1kyle

Hi everybody Some of the mobile phones that play music have software included but doesn't transferr all the formats you want (or at the bit rates). For example using Sony Ericsson Phone2PC software it only works with mp3 files at bit rates of up to 192. (Might be enough for some people but with larger capacity cards you can use higher bit rates from your own encoders). Also the software doesn't recognize some AAC (mp4) files even though the phone (W900i) will handle these without problems. So what you have to do is create on your phone card (use a USB reader it's much faster when transferring files) a directory stucture as follows. MUSIC (Must be MUSIC as written) Now for each CD / "album" you want create the following 2 levels of directory under MUSIC (Level 0 or Top level) ============> Artist (e.g J.S.BACH) (level 1) ==============> Title The "CD name" of the CD or "playlist". C (Level 2) create this under ARTIST. ==============> Tracks - Insert the track files in the TITLE directory. Ensure a track number is included in a "Sortable" field so you can display the track info in the right order. This should now give you decent displayable info rather than muddled / mixed up tracks all under "Unknown Album". I haven't quite wrked out how to create M4U playlists but an M3U playlist even though that's for mp3 files seems to work. Once you've created the directory on the card just drag and drop the tracks to the track directory for each album. A 2GB card at the highest MP4 / MP3 encoding should give you up to around 22 complete CD's at quality comparable with HI-MD SP (certainly for normal portable listening requirements). Hope this helps as I've seen quite a few people struggling with organising music on Mobile Phones. Use a decent usb card reader for file transfer just takes seconds. A card reader costs peanuts as well and if you are using XP doesn't need any extra drivers etc. Cheers -K

If you actually look at what the product is designed to do then there's no hype at all. After all would you buy a Ferrari (assuming the right 6 numbers came up) and then complain that it wasn't suitable for Off Road travel or hadn't got enough luggage space for 4 kids camping gear. As others have pointed out on this thread there are many play back options now if that's your primary purpose. I'm not sure I would want an RH10 type of screen in the middle of a recording session but viewing the recording levels as shown on the introductory pictures looks a great idea, as is a proper LINE OUT and I'm sure the 5 line remote supplied with the NH1 will still work properly. (IT works fine with my UK RH10). My only regret is that I'd prefer a genuine Drag and Drop for files so I could use other programs for file transfer such as NERO or whatever. Direct AAC (MP4) support would also be great but I can manage without that since if you've got PCM then transcoding shouldn't be a problem. I'm not worried about exterbnal battery as the built in battery will last far longer than any recording session I'm likely to want. In any case bring a spare one. Small enough to carry with you in any case. As far as "Hype" - what hype. I haven't seen any Sony ads or press releases apart from those on this Forum. From Word of mouth there is GENUINELY a lot of interest in this product but that's not due at all to Sony's now legendary poor marketing strategies. Sony generating hype I don't think so. The marketing division would have a real job organising a Prayer Meeting in the Vatican or organising a "Booze up" in a Brewery. Cheers -K

If ther are not "cosmetically New" you'd have to sell them as "Used" or second hand. Re-Furbed must look and behave EXACTLY as the original Brand New ones complete with original Warranty (valid of course from date of purchase). Don't have any qualms about buying re-furbed especially for less than HALF the price of the original. Cheers -K

Another great opportunity missed by SONY here. I'm currently playing around with a W900i Sony Ericsson mobile phone. The Screen size on this is perfectly good for watching a DVD say in a Train or plane (around 2 in X 1.5 in) and sound more than good enough. Quality is unbelievably good. I've never SEEN a USEABLE quality screen like this on a phone. (The Nvidia drivers are responsible Thanks Nvidia). No probs with Battery life either and on the sort of trains I travel in there's plug sockets in the carriages that people mainly use for Laptops. Just rip the DVD to MP4 and it works fine (no DRM or any other B/S). If only Sony had built this into Hi-MD. Maybe it's not too late for them to do another future model. Forget the stupid UMD type of device. That's a load more EUR / YEN down the toilet as specified in the news section on this forum already. If Sony had got together with Ericsson before then the SS Software would have been so much better and maybe a few decently thought out products instead of great bits on one and the missing bits on another problems could have been avoided. We can live in hope as the RH1 is a great step in the right direction. Cheers -K

