Expert: Mark Thomas - 1/11/2011

Question
QUESTION: I am trying to copy an audio CD to my hard disk so that I could hear the music from the hard disk directly, but it does not work. How to go about the job?

I am right clicking the tracks and sending them to the 'My Documents' folder and that is working. Next I am removing the CD and right clicking a track in the folder and then clicking play whereupon I am being directed onscreen to click the View Tab in the 'My Computer' folder, then click 'folder' in the drop down menu and create an association. The question is how to do that?

Is there any other better way to do the job?

My operating system is Windows 98 2/e and my desktop is a Wipro Voyager

ANSWER: Hello Nikhilnath Bhattacharyya

Thanks for your question, Your operating system is simply wanting to associate your music files with a means of playing it on your PC.
If you have Media Player or Winamp or any other type of player, you need to tell your computer to use that program to play those files.
So when you right click on the file ( the music track ) select the option to OPEN WITH and then locate your music player in windows, it should say for example WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER ( or an easy way is to find the Windows Media Player program on your drive, open the folder, find the file that ends with .EXE and COPY that file to your desktop)
So then in your list of PROGRAMS find your media player icon or program or browse to the desktop, where you have placed the copy on and associate with that and check the box marked ALWAYS USE THIS PROGRAM TO OPEN THIS FILE TYPE. and click OK
When you double click this audio track, it will then automatically open your music player and play your track.
Best

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I could not proceed according to your guidelines. The problem is : on right clicking a copied music track, the option 'Open With' is not showing up in the drop down menu. The relevant options that are showing up are 'Play' and 'Open'.

Clicking 'Play' is giving the message: The disc that you are trying to play is not inserted in the CD-ROM Drive. Please insert the correct disc and try again.

Clicking 'Open' gives: The file does not have a program associated with it for performing the action. Create an association in My Computer by clicking View and then clicking Folder Option.

On doing so, i.e., clicking Folder Option as said above, a window is opening with 3 tabs - General, View and File Types. Clicking 'File Types' is showing a list of files from which probable candidates for creating an association appear to be - Audio CD, Audio CD Track, Wave Sound, Windows Media Audio File, Windows Media Audio Shortcut, Windows Media Audio/Video File, Windows Media Audio/Video Shortcut, Widows Media Player File.

I tried to establish an association between a copied track and any one these files but failed! The problem is :  a selected copied audio track in My Documents is getting unselected as soon as I am selecting any one of the above files! So I can not complete the selection process itself in the first place!

I found that if I proceed in the reverse order, i.e., select a file first and then select an audio track, I am being partially successful because the first selection is not getting totally undone but partially undone. By this I mean, the first selection is turning from deep blue to a very light grey/blue shade. Even then, if I click OK in Folder Options, any association is not being established.

ANSWER: Hello Nikhilnath

Thanks for the follow up,OK the sequence that you are trying is not exactly correct. Here is how to :

Double click the "My Computer" icon on the desktop.

Click "View," then click "Folder Options."

Click the "File Types" tab.

Scroll down the list to locate the file type that you would like to change the association for. In most cases, the file extension is not shown in the main area of the window. To find the file type quickly, click an item on the list to highlight it, then use the arrow keys on the keyboard to move down the list while watching the "Extension" portion of the bottom half of the window.

Click "Edit" after highlighting the file type whose association you would like to change. This brings up the "Edit File Type" screen. Click the "Edit" button.

Click the "Browse" button. Locate the program that you want Windows 98 to use to open that type of file, and double-click it.

Click "OK" or "Close" as appropriate to close each open window.

Double-click a file with the extension that you changed to test the new file association.

If that is not successful, try this method of changing file associations :

Find a file that you want to change. Move it to your desktop, as it is easy to find files in this location.

Click once on the file to highlight it. Simultaneously hold down your "Shift" key on your keyboard and right-click on the file.

Scroll down and hit "Open With." Find the application that you want to use to open this file.

Put a check mark in the box next to "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file" if you prefer.

Hit the "OK" button. The file should open in the application that you chose in Step 3 however please note that if you do change file associations from one application to another,it could render it unusable and will not open in a new application.

If you follow the above steps very closely, you will be successful in associating your files, and make sure that you have the latest drivers installed and audio codecs for your sound card.
Best

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: You have suggested two procedures. The first procedure is not working simply because after selecting a music track in My Documents, as soon as I am trying to proceed with other procedures in My Computer, the music track is getting unselected.So how is it possible to establish an association? It seems it is not possible in principle. Why should such a thing happen in the first place?

The second procedure is working though I can not play the music tracks. After selecting a track, then right clicking it while holding down the Shift key is giving 'Play', 'Open' and 'Open With' in the drop down menu. This 'Open With' option was not coming previously by simply right clicking the track. So that is a new thing that I have learnt from you. However, clicking 'Open With' is giving a list of files in which the probable candidates seem to be mplayer and mplayer2. I have sought to establish associations with both but my music tracks are not playing! Trying to play is giving the message that the CD is not in the drive.

The question is : Why is clicking 'Open With' giving only two options for creating associations and not that many options as detailed in my first follow up?

Could it be that there is a default setting in my PC that audio CDs shall play only with CD Player? Or is there any deficiency with my drivers and audio codecs as hinted by you.

Answer
Hello Again

Please try downloading the following music and video player that will play every type of media
http://download.cnet.com/RealPlayer/3000-13632_4-10073040.html

You will be given an option to associate your music files and types to this player after download, select this option and this will take control away from Windows and place it with this player.
This may solve your issue

Also try downloading your audio cards drivers from the OFFICIAL manufacturers site, not from any site advertising the drivers to download as these can be virus traps.

Best

PLEASE RATE ALL QUESTIONS YOU HAVE ASKED AND FOLLOW UPS SEPARATELY  THANKS