On 2005-11-24, bambam@nospam.tnx <bambam@nospam.tnx> wrote:
It only makes sense to download music form the internet if you have a fast
'broadband' connection; it takes *hours* via dial-up (and costs a lot more
than buying CDs if you have to pay per minute for the phone line or
internet access).
Either a CD player or digital audio player would be good for that; the CD
players don't have the 'street cred' though. There are various adaptors
for playing both types through a normal car radio or casette system.
There are a few legitimate sites where you can download free music, and
several where you can pay some sort of membership fee or pence-per-track
to buy files honestly. I think knowledgeable adult supervision would be
required to keep the child away from dodgy sites - along with adult
control of keeping all the anti-virus, anti-spyware, and software patches,
bang up to date, and paying for the downloads.
There are also 'peer-to-peer networks' (P2P) that are used for "sharing"
music, both legitimately and otherwise - that can be a very risky method
for the unwary. Binary newsgroups are another source, also risky. As
both these methods are free, they are very tempting.
Some people whose computers have been used to 'upload' copyright material
to P2P systems, websites, or newsgroups, without the permission of the
copyright-holders, have been sued for large sums of money. Some copyright
holders or government agencies have created deliberately corrupt or
modified files to 'punish' people trying to download material
'illegitimately'. All more reason to supervise any child trying to 'get
free stuff'.
It is certainly possible to 'rip' tracks from a CD and convert them into a
format that a digital audio player can play back. I don't use Windows so I
can't say what software might be required; I've done it myself using
Linux.
Some of the digital devices can be plugged directly into a CD player or
other sound system, and copy and translate tracks for themselves, although
probably not as quickly as a computer.
Some CDs may include special codes in an attempt to stop copies from being
made - you may have heard of the scandal over Sony's recent mistaken
approach in that area, but there are other methods also in use.
.... yet, that is ... pester power is at a high level at this time of year.
Whichever technology you go for, think about getting rechargeable NiMH
batteries and a charger for it. A pair (or set) of suitable loud-speakers
might be appreciated too, so that he can listen without headphones or
earphones sometimes. Apart from comfort, I think it's also better for the
ears not to be 'close coupled' to a sound source for long periods.
(Reminds me of the wind-up tin gramophone I had as a child ...).
--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~
