[[email protected]]

On Thursday, July 19, 2012 1:19:00 PM UTC-4, wrote:


__________________
July 31:

Just a GENERAL UPDATE on the condition of my hard drive.

My HP Pavilion's Hardware diagnostics app deployed as it does every month and found zero problems with item including but not limited to:

"Hard Drive: Random Tests, funnel tests, surface scans, SMART tests

NVIDIA Video driver Network cable, TCP/IP

CMOS Checksum, Pattern test

Pentium Cache, register tests, CCU, multicore all ok"

So I honestly think we can rule out the hard-drive and hardware.

I'm beginning to feel that the focus is on two areas: Windows Media Player(I looked for updates and MS says mine is the latest and all updates installed), and "free" mp3 sites.

I no longer use limewire(ran it from late 2008 for about a year. BeeMP3 and such sites are drying up anyhow, so I no longer bother with them.


I've made CD-R backups of mp3s from on-line resources and have my CD collection as the ultimate backup of the rest of them.

So the best thing I can say to you folks is: STAY AWAY from "free" sites: you might also be downloading a major headache. Go Amazon, iTunes, be straight!

-CC

[Doug McDonald[_6_]]

Have you done a complete, full, scan with Malwarebytes?
That's probably the most important thing to do.

My prediction: it won't find the problem.

Doug McDonald

[Trevor]

wrote in message
...
So the best thing I can say to you folks is: STAY AWAY from "free" sites:
you might also be downloading a major headache. Go Amazon, iTunes, be
straight!

In fact your less likely to have problems with mp3's from "free" sites than
ones that impose any sort of DRM.

Trevor.

[[email protected]]

Trevor:

In fact your less likely to have problems with mp3's from "free" sites than
ones that impose any sort of DRM.

Trevor.

_____
Now that's something you'll NEVER get me on board! Maybe no drm, but God knows WHAT ELSE. No thanks! Besides, such sites will likely be extinct by mid-decade.

Rip your own CDs, record from cassettes & vinyl, or purchase from the major sites. That's my strategy and I'm sticking to it!

-ChrisCoaster

[John Williamson]

Trevor wrote:
wrote in message
...
So the best thing I can say to you folks is: STAY AWAY from "free" sites:
you might also be downloading a major headache. Go Amazon, iTunes, be
straight!

In fact your less likely to have problems with mp3's from "free" sites than
ones that impose any sort of DRM.

What sort of DRM have you seen on mp3 files?

I ask because as far as I'm aware, it's a DRM free format at the moment,
and there's no provision for DRM in the specification.

I did get caught out by HMV selling me a couple of WMA files which I
couldn't play back after they closed down their licence server, but
that's a different kettle of fish. Still, some generous person had put
them up on Youtube, so I can still listen to them.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

[Trevor]

"John Williamson" wrote in message
...
Trevor wrote:
wrote in message
...
So the best thing I can say to you folks is: STAY AWAY from "free"
sites: you might also be downloading a major headache. Go Amazon,
iTunes, be straight!

In fact your less likely to have problems with mp3's from "free" sites
than ones that impose any sort of DRM.

What sort of DRM have you seen on mp3 files?

I ask because as far as I'm aware, it's a DRM free format at the moment,
and there's no provision for DRM in the specification.

I did get caught out by HMV selling me a couple of WMA files which I
couldn't play back after they closed down their licence server, but that's
a different kettle of fish. Still, some generous person had put them up on
Youtube, so I can still listen to them.


Yes, I wasn't thinking of mp3 only since iTunes was mentioned. Beware what
YouTube does to sound quality however.

Trevor.

[John Williamson]

Trevor wrote:
"John Williamson" wrote:-
I did get caught out by HMV selling me a couple of WMA files which I
couldn't play back after they closed down their licence server, but that's
a different kettle of fish. Still, some generous person had put them up on
Youtube, so I can still listen to them.


Yes, I wasn't thinking of mp3 only since iTunes was mentioned. Beware what
YouTube does to sound quality however.

Ah, right you are. No DRM on mp3, then. As for YouBend, I know what it
does to audio quality, but as these are recordings of singing with a
piano from the 1940s, I'm not too worried about the quality.


--
Tciao for Now!

John.

[[email protected]]

Reply to John Williamson:

You have to be really really really naive to believe that MP3 cannot be DRMd:


http://forums.mobiledia.com/topic41322-0-asc-10.html


http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_MP3

By implication that it sells drm free it means that drm mp3 exists!

That's why I'm staying away from free sites because you don't know what CRAP is being packaged with those mp3s! **

My problem is solved - It's a combination of free mp3s and my Windows media player. *I've already posted my solution; I'm staying safe!

[None]

wrote in message
...
Reply to John Williamson:

You have to be really really really naive to believe that MP3 cannot be
DRMd:


http://forums.mobiledia.com/topic41322-0-asc-10.html


http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_MP3

By implication that it sells drm free it means that drm mp3 exists!

That's why I'm staying away from free sites because you don't know what
CRAP is being packaged with those mp3s!

My problem is solved - It's a combination of free mp3s and my Windows
media player. I've already posted my solution; I'm staying safe!

So you don't really know what actually caused the problem, you
don't really understand how it was solved, and you haven't a clue
how to prevent it from happening in the future. An exercise in
blissful ignorance.