I had an mp3 player which I earned as an incentive prize from the library by completing a technology course designed for library staff. It worked just dandy for a good while but finally "died."
For that mp3 player, I had purchased music from Wal-Mart's online store. The music was "protected" because Wal-Mart was involved with DRM (digital rights management). Those restrictions ended, but I didn't make the adjustments to my music in time. (Wal-Mart sent an email reminder, but I misunderstood and disregarded it.)
The upshot is that I ended up with at least 60 songs I had paid for, but that I could only listen to on Windows Media Player when using my laptop-- which I rarely do these days; it's not convenient.
iTunes could neither play nor convert the songs from the wma format to mp3 files so no transfer to my iPod. Bummer. 60 songs = $60!
But it's been months, and I really got to missing those songs. They were by some of my favorite artists-- Third Day and Newsboys for example. I'd get one of the songs stuck in my head but then couldn't remember all of the lyrics without the prompting of actually listening. And the radio just doesn't play these songs often enough to suit me-- they concentrate on the current top 20.
There is free software that can convert wma files to mp3 files, but if the songs are protected, that software doesn't work.
After a little Googling, I discovered Tunebite. They let you download and try it free, but I did have to purchase the basic version. However, it was less than half the price of replacing the music. Additionally, the software will serve me well in converting voice memos, blogging, and maybe even podcasting in the future.
The idea behind Tunebite is that while you play the music using Windows Media, it's being recorded from your computer's sound card, so the recording is free of DRM restrictions and can be played by iTunes. And the sound quality is decent.
Yipee! Now I get to hear those songs and integrate them with my newer music. I've got a few more to convert today, then I'll be all set!
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