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Buying music on the iTunes Store
by Dean Mortlock
14.12.06 |
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Shortly after you’ve burned your entire CD collection to your iPod you’ll probably begin to develop more than a passing interest in the iTunes Music Store. Don’t panic, as this is completely natural. And with well over two million tracks to choose from, even those with the strongest will won’t be able to stay away for long. |
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The first thing you need to do is set up an account though, so when you fancy splashing out on a new album, the whole transaction can be done in a matter of seconds. Load up iTunes, go to the Store and look for the ‘Sign in’ box – which is just underneath the search bar. |
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Click on the ‘Create New Account’ button and, after getting past the Terms of Service, you’re asked to enter an email address for your new Apple ID and a password. Get through this simple screen and another one that asks for your bank details and that’s it… you’re ready to go on your iTunes spending spree. |
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When you first start to look around the Store itself, it’s difficult to know where to start looking. We recommend creating a playlist in the Source list, so that you can save any previews you like for later – just drag and drop the song title to the playlist and the clip’s saved. Then just dive in! The Store’s front page makes it easy for beginners, as everything’s split up so neatly. |
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The latest releases are in the middle of the window and the best-sellers are down the right-hand side. If you check out the columns down the left side, then you’ll spot that the Store also contains music videos (films are expected to be added early in 2007 for iTunes users outside of America), games and audiobooks, and it’s kindly split everything up into genres for you, too. |
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The default way to buy on the Store is the 1-Click method, where you automatically purchase the song or album you’re after. But if you go to iTunes’ Preferences, you can change this to Shopping Cart. This option means that you store up all your purchases in a folder in the Source list and can inspect your ‘cart’ before you start downloading its contents. |
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1. If you want to stop your family spending loads of your money on the iTunes Store under your account, then you can block any purchases from them by clicking on Disable iTunes Store in iTunes’ Preferences – look under Parental Control. |
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2. If you want the perfect gift for someone, then why not send them a virtual iTunes Gift Certificate? Go to the Buy Gifts link on the iTunes Store homepage for more information. |
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3. Sometimes it’s hard to find exactly what you want, and that’s where the Power Search comes in – you’ll find it on the right side of the main iTunes window. This gives you the option to search by artist, composer, title or album. |
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