USB not recognized? Need help!

[Colby Thomas]

Hey y'all!

I was hoping some of you could help me.

I have an ipod 2nd generation shuffle. (The only ipod that I can ride with hahaha) And when I plug in the usb to a wall outlet the ipod charges fine. But it doesn't charge or is even recognized when I put it into the computer.

I feel like the USB isn't broken, because if it was, I couldn't charge it through the wall. Right?

Any fixes you can think of? Thanks guys!

[Gadfly]

I don't remember how it went with my (1st generation) shuffle, but I wonder if my recent iPhone experience might apply:

I was frustrated when I couldn't transfer files between the phone and the computer because, like you with your shuffle, the phone would not show up as a device when I connected via USB. Quite by accident I found that I need to have iTunes running...then the phone shows up in the iTunes window and I can do anything...add/remove mp3s, photos, videos, podcasts, etc.

So try running iTunes and plug the shuffle in and see what happens.

[AustinLee]

No iPods (maybe only really old ones) are recognized as a drive by a computer. They are built that way. They will only show up in iTunes. Try what Gadfly suggested.

If it did it before, and doesn't now, it may be that iTunes updated on your computer and is preventing your iPod from showing up.

[gohabsgo333]

But he says it wont even charge. I don't know about ipod shuffles, but most ipods charge when they are plugged in, even though they don't show up as a drive.

My guess is that it's a driver issue. Try and see if it works on another computer, and google driver "for your type of ipod " .

[jtrops]

If you use an alternate program like GTKPodder to access your Ipod it will show up as a drive and you can drag and drop files to and from it.

As for the charging thing, it may be that the usb port you plugged into was on a hub, and not able to give the amount of power needed by the Ipod to charge. On many computers there will be a couple of usb ports that deliver full power, and another 4-8 ports that are on a hub. Sometimes these hub ports don't even have enough power to access a flash drive.

[Dane M]

What are you talking about? All ipods are recognized as drives, at least on windows.

The best way to find out what is wrong with your ipod is to narrow down or eliminate possible causes.

Try using a different computer.
Try using a different cable that you KNOW works already.
Try different ports on the computer
Try re-installing itunes
Try restarting your computer
Try resetting your ipod
etc etc you get the idea.

And make a list, and cross off things that you know can't be the cause. It will make it easier trust me.

Also, be glad your ipod doesn't crash your computer and give you the blue screen saying that your computer is dumping all physical memory like my ipod does when I plug it in...

[johnfoss]

Originally Posted by Dane M

What are you talking about? All ipods are recognized as drives, at least on windows.

I think this is only true if you select that in the Advanced Preferences (or somewhere in there). I don't think it's a default behavior.

But then start eliminating stuff, just as Dane suggested. More:

1. Try your cable on a different iPod (the problem could be damage or wear in your cable).
2. Make sure it's plugged into a USB port on the computer, not a hub. Try all the USB ports.
3. The older iPods (probably not the Shuffle) used Firewire cables. At least on the Mac. Could this be the problem? Probably not, if it used to work.
4. Check for upgrades to the iPod (through iTunes).

All those sorts of steps will narrow things down. But the problem could also be hardware; it's possible that your Shuffle's plug is damaged or wearing out. I don't have experience with the Shuffle. Worst case scenario, you might just have to buy a new one... There are lots of deals on eBay for various Shuffles, or you could try the new, little Nano!