Playing and Making Music

You can play many types of audio and video files by using Windows Media Player. You can also play and make copies of your CDs, play DVDs (if you have DVD hardware), listen to Internet radio stations, play clips from a movie, or view a music video on a Web site. You can also use Windows Media Player to make your own music CDs.


Using audio or video files

To play audio or video files

To do this Do this
Play a paused or stopped file Click the Play button .
–or–
On the Play menu, click Play/Pause.
Play a streaming media file from a Web page Click the link on the Web page.
Play a file on your computer On the File menu, click Open, navigate to the appropriate location, click the file, and then click Open.

To adjust the volume

  • In Windows Media Player, drag the volume slider bar  to the left to decrease or right to increase the volume level.
  • On the Play menu, point to Volume, and then click Up, Down, or Mute.
  • To turn the audio off, click the Volume button  . To turn the audio back on, click the Volume button again.

To copy tracks from an audio CD

  1. Insert a CD into the CD-ROM drive.
  2. In the dialog box, click Copy from CD. All tracks are selected to copy if you have not previously copied them from the CD.
  3. If there are any tracks that you do not want to copy, clear the check box next to them.

    You can select the check box  at the top of the list to clear or select the check boxes next to all tracks.

  4. Click Copy Music.
  5. If copyright protection is enabled the first time you click Copy Music, a message appears notifying you that you will not be able to copy-protected or licensed tracks copied from CDs to another computer. Click OK, or clear the Do not protect content check box, and then click OK.
  6. The selected tracks are copied to your My Music folder by default, and are listed in Media Library. You can change the folder where your music files are stored.

To create your own CD

  1. Insert a CD into the CD-ROM drive.
  2. In the dialog box, click Copy to CD or Device. In Windows Media Player, you may also click the File menu, point to Copy, and then click Copy to Audio CD.
  3. In the Music to Copy pane, select the playlist or category of tracks that you want to copy from Media Library. The number of selected items and total time is displayed at the bottom of the Music to Copy pane. Tracks must be in Media Library before you can copy them to a CD.
  4. If necessary, clear any check boxes for tracks you do not want to copy. You can rearrange the order of the tracks in a playlist by dragging them to the position you want them to copy.
  5. Insert a blank CD-R or CD-RW in your CD-ROM drive.
  6. In the Music on Device pane, click the recordable CD-ROM drive. Before tracks are copied to your CD, they are checked and converted to a file type for your CD. This process takes several minutes.
  7. Click Copy Music.

To add audio and video files to Media Library

To do this Do this
Add tracks from a CD Insert a CD into the CD-ROM drive, click Copy from CD, and then click Copy Music.
Add a file from a computer or Internet site On the File menu, click Open or Open URL, and then locate the file that you want to add.
Add a file that is currently playing On the File menu, point to Add to Media Library, and then click Add File or Add URL. Specify the location of the file that you want to add to Media Library.
Add a pointer to audio and video files on your computer On the Tools menu, click Search for Media Files, and then click Search. Any files found are listed in Media Library.
To add a file from My Computer Double-click the file or drag the file to Media Library.
To add items to Media Library when played The Add items to Media Library when played check box must be selected for files to automatically be added to Media Library.

Using playlists

A playlist is a customized list of digital media files that you want to watch or listen to. By using playlists and auto playlists, you can group various digital media files together and specify the order you want the files to play in. For example, you can create a playlist that includes several tracks from various CDs, a radio station link, and a video clip. You can also use playlists and auto playlists to copy files to portable devices or to create (burn) your own CDs.

To create a playlist

  1. Click Media Library, click Playlists on the title bar, and then click New playlist.
  2. In Enter the new playlist name, type the name of the playlist. Your new playlist is added to the My Playlists folder.

To add items to a playlist

You can add items to a playlist as long as they are listed in Media Library. You cannot add items that are displayed in the Now Playing category of Media Library if they have not previously been added to Media Library.

