With the price of audio recordings today, there’s absolutely nothing like free music. Free MP3 music has been all the rage, heightening music-mania all over the world. Of course there have been some controversies involving the questionable legality of peer-to-peer sharing of free MP3 files, e.g. the issue on Napster, but all that has been remedied when intellectual property laws were modified to cover copyrighted materials online. So now, sharing free MP3 music and downloading them from legal websites is completely legit.

So what’s a free MP3 file anyway?

MP3 actually stands for MPEG -1/2 Audio Layer 3 and it is also referred to as MPG3, MPG-3, MPG Level 3, MPG Level III, MPEG 3, etc. Essentially, it is an audio file compressed into tiny bits using the same fractal-based algorithms for compressing photographs into JPG format.

Like JPG, free MP3 files have a slightly loose format. This means that the final sound of a free MP3 file is not quite the same as that of its source. However, the difference between the sound of a free MP3 file and that of a conventional WAV file are usually too subtle for human discernment. In fact, only particularly trained listeners can distinguish the slightly different sound of a free MP3 file from that of its source. This makes a free MP3 music perfect to listen to even when you’re at home, in the subway, or while driving.

Where can I get free MP3 music?

The Internet is practically crawling with websites that offer free MP3 downloads. There’s MP3.com, of course, which is perhaps one of the largest online music community in the world. The site features free MP3 album streaming and videos. You can choose from different genres from rock/pop and alternative/indie to hardrock/metal and hip-hop, and even to soul, urban, latin, and more. You can also check out some cool MP3 players so you can play all your free MP3 music downloads anywhere you want, anytime you want.

Then, there’s Nullsoft’s popular Winamp free MP3 collection. Not only does Winamp feature free MP3 music, but they also let you download their free MP3 winamp player, complete with ultra-phat skins and visualizations. Aside from that, Winamp also features some great plug-ins to give your free MP3 player some fabulous additions, like an i-pod interface, language packs, midi control and more.

Another great site for free MP3 music is Epitonic. In addition to their wide variety of free MP3 files, this site offers their very own Epitonic radio where you can listen to cutting edge music of your chosen genre.

There are dozens and dozens of sites that offer free MP3 for the music fan. Just be careful though because there are as many websites of questionable legality as there are legitimate sites.

Gaz Hutchinson

For a legal free mp3 download site go to
http://www.mp3downloadz.co.uk

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Online games have become rapidly popular over the last few years. In fact, it has become a multi-billion dollar industry. These massive virtual worlds provide a realistic, engaging environment in which people can play and interact. It has been a fertile ground for gamers from all walks of life to come together. As a result, these games have produced large and vibrant online communities.

In these virtual worlds, you can choose an avatar or character that represents you. The latest games offer the ability to customize these characters in unlimited ways; you can change your character’s hairstyle, facial features, size, weight, and clothing. How about the ability to change your voice to match your online personality? That is currently not a standard feature in games. But I do see technology stepping in and providing a solution.

Think of the possibilities: gamers could now change their voice to sound like a troll, giant, dwarf or dark lord. They’ve spent many hours making their online character to look a certain way, why not change their voice to match? It is products like MorphVOX by Screaming Bee that can fill this need. MorphVOX is voice-changing software specifically designed for online games. This tool allows gamers to role-play more effectively. Not only can they look the part, they can also have a voice to match.

Voice communication in games has been around for quite some time, but only recently has gained popularity in online games. Much of this may have to do with the increase in the number of people who now have broadband Internet connections instead of dial-up. This provides the extra precious bandwidth to cover an additional voice channel. As voice chat is becoming increasingly prevalent in online game use, companies like Xfire, TeamSpeak, and Ventrillo have emerged to meet the needs.

One company, Xfire, demonstrates the popularity of voice chat. Xfire provides a free application that can be used by gamers to easily find friends online and communicate in game. Starting in 2004, the company’s market share has rapidly grown to almost four million users.

Many gamers are finding voice chat to be a superior way to communicate as opposed to the slower process of typing messages on a keyboard. If a monster jumps out, there is no need for fumbling with the keys when you need to shout for help. Voice chat also lets gamers coordinate large groups of people effectively in large raids.

What about role-playing and voice communication? There is some reluctance to use voice communication in online role-playing games. Much of this issue stems from the lack of good voice-changing tools in the past that can work effectively with games. In addition, there is less control of good content on voice chat. External noises, such as other people talking in the same room, are very distracting and can’t be easily masked over a microphone. Also, some less helpful gamers could use voice chat to taunt or annoy other people, who may be unable to turn off an in-game voice channel. And role-playing over live voice communication poses a challenge for most people of finding the right thing to say at the right time. Most of us aren’t very good at extemporaneous acting - improvising in real-time.

However, new online games such as Dungeons & Dragons Online (DDO) provide in-game voice capabilities that are adding a new life to role-playing. Many people are now starting to adopt voice chat as an important part of their in-game experience. As games like DDO become more common, I foresee brighter days ahead for voice communication. By providing a rich auditory experience, voice chat will improve realism for gamers. This is part of the never-ending process of adding more immersion to these virtual worlds.

Mark Ramirez is CEO and co-founder of Screaming Bee LLC, a leading provider of voice software and solutions for online games and messenger applications. For more information visit: http://www.screamingbee.com

Copyright and Trademark Information:
MorphVOX is a trademark of Screaming Bee LLC. Xfire is a trademark of Xfire, Inc. Dungeons & Dragons Online is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

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Can we teach kids to use tools like the Xbox, television and video games to learn rather than to become hateful with images of sex and violence? We all realize that as the action heats up for the most challenging, graphic and appealing video games that many gaming companies are turning up the heat on violence and inserting sexual connotations to improve sales. It also seems readily apparent that this tactic at least from a popularity standpoint is working well for sales.

Can we use these venues such as video games and the Xbox as platforms so that gamming companies can use them to teach “history,” “science” and “math?” Can we use these technologies to show a brighter future thru writing of future history? If we did that would turn the violence and sex in video games into a good thing and if it sells, then that is a great thing. Perhaps we can balance out the negative potential impact on young human minds with a positive?

We know in the future that such games will become virtual reality and these types of platforms will be used as simulators for learning skills, so why not start now and produce more teaching tools, rather than only producing the action attack genres because they sell the best?

Now then that is not to say that the competition for the visual sense of the mind will not be won over by the Jerry Springer Shows of the World or the vindictiveness of Reality TV on shows like “You’re Fired” with Donald Trump. And indeed the most popular games are the action games and therefore the money flows are moving this way, due to military simulation and the current cartoons available. Even the not so horrific killer cartoons are pushing the envelope of morality for instance “Family Guy” yet it is hard to deny they do not absolutely nail the human side of life like a nail on the head.

We need to use these magnificent technological advances as tools for learning and good to balance out the normal tendencies and monetary flows in the market place due to the insatiable appetite of the human species for sex and violence. We just really need some more balance here you see? Think on this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

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