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How to get started with MP3's
In order to get started with Mp3's you will first need
to have the proper software that will play the MP3
files you download.
Software needed: First of all, you will need a
MP3 player software application. These
applications are available for all computer platforms.
If you are using Windows, we recommend Winamp, the
most common MP3 player. Winamp also supports a lot of
other audio formats, like WAV, MID, MOD and CD audio.
Windows Media Player also does a fairly good job of
playing MP3 files and the best part is that it's a
part of the Windows operating system. Please also
download Winzip from http://www.winzip.com as a large
number of .mp3 files are in zipped format.
Hardware needed: To play the MP3s will need a
computer with a soundcard (preferably 64-bit),
speakers or headphones (preferably good ones).
Make the space: Audio files, even MP3s, tend to
be rather large -- a bit less than 1 MB for each
minute of stereo audio. So ensure there is enough disk
space on the destination disk. You will also need
adequate RAM (Random Access Memory) dedicated to the
application.
Downloading MP3 files
Downloading MP3 files has been known to turn into an
obsession so we would strongly urge and advise you to
make a separate folder for all the MP3 files you may
download.
The easiest way to download an MP3 file is to
right-click on the link that points to the mp3 file
and select "Save Target As". On some browsers this may
be "Save File As". If you just left-click on an MP3,
then the Windows Media Player installed might try to
start playing the MP3 file directly in your browser.
If you want to stream your MP3s (play the music off
the server), and your connection is fast enough for
this, then copy the link to the MP3. Just right-click
on the link and select "Copy Shortcut" (IE) or "Copy
Link Location" (FireFox) to copy the URL to your
clipboard. Next, open Winamp and press CTRL+L and
paste the URL (by pressing CTRL+V) into the window.
How to play MP3's
MP3 player software is a media player, just like a
record player or compact disc player. There's an
interface with all the familiar buttons, like Play,
Rewind, Fast-forward, and the all-important Stop. With
an MP3 player, ou can keep changing "skins," and "playlists,"
which are predefined custom mixes. Some players
including Sonique, allow you to mix MP3s, or even slow
them down and speed them up.
After you have downloaded the MP3 player application
and installed it you'll be ready to go.
1. Try double clicking on the MP3 file that you want
to play. If it does not start playing, you need to
press the Play button.
2. You can also drag and drop the music file onto your
player. The file will appear in the Playlist window.
The Playlist is a way to sequence the MP3s you want to
listen to. You can learn how to randomize or reverse
the order of songs. Explore the pop-up and pull-down
menus to get a better feel.
3. If it still does not work, click on the File
menu and choose the 'Open' option on the menu bar
to open your MP3 file. Select a song in the Playlist
and press the Play button.
Are MP3s legal?
The MP3 format itself is absolutely legal, however the
compression method can be used both legally and
illegally. It is perfectly legal to download an MP3
file from a website if the owner of the site or
webmaster has permission from the song's copyright
holder and has put up the file for free download. It
is also legal to create MP3s files from your own CDs
and store them on your computer for your personal
listening pleasure. You can buy legal MP3 files from
several sites on the web. Popular MP3 download
services include iTunes, WinMX,Kazaa, BearShare,
LimeWire, Ares Galaxy, Napster, Morpheus, Real Player
Store, MSN music, iMesh and Yahoo music. |
