Can I down load my ipod music to my Mac?

To answer your main question, there is no easy way to do it but if you go onto apples downloads and click on iPod+iTunes downloads you may find some software that will allow you to transfer music off of your iPod and back onto your computer.

Direct Link to download list on Apple's Website.

What might also help is if you just re-installed your OS and did not reformat the computer you should have a folder on your HD called "Previous Systems" this folder houses all of your old files. See if your iTunes music is still in their.

Also if you just re-installed your OS your iTunes music might still just be in the iTunes folder in your music folder on your computer also check and see if it is there. Sometimes after a re-install it looses track of the files.

Thanks
-Rob P

If you have any iTMS purchases the transfer of purchased content from the iPod to authorised computers has been introduced with iTunes 7 A paragraph on it has been added to this article: Transfer iTunes Store purchases using iPod

The transfer of non iTMS content such as songs imported from CD is designed by default to be one way from iTunes to iPod. However there's a manual method of copying songs from your iPod to your Mac. The procedure is a bit involved but if you're interested it's available at this link: Two-way Street: Moving Music Off the iPod

If you prefer something more automated there are a number of third party utilities that you can use to retrieve music files and playlists from your iPod, this is just a selection. I use Senuti but have a look at the web pages and documentation for the others too, you'll find that they have varying degrees of functionality and some will transfer movies, videos and photos as well. You can also read reviews of some of them here: Wired News - Rescue Your Stranded Tunes

Senuti Mac Only
iPodRip Mac Only
PodWorks Mac Only
PodView Mac Only
iPodAccess Mac & Windows
YamiPod Mac & Windows
PodUtil Mac & Windows
iPodCopy Mac & Windows

If your iPod is set to update automatically take care when connecting back to your computer and an empty iTunes. You will get a message that your iPod is linked to a different library and asking if you want to link to this one and replace all your songs etc, press "Cancel". Pressing "Erase and Sync" will irretrievably remove all songs from your iPod. Your iPod should appear in the iTunes source list from where you can change the update setting to manual and use your iPod without the risk of accidentally erasing it. Check the "manually manage music and videos" box in Summary then press the Apply button. Don't uncheck Sync Music it will be unchecked by default when you choose the manual setting: Managing content manually on iPod

Keep your iPod in manual mode until you have reloaded your iTunes and you are happy with your playlists etc then it will be safe to return it auto-sync again.

I have a similar problem, except my IPod was formatted for my PC computer, which just failed. So I have a new MacBook, and I want to get the songs from my IPod onto the new Mac. I'm afraid to try some of the things I've seen on the discussion boards, because they don't seem to be for PC to Mac transfers. Any ideas? Thank you!!

Macs can read Windows formatting so the techniques above should work just as well as if the iPod was Mac formatted. I use Senuti and I checked out their FAQ which says this about using a Windows formatted iPod:
"As long as your iPod has been prepared correctly (read the Quick Start if you haven't already), then yes, it should work fine. I have not had a report of an iPod not working with Senuti because it was formatted for Windows"

Thanks... I am going to try.

Okay, I've downloaded Senuti and connected my IPod. All the songs are appearing in Senuti, but my IPod still says "do not disconnect." I tried to drag songs from Senuti to ITunes but nothing would drag. I can't find any further instructions on Senuti. Any thoughts?

Click on HELP in the Senuti program, there's a full suite of instructions including screen shots and step by step guides in there.

I just bought this Mac and am new to it. I want to convert ipod tunes from Windows configured ipod. How can this be done? Thanks a million.

There's no conversion necessary, the files are standard audio formats that play on any platform and as far as the iPod itself goes, Macs can read a Windows formatted device. If you want to change the format of your iPod from Windows to Mac then you just need to restore it on your new computer (After you have transferred your songs to iTunes of course): Restoring iPod to factory settings with iTunes 7

Ok, i just downloaded podutil for OS 9. is there an option where i can use this program to import songs onto my ipod too? because this seems like the only program i've found that actually sees my stuff on my ipod

thanks!