Just a note on "refurb'ed" stuff. Usually it will be totally indestinguishable from the Original. Complete with original packaging, manuals etc etc. Don't confuse with "Used" or second hand model. These will have been re-built so they are "Factory" or "Show room" fresh. I got a second RH10 for around 95 GBP from Amazon UK. This is well over HALF the current price on these units and it seems fine by me. I can't tell ANY difference from it to the original. For me 2 X RH10 (re-furb'ed) is better than 1X @ more than the price I could get 2 of these units for. Caveat always being you buy from a reputable source. Cheers -K

Here's a tip for anybody using MP3 files on their MD's and a convenient way of storing them OFF the computer (but still playable). Ussing NERO you can make a DVD of your MP3 files. This will be playable on DVD machines as well that support mp3 playback (most do now I think). If you have Panasonic type DVD player / recorders that can also read DVD-RAM you can use the double sided discs (that's 9.4GB 4.7GB each side on double sided discs). These files are Drag 'n Drop to most music players and can be imported quickly into SS if you need to. You don't need to use the SLOW SS Library backup for this purpose. Use This function of NERO http://www.1kyle.com/nero1.jpg Cheers -K

Hi there I can't answer your question really as I only have "Bog Standard" CD's which AFAIK aren't copy protected in any way. Incidentally Before updating Nero back your computer OS up so you can restore if it doesn't work to your satisfaction. You might also be able to find a way of installing the new version and keeping the old (have both versions) but you'll have to keep the dll's apart I think. Try Googling or getting help from a more I.T orientated guy on this one. I haven't had any issues with NERO 7. I think in any case you can download a free trial (again backup your Computer first) so you can test it on your CD's. BTW I always have a separate partition for Windows (around 12 GB) where I install the OS and applications. DATA I keep separate on other drives so on a re-install of Windows, restore etc etc I don't lose my data. Even Email (if you use outlook express change the settings to store your data on any drive other than 'C'. Use something like Acronis true image for partition backup and restore - works a treat. http://www.acronis.com Cheers -K

Thanks Guys I'm messing around with the NERO ripper now. This seems to be much faster (I'm using Nero 7.0) and also gives AAC options as well as MP3. I'm trying out various bit rates and sounds but so far seems to be just as good as LAME (I don't know the internals of the NERO Ripper, might be using the same technique). You get a whole slew of different bit rates and conversions amd it does AAC as well as MP3. The read spead on the CD is 32X (4,800) kbs and track data is got from either freedb or a user settable one including cddb if you want. I must admit I'd never thought of NERO for ripping but it seems to do the job really good. I'm preparing all this stuff for my RH1 which I can't wait to get soon enough. So far I've been disappointed with MP3 on the RH10 but apparently it will be fine on the RH1. I think the NERO program seems to make use of the dual CPU or certainly it Multi-threads better. For those who've got NERO but not sure how to start the ripping process go to NERO START SMART and select the AUDIO option (3rd Icon on the top) The following screenshot shows. http://www.1kyle.com/nero.jpg Cheers -K

