By now, you're probably aware that although the iPod is an Apple product from cover to core, Microsoft Windows users are just as welcome to slide into the iPod groove as their Mac-using companions.
This hasn't always been the case. When the iPod was first released, it was intended to be compatible with Macs only (though a couple of third-party utilities allowed you to use a Mac iPod with Windows I'll show you how later in this chapter). But it didn't take Apple long to realize that a fair number of Windows users were also enthusiastic about owning an iPod.
Apple hoped that these Windows folk would be so enthralled with this diminutive device that they'd purchase a Mac simply so they could use it with an iPod. And some did.