Share One iTunes With Two or More iPods

Each of you has an iPod Shuffle. You're a married couple, or you're a mom and son, or you're brother and sister, sharing one computer and one iTunes. How can you all co-exist in harmony with your individual iPods?

Steps

Create Multiple Computer System Users

  1. Create an individual User Profile for each person with an iPod. Choose this option if you have very different musical tastes and want to keep your music libraries separate.
    • Mac OS X users:
  2. Create a new user by choosing System Preferences from the Apple menu, choosing Users from the View menu, then clicking New User.
  3. Edit the user's information. You can give a user administrative privileges or not, or password protect if you wish.
  4. Choose Login from the View menu.
  5. Click the Login Window tab and make sure that "Automatically log in" is not checked. Note: Automatic login can be enabled, but to allow other users to login, the user that is automatically logged in at startup must choose Log Out from the Apple menu to bring up the login screen. Automatic login would also allow any user to have access to that user's documents.
  6. Open iTunes.
  7. From the iTunes Edit menu, choose Preferences.
  8. Click Advanced.
  9. Deselect the "Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library file" option.
  10. Click OK.
  11. From the File menu, choose Add File to Library. Note: Windows users can also choose Add Folder to Library to add a folder of songs.
  12. Navigate in the Add File To Library window to the location where the other user's music is saved (the iTunes Music folder in the case above).
  13. Click Open.
    • Windows users: You must have a computer administrator account to add a new user to the computer.
  14. Open User Accounts in Control Panel.
  15. Under Pick a task, click Create a new account.
  16. Type a name for the new user account, and click Next.
  17. Click either Computer administrator or Limited, depending on the type of account you want to assign to the new user, and then click Create Account. If you see an account named Owner, rename that account with a user's name. The Owner account is the default account which is created when there are no other users designated, and it has administrative privileges
    • The first user you add to the computer must be assigned the computer administrator account.
  18. Follow the Steps for Mac Users with iTunes above.

Use Individualized Playlists

  1. Create your Playlist Either choose File / New Playlist, or click the + button at the bottom of the left side navigation bar where your Library and Playlist info is. This will create a new, blank Playlist.
  2. Name it John's Tunes (or whatever, just identify it as your own).
  3. Drag all the songs you want to be updated to your iPod into this playlist. Click and drag is the easiest method, just drag them right onto the Playlist.
    • To select multiple songs, hold the Command key or Shift key and click (Windows: hold the Control key or Shift key and click).
  4. Set your iPod options to Update Only Selected Playlists. Each time you connect your iPod, iTunes will sync you only to the lists you have selected.
    • Note: iTunes for Windows does not support having multiple iPods connected simultaneously. You must connect them one at a time.

Create Multiple iTunes Users

  1. Mac and Windows vary slightly.
    • Mac Users: While opening iTunes, hold down the Option key.
    • Windows Users: While opening iTunes, hold down the Shift key.
  2. Click Create Library when the dialog box opens.
  3. Name and save your new library file. Now when you open it, iTunes opens with your brand new library file.
  4. Click on iTunes Preferences.
  5. Click the Advanced tab.
  6. De-select the Copy files to iTunes Music Folder when Adding to Library checkbox (if it has a check in the box) and click OK. This will keep iTunes from keeping more than one copy of your music on your computer and save a lot of space later.
  7. Add the songs or videos you want on your iPod to iTunes. The simplest way is by dragging the folder containing your media files right onto the main Library Window in iTunes. You'll see all your stuff coming in when you look at the bar at the top of the iTunes window.
  8. Connect your iPod and sync up once you have the iTunes Library set up as you like. When the sync is finished, eject your iPod and Quit iTunes.
    • Mac users: Hold down the Option key while you open iTunes.
    • Windows users: Hold down the Shift key while you open iTunes.
  9. Click Choose Library.
  10. Choose your original iTunes Library and click Choose (Mac Users) or Open (Windows Users). Now you will see that you're able to switch between users in your iTunes Library.

Tips

  • If you have both Windows and Mac OSX, be sure to decide which computer you will connect your iPods to - if you decide to switch later, you will have to face the fact that the new computer will wipe your iPod. The iPod has to be formatted for one or the other, and if you change later, you'll have to re-load it (which means you have to transfer your iTunes Library to the new computer before that).
  • The main advantages to choosing one of these options are:

    • To preserve your own playlists without having to scroll through your partner's or the other user's
    • To have only your own music to scroll through, without having a lot of someone else's in your library (and the bonus here is that if you're sharing with your kid or other younger listener, s/he will not have access to your songs that may have explicit content, which are okay for you but not the kid)
    • To keep the installation of programs to a minimum, thereby saving space and processing power (one installation of iTunes, many users)
    • So that each of you can maintain separate iTunes accounts for purposes of paying for downloaded music. iTunes requires registered users to put a credit card number on file for such purpose. If you have put your card number on file so that you can take advantage of Free Music Tuesdays, this can prevent you from accidentally having your nephew, for example, charge your credit card for 15 albums. (Surprise, Auntie!)

Warnings

  • Make sure you disconnect the iPod properly to avoid problems.

Things You'll Need

  • The iPod connector cable or dock that came with your iPod
  • Current version of iTunes, downloadable for free
  • More than one iPod
  • A Computer or two

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