Apple has sold its 25 billionth song through the iTunes Music Store, the company announced Wednesday.

The record-setting track, “Monkey Drums” (Goksel Vancin Remix) by Chase Buch, was bought by Germany’s Phillip Lüpke—a display of Apple’s dominance in the worldwide music download market: The iTunes music store is available in 119 countries, while rival companies Google, Microsoft, and Amazon make tunes available in a fraction of those markets.

Lüpke will receive a €10,000 iTunes gift card. At current exchange rates, the price works out to roughly $13,525—enough to keep him in music downloads for a very long time.

The iTunes Store originally opened in April 2003, meaning the company is on pace to sell more than 2.5 billion tracks per year during the service’s first year in existence. But that once-disruptive service increasingly faces challenges from streaming services like Spotify and Pandora, and a music industry still struggling to deal with the changes that Apple wrought may find itself in further turmoil as a result.

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A key to Apple’s success is the company’s insistence on reducing options in the name of reducing complexity. Those who decry Apple customers as fanboys attack us and the company alike, saying that because Apple chooses to focus on simplicity, we and it must also be simple. That’s the wrong interpretation of the facts. Instead, Apple’s focus on simplicity isn’t about reducing choices to make computing idiot-proof; it’s about focusing on the important bits instead.

In the 1990s, Macs were for old people and hipsters (back when “hipster” wasn’t a catch-all term for anyone under thirty). They were fine if you were the artsy type, or if you couldn’t use a real computer, but for folks who needed to get real work done, Windows was the only real solution.

Unless, of course, you wanted to control your computer instead of letting it control you. In that case, you wanted Linux and its infinite configurability. What started as a server operating system became a staple of the hacker elite, many of whom saw fit to clone the functionality of their favorite Windows programs and give away the source code. And let me tell you, 1998 is so going to be the year of Linux on the desktop.

Meanwhile, the Mac had its own devoted following, but most outside of it refused to take Apple seriously.

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A visit to your local Apple Store during the holiday season can be maddening. The stores are overrun with other shoppers, there’s a mob around each gadget table, and waiting for your turn to be helped by an Apple Store employee takes eons. The walk-in line to purchase an iPhone 5 alone can take upwards of an hour, depending on how many people are in front of you. While we generally like the Apple Store’s “no register” system, it can be a real headache during busy periods.

This year, there are a few ways to avoid waiting in a long line. It just takes a little planning ahead.

Check yourself out

Bring your iOS device to the Apple Store, because the Apple Store app is a handy guide for holiday shopping. The app shows you where the nearest Apple Store is, lets you search for product availability at specific stores, and allows you to purchase items yourself.

The Apple Store app also has a feature called Express Checkout that lets you directly purchase items from the online Apple Store by quickly entering your Apple ID and password. Designate whether you’d like to pick the item up in a store or have it shipped. The app bills the card on file that’s linked to your Apple ID and will ship to the address on file as well; you can adjust these settings by selecting Edit in the app itself at checkout.

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If you asked someone to name Apple’s computer platforms, you’d probably get three answers: Apple II, Mac, and iOS. But the true history of Apple’s computing platform heritage is much more rich and varied than most people realize.

Over the past 36 years, Apple has created at least 13 distinct platforms, each hosting its own unique variety of software. Some of these surprisingly forgotten ecosystems met quick deaths at the hands of an unforgiving market, while others persist under our noses in the consumer electronics sector.

Technically, a computer platform is defined by the combination of operating system and underlying hardware architecture. You could say, then, that, in a sense, each platform represents its own species of machine, capable of running its own applications natively but not those of other platforms.

Although that definition of platform seems simple, it’s easy to group or regroup Apple technology families depending on which characteristics you emphasize, so there is no one right way to do it. In this particular list, you’ll see Apple’s platforms primarily grouped by product family, which, with only a few exceptions, are generally centered around a single hardware architecture or software paradigm.

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Along with a new iPhone and a new iPod touch, September’s Apple event brought with it a new iPod nano, the first in two years. (2011 saw a notable software update for the 2010 model, but no new hardware.) As has been the case with so many iPod nano models over the years, the iPod nano (7th generation) is a dramatic re-imagining of Apple’s most-popular traditional iPod. But unlike the sixth-generation iPod nano, this one is mostly an improvement over its predecessor. In fact, for most uses, it just may be the best nano yet.

