Apoplexed

Today Apple released a new version of iTunes alongside the new iPods. Part of the package included a new iPod update, which is a change, since the iPod updates required a separate updater application before this. Always keen to get the kinks worked out of my little electronic companion, I ran the updates.

All was not well when I tried to sync my iPod to the new version of iTunes, however. I'll spare you the technical details, call me if you want to listen to a true rant and rave. The summary is that a couple of options that allowed me to conveniently manage my podcasts are missing from the new version of iTunes.

The combination of trying to find a way to solve the problem and attempting to write a post about it on Apple's forums, which kept going down, raised my blood pressure to a level somewhere above "incensed". Eventually I did get my soap box pushed out among the rest of the masses, but by then I was ready to take the curry-slurping software engineer who wrote the changes and test the impact strength of his skull on whatever hard surfaces were convenient. (Yes, I have good reason to rag on the performance on software engineers in India. I've had enough headaches with them in my own job. No, I don't know for sure that Apple has an facility in India or that they even write code for iTunes there. But I highly suspect it.)

Up until this point, I've been pretty damn happy with my iPod and iTunes. Especially iTunes, it's a very well thought-out program. But the latest update is confounding. I really can't find a reasoning for changing things the way they have. It's going to cause support calls and e-mails, and my brain is reeling from trying to tackle the problem. I'm just all... mwwwwheeehhwwaaahhhhnngggggh about it. Bad show, Apple. Bad show.