There seems to be no end to the ingenuity of people that come up with iPod-related gadgets.

Here are four of the stranger new ipod-accessories that we’ve seen:

The iPod Hymn Book is a leather case designed for 30G and 80G Video iPods. According to the manufacturer, the case will help you protect and worship your MP3 player. You can sync and charge your player directly in the case with full cable access.

But wait! There’s more….

Upgrading to Vista may result in the inability to play songs purchased from the online iTunes store and may corrupt your iPod.

Apple Computer is warning customers who use the Windows version of its iTunes software to hold off upgrading to Windows Vista until it can release a patch to fix a number of serious compatibility issues, one of which could result in a corrupt iPod player.

According to Apple, upgrading from Windows 2000 or Windows XP to Vista may result in the inability to play songs purchased and downloaded to the desktop iTunes player from its online iTunes store. Even worse, users that eject their digital music player from a desktop port using the “Safely Remove Hardware” could corrupt their iPods.

Apple says the safe way to undock an iPod from a Vista-equipped PC, until a patch is released, is to be sure and use the “Eject iPod” control in the iTunes software.

The company recommends against upgrading to Vista at this time. Apple expects to fix the issues with the next version of iTunes “within a few weeks.”

Here’s the text of Apple’s statement on compatibility with Vista:

Compatibility with Windows Vista

Apple is preparing to address a number of iTunes compatibility issues in the next release of the software.

Some currently known compatibility issues with iTunes 7.0.2 and earlier versions include:

• iTunes Store purchases may not play when upgrading to Windows Vista from Windows 2000 or XP.
• iPod models with the “Enable Disk Use” option turned off may be unable to update or restore iPod software, and make changes to iPod settings.
• iPod models configured to Auto Sync and have the “Enable Disk Use” option turned off may require being ejected and reconnected to resync.
• Ejecting an iPod from the Windows System Tray using the “Safely Remove Hardware” feature may corrupt your iPod. To always safely eject an iPod, choose Eject iPod from the Controls menu within iTunes.
• Cover Flow animation may be slower than expected.
• Contacts and calendars will not sync with iPod.

Upgrading to Windows Vista

If you are upgrading from Windows XP or 2000 to Windows Vista prior to the next release of iTunes, here are a few steps that will improve your experience when syncing your iPod or playing iTunes Store purchases once upgraded to Windows Vista.

1. Deauthorize all iTunes Store accounts.
2. Enable Disk Use on all iPod models.
3. Uninstall iTunes.
4. Perform a clean install of Windows Vista (Highly recommended but not required).
5. Reinstall the latest version of iTunes.
6. Open iTunes.
7. Choose Authorize Computer from the Store menu in iTunes.

Customers who have upgraded to Windows Vista and are still experiencing issues playing iTunes Store purchases should download and run the iTunes Repair Tool for Vista after re-installing iTunes 7.0.2.

Viacom has demanded that YouTube pull down all of its video clips after they failed to reach an agreement, the company said.

Or as some have put it – Viacom is terrorizing YouTube with bullshit DMCA notices.

About 100,000 video clips from Viacom-owned properties, including MTV Networks and BET, have been asked to be removed. Viacom said its pirated programs on YouTube generate about 1.2 billion video streams, based on a study from an outside consultant.

The request is another example of the legal-battles YouTube will to face, post Google acquisition.

A vulnerability in Microsoft’s recently released operating system appears to let an audio¬†podcast hack Windows Vista. Vista’s speech recognition feature can let attackers run malicious programs using recorded audio commands.

Microsoft has confirmed the vulnerability:

Microsoft’s initial investigation reveals that this vulnerability could allow an attacker to use the speech recognition feature in Windows Vista to verbally execute commands on a user’s computer. The attackers’ commands are limited to the rights of the logged on user. User Account Control prohibits the attacker from executing any administrative level commands.

In order for an attack to be successful, the user would have to have a microphone and speakers connected to their system. In addition, the user would have had to configure the speech recognition feature. The attackers’ audio file would then issue verbal commands via the systems speakers that could potentially be carried out by the speech recognition feature. Based on the initial investigation, Microsoft recommends customers take the following action to protect themselves from potential exploitation of the reported vulnerability:

• A user can turn off their computer speakers and/or microphone.
• If a user does run an audio file that attempts to execute commands on their system, they should close the Windows Media Player, turn off speech recognition and restart their computer.

Microsoft will continue its investigation and will provide additional guidance and mitigation to further help protect customers as necessary. Upon completion of this investigation, Microsoft will take further action to help protect our customers.

The speech recognition flaw¬†could make¬†it possible for a podcast or other audio file to do things like delete a Vista user’s documents and then empty the trash. The risk of this is low, but significant enough that users should avoid enabling speech recognition within Vista.

The flaw is notable for being the first publicized hole in the new operating system since the public launch of Vista on Tuesday.

Breastfeeding blogger Jennifer Laycock is getting hassled by the The National Pork Board, but she appears to be making the most of the situation.