Something old, something new

When I reviewed 2010’s iPod nano (sixth generation) (3.5 out of 5 rating), I was in many ways disappointed by the direction Apple had taken the iPod nano line. That model had its share of fans—indeed, thanks to its built-in clip and watch-sized body, an entire industry sprung up around the idea of using the 2010 nano as a wristwatch. But its tiny screen meant its iOS-like Multi-Touch interface was difficult to use and a step backward from physical buttons. If I were rating it today, after a couple years of use, I might give it an even lower rating than I did back in 2010.

Did Apple get similar feedback from users? The company will never tell, but the 2012 iPod nano, available only in a 16GB capacity for $149, ditches the tiny-square-with-a-clip design in favor of one closer to that of the fifth-generation model: At 3.0 inches tall, 1.6 inches wide, and an incredible two tenths of an inch thick—thinner than the plug on a 30-pin dock-connector cable—the new model is essentially as tall and wide as two sixth-generation nano models stacked on top of one another, but half as thick. At 30 grams, the new nano is 8 grams heavier than last year’s model—barely noticeable in everyday use.

In that larger expanse Apple has fit a 2.5-inch (diagonal) Multi-Touch display, nearly an inch larger than the one found on the previous nano. (In terms of pixels, this year’s screen is 240 by 432 pixels, compared to 240 by 240 on the previous model.) The pixel density is slightly lower this time around, at 202 pixels per inch compared to 220 for the 2010 nano, and it doesn’t match the Retina displays on Apple’s iOS devices, but the new display is still clear and easy to read, even for small type.

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Waking up is an intensely personal experience: Some prefer to be awakened gently by the sound of music; others opt for the morning news; and still others want their iPad or iPhone within easy reach to check the latest news and tweets. The $200 iHome iA100 has something for all of those folks, plus plenty more bells and whistles, to boot.

The iA100 is a Bluetooth-enabled alarm clock with a dock connector that accommodates not just iPhone or iPod touch models, but also the iPad (original or iPad 2). Measuring in at 11.1 inches wide, 6.7 inches deep, and 3.2 inches tall, the iA100 is a bit larger than most of the alarm clocks I’ve tested, thanks in no small part to its iPad support.

The front of the iA100 features a big, easy-to-read LCD display flanked by a pair of speakers. You’ll find most of the built-in controls on the unit’s top: Volume Up and Down, End and Talk buttons for the built-in speakerphone, Bedtime and Wakeup buttons, a Snooze/Dimmer control, Previous and Next, Play/Pause, and buttons for input switching, the DPS audio enhancement feature, and Power. The Previous and Next buttons double as tuning buttons for the radio, and you can access and set radio-station presets using the Play/Pause button.

There are a few additional buttons on the unit’s rear: Clock Adjust, EQ, Pairing, Nap, and Alarm 1 and Alarm 2 controls. There’s also an AC-adapter jack, a standard 1/8-inch line-in jack (for connecting an additional audio source), and the wire for the built-in FM antenna. (The system doesn’t support AM radio frequencies.)

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The iMainGo X is the latest in Portable Sound Laboratories’ line of "speaker cases" for the iPhone and iPod. The iMainGo X is more versatile than the company's iMainGo 2, ( ) while offering a similar combination of protection and good sound.

Since the original iMainGo, released back in 2007, Portable Sound Laboratories hasn’t strayed much from the initial design of its product. The iMainGo X still uses a two-part, clamshell case that zips closed. One half houses the amplifier, speakers, and battery, while the other half holds your device. (You connect the iMainGo X's audio cable to your iPod or iPhone's headphone jack, adjusting volume with your player's own volume control.) When closed, the iMainGo X measures 5.7 inches long, 3.8 inches across, and 2.4 inches thick; it weighs 1.5 pounds.

The biggest difference between the iMainGo X and its predecessors is that the iMainGo X uses a rechargeable, Lithium-ion battery instead of four AA batteries. Portable Sound Laboratories says the battery can last up to 12 hours; in my testing, the battery lasted 11 hours, 40 minutes with my MacBook Pro's volume set halfway between minimum and maximum. The iMainGo X's battery powers only the speakers—unlike docking speaker systems, the iMainGo does not charge your iPod or iPhone's battery.

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[Editors' note: This model of iPod touch, released in fall 2010, remains the current model available in stores as of fall 2011. The only change to this generation of iPod touch was the addition of a white option in the fall of 2011.]

