Mac OS X Power Hound, Second Edition

Chapter 8. iTunes

iTunes, which sits at this very moment in your Applications folder, is the ultimate software jukebox. It can play music CDs, tune in to Internet radio stations, load up your iPod music player, and play back MP3 files (compact files that store almost CD-quality music) and other popular audio formats.

It can also turn selected tracks from your music CDs into MP3 files, so you can store favorite songs on your hard drive to play back anytime—without having to dig up the original CDs. In fact, iTunes can even load your MP3 files onto certain portable MP3 players. And if your Mac can burn CDs, iTunes lets you make your own custom audio CDs. Heck, it’ll even create the CD insert for you, too.

Finally, but perhaps most importantly, iTunes is your entry point to the 99¢-a-song iTunes Music Store, also known as the iTMS.

Note

In order for some of the hints in this chapter to work, you’ll need iTunes 4.5 or higher. You can always download the latest version from http://apple.com/itunes/download/.

Mini Modes

iTunes can run in three size modes: small, medium, or large (Figure 8-1). Here’s where you’ll find them:

• Large. This size is what you see the first time you open iTunes.

• Medium. You can switch back and forth between large and medium sizes by clicking the green zoom button or choosing Window → Zoom. Either way, the medium mode is handy for playing tunes in the background while you work without your screen being overtaken.

• Small. If your desktop isn’t big enough for even the medium ...