playing with semantics? Is this an English language topic or are we still talking about iTunes?
When you put a CD in your disk drive and you copy the songs from it to your computer, you don't transfer them, that would wipe the disk, you make a replica of the files stored on the disk and they are then stored on your computer.
It works the same way with an iPod and iTunes, you download the songs from iTunes and you then copy or 'sync' the songs to your iPod or digital device. The songs are now on both your iPod and your computer, both files are indistinguishable from each other.
We are all singing from the same hymn sheet here, we are all talking about the same thing, just wording our answers differently.
There ARE files STORED on your iPod, you CAN listen to them, The same files ARE ALSO STORED on your host computer. I call any file duplicated from an original a COPY, thats the way I do it and this is the first time that it has ever been questioned.
I answer questions on the Apple support forum for iTunes related problems, I am not paid by Apple or work for them, I am just an 'Official Forum Tech', bit of a daft title really, all you need to to do to get that role is have a high success rank.
We have got so far off the original topic now its ridicules, I wont be discussing this any farther.