verso Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 My friend and I recently got into a discussion about iTunes. And if it is really better then buying the CD from a store. Apparently it is quite a bit cheaper, but there are some cons that I've discovered. The songs you download from iTunes apparently come in .m4p format at a 128 bitrate. Also, it is apparently illegal to convert these files to any other format? I'm not sure but that's what I've heard. The m4p files are protected, I do know that. And even if you did convert them to another format you're probably going to lose sound quality. And if you haven't backed up your songs to discs, the songs you've downloaded from iTunes - and if your hard drive goes (ka-put!) then what are you to do? Heh. Are you beat? Now if you purchase the CD yourself, you can rip it in any format you want. And the songs are already backed up to the disc so you only have to worry about physical damage to the disc. But is it illegal to rip the CD? My friend said that it might be illegal to rip the CD. What do you guys think about this? - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 Steven, This is a good site, with links for more discussion. http://www.ipodhacks.com/article.php?sid=5 I have only a few songs that were downloaded from iTunes. Their quality was pretty bad, disturbing in the high frequencies. But maybe the guy who gave them to me didn't get them in the best possible quality--I can't say for sure. One big advantage of iTunes over a CD is that you can just pay for the songs you want, instead of paying for the whole disc maybe just for a couple songs you like. If you want everything on the CD, I'd buy the CD. You are allowed to copy the CD you buy any way you like as long as it is for your own private use, that you're not giving away or selling copies of it to other people. You should back up your files on CDRs or another hard drive. iPods get stolen all the time, and you don't want to lose your player AND all of your music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Hey, thanks for the response Paul! So I guess there are some real advantages that purchasing the CD in a retail store has over iTunes. Unless, as you said - you only want a few songs. - Steven EDIT: Though it does say on most CDs, "unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenratboy Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 While you 'MIGHT' be caught for getting 'free' music off the internet, you will NOT be caught for ripping CD's or converting legally downloaded music files. Mild risk vs. NO risk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruinsrme Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 I am using www.allofmp3.com they charge 2 cents per meg. itunes is good but expensive to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Yeah, but that's not really the point. I'm against file sharing not because I could get caught - because I think it is wrong is most cases. Because it is disrespectful to the artists. But my friend thinks it is illegal to rip a CD because technically you're making another copy of it (on your hard drive). I think that's kind of stupid, you know? If it is for your own personal use only, you have no intention of distributing the music - then I think that's fine. - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrot Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 You're fine if you copy or rip the CD for yourself. You've bought it and you can't be expected to buy a duplicate for your car and a third copy to rip to your computer hard drive. And you're not diminishing sales any because you're not giving away or selling copies. Unauthorized duplication is more on the order of pirating. But the record companies are not going to advertise the fact on the back that it's okay if you copy this if it's just for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lipinski Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 I prefer to buy the CD because I get the artwork, the lyrics and an image on the CD. Also, every couple years or so I wind up buying a new computer. I dread the day that I'm trying to move all the music that my wife has downloaded onto the computer that I'm typing on now. I've tried to move my tax preparation files from an old computer and I almost needed to be committed to an asylum trying to complish moving those files. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenratboy Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 verso: I know a lot of artists DO NOT CARE about file sharing (exceptions are the greedy commercialized mega groups) - even the small ones. ALL their living income is from touring/concerts. However, I do buy CD's, many of them. If I like a small artist - I buy their CD. Plain and simple. Steve Roach sells all of his CD's himself - shipped from his house in Arizona (they are also sold on Amazon and in some retail stores) - I e-mailed him and he said that he gets a bigger cut of the cash (he records and produces the stuff himself) if you buy directly from him, so that is what I do, he has earned my money and I want to make sure he gets the most out of my CD purchase. On the other hand, if I want the latest Offspring or Metallica song. No way in hell will I spend one penny to support their oppressive record labels. I download music to DISRESPECT greedy artists, and I buy music to REWARD good ones. Fair? