December 26, 2010
To redeem an iTunes Gift Card or Gift Certificate, click the Redeem link in iTunes, enter the code on the card or certificate into the Redeem Code box on the page, and click the Redeem button. On your computer, Redeem is the first link in the Quick Links section located in the right-hand column on the main iTunes page. On iPhone and iPod touch you'll find a Redeem button at the bottom of the New Releases and Genres lists in Music, and on iPad it's at the bottom of all three lists -- Featured, Top Ten, Genius -- in Music, Movies, and TV Shows.
If you already have an Apple ID, you'll be able to log in and the money will be credited to your account, or if the code is for a specific item it'll download directly to your library. If you don't have an Apple ID you'll be given a chance to create one (you only need an email address), which you can either associate with a payment method (credit card or PayPal) or with none at all, as you choose. If your gift was delivered to you directly in email, you can redeem it by clicking the link in the message. Again, you'll have the opportunity to log in if you already have an Apple ID or create one if you don't.
December 20, 2010
You can create and publish playlists that your followers on Ping can interact with and add to. Begin the playlist directly in Ping with the "Create a New Playlist" link or start from a playlist you've already created in iTunes (limit of 100 tracks). Create a list of favorite holiday songs with friends and family near and far. Put together "what we were listening to when" collections with old friends. Keep a running "song of the year" list with the friends you share your musical life with.
To begin with a playlist already in your iTunes library, select it and click the arrow to the right of the name. That will produce a page in Ping that lists all the songs in your playlist that are currently available in the Store. You can subtract and add songs as you choose and click Publish to make the playlist available to all your followers on Ping to enjoy, and if you enabled it, to contribute songs themselves. As they add songs, a column will appear to the left of the tracks, listing the contributor's name for each song. And as you and your friends create playlists, they'll appear in a Ping Playlists section in the column on the right (just below Ping Charts), which also contains the "Create a New Playlist" link.
Get your friends to join the Ping Playlist party by using the "Invite friends by email" link in the Find People section on the right side of the Ping page. If you use MobileMe, Windows Live, Yahoo, or AOL, you'll be able to log into your account and see which of your contacts are already on Ping, and you can also select the addresses you want to send invitations to. And, of course, you can type in email addresses directly.
December 13, 2010
Using your computer to shop for gifts on the iTunes Store is simple and direct. If you click the triangle next to most Buy buttons in the store, you'll find a Gift This option. Selecting it takes you to the Give a Gift page where you can choose how you want the gift to be delivered -- email or via a gift certificate you print and mail yourself -- and then complete the purchase. If you choose the email option you can give the same item to more than one recipient at once by entering multiple email addresses separated by commas. Gifts can be redeemed on iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches as well as computers.
December 6, 2010
You can now directly follow the activity of the artists, friends, and others you're following in Ping on your iPad. Tap the Ping button in the middle of the iTunes button bar across the bottom, then tap Activity, People or Profile across the top to navigate the trails of likes, posts and purchases from the people whose talent and tastes interest you. Tap albums along the way, tap songs to hear the samples, move fluidly among the musical possibilities. A delight that feels as good as it sounds.
