IPod | The Alien World

Feb 03

How to sync your iPod with more than one PC?

Posted in: How to

Normally it’s only possible to sync media on an iPod with one computer. If you try to use a second computer you get the warning below that “the iPod is synced with another iTunes library. Do you want to erase this iPod and sync with this iTunes library”?

However, I’ve found an easy fix for this on net somewhere.

Steps are identical for both PC & MAC.

Find iTunes folder in your “My Music” (XP) or “Music” (Vista) directory. On the Mac it is in your Music directory.
* For the editing part, I recommend UltraEdit on the PC and a combination of TextExit / HexEdit on the Mac. Any hex editor will do, and you only need to edit files on the second machine.
* I recommend you do not attempt to normal sync the same types of data on both machines.

Backup Your Library

On the machine you want to sync with, backup “iTunes Music Library.xml” and “iTunes Music Library” (Tunes Music Library.itl on PC) to a safe location. These are the files you will be modifying.
1) Find your iTunes Library ID

On the machine your iPod currently syncs with, open “iTunes Music Library.xml” with a text editor and find the entry between the tags, after “Library Persistent ID”. Copy this entry and close this file.

2) Change your Library ID

iTunes stores your library information in two places. An XML file and a binary file. You now need to change the ID in both so they match your other library.

Make sure iTunes is not running.

On the machine you want to sync with open “iTunes Music Library.xml” in a text editor. Again, find the entry between the tags after “Library Persistent ID” and copy this entry exactly. This time you can use the clipboard if you wish.

When you have a copy, replace this entry with the one you copied in part 1. Make sure you do not change anything else, and the length of the entry is 16 characters/digits. Save this file and close it.

In the Hex Editor, open “iTunes Music Library” (Tunes Music Library.itl on PC).

Select “Find and Replace” from the Edit menu. Make sure “Hex” matching is selected (not ASCII). In “Find” enter the ID you took a note of in Part 1. In Replace, enter the ID you copied at the start of Part 2. Choose Replace All, there should be one match.

Save this file and close it.

Apr 21

How to create a iTunes Account without credit card

Posted in: How to

Apple sometimes pisses me off with their licensing, copyright and purchase policies. I bought a iPod Touch last month and downloaded iTunes. For getting album artwork, user is required to have the iTune account. This account can only be created if you are from a country where the iTune services are available. Above all, you need a credit card to create an account.

There is no way you can create an iTune account without this information…

I was wrong… apple provides a way to create the account… look for more details at: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2534 or follow the instructions below:

You must make sure you are in the App Store, not the iTunes Store.

app store link

Pick your country from the pop-up menu at the bottom of the iTunes Store homepage.
Important: Before proceeding to the next step, you must purchase a free application by clicking ‘Free App’.
Click create new account.
Click Continue.
You’ll need to read and agree to the iTunes terms and conditions, make sure you check the box next to where it says "I have read and agree to the iTunes Terms and Conditions." Click Continue.
Enter your email address, create your password, continue to create and answer your security question, then enter your birthday. Click Continue.
Select None as the payment option.
Continue to fill out the required name and address fields.
You’ll then see a screen that says ‘Verify your Account’. Click Done and then check your email for a verification email from iTunes Store.
Open the email and click on the link enclosed in the email to activate your account.
Once you click on the link, iTunes should then prompt you to sign in with your account name and password.
You’ll then see the below "Congratulations" screen. Click Done to be taken to the App Store home page.

Voila! You have just created a US iTunes Store account without a credit card. you can now use that to download all the free stuff on the US App Store and also the freebies like music and what not. these details can also be used on the app store application found on your iPhone 2.0 or iTouch 2.0.