize that the Hold button is on. There, now, with that out of the way, let’s continue with the next basic tool in your iPod’s self-repair arsenal: the reset.

Reset

To reset your iPod, press and hold the Play and Menu buttons for 10 seconds. The iPod will reset to the default factory settings it shipped with, but (as long as your hard drive isn’t dead) your data will be fine. The Apple logo will appear while the iPod reboots. Ten seconds later, you will almost definitely breathe a sigh of relief as your iPod comes back to life. If you own an iPod, you will need to reset it occasionally; however, if you are doing it daily, something is ...