Re: Apple Computer changes its name

[dempson@actrix.gen.nz (David Empson)]

<bieling@terra.es> wrote:

> mdj ha escrito:
> 
> > I refuse to purchase anything from iTunes Music store or equivalent,
> > not because the content is 'protected' but because of the platform
> > lockin....
> 
> What platform lockin ?

DRM protected music from the iTunes Store doesn't play on any portable
music player other than an iPod (or on iTunes on a computer).

> >...the fact that my
> > 0.99c iTunes track can't be transferred without quality loss onto a
> > competitors portable audio device.
> 
> Are you sure that transcoding does necesarily equal quality loss ?

It does for iTunes, if you want compressed music on the other device. 

You can export iTunes Store protected music as an audio CD (no quality
loss from the DRM protected AAC file) but then to get into an
unprotected AAC or MP3 you would have to compress it again, which is a
second compression of the original full quality music (which you didn't
have in the first place).

I haven't bought anything from the iTunes Store yet (we only got it in
New Zealand in early December) and I'd rather buy CDs except for
occasional one-off songs where I don't care about the quality, or
anything I can't locate on CD (e.g. I might get a few music videos).

I'll probably buy a token song just so I can understand the mode of
operation.

-- 
David Empson
dempson@actrix.gen.nz