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Buying Music from Other than iTunes?
flyingember asks: "I own an iPod and use iTunes music store. It's easy and it works. My mom likes her tiny Philips Rush player, as she prefers small for her devices. Now, she wants more music, and is willing to pay for it. She runs Windows 98SE, because she likes it and work hasn't upgraded to XP, yet. Does this sound like anyone you know? Is there a service that supports Windows98, a ton of players, and has good variety? I'm willing to put up with WMA's, if compatability is there. Napster is 2000/XP only; Musicmatch does not support her player for downloads; Buymusic seems to be the same; and Emusic doesn't have the right music. Is there a legal download service for people that don't have an iPod that just works?"
Tell your mom to go to amazon -or the like- and order cd's. Then teach her to rip the cd's. You'll always have the original in superior quality, not just crappy mp3, aac, wma or even ogg. You also get a nice case for your cd and arty little booklets. Also consider that most of the music people want is available on low cost compilations.
Even better, why don't you take your mom shopping in a local record store? Chat to some nice people with real stores instead of staying inside.
And when you come home with your cd, why don't you try that wonderful stereo system your mom surely has instead of listening to lossy recordings through tiny computer speakers or the earbuds of an mp3 player.
And if you want real luxury, buy your mom a decent record player and listen to the unsurpassed warm analog sound of all those vintage records you can buy second hand at one tenth of the price of a cd .