iTunes on Vista is painfully slow
Solution 1:
I have used MGTEK dopisp with great success (it is a plug in for WMP)
Version 4 supports iPhone and iPod Touch.
Solution 2:
ITunes for Windows is so bad programming, that it hurts. I love my Ipod Nano, but because of the ITunes requirement (no alternatives have the podcast-features), my next "Ipod" will be another brand (most likely Zune).