Trying to Run IPOD on my Ubuntu. I am stuck at the last part of code.

Which ipod is this? If you have an ipod touch, you can only get to it thru wireless.

If it's a nano (or similar model) you might be able to find what you are looking for in the logfile "/var/log/messages" whenever you plug it in. It will report the device name when you plug it in.

its a nano..and it says the device name is IPOD...when I open the properties.

i just dont understand what I need to type..Ive tried MULTIPLE ways to type in that code...

OK. we'll see if we can find a way to retrieve the info needed.

First open a terminal session and type:

tail -f /var/log/messages

This will show all events which are going to be written in the system log.

Now connect the ipod to the usb connector and copy & paste the results in this thread.

Chris

shawna@gbook:~$ tail -f/var/log/messages
tail: invalid option -- /
Try `tail --help' for more information.
shawna@gbook:~$ tail --help
Usage: tail [OPTION]... [FILE]...
Print the last 10 lines of each FILE to standard output.
With more than one FILE, precede each with a header giving the file name.
With no FILE, or when FILE is -, read standard input.

Mandatory arguments to long options are mandatory for short options too.
      --retry keep trying to open a file even if it is
                           inaccessible when tail starts or if it becomes
                           inaccessible later; useful when following by name,
                           i.e., with --follow=name
  -c, --bytes=N output the last N bytes
  -f, --follow[={name|descriptor}]
                           output appended data as the file grows;
                           -f, --follow, and --follow=descriptor are
                           equivalent
  -F same as --follow=name --retry
  -n, --lines=N output the last N lines, instead of the last 10
      --max-unchanged-stats=N
                           with --follow=name, reopen a FILE which has not
                           changed size after N (default 5) iterations
                           to see if it has been unlinked or renamed
                           (this is the usual case of rotated log files)
      --pid=PID with -f, terminate after process ID, PID dies
  -q, --quiet, --silent never output headers giving file names
  -s, --sleep-interval=S with -f, sleep for approximately S seconds
                           (default 1.0) between iterations.
  -v, --verbose always output headers giving file names
      --help display this help and exit
      --version output version information and exit

If the first character of N (the number of bytes or lines) is a `+',
print beginning with the Nth item from the start of each file, otherwise,
print the last N items in the file. N may have a multiplier suffix:
b 512, k 1024, m 1024*1024.

With --follow (-f), tail defaults to following the file descriptor, which
means that even if a tail'ed file is renamed, tail will continue to track
its end. This default behavior is not desirable when you really want to
track the actual name of the file, not the file descriptor (e.g., log
rotation). Use --follow=name in that case. That causes tail to track the
named file by reopening it periodically to see if it has been removed and
recreated by some other program.

Report bugs to <email address hidden>.

Put a space between the

tail<space>-f<space>/var/log/messages

and make sure you use forward slashes.

shawna@gbook:~$ tail -f /var/log/messages
Dec 30 14:08:32 gbook kernel: [68426.520000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:08:32 gbook kernel: [68426.520000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:08:32 gbook kernel: [68426.804000] eps: Current voltage = 844mV
Dec 30 14:08:32 gbook kernel: [68426.804000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:08:38 gbook kernel: [68432.400000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:08:38 gbook kernel: [68432.400000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:08:38 gbook kernel: [68432.680000] eps: Current voltage = 844mV
Dec 30 14:08:38 gbook kernel: [68432.680000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:08:45 gbook kernel: [68439.680000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:08:45 gbook kernel: [68439.680000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:08:45 gbook kernel: [68439.972000] eps: Current voltage = 844mV
Dec 30 14:08:45 gbook kernel: [68439.972000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68440.800000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68440.800000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68440.952000] eps: Current voltage = 972mV
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68440.952000] eps: Current multiplier = 13
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68441.104000] eps: Current voltage = 844mV
Dec 30 14:08:46 gbook kernel: [68441.104000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:08:47 gbook kernel: [68441.780000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:08:47 gbook kernel: [68441.780000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:08:47 gbook kernel: [68442.072000] eps: Current voltage = 844mV
Dec 30 14:08:47 gbook kernel: [68442.072000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:08:48 gbook kernel: [68442.900000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV

this is what its doing....

You did plugin the ipod after issuing this command?

I want to see what the system is reporting when the ipod is plugged in.

