Music and Sound Windows 7 Tutorials

Allow or Prevent Changing Sounds
This will show you how to allow or prevent all users on the computer to add, remove, or change the current system sound scheme in Windows 7.

Listen to iPod music via Windows 7 system Speakers
It will be a great idea to play your iPod songs and music via speakers connected to the system. Windows 7 provides you with this facility. You just need to use a simple trick.

Managing your music
An easy way to keep track of music on your computer is to use the Music library. By default, the Music library shows all the music located in the My Music folder, but you can include other folders in your Music library, too.

Show closed captions or subtitles in Windows Media Center
Closed captions are textual representations of the audio in a TV program. For example, closed captions can display the spoken dialogue in a show, as well as non-verbal information, such as music and sound effects. This text is broadcast along with the TV signal from your TV service provider. You can turn closed captions on in Windows Media Center if you're deaf or hard-of-hearing, or if you just want to keep the volume low and read along.

Turn on high contrast in Windows Media Center
The high-contrast color schemes in Windows Media Center are designed for people with low vision. You can turn on high contrast to make text easier to read.

Use Ease of Access features in Windows Media Center
Windows Media Center is compatible with the following Windows accessibility features: Narrator, Magnifier, and Descriptive Video Service (DVS). You can use Narrator to convert text to speech, set Magnifier to enhance the view of your screen, and activate Descriptive Video Service for your TV.

Windows Media Center keyboard shortcuts
You can access any feature in Windows Media Center using only the keyboard. In addition, Media Center provides a variety of keyboard shortcuts so that navigating with the keyboard is easier.

Windows Media Player keyboard shortcuts
Most features and buttons in Windows Media Player are also accessible using the keyboard. The Player provides a variety of keyboard shortcuts for the more commonly used commands and buttons for controlling the Player. The following table shows the various keyboard shortcuts for the Player.

View a video using the entire screen in Windows Media Player
If you want a video, TV show, DVD, or visualization to fill the entire screen when you play it, switch to full-screen mode in Windows Media Player. When the Player is in full-screen mode, you can control playback with the on-screen controls that appear at the bottom of the video screen.

Change volume settings in Windows Media Player
You have several options for controlling volume in Windows Media Player, including adjusting the volume level, muting, or reducing volume differences either within a song or between songs. Note that other software and hardware controls can affect the volume and audio effects settings in the Player.

Switch between display modes in Windows Media Player
Windows Media Player has four display modes: Player Library, Now Playing, skin , and full screen. You can easily switch to the mode that works best for the content you are viewing or playing. Learn to: switch from the Player Library to Now Playing mode; switch from Now Playing mode to the Player Library; switch from the Player Library or Now Playing mode to skin mode; switch from skin mode to the Player Library; switch from Now Playing mode to full-screen mode.

How do I prevent a file from syncing to a device in Windows Media Player?
If your device syncs automatically with Windows Media Player and you want to exclude a particular file from syncing to the device, you can choose to skip the file. You have several options for skipping files: deleting the file from the device, removing the file from a playlist that automatically syncs to the device, and removing a file that has an error condition.

Tips for fixing common sound problems
Here are solutions to some common sound problems on your computer. These solutions can also help if you don't hear any sound from your speakers, portable music player, or other external audio device connected to your computer. I can't hear sound from my computer. Sound from my speakers is crackling or distorted. I have a sound card in my computer, but Windows doesn't recognize it. I found a new driver for my sound card, but I'm not sure how to install it. I'm having trouble installing my sound card and wonder if it's compatible with Windows 7. I'm having trouble getting a portable music player, microphone, or other audio device to work with my computer. I've tried all the solutions here and still can't get my sound to work properly.

Remove items from the Windows Media Player Library
This topic describes how to remove files and devices from your Windows Media Player Library.

Which protocols does Windows Media Player use for streaming?
You can use Windows Media Player to play digital media content that is streamed from the Internet. To ensure that a server running Windows Media Services can establish the best connection to the Player, the Player is configured to receive automatic streams from any of the following streaming protocols (depending on the network environment): User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). UDP and TCP are basic networking protocols that are used in combination with the Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) to manage the high-level exchange of data. The Player can also receive a multicast stream.

Play an audio or video file: frequently asked questions
Here are answers to some common questions about playing audio or video files in Windows Media Player. What can I do about audio problems, such as popping, crackling, or sound that plays too fast or too slow? What can I do about video problems, such as lines appearing in the video, flickering or choppy video, and so on? Why does the Player display a visualization instead of the video (or display an error message) when I play a video file? How do I make Windows Media Player the default player for a file type? Why do I get an error when I try to play streams from certain servers? Why does Windows Media Player frequently become unresponsive or close unexpectedly? How do I prevent videos from automatically playing in full-screen mode?

Burn a CD or DVD in Windows Media Player: frequently asked questions
Here are answers to some common questions about burning CDs or DVDs in Windows Media Player. What types of CDs or DVDs can I burn? What is a data disc? Is that the same as an MP3 disc? Can I burn the contents of one disc, such as a music CD, a data CD, or a data DVD, directly to another disc using the Player? How do I burn music to a portable music player device? How can I burn movies to a DVD? How do I add or remove gaps between songs on the audio CDs that I burn?

Media information in Windows Media Player: frequently asked questions
Here are some answers to common questions about media information. How does album cover art relate to media information? Does the Player support ID3 tags? How do I tell the Player to automatically fix the media information in my files? How do I prevent the Player from overwriting the media information in my files? When media information is updated in the library, how do I tell the Player to update the item's file name? When media information is updated in the library, how do I tell the Player to move the files to the appropriate artist and album folders on my computer? How do I make sure my ratings aren't overwritten by other people who use my computer?

Shuffle and repeat items in Windows Media Player
In Windows Media Player, items that you play appear in the list pane in Now Playing mode and in the Player Library. You can change the order in which the items play by turning on shuffle, which will make items play in a random order. You can also choose to play the items repeatedly. When you turn on repeat, all items in the list pane will play once and then begin playing again. You can also turn on both shuffle and repeat at the same time. It's not possible to shuffle or repeat DVDs. Watch this video to learn how to shuffle and repeat in Windows Media Player.

Windows Media Player playlist: frequently asked questions
Here are some answers to common questions about playlists in Windows Media Player. What is a playlist and why would I want to use one? What's the difference between a regular playlist and an auto playlist? Where are my playlist files stored on my computer? Can I save a playlist in another format? Why are some of the items in my playlist dimmed?