Hopefully, you have not plugged in the Ipod into the computer yet, if you've got Windows XP.
Ideal situation is this.
Go to apple.com. Download the latest Itunes and Ipod updating software, two different programs. Install them.
Then, plug in the Ipod. Firewire is best.
I used existing CDs to load into the computer to have Itunes copy into its library. Between that, podcasts(which you'll really like), and CDs you can borrow from other people as well as your local library system, you'll have quite a bit to listen to.
I've never bought anything from Itunes. Podcasts are free. Everything on my Ipod is based on mp3s I've bought or the CDs as mentioned. Mp3s don't have the limitations of the Itunes format (aac).
If my Ipod dies,I don't care so much since I got mine for free as well. I won it at a trade show a year and a 1/2 ago it's the older style so a hard drive with moving parts. It will die, just when is the question. I treat it carefully for the mini hard drive that it is.
When it does, there are a ton of mp3 players out there at a far lower cost I can buy and use.
ipodlounge.com is your best bet for support.
Assuming you'll have problems at some point, ipod lounge works best if your symptoms are exactly in the same sequence and description as someone else's.
One day I had an icon with a folder and a sad face. After following many threads over the course of a few days, here was the solution that finally worked for me, and I hesitated to do it for the obvious reasons.
Turn it off. Unplug it from anything.
Sitting down?
Whack the bejesus out of it on the left side with your palm about 4 or 5 times.
Yes, I mean the Ipod.
It's been working fine for 4 months since then.
In the meantime, I do really like the Ipod a lot, but still not enough to justify buying a new one when this one craps out.