22 posts from 2008

"With a unique touch screen and cutting-edge multimedia capabilities, the BlackBerry Storm smartphone makes a great impression as you travel across town or to almost any corner of the world."

One of the great new features I am starting to enjoy on my BlackBerry Storm is the ability for it to play multimedia files and specifically audio (music).

First let's take a look at the video and audio formats supported by BlackBerry Storm:

Video format support: MPEG4 H.263, MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, H.264, WMV
Audio format support: MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, WMA, WMA ProPlus

Basically, when you buy music from iTunes, it comes with a copyright protection called DRM. These DRM-protected songs are locked so that they only work with Apple MP3 players. That means that if you have a BlackBerry Storm, you cannot use iTunes music.

So, what is the solution? You have to burn a CD. When you do this, the DRM is removed (because the music is converted to a non-DRM-compatible media). After you burn the CD, you can rip it to your PC as an MP3 file which no longer has DRM.

Alternatively, you can use TuneClone. TuneClone makes a virtual CD-ROM drive, tricking your PC into believing that you are burning a CD. Therefore, the DRM is removed without wasting a CD.

Here is a link to a tutorial using TuneClone and iTunes 8:
http://www.tuneclone.com/itunes8-m4p-to-mp3.php

After you get the output MP3 files, you can now begin to transfer them to your BlackBerry Storm:

1. Connect your BlackBerry to you computer via the USB cable.
2. If you have properly enabled your Blackberry as a Mass Storage Device, your Blackberry's microSD card will show as a removable drive on your computer.
3. Double click on the Blackberry folder.
4. Double click on the music folder.
5. Copy your music files to your BlackBerry.
6. Disconnect your Blackberry from the USB cable and go to the "Multimedia" icon on you Blackberry. You need to disconnect when you use the Mass Storage device method as it disables direct access from the BlackBerry when connected to the PC via the USB cable.
7. Click on the Music icon.
8. Click on the Media Card folder.
9. Select your Music folder.
10. Select your Song.
11. Play and enjoy.

Done.

Are you annoyed by iTunes DRM? Do you want to remove it because you want to play the iTunes music on non-Apple MP3 players like PSP, Zune, Creative Zen, BlackBerry, PS3, iriver, Walkman, mobile phone MP3 player, etc., use it as background music in a home video, or anything else that DRM limits it to do? Many people know you can remove the DRM from iTunes music by simply burning the song to a CD, and ripping it back over, losing very little quality(if settings are correct):

1. Insert a CD-R or CD-RW disc into your CD-ROM drive. You’d better use CD-RW disc as it can be used for more than once.
2. Burn your playlist to make an audio CD. You cannot select the MP3 CD option since it requires the encrypted iTunes music files be converted to unprotected MP3 files.
3. After the audio CD is successfully burned, insert the disc into your CD-ROM drive again. Then you can use iTunes to import the music tracks on the burned disc to MP3 files.

And the method I am going to introduce does the same exact thing but you will not need a CD-RW disc, a CD ROM drive, or even need to burn anything! It’s that simple. Let’s show you how to perform this.

We are going to be using a program called TuneClone. TuneClone is basically a program that acts as a virtual CD drive that allows you “burn” MP3 from iTunes and “rip” it. TuneClone “lies” to your computer saying that you have a CD-RW drive that it will burn to (like Alchohol 120%). You can use this to move your library of M4P DRM protected music to the MP3 format that you can use on any player out there worth its salt. This is a useful tool for anyone looking to break their relationship with the iPod. The best part is that it maintains all of the music file’s metadata. Below is the step by step tutorial that shows how it works:

1. Download TuneClone from http://www.tuneclone.com and install it.

TuneClone is fully compatible with Windows XP and Windows Vista. A virtual CD Burner will be installed. This virtual CD-RW will be used to convert music files.

2. Make settings at TuneClone

Click the Settings button at TuneClone. In the pop-up window, you can specify the output folder, output filenames, output format, etc. for the output files.

Note: Apart from MP3, TuneClone also allows you to convert iTunes M4P to WAV and unprotected WMA.
Tip: You can get the output protection removed music folder by clicking the Folder button after the whole process.

3. Make settings at iTunes(iTunes 8 )

Create a playlist, and then add the files you want to convert into the playlist.

After you have created the playlist ready to be burnt, click the Burn Disc in the bottom right of iTunes.

In the pop up window of Burn Settings, make the settings as highlighted below:

4. Start to burn

Click the Burn button to start burning.

After the burning gets started, TuneClone will automatically convert the music file to MP3, WMA or WAV. You can open the manager screen to show all the converted music files.

The most important step is to choose the CD burner. Then the software can convert the music files automatically. It is exceedingly easy when you want to batch convert lots of files.

