Solid Assistance About Music Downloads That Can Help Anyone
Downloading music has always been one of the most popular uses of the Internet. However, things have changed a lot over the last few years. If you have not been downloading music recently, you may need some help navigating the various options. Use the following tips to find your way around.
Always make sure that you download your music from a legal website. If you download music illegally, you can face harsh fines. In many cases you can be fined up to $500 per song. The artists deserve to be paid for the music they make, so download only legal copies of the songs that you love.
A great tip when downloading music is to preview similar artists on itunes. Most of the time, itunes will show a dozen of similar songs and artists on the right whenever you highlight a song in your library. This can be a great way to discover new music that you like.
In order to make sure the music you want to download fits into your monthly budget, consider using a site that charges a subscription fee, rather than a fee for each download. You can budget the exact amount of money you want to spend on downloads each month and know that you won't go over that amount.
You should make sure you take advantage of using the "Preview" option on each track of an album before you download it. This is a good idea for songs that are new to you. That way, you can just download tracks that you like. This can save you money since you won't need to buy a whole album for just a few songs you like.
Watch the file sizes of your music downloads carefully. A normal music download will be somewhere between 2 megabytes and 5 megabytes. If you see something much less or much more, there could be something fishy about the file. It may be spyware and not the song you were hoping it was.
Pay attention to music formats. Music files come in many different formats. Some of these formats are specific to certain music players or music playing devices. Don't download music you can't use. What are you going to use to listen to the music you're downloading? Determine the type of file you will need.
Do some research on a potential download site before you make a go of downloading there. Read other people's reviews of the site and even scour online forums for posts related to the site. You want to know how reputable and safe this website really is. Others have likely experienced it, so benefit from their knowledge.
If you are looking for free, legal music downloads, consider using a free music archive. A couple popular ones are Free Music Archive and The Internet Archive. These are nonprofit sites that contain all kinds of free, legal music from many genres. These are great for securely and legally experiencing some new artists or getting some rare tracks from some of your favorites.
Try to only download music from providers that remember your purchases. This way, if you ever lose a file, you can revisit the website and just download it again for free. This is a great substitution for backing up your files, which of course you always intend to do, but never actually get around to.
Do your research when it comes to which subscription service you use. Paying for each individual song can get quite costly. There are many music subscription services that will provide you with tons of music for a small amount of money. Be sure to read the fine print so that you learn how much you can actually download, and how and where the music files will be stored on your device.
Avoid the temptation of downloading popular music from new websites that promise you free music downloads. Due to copyright reasons, most legitimate music downloads are available only with a fee. Websites that advertise free downloads of the latest songs need to be scrutinized because there are often strings attached to their offer which makes the download much more complicated.
Always have an updated anti-virus program on any device that you download music on. There are many people who would love to have access to the files on your system. If you do not have a good anti-virus program on your device, you are leaving yourself vulnerable to hacking attempts and viruses.
Prior to downloading music, make sure you are on a broadband connection. Music files are not the Virtual Fireplace same mammoth size as video files, but when you download lots of them, the overall download size can add up pretty fast. If you're on a slow connection this can eat up a lot of time.
If you want to keep your credit card safe from hackers, pick up iTunes gift cards at local stores. You can input the number online of the gift card, instead of your credit card number, meaning no one can hack into their database to get your information, saving you from criminals.
Instead of downloading music illegally, support your favorite musicians by buying CDs and uploading them to your computer. That way, you get to hear the music, add it to your collection and do it all legally. Even better, you can get a CD collection started.
Before downloading music, make sure you've got anti-virus software on your computer. Many users have gotten a virus because they neglected this step. An anti-virus program will prevent this from happening. It also scans it afterwards and it cleans any malware that got through.
When you want to download great music easily, your best bet is to learn all you can about your options. You have taken the time to read this article, so you should be ready to start downloading with ease. Be sure to use the tips you have read to give yourself the best experience possible.