Unlocking i pod nano

Toggle the "Hold" switch to the "On" position, then "Off." The "Hold" switch is the small sliding switch on the top of the iPod.

Move it to the "On" position to show an orange rectangle.

Move it back to the "Off" position to show a white rectangle.

Hold the "Menu" and "Center" buttons.

Press the 2 buttons at the same time for between 8 and 10 seconds.

Your screen will go blank and then boot up with a dark Apple icon.

The icon eventually turns bright and brings you back to your main menu once the reset is complete.

Check your iPod to make sure it plays properly.

If the iPod still does not work repeat the reset process.

Scroll Wheel and Touch Wheel iPods

Move the "Hold" switch from "On" to "Off."

Press the "Play/Pause" button and the "Menu" button at the same time.

Press both buttons together for approximately 6 to 8 seconds.

This initiates the self-running reset process.

Make sure the reset was successful.

If problems persist you may need to perform the reset process once again.

iPod Nano

Move the on-off switch to the "Off" position that shows the green strip.

Leave the iPod Nano in this position for 5 seconds.

Move the switch back to the "On" position.

Use your iPod Nano to make sure the reset worked properly and all your music is intact.

Hope this helps

Check the tab up on the top of the iPod. Make sure you do not see an orange color at the top. If you do, that means that the iPod is in the locked position. All you need to do is push the button that is up there back to the left and it will unlock it.

If that is not the case and it is not working properly you will need to press and hold the middle button with the top button that says menu. When you see the apple logo come on the screen, continue to hold the middle button but press the pause/play button.

you will need to reset your ipod this will not delete songs. 1 Toggle the Hold switch on and off (slide it to HOLD and then back again).
2 Press and hold Menu and the Center button for at least 6 seconds, until the
Apple logo appears.
If iPod nano won’t turn on or respond
â Make sure the Hold switch isn’t set to HOLD.
â The iPod nano battery might need to be recharged. Connect iPod nano to your
computer or to an Apple USB Power Adapter and let the battery recharge. Look for
the lightning bolt icon on the iPod nano screen to verify that iPod nano is receiving
a charge.
To charge the battery, connect iPod nano to a USB 2.0 port on your computer.

1. Power off the device (Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button for a few seconds until the red slider appears, then slide the slider. Wait for the the iPod touch to turn off.
2. Press and hold the Home button while reconnecting the USB cable to iPod. When you reconnect the USB to iPod, the device should then power on. 
   
3. Continue holding the Home button while iPod starts up. While starting up, you will see the Apple logo.
4. When you see "Connect to iTunes" on the screen, you can release the Home button and iTunes will display the recovery mode message:
5. Restore and it'll download ~240mb firmware and you're done

Warning: you will lose all your data   

i pod is initializing only

Try to do a reset. That might help.
Hold select button and upper button down at the same time until you see the apple logo.
Maybe that will work.

First, make sure the hold switch on the top of the Nano wasn't activated. If not, then:
You can unlock the iPod nano screen in two ways:
A Enter the combination on iPod nano by using the Click Wheel to select the numbers
and pressing the Center button to confirm them. If you enter the wrong
combination, it flashes red. Try again.
A Connect iPod nano to the primary computer you use it with, and iPod nano
automatically unlocks.
Note: If you try these methods and you still can’t unlock iPod nano, you can restore
iPod nano. See “Updating and Restoring iPod nano Software” on page 50.

To reset an iPod with a Click Wheel, including:

• iPod nano (3rd generation)
• iPod classic
• iPod (5th generation)
• iPod nano (2nd generation)
• iPod nano
• iPod with color display (iPod photo)
• iPod (Click Wheel)
• iPod mini
• iPod mini (2nd generation)

1. Toggle the Hold switch on and off. (Slide it to Hold, then turn it off again.)
   
2. Press and hold the Menu and Center (Select) buttons simultaneously until the Apple logo appears, about 6 to 8 seconds. You may need to repeat this step.

Tip: If you are having difficulty resetting your iPod, set it on a flat surface. Make sure the finger pressing the Select button is not touching any part of the click wheel. Also make sure that you are pressing the Menu button toward the outside of the click wheel, and not near the center.
If the above steps did not work, try connecting iPod to a power adapter and plug the power adapter into an electrical outlet, or connect iPod to your computer. Make sure the computer is turned on and isn't set to go to sleep.

- check the cable - check the connections on the bottom of the ipod for bent pins, or dirt - make sure ipod battery is fully charged - if you have all your library backed up, reset ipod to factory. You will lost all settings etc. though. - check usb ports are working properly with no conflicts or driver issues (control panel\system\hardware\device manager) - uninstall usb ports on pc, let pc redetect them

Hold down menu and the centre button at the same time this should reset it.