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09.26.06 11:43 AM

iTunes7 + 5th gen iPod + last.fm = disaster

I've been meaning to write this post ever since Apple first released iTunes 7 and the latest iPod software that supports gapless playback. I'm not hating on the new features that Apple released — in fact I love them. How else would I have been able to see all of Season 2 of Noah's Ark had I not been able to download it from the iTunes store and add it to my iPod for viewing? How else would I have been able to easily download all of the album art for the majority of my music collection?

iTunes 7 makes adding music to my iPod so easy, I wonder why certain features weren't included in earlier versions. To be honest, I love iTunes 7 and I love my 5th gen iPod. And for the most part, I love last.fm. But here's the rub.

Since the updates, there's no software or third-party app to sync my 5th gen iPod with the last.fm. service. There are applications in development, but otherwise, for a Mac user like me, there's currently no means of satisfying my last.fm fix.

I became addicted to last.fm because it enables me to keep a history of my music listening habits and it enables me to connect with others who have similar musical interests, it even helps me to discover new music. I'm so addicted, I pay for the right to use the service (though it's free) just so that I can contribute to a service that I love and therefore do my part to help its developers upgrade the apps and keep the site running.

When last.fm first upgraded it's software to include a full-featured application that somewhat mimics what you can do on the site and started supporting that beta project as opposed to further developing its plugins, I was initially a little miffed because I had to download yamipod in order to scrobble the iPod tracks. In the past, last.fm's plugins did both, scrobbled from your iTunes and your iPod.

But I got used to yamipod, though Lord knows it took a little time since I was an ultimate senuti fan. Senuti is an app that allows me to copy tracks from the iPod into iTunes, which is essentially what yamipod does — though yamipod has additional features, such as submitting listened to tracks to last.fm.

last.fm may scrobble the tracks I listen to on my computers at both work and home, but when it comes to my iPod — I'm currently, pretty much ass out. And man is it annoying; especially since most of my music listening is done on the iPod — on the subway and in the car. Basically, my true music listening history is not being captured out there in the ether — on last.fm — but only on a Recently Played playlist that I generated on the iPod itself.

So what's a girl like me to do? I guess I have to wait it out and suffer the withdrawal symptoms. There's a high chance though, that after the withdrawal subsides that I just may kick the habit and find other means of wasting my time.

I'm hoping that won't be the case.

tags: itunes7 | video iPod | last.fm

posted by lynne | link to this |