9 Cool (and Useful) Mods for iPods and iTunes

Your iPod is more like a miniature computer than you might think. After all, it has a screen, keys, storage, and an operating system. And just as with any PC, you can add new features, overhaul the OS, update the interface, and personalize it to your heart's content.

While you're at it, why not fill it with content from the Internet and with movies ripped from your own DVDs? And hey, why shouldn't you be able to copy your tunes off the player anytime you want? You can do all of that and more with these cool iPod hacks. They're free, harmless (meaning that you can reverse or undo any of them without hosing your player), and guaranteed to help you get more fun and function out of your iPod. (We'll identify which generations of iPod each hack works with. To determine which generation you have, consult this list.)

And since most iPods communicate with a copy of iTunes, we've thrown in a couple of hacks to make that program work the way you want it to.

Copy Music From Your iPod

Compatible with: All iPods

To get started, connect your iPod and make sure that it's enabled for use as an external drive (check the setting in iTunes if you're not sure--go to the Summary tab when the iPod is selected); then run the iPod Folder program. Click the iPod icon and choose the appropriate drive letter for your player. Next, click the folder and choose the desired destination for your music. Finally, enable any options you want, such as Include iPod Folder Structure or MP3 Files Only (the latter is helpful if you don't want to copy DRM-protected AAC files). Click the arrow to begin the copying process.

In Video: How to Sync iTunes with Your Non-iPod Player

Carry Wikipedia on Your iPod

Compatible with: Pre-fifth-generation iPods (not including Nanos)

All you need is the free Encyclopodia viewer, the also-free Wikipedia e-book files (available in English, German, and Italian), and a pre-fifth-generation iPod (not a Nano). iPhone and iPod touch users can access the living Wikipedia in their devices' Web browsers, of course.

Rev Up Your iPod with Rockbox

Compatible with: All iPods

Before you install Rockbox, which can be a tricky operation, bear in mind that the program's cool new features come at a price: At least temporarily, you trade in the iPod's friendly, straightforward interface for one that's noticeably Linux-like in appearance and function. Navigating the Rockbox interface is a little awkward at first, and it doesn't recognize songs, videos, or audiobooks purchased from iTunes. Furthermore, the Rockbox support forums contain the occasional scary post declaring "Rockbox ruined my iPod!" In our tests, however, Rockbox proved to be a fun and easily reversible modification.

Your final preliminary task is to install the Rockbox bootloader, by way of a small utility called iPodPatcher. After running it, your iPod should reboot itself and fire up the Rockbox firmware. If that doesn't happen, reboot it yourself by holding down the Menu and Select buttons simultaneously for a few seconds.

Rockbox doesn't permanently alter your iPod. To revert to the original firmware, simply reset the player and immediately flip the Hold switch. (You can reset most iPod models by holding down the Menu button and the center Select button for a few seconds.) After it boots back to the Apple firmware, slide the Hold switch back again and use the iPod as you normally would.

Listen to Your iPod in the Shower

Compatible with: Most iPods

Give Your Video iPod a Touch of iPod Touch

Compatible with: Fifth-generation and later Video iPods

If you love your aging Video iPod but covet a slick new iPod Classic or Touch interface, give your iPod a menu makeover. Two firmware hacks let you enhance your fifth-generation iPod with Classic- or Touch-style menus.

To install Touch Hack 2.0 (both hacks use similar processes), first mod­ify your iPod's menu settings so that only the following op­i??tions appear: Music, Photos, Videos, Ex­i??tras, and Settings. To ensure that iTunes isn't running, eject your iPod in iTunes but leave the cable connected.

Now click Write to iPod, wait a few seconds for the process to finish, and click the Eject button; your iPod should reboot itself. Wait for the computer to redetect it; then click Eject again. Unplug the iPod, and you should be good to go.

When downloading the firmware, be sure to get the proper version for your particular Video iPod. Firmware designed for a 5G iPod won't work on a 5.5G iPod, and vice versa. If things go wrong or you don't like the new interface, merely return to iPodWizard and click the Downgrade Firmware button to restore your iPod's original firmware.

Rip DVDs to Your iPod

Compatible with: All video-capable iPods

Well, some DVDs, anyway: HandBrake balks at the encryption that protects most Hollywood movies; it's designed to rip unprotected discs. But a little Google searching will reveal several utilities (among them, DVD43) that can decrypt DVDs on the fly.

After installing DVD43 or a similar decryption utility, run HandBrake, click the Show Presets button, and choose a suitable preset: iPhone/iPod Touch, iPod High-Rez, or iPod Low-Rez. Now insert your DVD, wait a minute while your system recognizes it, and then click the Browse button in the Source section. Navigate to the DVD's Video_TS folder and click OK. Next, choose a destination for the output file (your iTunes folder is a logical choice). Finally, click Encode Video and settle in for a long wait. Even on a fast system, ripping and encoding a typical DVD can take several hours. When HandBrake is done, copy the new video to your iPod as you would any other video file.

Convert MP3 Audiobooks to iPod Format

Compatible with: All iPods

It's easy to rip an audiobook CD that you borrowed from the local library, but a bit trickier to listen to it on your iPod. That's because the ripped CD usually ends up in MP3 format, and iPods don't know how to bookmark MP3s. Good luck trying to navigate back to wherever you left off in The Good Earth.

Monitor Your Music Folders Automatically

Compatible with: iTunes

Seven versions into iTunes, the program still doesn't know how to monitor music folders for new tunes. Sure, it will up­i??date your library with songs purchased from the iTunes Store or ripped from CDs, but what if you want to add music from other sources? iTunes lacks the smarts found in just about every other music manager, forcing you to add files manually.

Install the program, and then run it by clicking Start, iTunes Folder Watch, iTunes Folder Watch (Background Mon­itoring). This series of commands will launch iTunes, create an iTFW New Tracks playlist, and add a new icon to your System Tray. Right-click the System Tray, click Open, and add one or more folders to watch for new tunes. Click the Check Now button, and iTFW will scan for tracks not already included in your iTunes library. If it finds any, you'll see them listed in the New Tracks tab. One more click will whisk the songs straight into iTunes, where you can easily copy them from the New Tracks playlist to whatever playlists you want.

Sync iTunes With Your Non-iPod Player

Compatible with: Any player that has a drive letter

When your iPod went to that great electronics graveyard in the sky, you may have replaced it with a non-Apple player--say, a Creative Zen. The problem is, your music library still sits inside iTunes, complete with painstakingly crafted playlists that you'd rather not lose. Do you have to switch to another music manager and re-create your playlists from scratch?

After selecting the desired sync folder on your player, choose a folder structure (indicating how you want copied songs to be organized) and the iTunes playlist you want to sync with. If you want more than one, you can use iTunes' smart playlist feature to create a new playlist that includes the ones you want; then choose that playlist to sync with your player.

After making those selections, close the config window, right-click the iTunes Sync icon again, and choose Synchronize MP3 Player. Click the Sync button and sit back while your playlist breaks free of its iTunes shackles.