I've been trying all sorts of MP3 conversions etc and I really can't get any satisfactory sound on the RH10 in ANY MP3 Format. Now Ripping a CD straight to the W900i mobile phone using PC2Phone software (supplied with the mobile phone) @ 192 kbs (mp3) sounds FAR FAR better than the same CD on the RH10 at even 320 kbs (MP3). Atrac3 is fine on the RH10. Tried Lame @ 320 VBR but on the mobile phone it made insignificant difference compared with PC2PHONE @ 192 (standard in their software) so it's easier just to use their software which grabs all the track info instead of me having to mess around with tags. I'm playing both devices on the computer via their USB connections. The RH10 of course I have to use SS which might be the problem whilst with the Mobile phone I'm just double clicking the file and using Nero as my default music player and even on my computers speakers (reasonable but certainly not top quality Hi FI) I can hear a difference --The mobile phone sounds BETTER. The Hi-MD MP3 payback always sounds to me as if it's got a lingering or background echo. Hard to pin down but it's definitely there. Music sometimes sounds as if it's being played in a large cathedral with lots of echo rather than a nice crisp Studio or smallish room. Now with decent Cans and ATRAC @352 the Hi-MD machine is definitely better (and so it should be) but the mobile phone is surprisingly good and more than adequate for portable listening especially in noisy environments like trains. (I'm liking this W900i more and more). I've seen previous posts that MP3 playing is really hobbled on MD at the moment. Obviously it seems true judging by my OK unscientific test but I never realized it was THAT bad - and in any case I thought it had been fixed in SS 3.4 and for the RH10. Obviously not. Anyway I'm really looking forward to what the RH1 brings out. Delivery can't be far off now. Cheers -K

Just get the seller to stick one of those Green International Customs declaration stickers on the package. It's an International Format and available at Post Offices around the world. It just specifies that the contents are Educational Items. There's no cost and the seller won't mind since he's making a sale. Cheers -K

I've quite often bought Photographic gear from Japan. Takes about 5 days to the UK. Sometimes (but not always) you get saddled with Customs duties in which case you might have to go to a depot to pay the duty before you can get the Goods. Depending on the size and purpose of your purchase you might not have to do this. Stuff gets through airports very quickly now so there won't be any delay there. Tips for UK residents. 1) Digital Photographic cameras (STILL only and NOT Video etc) are EXEMPT from Duty. Don't ask me why but it's one of those funny laws. 2) Educational Material can be imported Duty Free. If you've paid the duty you can reclaim it. Get the shippers to make a customs decalration BEFORE shipping the goods. It's no skin of their nose and could save you some money. You can EASILY say MD recorders are educational items. You need Lecture recordings for Students / self study etc etc. I think Holland might also have a similar facility. Not sure however. For the UK the above is true (even with Scotsman Gordon Clown's money grabbing fingers - For Non UK residents he's the Chancellor of the Exchequer which is the equivalent to Minister of Finance in other countries). Finally no problem buying from Japan at all. You might however not get any English manuals but these can usually be found on the Internet unless products are not normally marketed outside Japan. Cheers -K

Sony PLEASE change SS to allow Drag 'n Drop. You already provide GREAT EASY software for transferring Music from a PC to your Walkman Mobile phones. I'm using the W900i phone and transferring music from Hi-MD to the phone. Just look at this EASY interface for transferring files compared with SS. http://www.1kyle.com/xfer2phone.jpg It's YOUR OWN SOFTWARE so it shouldn't be difficult to alter SS to do this. Why make stuff so ham fisted when everybody else (including YOU) is going the other way. SS 3.4 is a HUGE improvement over anything before but why not go the last bit like your PHONE2PC program shown above. Cheers --K

Hi everone. Trying to convert some HI-MD WAV files to MP3 using LAME XP converter on Windows XP. This process seems REALLY slow (using top quality VBR @ 320 from WAV files) and I'm running this on a DUAL processor with 4GB RAM so it's not the computer causing the bottleneck. Here's screenshot http://www.1kyle.com/mp3conv.jpg Any FASTER way of doing this - I'm not afraid of using a command line. Using Linux is fine as well if it's better since I can read the WAV files on Linux as well. Thanks -K

