iPod owners know for a fact that battery performance is very important to ensure full music enjoyment while on the go. With the 5th generation and video iPods, external battery packs become more essential than ever. If you scour the net, you'd find commercial ones selling for as low as $12. You can opt for the more expensive packs with price range between $20 and $50. Belkin makes the most popular pack which uses 4AA batteries (rechargeable or disposable) and sticks to the back of the iPod via a suction cup.

If you've been looking around for rechargeable all-in-one packs, that just means you have money to spend on products like the Battery ii, which gives 40-70 hours of non-stop music, or 15 hours of video on the 5G. It retails for $99 but some online retailers sell it a lower price of $29. If you are loyal to Belkin, it'sTunePower is being sold for $80. It claims 8-10 hours of extra audio time. Without an AC adapter, it charges only via a powered FirewWire port or Apple's AC adapter. Of course, there are other brands like Technuity Energizer ER-i150 with over 7 hours of video playback time and the Nyko iBoost.

But of course, nothing beats cheap homemade USB chargers. Newer iPods can charge via USB ports which require a constant 5-volt power supply. A guy named Jeff McFadden was able to make an iPod Shuffle charger by wiring a voltage regulator that takes 7 volts in and gives 5 volts out to a 9-volt battery. Though this is not efficient, it works fine for a Shuffle or even a nano. There's also the clever MintyBoost charger that makes use of 2 AA batteries with voltage-boosting electronics which was said to offer 1 full recharge of up to 3 hours on 5Gs. It's placed inside an Altoid gum tin, hence the minty name.

If you think that's a really clever idea, you'd find stranger homemade batteries. Some people even made use of soap dishes, and band-aid tin cans, and they actually work. No kidding.

We all know that different iPod models fit different personalities, but with all the battery charger packs available in the market plus the homemade ones, you're sure to find one that fits your personality and your budget.

When you press that start key and nothing happens, it's more than an inconvenience.

If you're like a lot of Mac users, it's a betrayal. Suddenly, this faithful friend and servant that has worked with you for so long has decided to "check out" on you.

Remember, however, that Apple has traditionally taken very good care of its treasured customers. If your machine is still under warranty, they'll even send someone to your domicile to correct the problem. But even if its out of warranty, the Apple has been designed to be extremely user-friendly - and there are very few problems that the user can't often solve on his/her own.

The folks at Creative Techs in Seattle have come up with a  handy four-step process to get you back up and running, read the Full Article to start on the path towards recovery.

I don't know what it is about mixing old with the new when it comes to the iPod, but there have been numerous numbers of retro and vintage inspired docks and speakers that have been featured here on the site. Now, how about just skipping all that era and making a classy antique speaker for your iPod. Hopefully, the price value for this project will be like that of a certified antique.

1. Obeyken bought an Art Deco 1947 National Union G-619 for $25 at a flea market. A good buy considering that all the knobs, feet, glass and dial windows are original. The mahogany cabinet may be a little scuffed and the grille fabric a little frayed, but we are gunning for the antique look aren't we?

The rest of the steps await after the jump!

Your iPod, iPod nano, iPod mini or Pod shuffle was working great a while ago, now it won't. Don't panic! It's not the end of the world and not ncessarily the end of your player. Macsupport listed a checklist of things to do that could revive your iPod back into action:

1) Make Sure the Battery Isn't Drained
Depleted battery could, naturally, prevent you from turning on your iPod, iPod nano, iPod mini, or iPod shuffle. It will also prevent your PC from recognizing the player when even when connected to it. Charge your iPod for at least 30 minutes then try turning it on again.

2) Check the Hold Switch
Is your iPod on ?hold?? Check the Hold switch on your iPod, iPod nano, iPod mini making sure it?s in the off position (no bright orange next to the switch). Try turning the switch on and then off again to see if that helps. On iPod shuffle, look at the front status light when you try to turn on the player. If it glows orange, your iPod is on hold. Press the Play/Pause button for 3 seconds to turn off Hold (the front status light will quickly blink green three times when Hold is disengaged).

3) Reset Your iPod
If your iPod won?t turn on, start up fully or respond - reset it. While resetting will not affect any of your music or files on your iPod, you may need to reconfigure some customized settings.

The full article awaits after the jump!

If you can spare 2 hours of your busy day, you can make a simple yet eye-catching functional iPod dock. No kidding! All you have to do is find a decent-sized block of wood (chopping off your wooden desk might work too). Therrol Jezierski's (aka Bokfresh) was able to get one with dimensions of 4.75 x 2.5 x 2.

Once the wood is secured, arm yourself with a bandsaw, a chisel, a drill press and a hot glue gun. Cut the wood to size and decide where to put the iPod's plastic dock insert. It's safe to put in the center and towards the back. Trace the dock outline and chisel in about 2-3mm so that the lip of the dock connecter fits inside. Chisel out the outline and use the drill press on the rest.

Here's Therrol's finishing touches:

I drew the design for the arc on the front of the iPod and cut it out on the bandsaw. When I was finished I could see the hole I cut for the dock connector exposed on the bottom. Now that the dock connector fit snugly inside and I made sure that I could still get the cable in there, I glued it in. Once that was all fine nÂ? good, I sanded the arc I had just cut until it was even. The next step was to take a tiny circular chisel and file the slot in the bottom of the dock insert and widen it so the cable could fit inside. After that I did the finishing touches. I got some wood filler to fill in the cracks around the plastic dock insert and sanded the whole thing down. Then I put some masking tape over the plastic part and cut around the edges to remove any excess tape. Then all that was left to do was laqueur the whole thing so it was nice and shiny.

