Easy Computer Basics, Windows 10 Edition (2016)
Chapter 14. Playing Digital Music
Your personal computer can do more than just compute. It can also serve as a fully functional music player!
You can use your PC to listen to music played from Spotify, Pandora, and other streaming music services. You can download and play music you purchase from the iTunes Store and other online music stores. You can even use your PC to listen to music the old-fashioned way, from compact disc!
Comparing Streaming Music Services
Streaming Music Online with Spotify
If you’re a music lover, you can listen to pretty much any song you like online, from one of a number of streaming music services. These services don’t download music files to your computer; instead, music is streamed to you in real time, over the Internet. One of the most popular of these music services is Spotify (www.spotify.com), which offers both free and paid plans.
Launch the Spotify app from the Windows Start menu, and then create a new account or sign into your existing account. (You can also log in with your Facebook account, if you have one.)
To browse by genre, click Genres & Moods.
Click a genre tile to view music of that type.
To search for a specific song, album, or artist, enter your query into the top-of-page Search box and then press Enter.
Note: Download the Spotify App
Spotify offers a web-based version you can access via your web browser, or a standalone Spotify app that offers enhanced functionality. Access both at www.spotify.com.
Note: Free Versus Paid
Spotify’s basic membership is free, but you’re subjected to commercials every few songs. If you want to get rid of the commercials (and get on-demand music on your mobile devices too), you need to pay for a $9.99/month subscription.
Click a playlist, an album, or an artist to view all included songs.
Click the green Play button to play all the songs in the playlist or album, or by that artist.
Double-click a song title to play that particular track.
Use the playback controls at the bottom left to pause, rewind, or fast-forward playback, or to raise or lower the volume.
Note: On-Demand Versus Personalized Services
There are two primary types of delivery services for streaming audio over the Internet. The first model, typified by Spotify, lets you specify which songs you want to listen to; we call these on-demand services. The second model, typified by Pandora, is more like traditional radio in that you can’t dial up specific tunes; you have to listen to whatever the service beams out, but in the form of personalized playlists or virtual radio stations.
Note: Other On-Demand Streaming Music Services
In addition to Spotify, other on-demand streaming music services include Apple Music (www.apple.com/music/), Google Play Music All Access (play.google.com/about/music/), Rdio (www.rdio.com), Rhapsody Premier (www.rhapsody.com), and Slacker Premium (www.slacker.com). Most subscriptions run $9.99/month.
Streaming Music Online with Pandora
Pandora differs from Spotify in that you can’t pick specific tracks to play. It’s more like a traditional radio station, in that you listen to the songs Pandora selects for you, along with accompanying commercials. You create your own personalized stations, however, by choosing a song or an artist and then letting Pandora select other songs like the one you picked. You access Pandora from your web browser, at www.pandora.com.
From the Pandora website (www.pandora.com) create a new account or log in to your existing account.
To create a new station, enter the name of a song, a genre, an artist, or a composer into the Create Station box at the top-left corner, and then press Enter.
The new station is added to your station list on the left side of the page. Click a station to begin playback; information about this track and artist is now displayed.
Note: Free Versus Paid
Pandora’s basic membership is free, but ad-supported. (You have to suffer through commercials.) To get rid of the commercials, pay for the $4.99/month Pandora One subscription.
To pause playback, click the Pause button at the top of the page. Click Play to resume playback.
To like the current song, click the thumbs up button. Pandora will now play more songs like this one.
If you don’t like the current song, click the thumbs down button. Pandora will now skip to the next song, not play the current song again, and play fewer songs like it.
To skip to the next song without disliking it, click the next track button.
Note: Other Personalized Radio Streaming Music Services
In addition to Pandora, other personalized radio streaming music services include Apple’s iTunes Radio (www.apple.com/itunes/itunes-radio/), Rhapsody unRadio (www.rhapsody.com), and Slacker Radio (www.slacker.com). Most offer both free (ad-supported) and paid services.
Note: Local Radio Stations Online
If you’d rather just listen to your local AM or FM radio station—or to a radio station located in another city—you can do so over the Internet. Both iHeartRadio (www.iheart.com) and TuneIn (www.tunein.com) offer free access to local radio stations around the world.
Downloading Music from the iTunes Store
If you use an iPhone or iPad, chances are you download your music from Apple’s iTunes Store, which has more than 37 million tracks available for downloading at prices ranging from 69¢ to $1.29 each. You play music purchased at the iTunes Store with Apple’s iTunes music player application—which you also need in order to access the iTunes Store.