Just wondering if there are some Linux users on this Forum. If so what are you using, what Multimedia do you use and do you use Wireless Internet on it (particularly if you are running Linux on a Laptop). I'm running a Linux file and print server (We have 5 machines in the house) and in our professional photo studio (next door) we have 8 machines on the network. The Linux file server is running SUSE 10.0 and is basically just a Print and file server and acts also as an Internet gateway both for home and the Studio and is an Email server for the Studio. Using Linux for sharing files and printers is a really easy way of being able to add disks and printers easily and especially sharing printers saves buying a load of extra gear. On the file server I can run Kaffeine (front end for XINE) for DVD playing etc but usually only do this when I'm logged on to the file server running things like backups. The amazing thing about Linux is that once it's booted you can almost forget it. The last time I re-booted the file server was over 6 months ago when I needed to add some extra disks. For a file server you don't need state of the art equipment. Any old PC will do even an old Pentium II processor. Ensure you've got Disk controller cards however (don't run server disks from IDE connections on a motherboard. SATA however is OK). 1GB of RAM is also more than suficcient. Even 512KB will give adequate performance so long as you don't have too many computers on your LAN. Best of all the OS (Linux) is FREE. Cheers -K

I NEVER buy downloaded "DRM'ed" music so that part of the issue is a non starter for me. As for cost well that's a TOTAL NON ISSUE. My phone cost precisely 10 GBP / 14.50 EUR / 16 USD. I'd been with Vodafone for a long time and travelling around makes a monthly contract better sense than Pay as You GO tariff. (For other people Pay as you GO could be better - everyone has different requirements). The mobile phone companies are really desperate for customers now and competition is intense so you would be really surprised at some of the deals available now. Anyway pretty well all these mobile phone companies allow you to upgrade your phone after 12 months for a really small (paltry) fee as in my case. You can still keep your old phone as well. It saves the necessity of having to carry around more than one gadget so saves the total cost of the 'POD and what can the 'POD do that the phone can't - apart from buying music from Itunes which I would NEVER EVER do anyway. Note also that 3G Internet access is part of the package so you are not paying a fortune if you want to download music (and you don't need to be at a computer either). Costwise sending stuff is more or less the same as typical mobile costs and data loads s are at Broadband / ADSL type speeds so a few MB download / upload won't take more than a few minutes if that. So I still say given time (remember this is the first decent generation for these type of mobile phones) phone music players will oust other portable music players like 'PODS. Judgding how a lot of some people like PDA's / Personal organisers which for some applications saved them carrying around Laptop computers I can see the same thing happening to the latest generation of Mobile phones. Apart from building in PDA applications (still in relative infancy in Mobiles but coming) I really do see the mobile phone as an all purpose portable device in the future and certainly good eneough now for portable music listening. Now if only RECORDING facilities could be added as well - however that WOULD be seriously competing with MD's. As in all these things it's personal choice. For me I'd rather carry around as few separate pices of gear as possible and as I've usually always got a mobile phone this seems to be the way to go. Cheers -K

Actually if you look at the date of the original post you should see that it's well before SS 3.4 was generally available which have made this topic largely irrelevant now. Cheers -K

Actually after a while once the novelty wears off the "I want all my music in one place" rather fades 1) it gets cumbersome to organise and people eventually spend more time scrolling through seleections rather than just playing and listening 2) once the device gets full it becomes a hassle to delete, re-organise etc etc. 3) You still have the problems of what to do when you upgrade / change the device for something else. The 2GB cards are not "magic" either. I mentioned these cards (2GB) because this size is the largest that is currently reasonably "affordable". Cards come from 256 MB up to 4GB and I've even seen some specs on new 8GB cards which will undoubtedly be released soon. The screen on the W900i uses the latest Nvidia graphics drivers and cards (specifically designed for hand held mobile devices) so the quality is nothing short of EXCELLENT and whilst I wouldn't view video for hours on these you could certainly watch a film on a plane / in a train etc. The screen on the w900i is quite viewable believe me and I'm very picky. Reading News flashes or snippets from the web is fine as well with beautifully clear fonts and texts. Remember also that this is the IST Generation of these type of mobile phones. Later models will be sleeker etc. My impression is from the ist generation that whilst not perfect they are VERY GOOD INDEED and certainly can suffice as a great portable music player. I think if you actually see these phones in the flesh you'll be quite impressed. (IPODS anyway are now getting highly "Uncool" since so many people have them now). Cheers -K

