I buy albums for classical music when I want a specific recording, which iTunes is particularly bad for. Also, for opera I want the actual CD so I also get the libretto.

It never occurred to me to rate a song in iTunes! Why would I?

I don't rate or use shuffle, I just make lots of playlists.

What I really want is the ability to tailor the genre categories. And no, I don't want to just add new ones, I want to delete the crappy ones that are automatically there.

I'm fairly obsessive about collecting music. If I like something, I need to own it in some form. Thankfully, I have gotten better about being a completist, but I still have some of that tendancy. I have two big industrial storage shelves of vinyl (some of which I probably haven't listened to in a decade). At some point in the last decade, I'm pretty sure my CDs started outnumbering the vinyl, though I haven't done an inventory in at least that long (I'm really overdue). The total combined is probably up near 3K at this point (last inventory totaled at 1900+).

I'm nearly as bad with DVDs which between movies and box sets of series is approaching the 1000 mark.

I won't even venture to estimate on books/comics.

I really wanted to punch the hipster couple in the basement stacks of City Lights who were writing down titles to go order online later.

I would have sent you bail money.

I've been listening to my iPod a lot more since I started going to the gym, although I had to buy different earbuds that would stay in my ears properly. I didn't know about rating songs--I'll have to look into that. But I have a lot of playlists set up, and their organization tends to sync with my moods pretty well.

I don't listen to music nearly enough since I got heavily into podcasts, but when I do, I listen like ita, I think - generally on random, trying to get to all of the unrated/unheard stuff.

I had to buy different earbuds that would stay in my ears properly.

I can't find any. I swear I have the smallest ears ever. Every earbuds I've ever tried are too big and hurt and/or fall out after 3 minutes.

Every earbuds I've ever tried are too big and hurt and/or fall out after 3 minutes.

Yes! It's not just me! They will not stay in! The hip hook-over-the-ear ones hurt too, so I may just go old school and get old-fashioned top of the head earphones--which are a bitch to carry around.

I'm lucky that the over-the-ear ones work pretty well for me, and my glasses keep them from hurting the top of my ears.

My ratings are similar to ita's, and I find some things I list as five stars get downgraded when I'm over them. I do have a fair hunk of unrated songs, but I also tend to listen to the same last five or ten songs I got, obsessively, until I'm sick of them. Only rarely do I listen to music for long periods of time (ie more than 15 minutes walking around my neighborhood) but I've got a few playlists that are just "3 star and up" and am always a little startled to hear songs I love and haven't heard in a while.

Yes! It's not just me! They will not stay in! The hip hook-over-the-ear ones hurt too, so I may just go old school and get old-fashioned top of the head earphones--which are a bitch to carry around.

I have behind the head ones that I like a lot (for my discman - no iPod). I also have some seriously lightweight Senheiser head phones for home use.

The earbuds I had that broke came with two other sized sets of the silicone bit, so I could wear whichever size fit best. And they did fit. And sounded great. But are broken. Sadface.