Laycock promotes breastfeeding with her blog, The Lactivist. She has created a variety of funny t-shirts that promote breastfeeding, with phrases like “That’s my baby’s lunch you’re staring at.” The shirts help pay for the site and raise money for non-profit milk banks.

Her latest design, a shirt that read “The other white milk,” right, resulted in a letter from the legal counsel for The National Pork Board, threatening that they were prepared to sue if Laycock didn’t remove the image of the shirt from her sites, destroy any shirts that exist with the logo and not use the phrase in a commercially profitable way.

Unfortunately, Laycock’s situation is all too common with bloggers, podcasters and citizen media of all sorts. Corporations can often threaten indie bloggers and get the results that they want, because most indie bloggers can’t afford to deal with a lawsuit.

Laycock, though, is milking the situation for all its worth. She’s posted her thoughts on the issue at her site, along with links to sites that cover her situation. She’s been dugg, and has received an outpouring of coverage. In the process, she’s demonstrating the power of independent media.

Corporations have to balance protecting their intellectual property with the potential negative publicity that enforcement can generate; in this case, the Pork Board probably would have been better off to let Laycock’s parody t-shirt slide.

Maybe Pork Board members don’t understand the importance of breastfeeding. There is a direct association between the length that a baby is breastfed and its intelligence.

Note: Shirt image taken from Google cache – it has been removed from Laycock’s Cafe Press site.

Video blogger Lisa Donovan, aka LisaNova, has been tapped to join the cast of MADtv, which airs Saturdays (11:00 PM-Midnight ET/PT) on FOX. Donovan will first be seen in the episode airing Saturday, Feb. 17.

Donavan joins a growing number of successful podcasters that have leveraged their online success into other media. Donovan has been a top-20 YouTuber for some time as LisaNova, with 22,000+ subscribers.

Here’s a recent example of Donavan’s YouTube videos:

Giving Up The Nuts

CrunchGear is reporting that Microsoft is planning to release an an iPod-phone killer, the Zune phone:

It will be a smartphone that works homogeneously with the Zune marketplace. It will most likely not, however, run Windows Mobile. Rather it’ll make use of an interface similar to the current Zune, an interface that I consider among the best available on audio players—I’m sure it can transition to a phone easily.

Connectivity is the major concern of the device. It is said that it will be able to sync with the Xbox 360 and stream video from the system to the phone via a wireless data connection. This would be pivotal in Microsoft’s proliferation of its media ambitions. Not only does it already have millions of 360s in homes capable of downloading movies, it’d be able to distribute those videos directly to its phones. Cool stuff.

The other detail that seems certain at this point is that the device will, if things go as planned, be available for the ‘07 holiday season, which seems like a decent time line. That gives Microsoft about nine months to get everything together, an entirely possible feat.

No word on yet on whether it will be able to connect to other phones, or if it will use its own proprietary network….

Microsoft has announced that Bryan Lee, the executive responsible for the launch of the company’s controversial Zune media player, will be leaving the company.

The launch of Microsoft’s portable media player is widely viewed as a fiasco, with more polite reviews saying the Zune is a dismal failure, and others just saying the Zune zucks. Microsoft’s official word, though, is that Lee, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s entertainment business, “has decided to retire from Microsoft to pursue personal interests.”

While at Microsoft, Lee worked on development and deployment of the Xbox gaming system, the Windows XP Media Center operating system and the company’s IP-television initiatives.

“I want to extend my thanks to Bryan from the company and from me personally, for all of his contributions to Microsoft,” said Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division, who hired Lee in 2000.

Lee will remain at Microsoft for a few weeks to assist in the transition. J. Allard, corporate vice president of design and development, will take over full responsibility for the Zune.

Ford has launched a new video podcast, Edge Music Videocast, that features music videos from Cat Power, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Wolfmother and Gomez.

The video podcast is basically a collection of four music videos, with short “Ford Edge” branding segments. Ford believes the new offering is the first sponsored video podcast of mainstream music videos.

“We are using the music to attract the demographic and bring them to the brand,” says Jon Melrod, vice president of Rock River Music who is collaborating with Ford on the program. “There will be imagery that evokes what the Edge is about and links so the subscriber can view the product.”

“We expect more customers to look at the Edge, but what we are really trying to do is create a community of users that is interested in the Edge and the music,” says Dave Sanabria, SUV marketing communications manager for Ford.

Hayden Black, Executive Producer of the video podcast Goodnight Burbank (sample below), is creating a pilot for HBO Online, according to a source close to the project.

“Hayden’s just been greenlit by HBO Online to produce a pilot for a possible new series for their website,” said the source. “The website is launching in Feb, and the pilot is tentatively called Abigail’s X-Rated Teen Vlog. No word yet as to a series, but they’ve commissioned the pilot, which is nearing completion.”

Black is said to be writing, starring and directing it and his production company, Evil Global Corp, is producing.

According to Black, he has zero acting experience, so he wrote himself the Goodnight Burbank role just to see what would happen.