MacMinute notes a Wired article showing how despite the best efforts of management, Microsoft employees know a clear winner when they see one. [Thanks, Lee.]

So according to Apple, one of the big reasons for bringing out the iPod Shuffle is the shuffle "phenomenon with iPod users - the 'shuffle songs' playback mode that randomizes either portions or the entirety of your music library." I'm just wondering if I'm alone in iPod-dom in that I rarely, if ever, use the shuffle songs mode. Anyone else of similar mind?

Engadget notes TheMacMind.com's report on the supposedly forthcoming iPod flash, a tiny, flash memory-based MP3 player that will round out Apple's music player line-up. Several things don't jibe with the picture of the supposed iPod flash: 1. When the iPod mini was released, Steve Jobs did quite a bit of trash-talking with regard to the myriad flash-based players already on the market, did he not? Why would Apple now want to wade in to that market, when they can barely keep up with demand for the iPod mini, the company's flash player killer? 2. Okay, let's say Steve does an about face and wants Apple to compete in the flash-based market. I don't see this design being it. It lacks visual feedback, and that has been the iPod's strong suit, coupled with the physical controls' ease of navigation, when compared to its competitors. 3. The overall design doesn't flow with the rest of the iPod line, plain and simple. I could be drastically wrong, and if this design is real and released, it would signal a sort of departure from the iPod line. Personally, I'm not opposed to a flash-based iPod. Such a device would be perfect for my wife, who only has need for such an audio component in rare circumstances, such as when working out. Even the iPod mini is really overkill for her needs. I just don't believe that TheMacMind's version is the real deal. At the least, I hope it isn't. [Wave of the flipper to Michael.]

As usual, Mr. Gruber does a better job than most at dissecting a topic, in this case Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's crude comments regarding Apple and the iPod:

I'd love to see his source for this. I have no source either, but I'd place a wager with Mr. Ballmer that the most common source of music on most iPods are unencrypted songs legally ripped from CDs. Most iPod users I know own hundreds of CDs; it'd take ages to bootleg the amount of music they already own on CD.

[...]

The point of all this seems to be that Ballmer is saying that Apple can't lead the way here -- where by "here" I'm talking about the convergence between the computer, entertainment, and consumer electronics industries -- because the iPod allows for and even encourages the use of non-DRM-protected digital media.

But I would argue that Apple is already leading the way in terms of music -- in large part because they don't enforce draconian DRM measures.

Engadget is reporting that the iPod tattoos being provided by HP can leave an unpleasant aftertaste.

MacMinute notes a report by The Register on open positions within the iPod team for wireless networking engineers. Tony Smith proceeds to pontificate over the possibilities of this, including the use of Wi-Fi to sync data and music with the iPod. Your reasoning for this, Tony, other than a certain coolness factor, would be? The best wireless speeds right now are 54 Mbps, which is great for surfing the web and downloading your e-mail, but I would hesitate to use it to load ripped CDs on to my iPod. Even 100Base-T Ethernet would be faster. With iPod iFireWire connectivity at 400 Mbps, why bother with wireless syncing? The wireless access does make sense for turning the iPod in to a remote control for iTunes and streaming music via Airport Express. However, Smith and The Register have a history for speculation that turns out to be incredibly wrong, so take this one with the usual grains of salt. Obviously, from the Apple job postings, the iPod team is looking at Wi-Fi integration for some reason, but it's too early to tell what that reason might be.

USA Today:

Apple's trendy iPod digital music player, which has revitalized the company, is giving laptop sales a boost during back-to-school season.

Many students, after falling in love with the iPod, are packing for college with new Apple Macintosh computers. Of course, the "journalists" at USA Today could head on over to Microsoft's Mactopia and verify that Outlook is not part of Office for Macintosh, but I suppose that would be too much trouble. I guess it's just one more rag I really need to stop reading...

Just in case you've ever wondered.

Engadget has the Newsweek cover with Steve and the new iPod. It's still white, reportedly has an even slimmer case, and sports the iPod mini-style scroll wheel, which I really like over my 40 GB iPod's multiple buttons. I'm curious to know if Espy Sans made the move from the mini as well. I am now depressed, as this appears to be the iPod I wish I could have had six months ago... (Thanks to Gruber's linked list for the link.)

You can now have your iPod fully integrated in your over-priced German automobile. Apple product managers have an iChat AV video conference while one is at 35,000 feet over Canada. (Danke, Lee.)

The Economist has a noteworthy article on how the iPod has changed and is changing the way we listen to music. Rumormongers of the video iPod should take note of the article's conclusion:

Are video iPods next? Strikingly, none of these shifts in usage patterns applies to video. People do not watch movies while walking the dog, make playlists of their favourite movie scenes, or clamour to buy individual scenes online. Portable video-players, which are already starting to become available, undoubtedly have their uses, such as providing entertainment during long journeys. But they seem unlikely to be the kind of industry-changing products that the iPod and its imitators have unexpectedly proven to be. (via The Iconfactory)

My favorite iPod carrying case is going color on May 15th. The Contour Showcase will be available in six different colors, as well as black and the original white. Personally, the only one that interests me is the black Showcase. Contour is doing a buy-two, get-one-free promo with the new Showcases, but I doubt I'll be buying a new one when they're $39.95 a pop. Now if a couple of people want to go in with me and split the cost of two Showcases three ways, I wouldn't mind... Eric reviewed the Showcase for ATPM.