For users of MAC / APPLE who've been put off from buying MD's because they can't run software or have to use the incredibly slow PC emulation mode the next OS X release included with the "Mactel" (Apple with Intel processors) will run Windows. Note You'll have to BUY / SOURCE your own copy of Windows but for people who like macs (particularly for imaging etc) but are forced to use Windows this really could be the best of both worlds. It's called Bootcamp. http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/content_p...cid=7-7893-8279 Download link to the public beta of bootcamp. http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/ Booting Windows should then be able to run your SS stuff even with current MD units. No need to wait for the RH1. I'm certainly going to play with this myself. As the machine is an INTEL I'm also hoping to have a base Linux OS running VMWARE and then hopefully switch between OS X and Windows without even having to re-boot although that development might take longer. I think Apple did the smart thing by going the INTEL route. Might be interesting also to see if one can run OS X on a WINDOWS machine. Cheers -K

Can use 2GB sticks which are fine in my book for a decent amount of music. At 320 kbs that's around 14 hours (LAME Mp3) Battery lasts a really long time even for VIDEO. Why I'm saying is that this is an IPOD killer is that you have in a single portable device all the features of an Ipod, looks great as well plus a full fast 3G / UMTS mobile phone. The Audio (and Video) formats it handles are pretty extensive and having removable media means : 1) you have "unlimited Storage" as per MD 2) Easy to transfer music to other computer / device. Remember now most USB card readers read all these types of smart media and since the files are not "DRM'ed" and can be copied via Drag 'n Drop you can say copy FLAC files to MP3 and transfer on your Linux, Mac or Windows box to the phone. Note that the phone is a full featured player with playlists etc and supports tags, so you can select and play music just like on a 'POD. You can also copy the files via the card reader to any other computer without having to install the phone's software either. 3) You can actually download music from the Net while on the move and store it on the card, ready for playing immediately. Or you can upload to a file server for somebody else to have or simply via the normal phone service just send an audio file to another mobile phone although Internet transfer will be cheaper. Can be interesting on a long train jouney. Also you can sample interesting music from various sites if you want to as the device is Internet enabled. Try doing that with a 'POD. If you have your own server you could then get access to your entire music library at all times and you can send files to other people if you want. Remember the device is a 3G enabled PHONE as well. 5) Upgrading to a new device doesn't entail any re-creation of a music library. 6) At most compresssions usually used for portable music a 2GB card will be more than enough for even the most avid listeners. 2X 2GB cards will definitely be more than enough. 7) You can swap the media with colleagues (No DRM on your own music). 8) since nearly everybody (at least in the West) carries a mobile phone (or even two) you don't need to carry another portable music listening device. A nice feature of the mobile is you can set it so that even if you are listening to music, you will still be (optionally) notified when you receive a call. 9) These devices also feature a built in AM/FM Radio. Can be useful at times. A few months ago I would have been sceptical of these devices, however the quality is there now currently and will certainly improve in the future to make these serious devices for portable music. Note that you can use your own decent I hope set of cans rather than the typical ear bud ones shipped with the device. There doesn't seem to be any problem plugging in Bose or Sennheiser cans. Cheers -K

