Shuffle-db-ng is a project to allow users to manage their iPod shuffle without the need to install iTunes. It runs in python, and can handle playlists and create voiceover tracks.
It is designed to perform similarly to the shuffle-db project hosted on sourceforge, which only works for 2g or older shuffle devices.
This is beta software. I've tested it on my own device, but no one else's yet. It should not cause your device to go wrong in any way that could stop iTunes from being able to reset/restore it, however, use it at your own risk.
It currently requires picoTTS as the text-to-speech engine, and is primarily designed to run on linux systems.
It also will not create files necessary to successfully sync with iTunes. If you want to manage your device under both linux and windows, then it's suggested to use gtkpod or similar.
This was built purely as a personal project, and has been updated only when necessary. However, it's been forked by a number of people who've added several additional features.
One of the most maintained versions can be found at https://github.com/nims11/IPod-Shuffle-4g.