iPod coexisting with Mac and Windows?

February 5, 2006 4:39 PM

Has anyone converted their iPod from Mac formatting (HFS) to Windows formatting (Fat32), but continued to use it primarily on a Mac?

I have a 3G iPod that I have till now interfaced only with my Mac iBook running Panther. I want to continue to use the iBook as the primary synchronization source and repository of my music, but I'd also like to be able to add stuff to the iPod from my Win XP laptop when I travel with it (the iBook never leaves home).

From what I've read, including this MeFi thread, it might be possible, but would require me to reformat my iPod with the Windows version of the iPod updater.

Presuming that I do this, will I be able, once the reformatting has been completed, to reload it with the music stored on the iBook with iTunes run in the auto-synch mode, and furthemore run iTunes on the Windows machine in "disk" mode to add stuff to the iPod in an ad-hoc fashion?

I guess my bottom line question is if I reformat the iPod from the Windows machine, do I jeopardize my ability to use the Mac as an autosynch source?

posted by hwestiii to technology (7 comments total)

Yes, it worked just fine. I was doing this because I was using the iPod to transfer files, as well as hold music, and Fat32 was the only FS that would work.

It's been a long time, but as I recall, I first hooked it up to Windows before installing iTunes, and wiped/formatted it so that it was a purely FAT32 volume. Then I installed and ran the iTunes updater, which reinstalled the firmware, but didn't change the iPod to HFS+... it stayed FAT32.

I'm almost sure that it then worked to sync with a Mac flawlessly, no trouble at all. It worked exactly like it would have with HFS+. I just copied files over from the Mac, and was able to read them on any machine I plugged the iPod into. I don't remember having any problems with this at all, and it worked nicely for moving files.
posted by Malor at 5:06 PM on February 5, 2006

Oops! "iPod updater", not iTunes. I don't think I ever installed iTunes on the Windows machine in question, although that could be a mis-memory.
posted by Malor at 5:07 PM on February 5, 2006

Your other option is to buy MacDrive and leave the iPod formatted as HFS+. That software allows the iPod to work on Windows with that format.

I'd also note that my wife's Nano refused to allow an update to the firmware with iPod Updater on the Mac because her Nano is FAT-formatted. So you may have to have a Windows machine around to update firmware.
posted by teece at 5:25 PM on February 5, 2006

I've had no problems doing this with my 3G iPod. You don't need to wipe the iPod before installing iTunes. Just download the latest iPod Updater for Windows and use its "Restore" command.

I use my iPod exclusively with a Mac at home, but have found it's handy to have it formatted with FAT instead of HFS+, since I can transfer data to/from it from Windows machines in internet cafes when I'm traveling and my Linux box at work. iTunes on my Mac doesn't blink at the formatting, and the Finder can see everything that's on the drive. I also find it handy to carry a dual FireWire/USB 2.0 cable, which Apple sells for the same price as a FW-only or USB-only cable.
posted by aneel at 5:31 PM on February 5, 2006

Once you have a FAT32-formatted iPod, you don't need iTunes on your Windows box to use it as a disk drive; in fact you might be better off without it. Even with no special software installed on the Windows box, the iPod will show up as a removable-storage device under My Computer when you plug it in.

If you do install iTunes on Windows, use something like Spybot Search & Destroy's "system startup" tool (or msconfig, or regedit if you're familiar with it) to disable the startup entry for "iTunesHelper". That will stop iTunes from starting up and seizing exclusive control of the iPod every time you plug it in (which stops you from using it as a general purpose disk device). You can still start iTunes manually when you want it.
posted by flabdablet at 3:19 AM on February 6, 2006

Thanks for the info. Everything seems to have worked perfectly. I ran the Windows updater on my iPod in restore mode which blew away all the stored data, then resynched it with my Mac and got it all back.

Is it just my imagination, or does running the iPod in disk mode through a PC USB port cause unusually fast battery drain?
posted by hwestiii at 6:02 PM on February 6, 2006

3G iPods sync over USB, but don't charge. I think it's because FireWire (what they were designed to use) supplies a higher voltage.

Since you're running the disk a lot and not charging, you'd expect to see quick battery drain. Running the disk is the biggest drain on your iPod's battery. Your iPod tries to minimize disk usage when playing music (mostly by keeping songs in memory, rather than reading them from disk as it goes), so you should get much longer play time than disk read time.
posted by aneel at 12:29 AM on February 7, 2006