| Are you an educated consumer of downloaded music | | | | offer per song or per month rates for downloads. |
| or are you floundering in the overloaded waters of | | | | Even if the old standbys like Napster and Kazaa, who |
| download sites and programs? | | | | were responsible for the initial flap over the violation of |
| Everyone has heard about the legal rulings on | | | | artistic rights and royalties, are now legitimate pay as |
| downloading music and you may therefore be afraid | | | | you go sites that offer a full library of downloads for a |
| to trust any site that tells you their music downloads | | | | per song or subscription fee. |
| are free and legal. | | | | And companies like AOL, Apple (through its iTunes and |
| The fact is that the face of music downloading has | | | | iPod business) and (with their Real Rhapsody program) |
| changed dramatically since the judicial system has | | | | are now offering free or subscription downloads with |
| gotten involved in protecting the rights of artists, | | | | millions of songs in each catalogue. |
| composers and distributors who were previously | | | | Big retailers like Amazon and Wal-Mart have joined |
| receiving NO royalties for the music that was shared | | | | the fray with their own version of downloadable music |
| by thousands of teenagers and adults. | | | | for 'pay and play'. |
| But, if you know what you are doing, you can find | | | | Sites like GoingWare and SoundClick offer downloads |
| music to download for free or for a very small fee. | | | | of cutting edge bands and musicians who have yet to |
| If you are an audiophile and you really love to | | | | be signed to a label, so you'll find plenty of the newest |
| download music, you'll want to join a program that | | | | music there. |
| allows you to download a large number of files, or | | | | Try to avoid P2P (Peer to Peer) programs if you can, |
| even an unlimited number of files, so you can keep up | | | | because they are designed to allow users to 'share' |
| with the latest musical trends. | | | | songs from one stored portfolio of music to another |
| It is best to avoid sites that do not GUARANTEE that | | | | and if you are downloading a song from another |
| their files are safe, or you could end up with more than | | | | person's library, your computer is open to security |
| music on your machine. | | | | breach and virus threats. |
| Some of these fly-by-night sites allow anyone to | | | | In general, you should watch out for: Ease of Use, |
| upload songs and you might get a virus or other bug | | | | Speed of Download and song SELECTION, |
| on your computer that might corrupt your machine. | | | | SELECTION, SELECTION. You should also be careful |
| If you are downloading songs to an iPod or MP3 | | | | to check out the search capacity and techniques on |
| player, be sure that the site you choose supports your | | | | each of the sites you are considering. |
| format and device. | | | | Some sites make it nearly impossible to find the song |
| You may have to download a small software | | | | you want, or they have 20 versions of the same song |
| program to support the transfer of music from the | | | | listed and you have to plow through all of them to find |
| music download site you select. | | | | the one you want. |
| Try to stick with sites that have been reviewed and | | | | Even then, when you download it (and possibly PAY |
| approved by web music critics or publications. Sites like | | | | for that download) you may end up with the dance |
| My Music Inc., Free Music Downloads, MP3 Download | | | | mix of a song that was not properly labeled on the |
| HQ, and All Cool Music have been extensively | | | | site. |
| reviewed by C\NET, CNN, Tucows, | | | | If you know other people who are downloading music |
| OnlineReviewBoard, and Web Reviews for features | | | | and you are not sure of a site and whether you should |
| like customer service, technical support, virus free | | | | sign up for their program, talk to some friends and find |
| guarantees, frequency of upgrades and pricing, and | | | | out what program they are using and which ones to |
| speed of download time. | | | | avoid! |
| Sites like RhapsodyMusicService and iMusicShare | | | | |