Can you remember what music was like before the internet? The way that people looked for CDs was completely different from the way that people do today.
If you wanted an album, you'd have to visit your local CD store and pony up at least 12 dollars for a full length CD. If you wanted to buy a single, you'd still have to pay a few dollars just for the song and a bonus track or two.
Were you ever a member of Columbia House? Do you remember their initial offers of 12 CDs for 99 cents and the like? Those were extremely tempting since all those albums would ordinarily cost a couple hundred dollars.
In the late 1990s, we saw the birth of the MP3 format. People could now listen to music from their computers without the need for a CD. The ability to store things digitally changed the state of music as we know it today.
There was no iTunes back then. While it was possible to buy a few albums digitally here and there, the music industry was still pushing its physical CDs harder than anything else.
People started coming up with ways to find their music for free. Whether they were downloading with Napster, Limewire, or some other third party software, you could suddenly find almost anything you wanted within seconds.
We've come a very long way since then, and while we would never advise that you get your music like this, some people still do. There are risks associated with such behavior and the many affordable legal options give you no reason not to do things the right way.
What does the future hold in store? Most people think that streaming music libraries will be the ultimate destiny for all listeners. Why bother waiting to download songs and taking up memory on your computer? Perhaps you've already started to do this.
If you wanted an album, you'd have to visit your local CD store and pony up at least 12 dollars for a full length CD. If you wanted to buy a single, you'd still have to pay a few dollars just for the song and a bonus track or two.
Were you ever a member of Columbia House? Do you remember their initial offers of 12 CDs for 99 cents and the like? Those were extremely tempting since all those albums would ordinarily cost a couple hundred dollars.
In the late 1990s, we saw the birth of the MP3 format. People could now listen to music from their computers without the need for a CD. The ability to store things digitally changed the state of music as we know it today.
There was no iTunes back then. While it was possible to buy a few albums digitally here and there, the music industry was still pushing its physical CDs harder than anything else.
People started coming up with ways to find their music for free. Whether they were downloading with Napster, Limewire, or some other third party software, you could suddenly find almost anything you wanted within seconds.
We've come a very long way since then, and while we would never advise that you get your music like this, some people still do. There are risks associated with such behavior and the many affordable legal options give you no reason not to do things the right way.
What does the future hold in store? Most people think that streaming music libraries will be the ultimate destiny for all listeners. Why bother waiting to download songs and taking up memory on your computer? Perhaps you've already started to do this.
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