Basically, when you buy music from iTunes, it comes with a copyright protection called DRM. These DRM-protected songs are locked so that they only work with Apple MP3 players. That means that if you bought a Microsoft Zune, you cannot use iTunes music.

So, what is the solution? You have to burn a CD. When you do this, the DRM is removed (because the music is converted to a non-DRM-compatible media). After you burn the CD, you can rip it to your PC as an MP3 file which no longer has DRM.

Alternatively, you can use TuneClone (http://www.tuneclone.com/index.php).

TuneClone makes a virtual CD-ROM drive, tricking your PC into believing that you are burning a CD. Therefore, the DRM is removed without wasting a CD.

Here is a link to a tutorial using TuneClone and iTunes 8: http://itunesm4ptomp3.wordpress.com/2008/09/16/convert-itunes8-music-to-mp3/

Music purchased from Rhapsody is under DRM protection, which stops customers from playing the downloaded music with other incompatible devices like Apple iPod and Microsoft Zune. If you don’t continue to pay, you won’t keep the music when the subscription expires. As we all know, iPod is one of the most popular and successful MP3 players. iPod owners can purchase various music songs from iTunes Store and listen to them with their iPods. However, if you prefer Rhapsody and find some songs in Rhapsody that are unavailable in iTunes store, yet you do want to enjoy these songs witn your new iPod, you are meeting the headache of Naspter being incompatible with iPod. So the following tutorial should be the solution.

The tools you will need:

TuneClone Audio Converter
Rhapsody Software
iPod
iTunes Library

1. Make settings in TuneClone Audio Converter

Download TuneClone (fully compatible with Windows XP and Windows Vista) from http://www.tuneclone.com/index.php and install it. After launching TuneClone, click the “Settings” button. In the pop-up dialog of “Options”, you can specify the “Output Folder”, “Output Filenames”, “Output Format” (here we choose MP3), etc. for the output files.

Tip: You can get the output protection removed MP3 music folder by clicking the “Folder” button after the whole process.

2. Create a new playlist in Rhapsody

In the center left panel of Rhapsody, navigate to “Playlist”. Then in the bottom left corner, click “New” to create a new playlist.

Click “File” and select “New Playlist” to create a new playlist in Rhapsody.

Drag and drop the music you are ready to burn to the new playlist from Rhapsody Library.

3. Make CD burning settings in Rhapsody

Click “Tools” and select “Preference…” from the drop-down list. Click “CD Burning” from the list in the left panel. In the “CD Burner Options”, choose TuneClone virtual CD drive as preferred CD burner.

4. Start to burn

Click the “Burn CD” button to start the burning and encoding process.

After the burning gets started, TuneClone will automatically convert the music file to MP3. You can open the manager screen to show all the converted music files.

The most important step is to choose the CD burner. Then the software can convert the music files automatically. It is exceedingly easy when you want to batch convert lots of files.

After you get the output MP3 files converted from the Rhapsody music playlist in your Rhapsody, you can now begin to transfer the MP3 files to your iPod with the sync of iTunes.

Music purchased from Napster is under DRM protection, which stops customers from playing the downloaded music with other incompatible devices like Apple iPod and Microsoft Zune. If you don’t continue to pay, you won’t keep the music when the subscription expires. As we all know, iPod is one of the most popular and successful MP3 players. iPod owners can purchase various music songs from iTunes Store and listen to them with their iPods. However, if you prefer Napster and find some songs in Napster that are unavailable in iTunes store, yet you do want to enjoy these songs witn your new iPod, you are meeting the headache of Naspter being incompatible with iPod. So the following tutorial should be the solution.

The tools you will need:

TuneClone Audio Converter
Napster Software
iPod
iTunes Library

1. Make settings in TuneClone Audio Converter

Download TuneClone (fully compatible with Windows XP and Windows Vista) from http://www.tuneclone.com/index.php and install it. After launching TuneClone, click the “Settings” button. In the pop-up dialog of “Options”, you can specify the “Output Folder”, “Output Filenames”, “Output Format” (here we choose MP3), etc. for the output files.

Tip: You can get the output protection removed MP3 music folder by clicking the “Folder” button after the whole process.

2. Create a new playlist in Napster

Under “My Playlist”, click the “New Playlist” button to create a new playlist. Drag and drop to the playlist the music you are going to burn from your Napster Library.

3. Make CD burning settings in Napster

Click “Tools”, and select “Preference…” from the drop-down list. In the left panel of “Options”, navigate to “CD Options”. In the right panel of “CD Options”, choose TuneClone virtual CD drive as the preferred CD burner.

Note: Please tick “Burn CD Text” to preserve the metadata of the music.

4. Start to burn

Click the “Burn Disk” button to start the burning and encoding process.

After the burning gets started, TuneClone will automatically convert the music file to MP3. You can open the manager screen to show all the converted music files.