Whilst I'm not a "Gadget Freak" I managed to snag a Vodafone Sony Ericson W900 mobile phone for 10 GBP. If you take out contracts rather than pay as you go you are entitled to Phone Upgrades every so often. - Careful however as Pay as you Go might be better for a lot of people. I travel a lot and can get some of the calls back of tax as business expenses. I like the white colour and as well as the Sim Card you can plug in (removable) a Memory stick Duo Pro. This device can be used as a mobile phone or a Media player (Videao / Audio) or both. The 2 X 1.5 inch screen is just about OK for watching Video and the phone supports MP3, AAC, AAC+, PCM etc. MP3 and PCM VIA DRAG'N DROP with USB connection --no stupid DRM or at least no stupid DRM from your own converted tracks. Play lists and selecting tracks is actually very simple as well. So using a decent size memory stick and a decent set of cans one can use this as a very good play back device whilst keeping the HI-MD for recording. To get sounds from the MD to phone one still has to upload the MD to computer and then copy to the phone. BTW the phone works on Mac and Linux as well. I'm actually quite amazed at the quality of the player. --Now if it had direct recording abilities this would constitute a serious threat to MD. If only Sony had introduced Drag 'n Drop on MD devices. The W900 is a breeze to use for music transfer (OK you do need a computer). This is definitely a 'POD killer as it does everything and more a 'POD would do, looks great and has removable storage media, and is a PHONE as well. Still going for an RH1 however as the phone will be used for on the road playback. Perhaps mobile phones with these inbuilt functions are the way to go in future. Cheers -K

Nero (Windows) comes included with "Drive Image" which lets you mount a "virtual CD (or DVD). What you could do is record your WAV file up to 4.7 GB, convert it to an ISO and then mount it as a virtual CD / DVD. Alternatively create an ISO of your Audio DVD and then mount it as a virtual disk. I don't have any audio DVD's so I can't sya what SS will do with them. However provided you can find some program to extract the audio content as WAV files then SS should be able to process these. You might have to change the sampling rate to 16 (note not the kbs rate but the sampling rate) and ignore the 5.1 / DTS or other Dolby etc encoding which might be on the disk. Real time recording will always work however from your DVD player you can use the optical out to optical in on the computer or MD recorder. Cheers -K

One would need to get an original uncompressed track and then compare it with the FLAC from allomp3.com. Apart from the fact that this paricular site has questionable legalty outside Russia there aren't as yet AFAIK any download sites that offer totally uncompressed music whether in FLAC WMAlossless, PCM/WAV or whatever. I'm actually trying to clear up the whole issue with allofmp3 as far as the UK goes. Currently as no one seems to have any definitive issues on it just go ahead and use it for the moment. Quote from the link I've posted later in this post .................... The most popular legal download site is iTunes with 44% of the market. This is followed by Moscow-based AllOfMP3.com, which accounts for 14% of legal downloads, according to the report. The Russian service offers entire albums for a pound, compared to 80 pence per track on most sites. The IFPI regard the service as illegal and tried to have the site shutdown last year, but failed. ................................................. I'm sure as soon as this site becomes anything of an irritant to the major players something will happen - remember the original Napster (I mean the old File sharing Napster). If This site IS legal and really has proper UNCOMPRESSED tracks (compressed LOSSLESSLY in FLAC etc). then it deserves to be supported. Other countries will have their own rules on this but our Police (UK) can't seem to be bothered with looking after the Streets anymore. Speed cameras and catching a few youngsters doing "Illegal" music downloads seems to be all they are good for now. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4875142.stm Cheers _k