Launch the iTunes app from the Start menu, and then click iTunes Store at the top of the window. This connects you to the Internet and displays the Store’s home page.
To view only music items, click the Music icon in the iTunes toolbar.
To search for something specific, enter the song title, album title, or artist name into the Search box at the top of the window and press Enter.
Note: iTunes
You use the iTunes app to shop the iTunes Store, play the music you purchase, and manage the content of your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. Download the iTunes app free at www.apple.com/itunes/.
Tip: More in the Store
The iTunes Store offers more than just music for download. iTunes also sells movies, TV shows, music videos, podcasts, audiobooks, and eBooks (in the ePub format).
To browse music by category, click All Genres on the right and select a category.
To view all the tracks in an album, click the album cover.
To purchase an individual track, click the Buy (price) button for that track.
To purchase an entire album, click the Buy button for that album.
Tip: Apple Account
Before you can purchase items from the iTunes Store, you have to create an Apple account and enter your credit card information. You might be prompted to do this the first time you click to purchase, or you can create your account manually, at any time, by clicking the Sign In button at the top right of the iTunes window and, when prompted, clicking the Create New Account button.
Tip: Other Online Music Stores
The iTunes Store is the store of choice if you have an Apple iPhone, iPod, or iPad; it fits in seamlessly with the Apple infrastructure and offers music in the AAC file format. If you prefer to get your digital music in the more universal MP3 file format, check out the Amazon Digital Music Store (www.amazon.com/mp3/) and Google Play Music store (play.google.com/store/music).
Playing Digital Music with iTunes
You use the iTunes app to play all digital music that you’ve downloaded from the iTunes Store or that is otherwise stored on your computer.
Launch the iTunes app from the Start menu, and then click My Music at the top of the window.
To view all the tracks in your library, click the down arrow at the top-right corner and click Songs. To view your music organized by original album, click Albums. To view your music organized by artist, click Artists. To view your music organized by genre, click Genres.
Navigate to the track, album, artist, or genre you want to play, and then double-click that item.
Click the Pause button to pause playback; click the Play button to resume playback.
Tip: Playlists
You can put multiple songs together into a single playlist for future playback. To view and play back your playlists, click Playlists at the top of the iTunes window; a new Playlists pane opens on the left. To create a new playlist, click the + button at the bottom of the Playlists pane and then click New Playlist. To add songs to a playlist, drag individual tracks from the Content pane into the Playlists pane.
Tip: Shuffle Playback
To play an album or a playlist in random order, click the Shuffle icon in the mini-player at the top of the iTunes window.
Playing a CD with iTunes
If your computer includes a CD or CD/DVD drive, you can use it to play music CDs. The iTunes app doubles as a music player for your CDs.
Launch the iTunes app, and then insert the music CD into your PC’s CD/DVD drive. The CD should automatically appear in the iTunes window, with all the tracks listed.
Click the Play button to begin playback; click Pause to pause playback.
Click the Forward arrow to skip to the next track on the CD. Click the Back arrow to skip to the previous track.
Double-click a specific track to jump to that track.
Tip: Ripping CDs
The iTunes app can also import or “rip” CDs to digital files, stored on your computer. Just insert the CD and then click Import CD in the iTunes app.
Purchasing Music from the Groove Music App
Windows 10 includes the Groove Music app for both playing digital music and purchasing music online from the Windows Store.
Launch the Groove Music app from the Windows Start menu, and then click the Shop for Music icon to open the Windows Store app.
Scroll down to browse new albums, top-selling songs, top albums, top artists, and genres.
Click an item to view and purchase.
Playing Digital Music with the Groove Music App
You can also use the Groove Music app to play digital music stored on your computer.
Launch the Groove Music app from the Windows Start menu. To display all the albums in your collection, click Albums.
To display music organized by artist, click Artists.
To display individual tracks, click Songs.
Double-click an artist or album to view all tracks within.
Click the Play button to play all tracks within that artist or album.
Double-click a specific track to play only that track.
Click the Pause button to pause playback; click Play again to resume playback.
Click the Turn Shuffle On button to play tracks in a random order.
Tip: Search for Music
To search for specific tunes or artists in your collection, click the Search button in the Navigation pane and enter the name of the song or artist you’re looking for.