  1. Click Media Library, and then find the item you want to add to a playlist.
  2. Right-click the item, and then click Add to Playlist.
  3. Click the playlist you want to add the item to.

Listening to radio stations on the Internet

To find a radio station on the Internet

  1. In Windows Media Player, click Radio Tuner.
  2. Click the drop-down list in Station Finder to find a specific station by using one of the following search options.
Find by To find a station by
Format Program format (Rock, Jazz & Blues, News Radio, and so on).
Band Radio band (AM, FM, or Internet Only).
Language Broadcasting language.
Location Geographic location.
Call sign Call letters (for example, "Kxyz" or "Wxyz").
Frequency Radio frequency (for example, "90.3").
Keyword Tagline (for example, "The station that uses 10,000 disc jockeys").

Because Radio Tuner contains a live Web page that is hosted by WindowsMedia.com, the options described above may change without notice. You must be connected to the Internet to use Radio Tuner.

To play a radio station on the Internet

  1. In Windows Media Player, click Radio Tuner.
  2. Do one of the following:

  • In the Presets area, in the drop-down list, click a preset list, and then double-click a radio station.
  • In the Station Finder area, use the drop-down lists or Search button to find a radio station you want to play, and then double-click the radio station.

To add a radio station to a preset list

  1. In Windows Media Player, click Radio Tuner.
  2. In the Presets area, in the drop-down list, click My Presets or a preset list you have created.
  3. Use the Station Finder area to find a radio station, if necessary.
  4. Click the radio station you want to add to your list, and then click the Add to presets button (<<<).
  5. Repeat steps 3 through 4 for as many radio stations as you want to add to your preset list.

Note Because Radio Tuner contains a live Web page that is hosted by WindowsMedia.com, the process for adding radio stations may change without notice. Your presets are also added to Media Library in the Radio Tuner Presets category.

To add a radio station to Media Library

  • While using the Player to listen to a radio station, on the File menu, point to Add to Media Library, and then click Add Currently Playing Track. The link to the radio station is added to the All Audio category.

Changing how Windows Media Player looks with skins

You can change the appearance of Windows Media Player by using skins. Each skin has a distinct appearance that usually incorporates basic Player functions such as play, previous, next, stop, and the ability to adjust the volume. You can also play certain audio files, view a visualization, or do a variety of other things depending on the skin you apply to the Player. When you apply a skin, that skin displays whenever you change from full mode to skin mode.

To apply a skin

  1. Click Skin Chooser.
  2. In the skins list, click the skin you want to apply. A preview of the skin appears.
  3. Click Apply Skin. The Player switches to skin mode. You can change skins as often as you like, but you must be in full mode to do so. To return to full mode, click the Return to Full Mode  button or press CTRL+1.

To switch from full mode to skin mode

  • On the View menu, click Skin Mode.

To delete a skin

  1. Click Skin Chooser.
  2. In the skins list, click the skin you want to delete and press DELETE .

Copying media files and folders onto a CD

To copy media files and folder on to a CD

  1. Insert a blank, writable CD into the CD recorder. Be sure that you have enough disk space on your hard disk to store the temporary files that are created during the CD writing process. For a standard CD, Windows reserves up to 700 MB of the available free space.
  2. Click Start, and then click My Computer.
  3. Click the files or folders you want to copy to the CD. To select more than one file, hold down the CTRL key while you click the files you want.
  4. Under File and Folder Tasks, click Copy this file, Copy this folder, or Copy the selected items.

    If the files are located in My Pictures, under Picture Tasks, click Copy to CD or Copy all items to CD, and then skip to step 6.

  5. In the Copy Items dialog box, click the CD recording drive, and then click Copy.
  6. In My Computer, double-click the CD recording drive. Windows displays a temporary area where the files are held before they are copied to the CD. Verify that the files and folders that you intend to copy to the CD appear under Files Ready to be Written to the CD.
  7. Under CD Writing Tasks, click Write these files to CD. Windows displays the CD Writing Wizard. Follow the instructions in the wizard.