This is just sad. What makes it even more sad is that this "impulse buy" wasn't at some flea market or craft store, or something along those lines. It actually had to be purchased online... (via Lee)

Lee linked to the Alpine iPod Ready in-dash receivers in a recent post. I must say I am very interested, though I will probably hold off on anything like this until we figure out my vehicle situation later this year.

I stopped by the Willow Bend Apple Store last week for two reasons. First, I needed to pick up a couple of extra FireWire-to-Dock cables for iPod use. Second, I wanted to see how the Genius Bar LCD retrofit turned out, since that has been my principal project at work for the past month. While there, I also played around with the new iPod mini. If I didn't already have the 40 GB iPod, and was still using the original 5 GB one, I would jump on the mini. I love how they're using Espy Sans for the screen font; I hope that carries over to the next-gen full-size Pods. Likewise, I hope to see the combination mechanical/capacitance-sensitive scroll wheel with the built-in buttons on the next-gen full-size Pod. It make navigation so much simpler. Of course, with my 40 GB iPod, I use it 50-50 as a music player and as an external hard drive. Every day, I back up my Mailsmith and Entourage mail folders to it to shuffle to and from work. Between the two, I've got about 1.3 GB of stuff, not to mention anything I may have downloaded during the day that I want to take home. So from that usage standpoint, a mini is not in my future. Then again, by the time I'm ready to upgrade again, the mini may just have the storage capacity to suit my habits.

So PalmSource has decided to discontinue Mac support in upcoming versions of the Palm OS, despite the fact that they have a larger market share percentage-wise in the Macintosh side of the computing world than out. Mac users will be left to third-party solutions to sync future Palm devices with their Macintosh systems, costing us more money. Palm Desktop (which Palm bought from Apple as Claris Organizer) will no longer be updated. Last night, I migrated all of my Palm Desktop data to Address Book, iCal, and BBEdit-created text files. I then proceeded to use iSync to sync my contact and calendar info,first on my iPod, then to my .Mac account, the latter of which was a first for me. I then synced my new-to-me, work-provided 1.42 GHz dual-G4 to my .Mac account, so that my Address Book info and Safari bookmarks matched with those on my Cube. All syncs worked without any problems, just as they should. I have been debating over what kind of phone to move to. My wife's law firm makes extensive use of the Blackberry RIMs amongst the attorneys, and she will be getting one soon, with service through T-Mobile. I had been considering the Treo 600, but now I'm not so sure. I may go with the Sony-Ericsson T630 when U.S. providers begin carrying it over the next month or two. I don't think Address Book and iCal will fill all of my PIM needs; I already feel like I'm going to butt against the limits of the applications, and am looking at alternatives. For now, however, Palm no longer has a place on my systems' desktops.

Dave Schroeder, an Apple Distinguished Educator, has posted the quite sensible and easy-to-follow iPod Battery FAQ. Hopefully this will go a long way toward disproving any falsehoods raised by those spreading "dirty secrets" about the iPod. (via MacInTouch)

And now we have experienced the other druther of the 3G iPods: the non-standard dock connector. I get to work today, pull out the new iPod, and then realize I have no dock here and I left the FireWire-to-dock cable at home, connected, appropriately enough, to the iPod dock on my desk. So the old 5 GB iPod, which was still in my bag, is happily pumping out tunes now...

So I had long ago outgrown my original 5 GB iPod, but I lived with moving music off and on to it from my Mac as my tastes dictated. An early Christmas present from my wonderful wife, however, has yielded a 40 GB third-generation iPod. Now I have to grow in to the new little white wonder on my hip--I only have about 15 GB of music ripped to MP3 format. Using iSync, my latest "phischpod" carries my contact and calendar info, and I've started playing around with the Notes function. I do miss the input ability I had with a Palm device, and I know I'm not alone. I lived in the Memo function of my Palm, so maybe the Belkin Voice Recorder would help alleviate the input druthers of the 'Pod. In other news, I am waffling over how to sheath my iPod. It will either be this or that. Thoughts and comments on this issue are welcome.

Unlike Lee, I don't think I'd appreciate this new trend of non-verbal, can-I-listen-to-your-iPod-for-a-moment "communication" with perfect strangers. With someone I know, even on an acquaintance level, I'd feel much more generous. I've known my new boss less than two weeks, and we've already listened in to one another's iPods. But we're the only two people in our department, both total Mac heads, both love our iPods, he's a major music geek, etc., etc. We have a lot of stuff in common outside of our work relationship. But I would likely balk if someone just walked up to me on the street and wanted to plug in...

I have to wonder at the prospect of paying for a professional paint job for one's iPod or PowerBook. Granted, the iPod job only costs fifty bucks, but how many different colored skins could you buy for your iPod for fifty bucks? And the skins are removable, plus generally offer other features (non-skid, for example). I know it's not a full-blown paint job, but you can get cover panels for your PowerBook. Not to mention that having your iPod or 'Book painted will void your AppleCare warranty. (via MacMinute)

XtremeMac has released their Xtremity iPod Case System. I like the ease of transition from being carried on the belt to popping it in to a car mount, to just having it on the desk. Something else to look in to when I add a new iPod to my arsenal. (via MacMinute)

Thinking that my iPod's battery may be dying--it is an original 5 GB model--I've been looking around for replacements from third parties. The fine folks at iPodbattery.com have even elected to show you how to disassemble your iPod to make the battery swap. Kudos!

It's certainly looking that way to Apple. The iPod is the highest-volume item the company moves right now, with 1.4 million sold.

''It's something that's as big a brand to Apple as the Mac,'' is how Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, puts it. ''And that's a pretty big deal.''

When I pick up a new 40 GB iPod, it will get sheathed in one of these.