ipod video 5th gen won't go into disc mode or reset or anything but show a dim apple logo! PLEASE help!

Try a basic Reset first.

1. Turn the Hold key on, then off again and press-and-hold the Menu and Select (Centre) buttons until the logo disappears. That should take no more than ten seconds. The logo will reappear and then it should disappear yet again and the iPod should boot up. Apple suggest you try this up to three times before deciding that it will not work.

2. If the above doesn't work and the logo is still showing, I suggest you leave the iPod unplugged until the logo disappears. Providing you have left it unplugged, the logo will disappear when the battery drains down. At this point, the iPod can do nothing because it has no power. When this happens, plug the iPod into power and charge it up again.

3. Do not sit and watch the iPod and then plug it in the second the logo turns off. That won't work. Just leave it alone and when you go back to it and find the display blank, plug it into power again. It may take up to thirty minutes before you see anything happen,. After thirty minutes, the display should turn on and the iPod should power up correctly.

If you are at step 2 above, and the display is already blank, just leave the iPod alone and unplugged for at least one week. Then plug it into power as in step 3.

Perhaps the battery has reached the end of its life and is worn out. Usually though, I would expect no display at all. How old is your iPod?

It should still be possible to have the battery replaced, if that's what is needed.

Have a look on this page; Apple - Support - Service Answer Center for more information. There's a section specifically about battery replacement and from there you should be able to find a local Apple service provider. In may be an Authorised Service Provider, rather than Apple, but they are - as it says -authorised.