MD's certainly haven't been failures in the professional domain. Perhaps at the consumer level for people who wanted playback devices yes there was a failure but this might have been due to problems in deciding who the MD market was actually aimed at. The UMD certainly had all the WRONG credentials right at the start. As a viable format it wasn't going anywhere since it wasn't re-writable so that immediately knocks out a HUGE potential market. DVD recorders (domestic one's) have become rediculously cheap now. I saw some in my local Morrisons SUPERMARKET for 72 GBP (100 USD approx). These are more than good enough for recording TV and will handle re-writable media as well. What would people do with unrecordable UMD's. The actual cost of DVD films themselves has also dropped to rock bottom (especially if you aren't always waiting for the latest release), and sometimes you even get FREE ones given with the Sunday Papers. DVD download / film streaming via the Internet is almost with us as well (albeit currently the quality is hideous and riddled with DRM). However unlike audio where people can tolerate a lesser quality sound in some cases, bad quality video will always be a no no especially once you've seen one of those hideously expensive large plsama TV's showing proper HD TV (HD here means High Definition). I suspect that DVD downloads or movie streams will have to offer high quality if that method of distribution is to take off. Finally by limiting UMD to playstations and the like who do Sony think their market is for. As a Greying 50 something - but with a reasonable disposable income does Sony really think that people like me will buy play stations for G--'s sake. If some of my friends come round for a few drinks and to watch a movie or two does Sony really think we are going to get a play station out and pop a UMD in it. Come on pleeeeeeease. !! Even the youngsters who buy this sort of gear will eventually tire of it and want something else so there is no longterm natural market for this product. With HD TV here NOW and Blu-RAY / other High capacity format DVD's only a few months away the new format didn't have a chance - which even somebody with an IQ of about 5 could have predicted. So what on Earth were these high paid Sony Execs thinking of or what planet do they actually live on. Certainly not this one. The MD currently for journalists out in the field / some musicians etc doesn't have any viable competitor YET which is why the RH1 will be a runaway success. OK volumes will be small but in its niche market it will do very very nicely. I'm not sorry at the demise of UMD - it was a really stupid piece of kit to begin with anyway. The quicker UMD dies the better. It was a total piece of Bovine Scatology (B/S) from the start. Cheers -K

Tonight on TV in the UK (Channel 4 7 PM News) some journalists were seen interviewing the Irish Guarda (Police) about the murder of an ex "Spy" who had admitted working for the UK government. NO I am NOT making a political statement. The whole purpose of this post is to say that of the 4 or 5 reporters clearly shown on the screen they were ALL using minidisc recorders for capturing the r interviews / press comments made by the Guarda. I definitely saw 3 RH10 type devices (probably the MH10 - the Pro model) and something that looked like a classical Tascam. This proves so far that Minidisc is FAR from dead. Also there wasn't a single large microphone to be seen either. Obviously these guys were using the very small mikes that make recording out in the field really easy. (I repeat I'm NOT making a Political statement here , just pointing out that this News Item showed a few journalists on a breaking News assignment quite happily using Minidisc products in what is their real environment. Just to show that it's not only people ripping CD's who use Minidiscs. Cheers -K

I don't understand how a "Lossless" format can be "Lossy", and where does the Lossless 256 come from. I believe if you want to try Linux you can use FLAC and a lot of other codecs quite easily and there's plenty of software players as well. Amarok is one player (you can use a MySQL database for your music and data tags etc). There are loads of others as well. As far as I know there aren't any Physical Hardware players that actually play FLAC directly (could be wrong on that however). I only want a PC library so I don't have to re-rip CD's again. I'm not too bothered in which format so long as it's Lossless and can re-create the original WAV if and when I need it. I originally thought of storing everything in WAV but for archival purposes a Lossless compression scheme that fits everything on to a single HD is what I've been looking for. I could have created WAV then simply "Zipped" it or Winrar or even with Linux "Tarred" it or used bzip but all these involve an extra step. The Atrac 3 lossless just did all this in one step. Expanding a file to WAV and comparing it with the original WAV yields the same file so I'm quite happy with this approach. I've already got MD's loaded with music. This is just for archival purposes. The whole kybosh is saved on an external 300 GB HD which I just unplug and store until I need it. I almost never use a computer for PLAYING music. (Editing is another matter but that's a topic for a different post). I'm not particularly enamoured of WMA lossless as I hope to get rid of Windows completely sooner or later. Whether using WMA or any other "proprietary" LOSSLESS format you'll still need an extra step to get the original WAV back. Also just as SONY (not before time) seems to be slightly relaxing the DRM issues, Microsoft seems to be going the other way in tightening them up especially in some of the possible newer hardware players in the pipeline that will be able to play (DRM'ed) WMA files directly. I've got a script that will be able to convert all my ATRAC3 lossless to WAV if I have to do this step so I can Batch process this while I'm doing something else. Remember I'm storing this stuff purely as DATA. As such it suits my purposes fine whilst not using too much storage. For other people with different needs this might not be the best method. Cheers -K