ReZoom

How to get on board with the digital music revolution ...If you're a ReZoomer, you probably still have a room full of vinyl records, a case of cassettes and rack of CDs (we won't mention the eight-tracks in the attic). So how do you get into the new digital music age?

Pick a Service

Start by deciding how you want to buy music. There are two basic methods to buy music online: pay-as-you-go or subscription.

Apple's iTunes store offers the pay-as you-go choice. Songs typically cost $.99, albums $9.99. You buy it, you own it. It's as straightforward as it sounds.

The subscription model is less popular but offers a lot to those who want to dip their toe into the market without getting overwhelmed. Essentially you rent the music, as much as you want from a service's library, for as long as you have a subscription, which typically starts at about $15 a month. You stop subscribing, you lose the tunes. When you download music through a subscription, it comes with a digital rights management (DRM) package that won't allow you access if the subscription isn't current.

"It's a case of different strokes for different folks," says Wil Harris, who runs Bit-tech.net, a top tech Website based in the UK.

"If you spend $15 a month for life, you're spending around $12,000 over your lifetime, or the equivalent of about 600 CDs. You have to weigh up the cost for yourself. I think for most people it's still going to be cheaper to buy than rent – until you get into the realm of buying thousands of CDs."

There is an alternative to these two methods if you really want to ease into downloading slowly. The new Napster offers a free and legal option that's kind of like a test drive – you can pull any song from its library but can only listen to it three times before it becomes inactive.

Portability

If you're new to downloading, portability could be confusing … but then, so was programming the VCR, and you eventually got over that. What's important to remember is that most downloading services require you use a specific MP3 player or players. If you buy an iPod, you're stuck using iTunes. Rhapsody, a subscription-based service, works well with several players, including iPod. The Rio, iRiver and Sandisk are all popular and well-built alternatives.

Microsoft finally decided to get into the market with Zune, but it's been roundly criticized because of its limited usage. If you and a friend both have a Zune and are in the same room, you can share music over a discrete WiFi signal. A terrific and groundbreaking idea, but equally irritating when you find out the DRM only allows you to listen to the songs three times or for three days, whichever comes first.

"The fact that Microsoft is, regardless of current success, trying to push the boundaries with Zune, allowing the ‘borrowing' of music across devices, at least gives hope that it understands the importance of a good consumer experience when it comes to DRM," concludes Harris.

Want more Music? Check out these stories:

My Elvis

Chicago Video Interview

Or Click here to check out our Music section.