You know the story by now. For many, the iPod touch is the iPhone without the phone and GPS features—no cellular voice calls, no texting, and no EDGE or 3G wireless service. The remaining features that the two have in common (or lack) is often how the iPod touch is judged. In the case of the fourth-generation (4G) iPod touch—available in 8GB ($229), 32 GB ($299), and 64GB ($399) capacities—the two come closer to feature parity than ever before. (Even more so this time around as all three iPod touch models have the same features, unlike with the previous generation of touches.) This, for many people, makes for a compelling iPod. It does for us as well.

Similarities and differences

Thin as the iPhone 4 is, the 4G iPod touch is thinner still—two sandwiched 4G iPod touches come very close to the thickness of the iPhone 4. It’s also a little less wide and lighter than the third-generation iPod touch ( ) that preceded it. Its edges are also more angled. This angling is sharp enough that owners of iPhones and previous iPod touches will have to train themselves to search for the volume and Sleep/Wake buttons near the back edge of the iPod rather than the side and top, respectively.

Unlike previous iPod touches, the 4G iPod touch lacks the small black plastic patch on the back’s top-left corner that covered the Wi-Fi antenna. That corner now holds the iPod’s built-in omni-directional microphone and its high-definition rear-facing camera (like the iPhone 4, the 4G iPod touch also has a standard-definition front-facing camera).

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No iPod model has received as many makeovers—both minor and dramatic—as the iPod nano. (Perhaps not coincidentally, no other iPod model has sold as well.) The original nano was simply a scaled-down version of the standard iPod—tall and thin with a shiny, steel back and a white-plastic front, but the first revision gave the nano an all-aluminum body. The third version brought a short-and-wide shape, but the nano returned to tall and thin in the fourth go-round. The the most-recent nano, the fifth in as many years, got a larger screen and a video camera. But one thing all nano models have had in common is the traditional iPod design: a screen at the top with Apple’s iconic Click Wheel below.

No longer. With the release of the sixth-generation (6G) iPod nano, the line has received its most dramatic redesign yet, and the Click Wheel is nowhere to be found. In its place you’ll find a Multi-Touch screen similar to—but much smaller than—the one on Apple’s iOS devices.

Hip to be square

The new nano, available in the same 8GB and 16GB capacities as before but in seven new colors, still wears an aluminum shell, but it now takes a considerably smaller shape: Instead of rectangular, it’s nearly square at just 1.5 inches tall and 1.6 inches wide. But the 6G nano is also the thickest nano yet—0.35 inches—thanks to a built-in, spring-loaded clip, a la the iPod shuffle. The clip is grippy enough to keep the nano attached to your shirt sleeve during moderate activity, though the nano is heavy enough that you’ll want to clip it somewhere safer during vigorous exercise.

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I’m on the record somewhere as saying that my favorite iPod of all time is the second-generation (2G) iPod shuffle. There was just something about that little guy, with its clip-on body and its circle of easy-to-navigate control buttons, that I found irresistible. I still have a battered old silver one that I take on trips and use when I’m mowing the lawn.

On the other hand, the third-generation (3G) iPod shuffle introduced in March 2009 was an example of Apple’s design language taken to an extreme. Gone were the onboard controls of previous models: the 3G shuffle was a little metal nub with a headphone jack and a power switch, and not much else. Though it added support for multiple playlists and a nifty spoken navigation system, it also forced users to rely on a set of three-button headphones (a clicker, plus volume up and down buttons) to control the thing. I hated it.

Now here’s the $49 fourth-generation (4G) iPod shuffle model, or (if you prefer) the second generation of the 2G shuffle. From outside appearances it’s been designed as if that entire 3G shuffle had fallen into a crack in time, erasing its entire existence from our collective memories. This new shuffle is a little guy with a clip-on body and a circle of easy-to-navigate control buttons. While the 2G shuffle was rectangular, this new shuffle is almost perfectly square, shaving off a third of that past model’s size.

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Here’s an overview of what’s new and different in iTunes 10.

Ping me if you like music

The flagship feature in iTunes 10 is Ping, Apple’s new “music-oriented social network,” which lets you follow friends and artists, and share your musical tastes. Naturally, this is tightly linked with the iTunes Store, so any music you like shows up with links for your friends to buy that music immediately. Users of Facebook or other social networks will grasp this pretty quickly, and, while there aren’t many artists on it at launch time, it’s clear that many bands and singers will use this to try and drive sales.

