With the release of iTunes 7th version, the application has become much easier to transfer music from iPod to computer. With the new backup feature, you can quickly restore and move your music libraries.
Instructions
Step 1
Make sure your iPod is set up to communicate with the hard drive. By default, this means your computer should recognize the iPod as a USB device or external storage.
Step 2
Connect your iPod to your computer and open iTunes. When iTunes loads, select your model and click "Preferences" in the main window.
Step 3
Click Browse and select Process Music Manually. You must check the box next to "Enable disk usage".
Step 4
Go to your player on the "Advanced" tab, then "General settings". Check the box next to "Copy files to iTunes Music folder when added to library" and click OK. Now, when connected to iTunes, the player will copy all the music to your computer's hard drive. This shouldn't be a problem if you have enough hard drive space.
Step 5
Recover all your music if you just installed a new operating system on your computer. Plug in your iPod and make sure iTunes has music backup and new library transfer enabled. Go to "Settings", "Advanced", then "Reset". Click OK. Then go to the tab "Advanced", "Consolidate the library" and check the box next to the item "Consolidation".
Step 6
Copy the music to your computer. Find the "Music" folder (usually it is on any computer and is located in the user's personal documents) and drag it to the desktop for convenience. Find your iPod icon, double-click to open it, and drag the list of iTunes music that appears to a folder on your computer.
Step 7
Wait for the music to copy to the folder, then open iTunes. Make sure the tracks and all related information are synced.
