iTunes 7 Leaves Some Users Unhappy

Reader Jerry has a little dilema, he writes: "I want to upgrade to iTunes 7, but I hear some people are having trouble after downloading the new version. Is there anything I should do before downloading iTunes 7? What type of problems have you heard of?"

Jerry, you're not the first one who has expressed this concern. Anyone reading through some of the posts up on the Apple discussion board, would be asking themselves the same question. The forum is filled with hundreds of angry posts left by users who now claim to be disillusioned with Apple. Most of them have reverted back to iTunes 6 versions, and vowing to never upgrade to iTunes 7 again until Apple fixes the bugs. Problems being reported are skipping, static, scratching sounds or no sound at all. One user was told by Apple that there was nothing wrong with iTunes 7, but that the problem may be with some of his files. This software is so new, even Apple's employees don't know how to respond to some of the problems.

I have personally installed the new iTunes on two PCs and a Mac Book Pro, and haven't seen any of these problems. I've played songs at random, videos, podcasts, and it's all intact. I noticed that iTunes didn't automatically download all the album artwork, so I ran a search again by going to Advanced-Get Album Artwork, and this downloaded most of the covers. 

In regards to scratching sounds in iTunes, this document will explain how to change audio settings. Users reported sound improvement after making those changes. The best thing to do here is to create a backup of your music—if you haven't already—before upgrading your iTunes software. 

If you're still not sure about upgrading, then don't. Wait until you have made a backup, and Apple releases a fix. Not everyone is having installation problems with iTunes 7, and those that have are pretty active on the discussion board offering some advice and workarounds. If you had problems installing the software, contact Apple for help. Like I said, the software is so new, everyone is still figuring out why this small percentage of users are having the same problem.

Has anyone else had any problems installing iTunes 7? Let me know. I'd like to know how many people had problems installing the software, and how many didn't. This information may help users like Jerry.