Music Teacher Alert-- IPod Touch and Remote

I usually put my recordings for class on my laptop to study and playback in class. It is very handy to use iTunes to organize my class. Play this one off of CD 1 and then it is time for that one off of CD 12. This is a giant pain in the neck if you have to shuffle the media around. Import it and you are good. Find a couple of cords to run the laptop through the stereo. With middle schoolers, it is a VERY good idea to wander around and listen while they sing. You would be surprised how much the quality of work goes up when you are right there. But now the computer is over there and you are here. How do you pause? (or start over, skip, turn it up/down?) I suppose I could get one of those FM transmitters and put the library on my iPod and work that way. But then I would be eating up capacity on my iPod. If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, there is a new controller program called Remote. Remote is free from Apple on the iTunes store. Load it on your favorite iTouch/Phone and set up a wireless network on your laptop and the two will team up to give you power over your music. Was it hard to set up? Not really. I did have to turn off the proxies on the computer side. The computer wouldn't find the iPod until I did. I know, I know. Turning off security. Please don't call my network guy, Tom, to tattle. With my set-up, If I am using the computer in my classroom, it isn't attached to the network (or the web.) I don't believe that I am lowering security that much for the rest of the school. I better check that one out. I am enjoying my new remote. The batteries made it through the whole day. Maybe I should order up another iPod for back-up. For sure another charger so I can juice it up a little at lunch. Hmmm, can't wait for that first payday.