halcyonseven

Okay, here is my problem, I just got my dj20 and I was under the impression (thanks to one of the techs at dell) that the dj, like EVERY other mp3 player out there, worked just like a portable hard drive on every computer, no matter what OS, mac or pc. So I go to my school to get some files and when I plug it into the pc's there it wants to install hardware on my school computers and when I tell it "hell no!" it won't even show up on the computer at all!!! On the mac's it doesn't do anything. Nothing at all.
Now I own an ipod as well and expected it to work similarly, plug it in and a computer would recognize it as a portable hard drive.
Am I missing a download it needs? Am i doing something wrong? Anyone have any ideas? I bought this so I wouldn't have to carry around a 120gig harddrive and a cd player and now I am wondering if this works???
Any ideas???

dean

Unfortunately it doesnt work that way like it does for other H.D. based mp3 players. You have to install a driver first on the target pc so it can be recognized first. I know it sucks. SO if your school's pc's are locked down your SOL.

halcyonseven

Yeah, I just got off with a dell tech after getting moved around from department to department for an hour then he tells me the same thing you said dean. But he is shocked, *SHOCKED!!!* that other mp3 players work like hardrives without software being needed! Are the people at dell really that stupid to not think of this? Even the iPOD which is made by the most pretentous company in the world allows for cross platform use as both an mp3 player and external hard drive!!!
Why am I not working for this company...it seems like its full of morons...bah.

snaimpally

Most mp3 players show up as a "mass storage device". A generic driver is included with Windows so you don't need to install one. You then drop files and the player knows that it should only play the .wav, .mp3 and .wma files and the rest are for storage.

Dell could do this. The firmware would have to be updated so it identified itself as a mass storage device and would only play music files and ignore data files.

Is the current behavior a result of the DJ being based on and built off of the Creative firmware/software/UI? Have never played with a Creative device.

dean

Creative based players like the MUVO2 4 gig mp3 players acts as a regular h.d. when plugged into a pc. No drivers is needed and u can drop regular files as well.

halcyonseven

Thanks snaimpally, sounds like you know how to fix this... Ok, look people... The tech from dell is going to look into this and has told me to get back to him in 2 days, I have his email address and if you will put up other helpful ideas (please keep in mind the issue we are having in regards to what kind of advice you give) then put it here and I will email it to him! Maybe we can get this thing working the way it ought to!!!
Please don't just repeat what snaimpally wrote thought, you may expand on it, be as technical as you want and if anyone can explain how a driver could be built to be downloaded for the dj that would be even better. I will then email them all to dell tomorrow.
So get moving folks!!! Here is our chance to make this a better product!!!

jmaluso

This can only be fixed by Dell with a firmware update...but we all know how long it took them o release an update that actually fixed problems. This issue isn't a problem. The storage device side of the "mp3" player just doesn't work the way most would like it to. I bought my DJ to play mp3s...not for games or as a PDA (like some complain about)...but also as a bonus it does WORK as a storage device for me becasue I have the driver loaded at home and at work. I don't know if I would have high hopes of Dell fixing something that isn't really broken...maybe in the next firmware update...but who knows when that is and who knows if the way the DJ is setup it can even be detected as a storage device without the need of a driver.

My .02
~ Joe

Jordan

I'm pretty sure that this isn't something that was "overlooked" by Dell at all. It likely stemmed from their partnership with MusicMatch to provide a music download service. By not allowing full Plug-and-Play support for the hard drive functionality, you cannot simply go and copy the purchased music files onto someone else's computer without a little more effort. There are some other players that also require drivers due to this same reasoning. I'm sure Dell would have been more than happy to include plug-and-play support allowing it to be recognized as a Mass Storage Device, but MusicMatch probably required it in order to form this partnership with Dell on the music store venture.

This is all just speculation on my part, but since other players have done this in the past, it seems very likely that the same could hold true for the DJ.

__________________
Jordan M. Wigley
Dell DJ Site

halcyonseven

Thats understandable I suppose, but a little shady, especially since the sales tech conviently left out that you must install the hardware on EVERY computer you ever want to plug into. This possible "deal" with music match makes the dj completly useless as a portable hard drive. I mean who needs 20g for there music files? 2 people? 3?
The reason mp3 players are so popular with industry types and students is due to the duel usage of them. Hell, the Lord of the Rings guys used iPODS to carry shots of the films from place to place! If one must install software on every computer in order to simply get to the hard drive space(not the music) then it seems they have created an inferior piece of equipment in my opinion. Which is really sad since it seems to be the King in most other areas, namely price and battery life. But if there is no fix I will have to send it back and get an iPOD much to my dislike.
Does anyone know of a comparable mp3 player that does work?

jmaluso

The iriver ihp10 / 20 / 40 all have way more options (optical input and output, back lit remote w/fm tuner along with much more) than Dell DJ or ipod and also serve as a plug and play mass storage device without the use of a driver.

About your comment of who needs 20 GBs for music...ALOT of people actually...I myself have over 35GB of music on my hard drive.

Why don't you keep your DJ and buy a portable hard drive...or flash drive...it is really a Excellent mp3 player...or just carry around a cd with the DJ driver on it...becasue that is all you need to connect the DJ to another computer.

Hope this helps,
~ Joe

halcyonseven

I completly agree that the DJ is an excellent device, no doubt about it. But you fail to understand that at most schools and workplaces one cannot just install anything they feel like. Thats the problem. As a music device I cannot justify $300 for only music. As a hard drive and a music device, thats justifiable! Perfectly in fact.
So without the ability to use the already installed drivers on windows this is just an overpriced cd player, no matter how convenient and/or cool it may be. In my opinion, for my needs, what makes an MP3 player such a great deal is its dual abilities and the convience of not having to carry around 2 expensive devices.

jmaluso

I understand where you are comming from...

But in my case...not having to carry 250+ cds around in my car and office makes up for the $251 on a new 20GB DJ even if it isn't a plug and play storage device.

Check out the irirver hard drive players. They are awesome...too expensive for me though...just like ipods.

~ Joe

Jordan

Yep. I'll be the first to say that the DJ isn't the player for everyone. You just have to balance out your needs/wants for a player whether it be price, "driverless HDD ability," battery life, etc. Pick the player that best fits your needs, and you'll likely be quite satisfied with your decision.

__________________
Jordan M. Wigley
Dell DJ Site

snaimpally

I have a little 128MB flash drive and it works fine to transfer files around. Just how many files are you planning to transfer and what type are they? You can get 256MB flash drives for $49 and 512MB for $100. The only reason you need 20GB to carry files is if they are ALL your files. My laptop has 20GB and its not full! If you just want to transfer a few files here and there, get a 256 MB usb flash drive (check amazon). Just to carry around files and trassfer them, I can't see why this isn't enough.

Alternately, yahoo lets you store 5GB for free so you could upload files at school and download them at home.