I Want My MP3!: How to Download, Rip, & Play Digital Music [Bargain Price] [Paperback]

Bill Mann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 13, 1999

-- Revolution in digital music -- MP3 is the hottest thing to hit the music industry since CDs. However, this seemingly simple method of finding and playing music is problematic for the average computer user. The software is buggy, and the hardware constantly changes. Top that off with dozens of confusing new terms like "ripped" CDs and new hardware that uses mini-hard disks and flash memory cards and you have a recipe for confusion. The MP3 Book slices through all that and tells the reader how to play, record, and download their music exactly the way that they want.
-- Intense media coverage of MP3 -- This topic is all over the media fight now. Not just geeky computer trade magazines, but it's turning up in mainstream media such as Publisher's Weekly and Business Week (see attached articles).
-- A complete guide to the newest thing in digital media - This is an easy-to-read guide to the new revolution in digital music. From 15 Minutes to Music to how to rip your own CDs to the best of the hardware sold THIS Christmas season, to a glimpse into the legal world surrounding this exciting new music format.
-- The MP3 Book is the complete resource for MP3 information and includes:
-- everything needed for listening to, recording and playback of MP3
-- an extensive Internet guide to where to find the best in MP3 music
-- the practical information needed to cut through the hype surrounding MP3
-- Packed CD-ROM -- It includes tons of MP3 players, rippers, and music. Music on the CD will be from every major genre -- the idea is to give the reader the tools and tunes they need to get started in MP3 right now.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

MP3 files raise a lot of questions about the rights of artists to be compensated for their work when making copies of their recordings is practically effortless. Bill Mann explains this challenge to the audio format and lots more in I Want My MP3, a very complete guide to MP3 audio and the communities that have grown up around it.

Much of I Want My MP3 has to do with software--the players, playlist managers, rippers, and encoders you need to convert and listen to music. Mann emphasizes the Sonique player, the AudioCatalyst ripper/encoder, and the MusicMatch Jukebox all-purpose application. He covers RealJukebox, XingMP3 Player, and RealPlayer G2 as well, but (in a break from his competitors) doesn't pay much heed to WinAmp. It's refreshing to see an author defend his personal software preferences, and also nice to read about sound-editing utilities that other books neglect completely. There's brief coverage of all popular handheld and car-mounted MP3 hardware devices too.

Mann backs up his player coverage with loads of media material, including reviews of dozens of MP3 repositories (he favors large sites over fly-by-night ratio sites run by students) and a CD-ROM containing a better-than-average collection of tunes. --David Wall

Topics covered: Arranging and playing MP3 files, ripping and encoding MP3 files (converting CD tracks to MP3 format), various software utilities and hardware playback devices, and MP3 archives on the Internet. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 356 pages
• ISBN-10: 0072122900
• ASIN: B00007FYJ2
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,293,656 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #43 in Books > Computers & Technology > Digital Music > MP3

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A-Z MP3!, December 18, 1999

By 

Thicksole - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Want My MP3!: How to Download, Rip, & Play Digital Music (Paperback)

This book has everything that you would ever need to know to get started or take your MP3 skills to the next level. Cool content for computer savvy music lovers with a couple extra bucks. Unlike most computer books, the author writes in a style that's easy to understand - for even the most novice of novices.

Contains info on playing, downloading, ripping MP3s and everything you need to know about the newest MP3 players and recorders. Good reference to start with if you know nothing or just want to learn more about MP3's.

The CD that comes with the book has some great MP3 music too - including ENIS. What a great bunch of guys they are.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn More about this Booming Technology!, January 31, 2000

By 

Jim Moran - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Want My MP3!: How to Download, Rip, & Play Digital Music (Paperback)

MP3 is the latest technology developed for the downloading and playing of music on personal computers today. It has also opened the door for lots of people to access, play, create, and affordably distribute their own music to others.

Bill Mann has written I Want My MP3 to encourage computer-savvy readers to take advantage of this new and exciting technology. The book covers a broad and thoughtfully interwoven range of topics related to MP3 technology, such as obtaining and using MP3 and utility programs, buying MP3 players for the home, office, and car, accessing and downloading sound files from online services, buying MP3 music online, creating your own kind of music, and sharing music (legally) with others!

This book offers a wealth of online resources for readers to obtain MP3 music files. A number of MP3 online music services, libraries, and search engines are discussed to help readers find the tunes and special effects they want. Is your computer able to handle MP3? Bill Mann provides readers with the insight they need to upgrade their own equipment to handle MP3 technology, including the installation and use of CD burners which have made the sharing of computer data a much simpler and affordable task!

MP3 may not be for everyone but I did happen to find the MP3 files included on the accompanying CD simply breath-taking. It's amazing how these files can be stored and accessed online. Convenient distribution has made this file format big business for a lot of people. Professional musicians, music buffs, computer hobbyists, and Web developers should learn more about this booming technology and put it to use.

This book is easy to read and follow along. It is highly recommended. Consider subscribing to some of the online newsgroups, mailing lists, and newsletters featured in the book for further educational experience. Readers are cautioned to avoid Websites offering suspected unlawful distribution of music files and the availability of other illegal content!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good tutorials but very little technical information, December 18, 1999

By 

John Philips (Denver, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Want My MP3!: How to Download, Rip, & Play Digital Music (Paperback)

This book has lots of good tutorials but virtualy no technical information on the MP3 format. Also, there is not much information for musicians who want to promote their music on the Web.