by William Bartholomew

Created on: May 14, 2008   Last Updated: May 20, 2012

So you have an iPod with video and now you would like to get some videos to watch on it. However, after shelling out a couple hundred dollars or more you are not to thrilled about dishing out even more cash to get some videos (aka Vids).

Well, there are various methods of getting free content for your iPod. The easiest way (in my opinion) is by using iTunes. Now don't let the name fool you, iTunes has much more than music. iTunes is your headquarters for Podcasts. Podcasts are basically a show or feature that are either just audio or audio & video that are created to be used on an iPod.

To use iTunes you will need to download the software (for free at www.itunes.com). One note of caution, be very careful about syncing your iPod with iTunes. The process will erase old content. Once you have iTunes installed launch the program. On the left side of your screen you will see the classic Tree style menu. Midway down is the link for iTunes Store; click that. Once the iTunes store is loaded, you will see a menu called Itunes Store to the right of the main menu. Midway down you will see Podcasts. Click on Podcasts and you will find all kinds of vids to suit your needs. Everything from a couple geeks (I mean that in the new friendly way, besides I am one) with a vid cam, to cartoons, to video magazines, to Oprah. Once you find a Podcast you like, you can subscribe to it and every time you start iTunes it will download the latests Podcasts that you have subscribed to (very nifty).

Before we move on to the next way to get vids, let me just mention that you don't want to overlook some of the other content you can get from iTunes. There are some free audio books (I personally have "A Tale of Two Cities among others), there are some great free audio only podcasts and even though they are not free there are also games (Gamer here, yeah it's not my PS3 but my iPod travels better). So browse and be free.

In this section, we feature Windows "Media Center". Now before you delve into this part let me warn you. You need a few key elements in place to take advantage of this but, in my humble opinion it's well worth it. First, you need cable TV (I guess satellite will work but I don't have it.) Second, you need to have your cable TV hooked to your computer (can you say Tivo without the Tivo?) Third, you need Windows Media Center (not sure if you can easily get it if your version of Windows does not have it.) And finally, you need software to convert your files.

Now the the video

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