Whats a good iPod/iTunes alternative?”
I have been looking for an ipod alternative for a long time and according to my research Sandisk sansa e200 series (2, 4, 6 GB) (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000ETTFRG)of players are the best available alternatives at the moment to ipod nano. If you are looking for more space (in 10s of GBs) and good video playback Creative Zen Vision:M 30 GB MP3 and Video Player (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000CS7U1C). As for music services, I have heard good things about Real Rhapsody but you can find a lot of other online places you can buy legal mp3 that would work on both of the above players.
