Is Rhapsody Music Downloads Service Getting A Good Rhap?
Rhapsody music, from RealNetworks is one of several reputable legal digital services for legal music downloads. In order to download online music or hear songs from them you have to pay for them first. In Rhapsody's case, the cost is $9.99 per month after a 14 day free trial (the cost may reduced if you purchase it quarterly). Along with Rhapsody, these also include iTunes, Musicnet, Musicnow, wal-mart downloads, and the newly revived Napster. The Rhapsody music service consists of over 1.2 million music downloads tracks in its catalog, thanks to nitching deals with all five label giants and over 500 independent labels. Its fully-featured jukebox that makes Rhapsody music downloads searches a snap and importing tunes from, let's say, a CD easy. Other elegant features include the ability to incorporate different files such as MP3, WMA, AAC (M4A), and RealAudio to your main Library. And you can mix these files in the library any way you like and develop different playlists after you import tracks and/or stream or download online music. I'm very sure that the Rhapsody music downloads service will only improve with time. So how did it all start? Well, we need to rewind the clock some four years ago... During that time iTunes did not exist, and Napster's outlawed ancestor had reached its demise a few months prior. Nonetheless, there was... drumroll... Rhapsody. While part of listen.com, the Rhapsody music downloads service was launched in December 2001. It wasn't until July, however, that songs from all major labels became part of its diverse catalog. RealNetworks acquired listen.com in August 2003. After thus changing the name to RealRhapsody, the service regained its classic title, "Rhapsody". Downloading the software is fairly straight forward. Be advised, however, that this software is not Mac compatible. The music downloads and streamed tracks from Rhapsody are compatible with Windows Media devices which, of course, are only found on Windows PC's and compatible portable devices. The interface consists of your simple Play, Stop, etc. functions on the upper left-hand corner of your screen. Next to this is track information including: the title, the artist, and the album. A brief bio plays to the right of the track interface. So how do you search for your favorite artist or song? Easy... just type it in the Search bar and press "Go". Once you have found your song, you usually can INSTANTLY play it without downloading it - i.e., you can stream it. In some cases, you can automatically download online music while you listen to the stream. Note: sometimes when you press play, a "!" will appear in a triangle meaning that the stream is unavailable. In this case, you need to press the "+" sign. This adds the track to your Library where you can access it from there and add it to your playlist in the form of music downloads. That said, the streams are of such excellent quality it seems the song is already downloaded on your computer. If you don't want the song to be played immediately (such as if you're in the middle of listening to another song) you can just press the "+" sign to the left of the song title. Again, this will automatically store the song to the main library. In order to bring it to the playlist, you will have to open up the Library first and then drag the song to your playlist, much the same as how you would do with any other digital music downloads service. If your library is large, don't worry. The library search tool is similar to that of iTunes - very easy to find your tune or artist in order to stream or download online music. OK. So these are some of the handy-dandy features of Rhapsody. But do they contribute to a pleasant experience for music downloads fans? Stay tuned for my next article... http://www.download-latest-online-music.com
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The Dark Side of P2P File Sharing
P2P file sharing programs are free. Period. But there are P2P scam sites out there
that want you to pay them instead. P2P scam sites are rogue companies that have
set up shop to fleece unsuspecting music downloaders looking for file sharing
programs by charging a fee for an otherwise free service.
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Some P2P file sharing programs offer "pro" versions of their free software. But again,
their basic service is free to the public. I want you to fully understand this, because
paying a P2P scam site money can not only make your wallet a bit lighter, it can also
make your computer vulnerable to dangerous spyware.
That's right. These scam sites are only interested in making money off you. As well
as actually taking your money by fooling you into paying them, they'll make money
off you by installing spyware on your PC, so that they can get paid by sharing your
online habits and personal information with others.
For music download beginners, all of this can be very confusing. Why? Because
these scam sites advertise all over the Internet. Search engines return results
chockful of these scams alongside the real P2P file sharing programs; their banner
ads riddle the Internet landscape; sites are promoting these scams to get their piece
of your money.
