Converting your m4a files into gold-encrusted mp3 gems doesn't have to be difficult. Sweat needn't be broken. Tears needn't be shed. Blood needn't be spilled. Take a deep breath, put your head between your knees for a few seconds, and when you're ready, follow these easy steps to mp3-hood.

The first thing you'll need, though, is Winamp Pro, which you can find here. (Winamp Standard supports a lot of files, but for mp3's, you'll need to go Pro...) Got it? Cool. Now, let's talk....

Step 1:

Find the file you want to convert by going to your your Media Library tab, and click on "Audio" from your "Local Media". If you haven't already added audio files to your Winamp Media Player, you can go to File >> Add Media to Library. Alternatively, you could drag and drop the file from your Windows Explorer into the Winamp player.

Facebook is already the most popular online hangout for telling the world everything you're doing, everything you've ever done, and everything you have yet to do. With users constantly updating their status to tell the world of their most enthralling daily activities, it only makes sense that the world would desperately want to know what music you're listening to. And not just that staid, two-dimensional "Favorite Music" section. Oh, no. The world moves much too fast for profile updates. The human populations move in real time, and so should your music updates. Now, thanks to a plug-in called "Facebook Listening to v1.0," the world can finally follow your every browse through your online music library.

Basically, the way it works is you've first gotta add an application called "I am Listening To" to your Facebook page. Once you do that, this long page of instructions and features will pop up, but the most critical thing is the random Facebook User ID and "Secret Key" that they'll give you. You'll need this in order to activate the plug-in, which you can download here. What happens next, dear reader, is nothing short of magic. What the plug-in does, if you want it to, is update your Facebook status as you surf through your library, so all of your friends and family will know what you're listening to at any given moment. You can also choose to load your playlist library directly into your profile, and examine (read: rip apart) your friends'obviously inferior music tastes. Most spellbindingly, both your music status and your embedded playlist will be updated automatically-even if you're not logged in (*gasp!*).

All in all, it's a pretty cool application, for those brave enough to use it. The potential for embarrassment is pretty obvious (do you really want Aunt Rhoda knowing how many times you listen to Enya every day?). But then again, no less embarrassing than most of the stuff that happens in the Wild Wild West of Facebook. At least in this case, the upside of showing off your music taste and your infinite coolness far outweigh any possibly relationship or job-destroying revelations.

Download your Facebook Listening To v1.0 Plug-in here.

Being popular, much like being green, or other related activities, ain't easy. Everyone of a certain age has gone through the relentless pressure cooker of schoolyard hierarchy, and, for girls especially, navigating these shark infested social waters can often be a harrowing feat. And believe it or not, Winamp skins face much the same sorts of pressures that we did-or still do-face. Lets face it, it's gotta be hard out there for those Plain-Jane skins, with all those especially pretty skins preening and prancing around, showing off their nifty little features and nuances, and somehow always going to prom with the high school quarterback skin. But if your current Winamp skin is down in the dumps and feeling less than adequate next to all the beauty queens on the block, don't worry. With the help of a new skin, she slide seamlessly into the coolest clique of girls around-the Teen Girl Squad.

That's right, Homestar Runner fans, you're now just a click away from your very own Teen Girl Squad Winamp player. The skin, much like the online comic strip style, is stylistically simple, to an almost exaggerated extent. The entire interface looks like it was hastily handdrawn, with chicken scratch trapezoids outlining the Play button and childlike handwriting judiciously scattered throughout the display. The real beauty of the skin, though, lies in the details. The cursor is now an oversized pencil that, when hovering over the "x" button of the top right corner, cleverly reverses, so that it now clicks with the eraser side. And of course, a few characters are present in the "Equalizor-d" display, which, in keeping with the schoolyard theme, sports a college-ruled notebook paper background, against which are a few sketches of the girls wearing diva pins and $100 tags on their dresses. All in all, it's a clever and cute way to dress up your Winamp, so that regardless of the music you're playing, it'll always look "SO GOOD!"

Download your TGS Skin here.

With Tour Tracker you get the latest tour dates and concert ticket information for your favorite artists. Find up-to-date information on tour schedules, concert announcements and buy concert tickets online.

It's even easier with the new Winamp Tour Tracker Online Service. Now you can get all this information without ever leaving your Winamp media player. Just add Tour Tracker and as you listen to songs or playlists in your local library, you'll see real-time updates for any artist in the Tour Tracker database.

Have Fun!





Get Started:
1) Click on the "Online Services" in the Media Library Tab
2) Search for "Tour Tracker"
3) Click on the "+ Add to Winamp" button to add the service to your Winamp Media Player
4) Once added, start playing any playlist or track, and select the Tour Tracker Online Service to view current tour dates & concert info.
5) If you want Tour Tracker to automatically update when a new track starts to play, then you need to select "Auto-Refresh" (in the upper right-hand corner).