Podcasts show in Music and Artists sections on iPod

Are you manually manging the iPod or are you syncing it? Have you reset or restored the iPod to see if the problem persists. For synced iPods the podcasts don't show up anywhere else but the podcasts section, not quite so sure what happens when you manually manage.

tt2

I've re-read your post a couple of times and something occurred to me: is yours an iPod Classic as defined on the page http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1353 or not? (Look below the table to see detailed explanations of each model.) The reason for asking is that on the 5th generation video iPod, Podcasts do appear on the artists, albums and even on the songs menus. (Notice that I own both!)

A Classic is either 80GB, 120GB or 160Gb, and if it's the 80Gb model, the (iPod classic) serial number's last three digits will be one of the following: Y5N, YMU, YMV, or YMX. If it's 80Gb but with different digits, it will be a 5th generation video iPod.

Regardless of the model, "Podcasts" are usually set (by default) to "skip when shuffling", so they would not play when you have your ipod on shuffle. Have you actually experienced a Podcast playing while you have the iPod on shuffle? If so, perhaps the "skip when shuffling" for _that episode_ has been turned off. (In iTunes, select *Get Info* for the episode, click on the Options tab and check that there is a tick-in-the-box "skip when shuffling".)

One last thing; how did you obtain these Podcasts? A Podcast as understood by the iPod has been obtained, either through the Podcast section of the iTunes Store using *Get Episode* or Subscribe , or you have pasted the "Podcast Feed URL" in the *Advanced/Subscribe to Podcast* in (your) iTunes.

The "Podcast Feed URL" is sometimes (but not always) listed on the originator's website. Something described as a podcast, downloaded directly from someone's website and added to your library is not. Yes, it may be the same programme content, but if it hasn't downloaded "as a Podcast", it isn't a Podcast, no matter what anyone else says!

I don't think the early or late 2006 model will make any difference in respect to this Podcast issue, but the fact that it is a 5th gen iPod and not a Classic (where you posted) explains why the Podcasts appear in the music section. As I said, they should not play (from the music menu) when you have the iPod on shuffle because they should be set to "skip when shuffling". If they are not, you can change the setting in the (episode) options.

If I try to sync podcasts, it says it's going to delete all the podcasts.

If you have not been using Sync up to now to put Podcasts onto your iPod, I think the first time you try to Sync them iTunes will delete them all and then put them back on again. Basically, this is done so that iTunes knows what is on the iPod. Careful though, because I have not tried this. I always use Sync .

It sounds like every time I want to move the podcasts from the iTunes library to the iPod, I have to sync again.

I believe there's no reason why you cannot manually manage Podcasts, but frankly, it's a bit like watching paint dry! If you set Podcasts to Sync, all the hard work of transferring them is done by iTunes, leaving you to do something else instead!

When you connect the iPod to iTunes, look on the Podcasts tab for the "device". (When the Summary screen is shown, you'll see the Podcasts tab to the right.) On this tab, you can select/set options such as: "Sync/ all Podcasts/ unplayed Podcasts/ last x episodes" etc.

Using these options, you can set iTunes up so that when you connect the iPod, all episodes that you have listened to are removed and any new episodes are put on the iPod with a blue spot next to them to indicate that you have not yet begun listening to that episode. Once again, be careful though - the blue spot (next to the episode) is removed as soon as you begin listening to that episode, so if you have not yet finished listening to it, it may be removed at Sync because itunes regards it as "_not new_".

My preference is to use Sync and automatically *Keep all Podcasts* on the iPod, but then - if I want to remove an episode I uncheck it in iTunes (tick-box next to episode) before Syncing.

I can understand why you don't want the Podcasts to appear in the music section while browsing for music - it irritates me as well - but I think it's unlikely that Apple will ever change this on the 5th gen iPods. However, note that newer ipods, such as the 160GB Classic I also own, and presumably the iPod Touch _do not_ list Podcasts in the music section. Not much consolation to you I'm afraid, but it is an option if you can afford to move onto a new iPod.