The most important step is to choose the CD burner. Then the software can convert the music files automatically. It is exceedingly easy when you want to batch convert lots of files.

After you get the output MP3 files converted from the Napster music playlist in your Napster, you can now begin to transfer the MP3 files to your iPod with the sync of iTunes.

It is no doubt that PSP is an excellent game player. However, it is not playing games all the time; you can use it to do a ton of other cool and (highly useful) things when you're not in the game mode. Thanks to its pretty big screen compared to other portable video players, PSP is a nice gadget for watching videos as well. So the following tutorial focuses on how to rip DVD movies and TV shows, convert video files and convert online YouTube/Google videos to MP4 format for playback on Sony PSP.

The only tool you need is Clone2Go DVD to PSP Converter. Unlike other DVD to PSP converter programs, this DVD to PSP converter combines the following main features into one program:

• DVD to PSP
• Convert video to PSP
• Download online YouTube/Google video
• Convert downloaded YouTube/Google videos or local FLV videos to PSP

Note: Clone2Go DVD to PSP Converter is not free. It does cost USD29.95 to register the full version. And there are numerous DVD ripper and video converter programs that can convert DVD's and videos to PSP compatible video formats. However, if you want to avoid the trouble of finding so many free programs and don't mind paying a small sum of money, the all-in-one Clone2Go DVD to PSP Converter would be the best choice for you.

First, let's take a look at the main interface of Clone2Go DVD to PSP Converter.

And below are the highlights of how to use Clone2Go DVD to PSP Converter.

1. Add DVD movies or TV shows

Insert the DVD disc into the disc drive, click the Open DVD button to import it if you are going to enjoy the DVD movie on your PSP. Or if the DVD movie is saved as a folder on your computer, you need to click the Add Video button to locate that folder, which is composed of two separate folders: VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS. From the VIDEO_TS folder, select the .vob file to import and then click OK.

2. Import video files

You can also import videos stored on your PC by clicking the Add Video button and then click OK. The supporting formats are shown as follows:

3. Download YouTube or Google videos

If you want to enjoy online YouTube or Google videos on your PSP, click the YouTube button on the main interface. In the pop-up window, copy and paste the URLs of the YouTube/Google videos one by one.

There will be a list of the added YouTube/Google videos, which will be downloaded automatically one by one. And the downloading status is clearly shown on the list. After the status of all of them indicates Completed, you can tick whichever videos you want to watch on your PSP.

After the DVD's, videos or YouTube/Google videos are imported, you can preview it on the main interface. If you only want a clip of the DVD/video, you can drag the Start to trim and Stop to trim button to get the certain segment.

4. Choose a proper profile

From the drop-down list of Profile, you can select the most appropriate profile:

Now you can click the Start Encode button to starting ripping DVD movies or TV shows, converting videos or converting YouTube/Google videos for your PSP.

5. Transfer videos to PSP

Since it is very complicated to transfer videos from PC to PSP. Here, I'd like to introduce a totally freeware called PSP Video Manager. You can download it to help you directly transfer videos to PSP or export PSP MPEG-4 videos located in your PSP to your PC without manually renaming PSP MPEG-4 files.

"My laptop HDD recently failed, so I replaced it with an iMac. Fortunately, my iTunes library was on an external HDD, so I have copied it across to the iMac. However, the songs that I have purchased from iTunes do not seem to be available. They have copied across, but are 'greyed out'. I have authorised my new computer to play purchases. Is there anything else I am forgetting?"

It is relatively painless to switch over from Windows to Mac as Mac has support for a lot of commonly used files like Microsoft Word documents, Powerpoint slideshows and Adobe PDF files. So, compatibility is hardly an issue. What you do have to take note of however while switching over to Mac are your iTunes library and WMAs. Note: This tutorial was written under the assumption that you are running the latest version of iTunes ( iTunes 8 ) on both your Windows and Mac.

1. Add WMAs to iTunes on Windows

iTunes for Windows is built with Windows Media Audio (WMA) support - it is able to play and convert WMAs. However, because WMA is a proprietary codec, it isn't available in iTunes for Mac. If you're not careful, you'll be left with a lot of WMAs which will be unplayable on your Mac.

The easiest way to dodge this problem is to convert all the WMAs you have while you're still on your Windows machine. In your iTunes General preferences, under 'Import settings', make sure to have AAC or MP3 selected. Configure the bit rate if you like but because you will be converting from one lossy codec to another, there's bound to be a profound loss in quality.