Dec 30 14:15:18 gbook kernel: [68833.220000] eps: Current multiplier = 4
Dec 30 14:15:19 gbook kernel: [68833.896000] usb 5-4: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 10
Dec 30 14:15:19 gbook kernel: [68834.028000] usb 5-4: configuration #1 chosen from 2 choices
Dec 30 14:15:19 gbook kernel: [68834.060000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV
Dec 30 14:15:19 gbook kernel: [68834.060000] eps: Current multiplier = 15
Dec 30 14:15:19 gbook kernel: [68834.068000] scsi12 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices

and

Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.072000] scsi 12:0:0:0: Direct-Access Apple iPod 1.62 PQ: 0 ANSI: 0
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.084000] sd 12:0:0:0: [sdb] 1946049 4096-byte hardware sectors (7971 MB)
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.084000] sd 12:0:0:0: [sdb] Write Protect is off
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.088000] sd 12:0:0:0: [sdb] 1946049 4096-byte hardware sectors (7971 MB)
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.088000] sd 12:0:0:0: [sdb] Write Protect is off
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.088000] sdb: sdb1
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.088000] sd 12:0:0:0: [sdb] Attached SCSI removable disk
Dec 30 14:15:24 gbook kernel: [68839.088000] sd 12:0:0:0: Attached scsi generic sg2 type 0
Dec 30 14:15:27 gbook kernel: [68841.492000] eps: Current voltage = 988mV

Yes! thats what we're looking for.

Apparently the ipod *is* recognized and being given the device name /dev/sdb1

Which software do you want to use for your ipod? I know amarok has some ipod support, but there might be other ipod enabled programs.

Normally, when you plugin such a device, gnome auto-mounts this disk and shows a new file browser with the contents. Does it do this?

As the gnome system auto-mounts this volume it's highly unlikely that this is really needed. So give it some thought before progressing into the next bit..................

WARNING: the next bit might screw up your installation so be EXTREMELY CAREFUL

According to your code:

"Then put into /dev/fstab something like this
/dev/sdd2 /media/IPOD vfat users,rw,noauto 0 0"

Instead, you need to edit the system file /etc/fstab (not /dev/fstab as in your directions).
As this is a special file, you will need root access to do this. The sudo command can give you temporary root access.

The command:

sudo<space>gedit<space>/etc/fstab

will allow you to edit this file.

The line you will need is

/dev/sdb1 /media/IPOD vfat users,rw,noauto 0 0

Be careful, as the system NEEDS some whitespace inbetween:

/dev/sdb1<tab>/media/IPOD<tab>vfat<tab>users,rw,noauto<tab>0<tab>0

(use the regular TAB key to enter the "<tab>" bits).

Then, at reboot the ipod is "automagically" mounted...

Another thought: as USB is a plug-and-pray solution, it is entirely possible that the next time you plug it in (another port), the device name will be something like sdc1.....

Another 2 cents before you tell your system to ALWAYS mount the sdb1 device.

Gnome will automount in /media/...something... normally

Chris

# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# <file system> <mount point> <type> <options> <dump> <pass>
proc /proc proc defaults 0 0
# /dev/sda1
UUID=fb917c71-b51c-449e-bd95-6d464bd428b4 / ext3 defaults,errors=remount-ro 0 1
# /dev/sda5
UUID=d8749168-ad64-443b-864e-fa94adcfa1a7 none swap sw 0 0
/dev/hdc /media/cdrom0 udf,iso9660 user,noauto,exec 0 0

this came up...now do I change the last line?

No, just add a new line at the end!

The last line you see here is the line for your cdrom drive.

So just ADD the line. Make sure you ONLY use whitespace in the indicated <tab> positions, not for example in the "users,rw,noauto" bits:

/dev/sdb1<tab>/media/IPOD<tab>vfat<tab>users,rw,noauto<tab>0<tab>0

Chris

okay. i did that..now I just save it?? Then reboot my system? and then what should i do to transfer my music?

The actions you did only cause the system to auto-mount it on startup (which is a doubtful feature as gnome auto mounts this type of hardware).

The support and troubleshooting in (for example) amarok is described in:

http://amarok.kde.org/wiki/Media_Device:IPod

Maybe this might help you further in the right direction.

To install amarok just do:

sudo apt-get install amarok

(that is: sudo<space>apt-get<space>install<space>amarok)

Cheers,

Chris