If you consider yourself merely "competent" to use your iPod, I recommend this volume from the Missing Manuals publishers at O'Reilly. This 2011 edition covers the iPod Classic, the Shuffle, the Nano and the iPod Touch. You've probably got the "basics" down, and understand how to use the main controls of your iPod. This book will help you make the most effective use of your device's sub-menus, as well as showing you the best ways to use iTunes to manage your music and video collection. Includes handy sections on loading photos, using your iPod as a digital personal assistant, surfing the web with the iPod Touch, troubleshooting, and the vast array of peripheral devices available to make even more use of your iPod. With a huge digital music collection, I particularly appreciated a section on how to move your music to an external hard drive, without disrupting how the iTunes software recognizes where to find your collection. Recommended for those who already have some minimal iPod experience. [If you're into personal entertainment tech and/or computer software, but need help, I'd recommend the other volumes in the Missing Manuals series.]

Originally written for my local library's website: http://www.lincolnlibraries.org/depts/bookguide/srec/staffrec11-09.htm ( )

I got this book because I got a new Ipod Touch, and they don't come with a manual. It covers all the Ipods, and Itunes too. I would have preferred one that was just about the Touch, but this was all they had at the book store and I wanted something immediately.

It is well written and organized, and was helpful. I have a Classic as well as the Touch - and it helped me figure out how to get all my covers on Itunes.

There is a web site that is available for more help.

I would have liked more coverage on file storage and reading/editing which has to be done with an App. Although the book was published not too long ago (7th Edition), it was not accurate with the Itunes interface. I don't know if that is because they were displaying the Mac version, and I have a PC or it it had changed.

I also wish they had talked about Mobile.Me.

Still it was helpful and worthwhile. ( )

I'm just a casual user of my 30gig video iPod, and had run across a few things that I couldn't intuitively figure out how to do. I ran across this at the library and gave it a shot. I found the parts dealing with my particular equipment to be well-written and fairly clear, although I still had to do some experimentation to get my iPod to do what the instructions said it should do. The sections dealing with other technology (such as the iPod Touch) were extraneous to me, and therefore something of a waste in this book.

Overall, this book did what I needed it to...it gave me a clearer picture of how to do basic stuff with a video iPod. But I'm still glad I checked it out for free from the library instead of paying for it. ( )