Technology has given us so much to be thankful for. Then there are times, when it makes you want to pull all your hair out! An extremely aggravating experience is dealing with an iPod, in terms of data manipulation. It is very easy to put stuff on the iPod, using iTunes. But try transferring your iPod music files onto your computer. It's a mystery. The good news is that there is always a way to get around such obstacles and here's how to move movies from iPod to computer. How to Transfer Movies from iPod to Computer Manually Warnings: The following steps will not work with an iPhone or iPod touch. For such models, check out the third-party software in the next section. The following steps are for experienced computer users, or people who know their way around a system, as they are complex. For an easier approach, check out the third-party section below. ☛ Connect iPod to the computer, with USB cable. Run the iTunes software. In the pane on the left side, under Devices, your iPod's name will be listed. If iTunes requests for an auto-sync, cancel by clicking on the red "X" in the right hand corner of the window. ☛ Click on your iPod and click the Summary tab. Check the Enable disk use option. Click on Apply. ☛ Now your iPod should show up as a removable drive in Windows Explorer. In Windows Explorer, click on the Tools option in the menu bar. Click on Folder Options → View. ☛ In the Advanced Settings list, look for Hidden files and folders. Below it, check the Show hidden files and folders option. Click on Apply. ☛ Open Windows Explorer once again. Look in the Devices with Removable Storage tab. Your iPod should show up as a Removable Disk or its name. Double click on the icon, to browse the contents. ☛ A number of folders are present, like Calendars, Contacts etc. Look for iPod-Control. This folder is actually hidden, but on thanks to the above Tools steps, it is now shown. Double click on the folder. ☛ There will be sub-folders, look for a music folder. This sub-folder contains all your audio and video files. So any movies you have downloaded, should be in this sub-folder. But the file names are scrambled and cannot be made sense of. This is the iTunes job. ☛ First create a new, empty folder in another location, NOT in the iPod. Copy all the files from the iPod music folder into this empty folder. So now the scrambled files will be present on your hard drive, in a folder. ☛ Launch the iTunes software and go to the Edit tab. Select Preferences. Select the Advanced tab, under that click on General sub-tab. ☛ Check the Keep iTunes Music folder organized option, and the Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to library and click OK. ☛ Click on the File button and select Add Folder to Library option. Choose the folder, on your hard drive where you copied all the files to, from the iPod. You can also drag the folder onto the iTunes interface. All the media tracks from that scrambled files folder, will be copied to the iTunes library folder. This folder's path is in the Preferences-› Advanced-› iTunes Media folder location. Once you go to that folder, the files, music and movies will be there, with their file names and artist information. The above steps are for Windows machines only. To perform them on a Mac is highly complicated, it is much much easier to use a third party tool. This technique does not allow you to select individual files and manipulate them. But it is good for creating backups of data stored on the iPod. How to Transfer Movies from iPod to Computer Using Third Party Software If you are not comfortable fiddling around with your computer's settings, or you have an iPod touch, then an external software will help. There are many such software available, some free, some paid. But they do offer a more advanced and easier approach to moving data between your computer and iPod. Most of them display the data, in an easy, user-friendly interface, which allows for direct manipulation steps, like delete and add. Playlist information, ratings and other tools are some added features. Before downloading any third-party tools, paid or free, make sure they are from a legitimate source. Also check the compatibility between the software and the iTunes version, you have on your system. Some tools like the iPodDisk are designed for the Mac OS. Others like Floola will work if you have enabled your iPod as a hard disk. Check for iTunes version compatibility, your PC's OS and navigation features, with third-party tools. A third way, is if your computer is authorized for an iTunes Store account. You can use the Transfer Purchases option in the file. To sum up, the easiest way to move music and move movies from iPod to computer, is using a third-party application.