Any iPod experts out there?

Okay here's the deal.

I just bought a 15GB iPod for 324.00 (after tax). It came with the earphones, the AC adapter, the 4-to-6 pin adapter, the FireWire cable and the iPod itself.

So anyways, when i first opened the box everything was in there and the iPod worked like a working clock, just no songs in it yet. I put the software CD in and install everything just fine, until it gives me a message that the iPod needs to be updated. So naturally I click the UPDATE button on the updater, but then it gives me some error message "Firmware error." or something like that and the iPod is stuck with the "Do Not Disconnect" message. Then I restart the computer to complete the installation and disconnect the iPod. I connect the iPod again to the computer and the updater comes up again, this time the UPDATE button is greyed and the information about my iPod is all "N/A", so I click the RESTORE button, but once more that "Firmware" error comes up. Now whenever my iPod is on, which is all the time now cause I can't shut it off (and no, the hold switch isn't on), the apple symbol comes up, then a folder with a ! sign on it, then it keeps restarting and showing those two symbols over and over again. It's as if the iPod was erased of everything on it and everything is corrupted or something.

Please, I paid 300+ bucks for this thing, I downloaded the latest iTunes and iPod updater and nothing works.

P.S. - My computer originally had a USB card and I have no dock, so my dad switched the card in my computer with a FireWire card so that the cable could go into the computer.

What version of Windows?

XP for home.

Is this a new model iPod? Did you make sure to get the proper update? There are different ipod updates for different ipod models. If you are using the wrong one, that would most likely be your problem.

Dude, I tried updating the thing when the updater told me to and it didn't work because of the "Firmware update failure. Disk write error". I just bought this thing today.

Well my dad brought back the iPod and got another one, then he tried installing the software and working with the new iPod, but he faced the exact same problem I have. By the way, he's the computer wiz in the house, so if he can't fix this, I'm ****ed.

The really ****ed up part though is that the instructions give absolutely no troubleshooting advice on this problem. They don't tell you what each symbol on the screen means, it doesn't say what to do if updating/restoring fails and it doesn't say what to do if ejecting/stopping the iPod from running fails. If this keeps up I think I'm gonna mail Apple about this and tell them to get their asses in gear. I mean, it's not enough for their computers to suck, now their accessories too?! And ones that make people waste 300+ dollars?! THIS IS A DAMN OUTRAGE! ALL I WANT IS TO LISTEN TO ****ING MUSIC OUTSIDE MY HOUSE AND LOTS OF IT! WHY?! WHY MUST APPLE MAKE THINGS DIFFICULT FOR EVERYONE?!

I'd try formatting the ipod than doing the updater and what not. Thats what i did to mine.

Formating and restoring are the same thing and neither thing works.