To access Ping, click the Ping link in the iTunes sidebar, below the iTunes Store, or click the Ping button in the toolbar when in the iTunes Store. Most of what you need to do is self-explanatory, but we’ll take an in-depth look at Ping soon.

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[Editor's Note: This review assesses version 3.6.1 of Star Walk. Version 4.0 was released after this review was published.]

I have a soft spot for any science-related app out there, but my favorite thing about owning an iPhone and iPod touch is playing with all the astronomy-themed apps from the App Store. I have a few of them on my phone, including some I’ve reviewed. There are so many things to explore in our universe, and many apps can help you get started.

One such app is the $3 Star Walk, an educational planetarium app from Vito Technologies aimed at both kids and adults. The app launches with the Sky Live screen, which shows you the Sun, the Moon, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The screen shows when the Sun and each of those planets rises and sets, as well as the elevation angle of each of those objects. For the Moon, it shows the current phase. Tap on one of the arrow buttons on the bottom left or right of the screen, and the date in the upper right corner changes to the previous or next day, depending on which direction you choose. As you cycle through the days, you can see the Moon phases change and the information for the other objects featured on the screen change as well.

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I was looking forward to getting a chance to play Super Tilt-Baseball, a baseball-themed pinball game. Sadly, however, the games kept getting called on account of rain. Or to put it more accurately, bugs—which in the games of iPhone and iPod touch games, is actually more annoying than rain.

Developed by Eizon, Super-Tilt Baseball shouldn’t be compared to the likes of Monster Pinball or Wild West Pinball, where the object is to rack up as many points as possible by banging a ball off assorted bumpers, flippers, and targets. Rather, Super-Tilt Baseball looks to recreate the classic baseball pinball machine games you’d find in an old-time pinball hall (or, if you’re lucky to live close enough to one, a pinball museum specializing in vintage games). Instead of points, you’re looking to tally up hits—and runs—by using a bat-shaped paddle to send the pinball flying around a baseball diamond-shaped surface. You tap anywhere on the screen to swing the bat. But be careful—the field is littered with holes, and if the ball drops into one, you’ve just made an out. In a nod to a specific feature of the iPhone platform, the game encourages you to help direct the ball by tilting your iPhone or iPod left or right—the “tilt” in “Super-Tilt Baseball,” as it were.

You can play one-, six-, or nine-inning games of pinball with one or two players. (You’ll have to pass your iPhone back and forth if you go the multiplayer route.) The game also lets you play best-of-five and best-of-seven “playoff” series, keeping a running tally of each game’s final score.

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Rumors abound of Apple updating every single product line at next week’s media event, even as the company apparently winds down its relationship with Samsung. Elsewhere, the iPod nano is dissected … for science! The remainders for Tuesday, October 16, 2012 are a tale told by idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display confirmed for Apple event (9to5Mac)

With an Apple event officially confirmed for next week, the rumor mill is working overtime. If everything we’ve read is true, the 13-inch MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini may all make an appearance on October 23, at which point Tim Cook will pound them all into dust with a hammer to prove a point about how product leaks ruin things for everybody.

Moving from love-hate to hate-hate (The Korea Times)

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Instead of working on a TV, Apple may be up to something handier. Elsewhere, the iPhone is totally rad (that’s what the kids say, right?) and the newest iPod touch is stripped for parts. The remainders for Thursday, October 11, 2012 are out of control.

Before the Apple Television, a TV Remote Control? (AllThingsD)

Instead of all the madness over Apple building an HDTV, what if it turned out they were just building a remote control? Hey, it would totally let the company check that “IR sensor box” on its spec sheet.

Survey: 40% of U.S. teens own an Apple iPhone. 62% want one (Fortune)

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iPod touch benchmarks are nothing to sneeze at, nobody coughs up enough money for a vintage Apple computer, and Taiwan and Apple hit a hiccup over map imagery. The remainders for Tuesday, October 9, 2012 are a sight for sore eyes.

Fifth-gen iPod touch benchmarks surface as devices begin shipping (Ars Technica)

The revised iPod touch has begun shipping, and benchmarks of the device have already begun leaking out, suggesting that its performance is on par with an iPhone 4S. Even in making phone calls. Zing.