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Kentraboy, You took the words right out of my mouth! I feel the exact same way you do! A lot of the bands I listen to allow their live music to be freely distributed, I have 100's of Grateful Dead songs that I downloaded for free and it's completely legal. I would never purchase a Metallica CD. Ever. I do not mind, however, spending money to purchase the CDs of artists I enjoy and who do not try to shake every penny out of their fans. Thanks for all of the replies! The debate between my friend and I really got me thinking about the subject. Heh. - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 Verso, MP3 quality is short of CD quality, but how it sounds is sometimes a tossup. Sometimes CD's sound as sorry as can be. I've been using Napster since it's been legal and have been well pleased with their service. For a monthly fee you can download unlimited songs that you can play on your PC, but don't have a license to transfer them to another device. If you've got a fast internet connection, this is pretty cool. Also you can purchase a license, .99 per song or 10.00 per album, like everyone else and have the privilege of burning CD's or using them on up to three computers. I had a harddrive crash and thought I'd lost my investment, but Napster will allow you to re-download everything in an automated support system. I suppose this would work the same as downloading on an additional PC. Once when having some trouble with the automated system, noticed that Napster customer service is available if something is amiss. I took that to mean that customer service had the discretion to allow your account to download your purchased tunes again with some kind of manual override. One thing about Napster, you can play your tunes through the napster software or Windows media player. Also you can use the online database to rip your own CD's into your pc media collection. One more thing, like all the services, you get a 30 second sample to listen to, or if you are a monthly subscriber you can stream unlimited songs to your PC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Daddy Dee, What format do the files come in? When you download from Napster? It's pretty stupid though, in my opinion. Because they have to stay on your computer. I don't think it's too much to ask. $10 for an album that you can do whatever the hell you want with so long as you are not redistributing it. - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 Verso, The files are MP3 format. I think. Possibly WMA. I'm away from my pc this evening so I'd suggest to check that out with Napster to confirm. I may not have been clear describing the license issue, if you buy them, they are yours to burn to a cd or whatever. That's true whether you pay the monthly service fee or not. The only tunes you can't burn to a CD are the unlimited downloads on the monthly fee arrangement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Daddy Dee, After some Googling, apparently they use their own format - ".nap" So I guess it works the same as iTunes. Thanks for the reply! - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 Here is a great essay on "Fair Use": http://www.eff.org/cafe/gross1.html Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwinr Posted December 31, 2004 Share Posted December 31, 2004 I love surfing the net, sampling all sorts of music. I download some. The stuff I really like, I buy the album for serious listening. I find the Klipschorns really don't like low res music, like MP3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted December 31, 2004 Author Share Posted December 31, 2004 Rick, Thank you for that article! It answered my question. So I guess it is not illegal to make a copy, or 'rip' a CD onto your own computer so long as the CD was legally obtained (i.e. you purchased it) and so long as it is for your own personal use and you have no intention of redistributing the copies. Excellent! Thanks a lot! - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted January 1, 2005 Share Posted January 1, 2005 OK, just got back home to check on the Napster file format. It's WMA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verso Posted January 2, 2005 Author Share Posted January 2, 2005 Ah, thanks Daddy Dee! WMA, eh? Hmmmm. Well from what I have read a lot of people no longer use the mp3 format and are starting to use the .ogg file format. I hear the .ogg format is supposed to be one of the better formats. - Steven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddvj Posted January 2, 2005 Share Posted January 2, 2005 ---------------- On 12/31/2004 8:13:04 PM kenratboy wrote: verso: I know a lot of artists DO NOT CARE about file sharing (exceptions are the greedy commercialized mega groups) - even the small ones. ALL their living income is from touring/concerts. However, I do buy CD's, many of them. If I like a small artist - I buy their CD. Plain and simple. Steve Roach sells all of his CD's himself - shipped from his house in Arizona (they are also sold on Amazon and in some retail stores) - I e-mailed him and he said that he gets a bigger cut of the cash (he records and produces the stuff himself) if you buy directly from him, so that is what I do, he has earned my money and I want to make sure he gets the most out of my CD purchase. On the other hand, if I want the latest Offspring or Metallica song. No way in hell will I spend one penny to support their oppressive record labels. I download music to DISRESPECT greedy artists, and I buy music to REWARD good ones. Fair? ---------------- Wait, who the hell are you to decide who is a greedy artist and who is not. If you are going to get music without paying for it, fine, but please, don't try to justify it by blaming the "Greedy Artists." And I don't think there is a Single artist out there that would rather you download their songs for free instead of Buying them. If they say they "don't mind" people downloading, it's just because they don't want to be labeled a "greedy artist." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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