MusicMatch Jukebox gives you a set of utilities that will record, organise and play MP3 files, download CD album information from the internet CD database (CDDB) and help you find more music for your collection.

The main advantage of MP3s is music on the move. Portable tape, CD and mini-disc players have parts that can get moved around when you go jogging or run for the bus. MP3 players only use chips, which means tracks will not skip. With memory technology improving and prices falling, in a few years you'll also be able to carry your whole music collection around with you on a small player, and the files will be easily transferable onto other devices.

You can start by recording your own CDs into MP3 format and loading them onto your PC, which means that you can play music while you work, take it with you on your laptop, or download it onto a MP3 player.

Tracks can be recorded at different sampling rates, which influences the quality of the track and its size on your hard disk. If you are going to use a portable MP3 player, it might be worth making sure you use a sampling rate that it can handle.

If you don not have a CD collection, you can either connect your hi-fi to your PC and record all your old LPs and tapes, or you could just find music on the internet. There is an amazing amount of free, high-quality, legal music on the web, organised by genre and ranked by other web surfers, and you can always listen before you download.

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