The popular MP3 format was chosen so that you can listen (streaming) or download it to your portable MP3 player. This section is designed to help you take advantage of the FREE media available on our site. MP3's are digital audio files that have been sized down while still maintaining their original sound quality. Before there were MP3's, digital audio files took hours to download. But on a 56K modem, most MP3's can download in just a few minutes. MP3's are widely recognized as the most popular format for storing and listening to music on the World Wide Web.
What software do I need to play MP3's?
Although you can play MP3's on just about any audio player, we recommend, Windows Media Player, RealPlayer, or Winamp.
Microsoft Windows Media Player
This is the defacto standard and we recommended media player whether it be MP3 audio files or AVI movies. It comes built-in to Windows 95/98 and above but you should always try to download the latest for the greatest features.
Please visit microsoft.com to download your free Windows Media Player.
RealPlayer
RealPlayer Basic offers a new, streamlined interface that allows you to keep your media library close at hand. Keep all your digital media clips organized in one place; save CD tracks with just one click; pause and rewind live streams; transfer music to CDs and portable devices effortlessly; and enjoy clear, smooth video playback and mutichannel, surround-sound support.
Please visit real.com to download your free RealOne Player.
Winamp
Nullsoft Winamp is a fast, flexible, high-fidelity music player for Windows 95/98/NT. Winamp supports MP3, CD, WMA, Audiosoft, Mjuice, MOD, WAV and other audio formats, custom appearances called skins and audio visualization and audio effect plug-ins. Winamp is now freeware. Download and enjoy it free of charge, free of guilt.
Please visit winamp.com to download your free Winamp Player.
How do I save or download MP3s for later playback?
There are a few different processes, depending on how your player is set up. After you click the Download link, the song should either save itself automatically to a temporary directory, or a personal folder or directory on your hard drive. Or you might get a pop-up prompting you to "Open the file" or "Save to Disk." In this case, choose "Save to Disk." Your computer will then ask you where you would like to save the file. Choose a destination you can remember so you can find the MP3 later. Most players have a settings area where you can specify how you'd like to download songs. Try playing around with these settings to see which process you like best. If you're still having trouble downloading MP3s, a quick solution is to right-click the Download link (or left click and hold if you're on *********), left-click Save Link As or Save Target As, name the file and click save. You might also need to configure or "fine-tune" your browser settings.
I saved an MP3 file, but I can't find it on my computer?
Use your computer's Find command and type in *.mp3 as the file name, looking in all directories (C: for most computers). This tells the computer to look for any MP3 files on your hard drive. Your browser typically will save by default to a temporary folder like C:/temp or something similar. Many programs prefer you save downloads into their default folder, which can make finding songs a little confusing. You can avoid this situation by creating a new folder that you use to store all of your MP3 downloads. Or, choose to save all downloads to your desktop. Either way, your files won't get buried deep inside your computer where you can't find them. | 