Most real P2P programs don't advertise much on the Internet. The reason is that
they're not money makers. It takes money to advertise, and who has more money--
the free P2P file sharing programs or the scam artists? You guessed it. P2P relies on
word of mouth. The scam sites rely primarily on advertising.
How Can I Tell a P2P Scam Site?
This is the easy part, if you know what you're looking for. P2P scam sites often use
phrases like 100% Legal, which is absolutely untrue. This is a trick they use
to prey on people interested in P2P file sharing programs, but who are worried
(rightly) about Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lawsuits. Keep in
mind that sharing and downloading of copyrighted files is, at this moment, an
illegal activity.
Another tactic is to use fake endorsements and recommendations from legitimate
companies. Other cons are to use phrases like Direct Downloads!, Get Access
Now!, Download Unlimited Free Music!, and other phrases that are promising
you things they absolutely CANNOT deliver.
How Does It Work & How are They Doing It?
To be honest, I do not know the ins and outs of P2P scam sites. But I know this: all
P2P file sharing programs are free. Think about it a moment. It is because music
files are being shared free of charge (without artists receiving royalties) that
organizations like the RIAA are mad and suing.
These P2P scam sites are merely taking your money, downloading a little spyware to
your PC, then connecting you to one of the real P2P file sharing programs.
This is all convoluted by the nature of P2P, which is a series of servers networking
files to one another. Unless you're buying your music MP3 downloads from a
legitimate company, either per song/album or through a monthly subscription, you
cannot be sure where your music is coming from.
The legal status of P2P file sharing programs is confusing. We know that MP3 files
themselves are not illegal. For example, it's legal to possess MP3s, to rip your CDs
to your hard drive, and to burn CDs for your personal use. But, by sharing and/or
downloading these files, you are breaking copyright laws. To my knowledge, P2P
scam sites are not actually breaking any laws. But why pay for something you don't
have to?
One of the most common techniques these scam artists use is to set up sites that
are misspellings or derivations of popular P2P file sharing programs. KaZaA is
probably the most hijacked name being used these days.
Other sites may not actually charge you anything at all, but they'll "give you the
software for free" if you give them your email address. This too is a scam.
Because once again, they're just sending you along to a proper P2P program, but
after collecting your email address, they're selling it to third parties. Don't give
these scammers any of your personal information!
If you're on a website you trust, even this website, you may see ads by these scam
artists, preaching their lies about 100% blah, blah, blah. For your own security, don't
click on the links. They're still scams. (Many independent websites rely on ads to
pay the bills. We don't always have full control over what advertisements appear on
our sites. Keep in mind that most online advertisements are arranged and
distributed by third-party companies who pair up advertisements with appropriate
keywords. So a page that discusses "music downloads" is likely to have an ad from a
scam site singing their own false praises.)
On this note, there are sites all over the Internet that actually promote P2P
scam sites. Why? I have my opinions. First, these scam sites are paying large sums
of money to affiliates who promote their sites. For example, a scam site may be
charging you $29.95 for their non-service. Well, they're paying affiliates over half
(I've seen the pay-out as high as 75%) of that just for getting you, the visitor, to
their scam sites.
I Think I've Used One of these Scam Sites. What Do I Do Now?
Stop! Right now, stop using that service. If you've got some type of monthly
payment with them, stop paying them. Cancel your "membership," contact your
bank or credit card company, and stop paying them immediately! Secondly, your
computer has probably have been infected by spyware, and you need to remove it
right away. I recommend purchasing spyware-removal software like Pest Patrol
because they do the best job at clearing out spyware parasites.
If you've been pulled into a scam site, just rack it up to experience. Their ad copy is
very convincing, and you just wanted to "be legal" while downloading. Take heart in
knowing that you're not alone. But you're better off now, with this information at
your disposal.
In my opinion, this is another reason to consider not using P2P file sharing
programs as a means to get your online music. I think that these P2P scam sites will
increase in number, and will use more clever tactics to get your money and your
information. Until the peer-to-peer communities are regulated in some way, I fear
that these types of activities will get worse before they improve.
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