Linux Community Magazine

iPods have become a very famous portable media player that is being used worldwide nowadays. It was designed and marketed by Apple Inc. These are new generation devices that have made the conventional world proud. Let us take a look.....................

iPods - A Quick Look:

iPods are nothing but portable media players that are used worldwide today. They store media in a internal hard disk. Other iPods store information in a Micro drive Miniature hard disk. The hard disk based ones include the iPod classic, iPod Touch which involves a touch screen system. iPod nano which is capable of storing videos. Others include iPod shuffle and iPhone. The iPod Shuffle has no screen so it cannot store videos. Also iPod mini and spin-off iPod Photo were used previously.

iPods - Are they Reliable?

However they have been sometimes subject to criticism for their life spans and for their hard disks which are not good enough. Their failure rate too is very high as found in a recent survey. They are mostly due to the reasons of poor durability of the hard disk which is the essential part of the iPod. Also the other reason why iPods are not suggested is their screen which can get affected by rough handling.

iPod Hacks:

If you want more from your iPod, more than music and multimedia, then you can go for hacking. An iPod hack is nothing but changing the inner workings. In broader terms, for hacking an iPod, you need to change its hardware, software, firmware or operating system. Though it is not advisable to do so, but it is still being done to bend the iPod to cater to one's needs. Most of the hacks are carried out by changing the operating system LINUX, which is an open source one. The LINUX user interface called podzilla helps LINUX to be ported in an iPod manually. By this way the iPod is made to play media files like Ogg files.

Also one can download the schemes and modules for the podzilla from the internet. The schemes allow the user to change the appearance of the podzilla. The Modules are important and are used with iPod LINUX operating system. You will feel that with LINUX installed, your iPod will become more like a handheld computer than a good MP3 Player.

This hacking process has been carried out only in the first, second and third generation iPods, but reports also assert say that these are now being carried out in fourth and fifth generation ones as well. To stop this process of hacking, nowadays iPod companies clear state that installing LINUX means "NO WARRANTY". Well as seen earlier, installing LINUX opens a new world of operating an iPod. The possibilities are endless and to make use of these possibilities, hacking is carried out.

Play games:

If you love playing games, then now you can plan in your iPod too. With these LINUX modules, now you can play your favorite games. The LINUX module iDoom allows the users to play a game called as Doom. Besides there are various other modules which allows the users to play games like iGems, Invaders, Magic-8 Ball, iPod MAME, Pod Pod Revolution.

Other Applications:

Looking for something better other than games, you can manually change your iPod's functions and make it look the way you want it to be. The iPodWizard now lets you change the style and icons in your iPod. With it you can also remove some of the error messages that may annoy you.

Also now you can turn your iPod into a virtual Remote Control that can be used anywhere. Just attach an infra red device on to your iPod's headphone part and software too is needed. By recording the Infra Red Pulses from the remote, you can now control your iPod the way you want.

Also if you thought hacking is a crime or something bad, think again as this method can save your data from getting lost. The Module Podsmith unlocks the screen, files and applications in your Macintosh Computer. So rest assured that your data and privacy are safe by carrying out this process and many say it is a very effective one.

Also now with this hacking process, you can make changes to the software options that you have in your iPod. You can now install software that is good to make your iPod rock!! For example you have software like TrailRunner, VoodooPad and Apollo. The TrailRunner software helps you keeping your personal agenda. The VoodooPad software helps in writing like it provides an interface similar to Notepad. The Apollo Software is used as a video converter and it helps in optimizing the video for playing in iPod.