However, if the WMAs are DRM protected, it will be a little bit difficult. One method of dealing with the DRM protected WMAs is to get an audio converter. Make a simple Google search and you will get a lot of converters that can convert WMA to MP3. However, those that can convert DRM protected WMA to MP3 are rather limited. The one that attracts my attention is TuneClone Audio Converter (fow Windows only), which isn't free but very well worth a shot if you have lots of DRM protected WMAs ready to be switched to Mac. TuneClone Audio Converter is capable of removing DRM protection from WMA files and convert WMA to iTunes (both Windows and Mac) compatible MP3 format by installing a virtual CD burner. Here is the guide: http://www.tuneclone.com/how-to-convert-wma-to-mp3-for-ipod.php

Apart from that, TuneClone Audio Converter can also be used to convert iTunes M4P (protected AAC) to MP3 for non-Apple MP3 devices. Here is the guide: http://www.tuneclone.com/itunes8-m4p-to-mp3.php

After getting the protected WMAs converted to MP3, add to your iTunes library the MP3 files, which will be transferred to Mac along with all the music in iTunes library.

2. Backup iTunes library on Windows

In Windows, open iTunes. Consolidate your library from the 'File -> Library' menu.

This will move all the music files into the iTunes Music folder and sort them by artist and album.

Navigate to your My Music folder. It's typically found at C:\Documents and Settings\~username~\My Documents\My Music.

Copy the iTunes folder to the Desktop of your new Mac. Depending on the size of your library and the method of transfer, this could take a while.

3. Organize iTunes on Mac

If you are running iTunes on your Mac for the first time, you'll be prompted with the initial welcome setup procedure. When it asks to search your drive for music files, make sure to decline. At the end, you'll be presented with a fresh, empty iTunes library. Now, quit iTunes. By default, it would have already set up its own iTunes Music folder located in ~/Music. Go over to this location and delete the iTunes folder then copy and paste your iTunes Music folder from the desktop into it (the one which you have just brought over from your Windows computer). After all this is done, launch iTunes and you'll be rewarded with your old, personalized iTunes library.

Clone2Go Free Audio Converter is a powerful yet easy to use freeware application for extracting audios from video files and converting video/audio files to some audio format.

Click to download Clone2Go Free Audio Converter

With Clone2Go Free Audio Converter, you can easily and quickly extract the audio tracks from video clips in formats such as MOV, WMV, FLV, MPEG-4, MPG, RM, RMVB, AVI, VOB, ASF, DV, 3GP, M1V and M2V and convert video/audio files to popular audio formats including WAV, WMA, OGG, MP3 and AAC for playback on portable entertainment devices such as iPod, iPhone, Zune, PSP, Mobile Phone, Pocket PC, to name just a few.

What’s more, Clone2Go Free Audio Converter allows you to extract audio files from online YouTube/Google videos and convert YouTube/Google FLV video to the specific audio format you need.

Key features of Clone2Go Free Audio Converter:

1. Very user-friendly interface and easy-to-use style.
2. Input video formats supported: MOV, WMV, FLV, MPEG-4, MPG, RM, RMVB, AVI, VOB, ASF, DV, 3GP, M1V and M2V.
3. Output audio formats supported: MP3, WAV, OGG and MP2.
4. Mobile devices supported:
Mobile Phone Series - Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, iPhone, Motorola, Blackberry, Dopod, LG, etc.
Apple Series - iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, iPod touch, etc.
Windows Mobile - Zune, Pocket PC, HP iPAQ, Dell Player, etc.
PSP Series - PSP, PSP3, etc.
Other Players - Xbox, Creative Zen, etc.
5. Support download YouTube/Google video and extract audio from online YouTube/Google video.
6. Support batch converting video/audio files to the specific audio format you need.
7. Customize output video frame size.

Availability:

Clone2go Free Audio Converter is totally free. You can download it from http://www.clone2go.com/down/audio-converter-free-setup.exe.

If you want to know more about Clone2Go Free Audio Converter, please visit the official website http://www.clone2go.com.

"Can I play iTunes (that I have stored on my computer) on my PS3? I know I can't just hook up my iPod to it or stream from my PC. I read something about transferring music to USB and then put that flash drive in the PS3, will this work? I want to play my iTunes on my home theater but I have no other way than to play it through my PS3. I have a yamaha 5990 receiver and it is not iPod compatible. Any options here? Thanks in advance."

As the music in iTunes is encrypted with DRM, you cannot directly transfer it to your PS3. The easiest way is to burn the music to an audio CD and then rip it back to Windows Media Player or a similar program as an MP3.

Or you can get some software to help you. TuneClone is a pretty good program to get the iTunes protected AAC (M4P) music burned to MP3.

And this page demonstrates how to remove DRM from iTunes music and convert iTunes DRM protected AAC (M4P) music to MP3 for Sony PlayStation 3(PS3) using these two methods:

1. Burn an audio CD and rip it back to MP3
2. TuneClone

And below is the tutorial page:
http://www.tuneclone.com/how-to-import-itunes-music-to-playstation3.php

So now you can listen to iTunes music while playing games with your PS3.