Intro:
Before you begin
Step 1:
Install an MP3 player
Step 2:
Review the player
Step 3:
Find your music
Step 4:
Download the MP3 file
Step 5:
Play the file
Step 6:
Convert CDs into MP3 files (optional)

2torial #0859:
Learn2 Download and Play MP3 Files

Digital killed the video star

The name is shorthand for MPEG Audio Layer 3--the audio coding scheme within a video compression program--and while this bit of trivia isn't too exciting, what the technology can do definitely is. Before it, saving high-quality audio onto a personal computer just wasn't practical. Even a few songs could take hours to download and would devour an enormous chunk of memory. Now, however, a song can be downloaded in about a minute, entire CDs in a few more, and digital audio can be compressed into a fraction of the disk space once needed, with virtually no loss in quality.

What's created is a storable, downloadable, CD-quality computer file, popularly known as an MP3, that gives you music at your fingertips. And with electronics manufacturers embracing the technology and creating hand-held MP3 players, all music--from your own collection or from the Internet--will soon be easily accessible no matter where you are.

While much of the music available online is handled by sanctioned websites, there are enough pirated MP3s being offered free to the public to set the music industry scrambling to regulate the technology's use. Whatever the future outcome, one thing is clear--MP3s and their distribution have created a whole new ball game. If you're interested in playing, then climb aboard the latest recording revolution.

Before you join the revolution, make sure you have the right hardware. The quality and speed of MP3s won't mean much if you have second-rate speakers or a slow machine.

However, don't get so involved in the technology that you forget the songs actually belong to someone else. The basics of copyright law are as follows: If you buy the music (or if it's offered as a free download by a licensed site), you're free to copy it onto your computer, portable MP3 stereo, and so on, for your own use. Distributing the music, for free or for profit, is illegal, as is receiving such files, which makes downloading MP3s from pirate websites a crime.