 

Apple People has always looked down on the lack of artistic finesse of PCs. Now they take it one notch higher by using the Mac as a stylish wall decor. Here, a Dell 2005FPW 20" LCD is attached to the wall using a standard wall mount. The LCD is then connected to a hidden Mac Mini. The Mac Mini is under the desk virtually unseen. The laptop, oh excuse us, the notebook on the desk is a MacBook Pro. Add a lamp that screams "chic" and voila...Techno Art! This is something Bill Gates could build when he goes on full-time retirement.

If you've already got a nifty new Intel-powered Macintosh computer (or if you're like me and day dreaming about the day you'll finally have one all for yourself) chances are that you've heard about the ability to run Windows.  There are plenty of decent reasons to run Windows on your Mac, so let's not start with the "why would you do that to your Mac?" lines.  (I hate using Windows, but my job requires it, simple as that.)

Right now the two best options available to you are to use Apple's Beta software, Boot Camp, or a virtualization app called Parallels.  Both have their strengths and weaknesses, so you may be confused as to which is right for you, based on your Windows needs.  Well the good folks at NoteBookReview put together a lengthy article about what both apps do, how to install them, results of using each, and pros & cons of both options.  It's very well thought-out and written so anyone should be able to understand.

If you've already begun running one or both of these solutions on your MacBook/Pro, Mac Mini, or iMac, let us know your thoughts.  I'm especially interested as I hope to be mauling my very own MacBook soon...

As wondrous has it has been, MacBook owners are starting to report some minor- but irritating - issues. Four of these are: an odd discoloration on the palm rests, "kernel panics" when transferring large amounts of data via an AirPort connection, corrupted Property List Files, and a laptop that "wakes up" when the lid is closed.

The discoloration seems to be appearing on the white 1.83 GHz and 2.0 GHz models after about three weeks of use. Cleaning solutions have had only limited success. The discoloration may be due to heating, or a chemical reaction between the plastic housing and skin.

The "kernel panics" do not occur when using an Ethernet connection, but is very pronounced when any sort of wireless connection is used. Some of these problems have been attributed to faulty AirPort Extreme cards. before replacing their card, however, one should make sure that the card is seated properly, and may wish to have it tested at an Apple Service Center. This issue may also be due to improper network settings or a bad RAM chip.

Property List (.plist) files are corrupted in many ways, generally due to "buggy" write routines in third-party applications. This is to be expected, but since it is the third-party application modifying the file, tracking down the cause is much easier.

Many users report that the Macbook Pro fails to sleep when the lid is closed. Usually, this is caused by external devices, and can be remedied by disconnecting these devices. One can also modify the Energy Saver settings. If all else fails, look for a file called "com.apple.PowerManagement.plist" (located in /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/), open with your favorite text editor and do a search for the line "Wake On Clamshell Open." Change the "1" in the line of text below this to "0," then save. (Note: an Administrator password will be required to do this.) Afterwards, restart the Mac, and the problem should be solved.

You might not be overly ecstatic about the supposed "iPod Phone", but curiosity will always get the better of you, so you wait in line for the coming of Apple's mysterious device. Not to burst your iPod Phone bubbles, but you'd be surprised to know how phone-savvy your iPod is already.  Don't worry, that makes the two of us.

Brian of MacMerc.com has a tutorial on how to get phone messages on your iPod. So, how do you turn your iPod into a phone message hound? Well, you'll need an iPod with iTunes on a Mac, and a phone service that supports message-to-email, such as Vonage or Gizmo Project.

Step 1: Build a Scripted Message Folder

After you've set-up your phone messages to go to your inbox as attachments, you'd have to write an AppleScript (use Script Editor) and attach it to a folder where you'll save your messages. Don't worry, it's just a simple script, like this one:

Take it from here, Brian: Hit compile and save this as a script in your /Library/Scripts/Folder Action Scripts/ folder. Create a Messages playlist in iTunes (be sure this playlist is set to sync with your iPod) and a folder just for messages anywhere on your drive. The above script will try to add anything that falls into that folder to iTunes, so make a folder you won't be tempted to use for anything else.

Now, right-click the folder and select Enable Folder Actions, then Configure Folder Actions. Hit the plus on the left side and browse to your folder. Then hit the plus on the right side and select your script. Now we're ready to test.

Step 2: Download your Message Straight to your Pod

Here comes the best part. To test if what you've configured in Step 1 is actually working, call yourself and leave a message. Once the message comes in, right click and save the file to your scripted folder. If all went well, iTunes will fire up and you will find your message on your playlist (and iPod after the next sync). Great job!

Now, listening to your messages is just a sync away!

Seems like more and more people are trying to crack the Vista on Mac code. This time out, it's Hans VB's turn to showcase what he's done. In his blog, he boasts that he only has three more drivers to achieve having Vista on MacBook Pro. Hans VB was unsure about how to pack the drivers from the mac Drivers for the Windows XP CD. However, a new knowledge shared by reader 'David' solves the problem. Hans VB shares:

On a Windows XP, just open the command line utility (run, cmd) and execute the command: Â?Install Macintosh Drivers for Windows XP.exeÂ? /A /v

For full instructions, just visit Hans VB here.