A paperless office has about as much chance as a paperless bathroom.
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XP and Your CD Recorder ... Music CDsYour computer can be so much more than a fancy word processor or a round trip ticket on the Information SuperHighway. There is nothing like MUSIC to make your computer a private haven... just for you! You know the kind. Special music that takes you back to a less stressful time in your life. You know the songs... the ones that make you feel like a kid again. The Internet is a rich repository of information, and music is one of the easiest things to find. All you need is a big hard drive and a little understanding of what you are looking for. Special note: This is for information use only. Mrs. Wizard does NOT encourage or condone searching the Internet for icky bootleg software or music files. MP3 files are what makes music and the Internet such a great team. The sound is terrific and file sizes are a lot smaller than conventional music CD files. These files can only be played on computers or special players. Some newer CD players are able to play Mp3 files. Your computer came equipped with Windows Media player, a software application that plays video and audio files, including Mp3 files. WinAmp is a great player for music files too, and can be picked up for FREE at http://www.winamp.com. MP3 files are a great way to get double duty out of that neat sound system that came with your computer. They don't carry viruses either, so are as safe to share as a text file. The trick is to find, rip or download, and store them for easy access. Newsleecher is my personal favorite for gleaning all sorts of goodies from the Internet. This special software must be downloaded and installed, but it is not spyware and it is relatively easy to figure out and use. Once installed, you will need to find out the newsgroup server information from your Internet Service provider so you can set up Newsleecher to work for you. Cost is $29.99 a year for the program AND the SuperSearch package. SuperSearch is what I like the most. It is amazing what you can find on the Internet. Be prepared for a long eyebrow raising session. Once you have your Newsleecher set up with SuperSearch, and your newsgroup server set up, finding stuff is as easy as typing it into the Search box. If you find your Internet Service provider's newsgroup server is not as good as it could be (and some really stink), there are other alternatives. All you need is an Internet connection and a few dollars every month. Easynews is the one I use, but my Internet Service provider sort of uses a limited version of Giganews and that isn't too bad in a pinch. If you have a collection of CDs, you might want to convert them to MP3 files so you can create your own private juke box. Acoustica has a terrific MP3 CD Burner program that will make it all sooooo simple for you. Just let MP3 CD Burner rip your CDs, then store your MP3 files in a special folder. From there, you can drag and drop them to your favorite MP3 player. Mix them up if you like. It is what makes today's technology so exciting. You can also create your own custom music CD if you like. It is great to have total control over your music!
Got questions?
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