Apple 1 Fails to Sell at Christie’s Auction! (The Classic Computing Blog)

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The iPhone 5 offers many improvements over its predecessor, including a larger screen, better performance, LTE, and an improved camera. But for those upgrading from an older iPhone, there’s another change that might prove to be more significant, at least when it comes to compatibility: a new dock connector. Apple has done away with its proprietary—and nine-year-old—30-pin connector in favor of a new, smaller alternative. Why did Apple make the change? And what does it mean for you—and for your existing accessories? Here’s a look at this new connector, dubbed Lightning.

30 pins, nine years

Apple’s 30-pin dock-connector port has been a staple of iPods, iPhones, and iPads since the third-generation iPod hit store shelves back in 2003. While most media players offered simple USB connectivity for data and charging, Apple’s single port offered a slew of functionality: power, audio-out, playback control, and speedy data syncing were among the initial features.

Over the years, the 30-pin port has gained some features (HD-video output, photo importing, and USB input, for example) while losing others (FireWire charging and data transfer), but it’s served us—and Apple—well: Along with Apple’s Universal dock-cradle design, the 30-pin port ensured that if we bought an accessory with a dock connector—speakers, docks, car chargers and mounts, you name it—that product would work with any recent i-device.

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As expected, the iPhone 5 led a busy Wednesday of product announcements for Apple. But it wasn’t the only unveiling at the company’s San Francisco press event, which also featured new iPod models for the holiday season, a revamped version of iTunes, and a shipping date for iOS 6.

But the latest iPhone was clearly the star of the show during the two-hour long press briefing hosted by CEO Tim Cook and featuring a multitude of Apple executives. The new iPhone features a taller screen, new dock connector port, LTE support, and camera improvements.

You’ll be able to pre-order the iPhone 5 on September 14, with the phone arriving in stores a week later in the U.S. and eight other countries. Pricing remains unchanged from the iPhone 4S: A 16GB iPhone 5 costs $199, a 32GB iPhone 5 costs $299, and the 64GB model costs $399.

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iPhones and iPads may get the attention these days, but Apple isn't ready to abandon its iconic music players just yet. The company announced two new iPods at its Wednesday media event—updated versions of the iPod touch and the iPod nano.

iPod touch

The new fifth-generation iPod touch is thinner than its predecessor (6.1mm vs. 7.2mm) and lighter (88 grams vs. 101). For the first time, the touch’s case comes in colors (silver black, blue, yellow, and red). There’s a new iPod touch loop: Push it and it pops up, and you can then attach a wrist strap. The new touch’s screen is not only bigger—4 inches diagonally vs. 3.5 before—but it’s also a sharper Retina display; it is, in fact, the same screen as on the iPhone 5.

Inside, the fifth-gen iPod touch has a dual-core A5 processor that Apple claims is up to twice as powerful as the previous model’s CPU; the graphics guts have been updated as well.

The new touch has a much improved camera. It comes with a 5-megapixel sensor and supports 1080p HD video recording. It has autofocus and LED flash for the first time; Apple also claims that the camera’s autoexposure is much improved. Like the iPhone 5, the touch has a sapphire crystal lens cover, and like the iPhone 5, the touch supports a new automated panorama feature, for taking wide shots.

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The latest spy pictures apparently show a much thinner iPhone, the plot thickens with a possible iPod update, and Apple may thin out competition in the dock-connector adapter market. Fortunately, the remainders for Wednesday, September 5, 2012 have a thick skin.

Closeup Photos Show Clear Difference in Thickness Between iPhone 5 and 4S (MacRumors)

Well, we’re in the tall rumor weeds. Purported photos of the forthcoming iPhone have surfaced on a variety sites, thanks to companies that deal in repair parts. The images show a taller iPhone, but also a thinner one. If Apple keeps going along these lines, it’s eventually going to have to release a two-dimensional model.

iPods likely to share the stage with iPhone 5 at next week’s Apple event (9to5Mac)

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

We get a lot of questions about manipulating files, and this week I’ve chosen a number of them to address. I look at how to join music tracks, how to add album art to tracks, and how to delete tracks from an iPhone. I also look at a persistent download problem that a lot of people have encountered in recent weeks with purchased or matched music.

Q: Is there any way to combine two songs in iTunes? I want to connect two together so that one flows into the other, with no gap, even if I shuffle the playlist. Can this be done easily?

It’s quite easy to do if you rip the songs from a CD. Before ripping, select the two (or more) tracks you want to join on the CD, then choose Advanced -> Join CD Tracks. iTunes will then show that the tracks are set to be joined. Rip the CD, and those joined tracks will make a single file.

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

I get lots of questions about some of the basics of iTunes. These are things that may not be that obvious, but are practical to know and can make your use of iTunes more efficient. Here’s a selection of some iTunes tips.

Q: I can’t seem to figure out which of the many playlists is actually playing. They are all listed on the left but I see no indication of which one is playing. How can I find out?

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

While it’s possible to live with just one type of music file—AAC or MP3, for example—there are a number of different file formats used for music that you’re likely to encounter these days. Lossless formats—such as Apple Lossless and FLAC—and high-resolution files can be a challenge for iTunes users. Here are some questions that we’ve received about converting between different file formats.

Q: I often purchase high resolution files (88.2 kHz/24 bit, say), and while I can play these files through iTunes and my home stereo system without a problem, I cannot sync them to my iPod or iPhone because these portable devices do not recognize them. How can I create a separate standard resolution (44.1 kHz/16 bit) copy of these files for use in my portable devices within the same iTunes library?

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

In this installment, I answer a number of questions on various topics: Podcasts, smart playlists, streaming audio, and what happens to your iTunes Store content when you’re gone.

Q: I would like to sync my entire iTunes Library to iTunes Match, but this doesn’t seem to be possible at this time. Unless I am mistaken, iTunes Match only syncs music, not podcasts, videos or iTunes U content. Is this true?

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

Among the many questions we’ve received about iTunes, a large number of them are about the iTunes Store. There are questions about iTunes Store accounts, Apple IDs, and using content from more than one account. Here’s a serving of questions and answers about working with the iTunes Store.

Q: My wife and I both have iPads, and both have separate iTunes accounts. It seems that there should be some way for one of us to download a book from the iBookstore to our iPad and then give the other access to that same book without having to pay twice. Is there?

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

Most of the Ask the iTunes Guy columns so far have covered music, and especially the confusing (and somewhat half-baked) iTunes Match. But iTunes handles more than just music: it manages ebooks, audiobooks, apps, and various types of videos. It’s time to dedicate a column to some of the many questions we’ve received about videos: movies, TV shows, and music videos.

Q: When I look at some TV series in the iTunes Store, I see that some shows say “HD: Includes 720p, 1080p.” How do I choose which version to download?

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

While you can play music in iTunes, or on an iOS device, by choosing an artist or album—or even totally at random—playlists are what let you customize your library and your listening experience. We’ve gotten lots of questions about smart playlists, and here are some of the most interesting ones (plus a common question about displaying playlists in iTunes).

Q: How can I make a random smart playlist that limits the number of tracks by a specific artist?

Start by making a new smart playlist. Choose File -> New Smart Playlist, or press and hold the Option key and click the gear icon (the plus icon turns into that when you press Option) at the bottom-left of the iTunes window.

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

This installment is a bit of a grab bag. I look at a number of questions that have come up frequently dealing with metadata, sorting, and sharing.

Q: I ripped many CDs into iTunes and changed the genre to categorize my music in different ways. I now would like to be able to select a given album in iTunes and somehow reset the genre to the default information from Gracenote. Is there an easy to do this?

You can manually change the genre of any album. Select all the tracks, press Command-I, then type a new genre in the Genre field at the bottom of the window.

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[Ask the iTunes Guy is a regular column in which we answer your questions on everything iTunes related. If there’s something you’d like to know, send an email to the iTunes Guy for consideration.]

There’s a joke making the rounds and it goes like this: I named my iPod “Titanic” so when I sync it, iTunes tells me “The Titanic is syncing.” While it actually says “Syncing ‘Titanic’,” this joke hints at the fact that syncing your library to an iOS device isn’t always simple (even if it doesn’t rise to the level of disastrous). In today’s column, I look at some common questions about syncing all or part of an iTunes library to iOS devices.

Q: I don’t like having to micro-manage the storage on my iPad and iPhone to ensure that they are not filled up with music so I have enough room for apps and their storage. Is there some way to designate an amount of storage that is used for music?

There’s no specific setting for this, but there is one way you can accomplish it. You can create a smart playlist that contains a specific amount of music. You could include any number of conditions—choosing from specific genres, artists or even other playlists—but below the conditions, choose to limit its size to a certain number.

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