wma to mp3?and folder cust. problem

hi i am working on updating my music collection on my computer and right now i am using the media player to rip all my cds.i like how the media player puts the album cobver on the folder and is able to identify song titles etc. well this is all coll but i much rather have mp3 's other than wma files!!! is there any free utiulity do convert these the wma files?or is there a mp 3 ripper that can do things like the media player ?
i have another problem ,how can i put picture on a folder ?i tried everything ,went to folder properties and then customisation,choose picture,and wnem i press apply and ok ,there still is no picture!!
it only works when i am in the "my music" folder ,than it works fine and i can put any picture on the folders.i also went to folder options but i couldn t find anythin relevant>
pls help.
thx Jim

 

ok stupid me !!!figured the thing with the file customisation out [ ]
so now there is only the question about wma to mp3 ,or about the good mp 3 ripper.
thx,
Jim

 

You can probably use winamp with the right plugins. Streambox Ripper works, if you can find it.

First PC = Vic-20, 8" 128KB Home-Brew Floppy Drive ... Current Rig = eMachines m6805 ... Quantum Leap?

 

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/dmc.htm

There's a hack for the MP3 codec floating around the web.

 

media player can rip as mp3, at least Medai Player 10 can, just go under tools, options, rip music, and change the format to mp3. imo wma is better because they are smaller with a higher bitrate then mp3, and MP has an option for theoretically lossless bitrate ripping. check on www.majorgeek.com (they may have converters) or www.download.com for converters.

 

thx, yeah i can do that with media player didn t even try that because i thought microsoft would t give an option other than there own format,suprise!!!
i think i just stick with wma now though,you are right it is better ,which i now realized.i thought the new programm i had for my pda wouldn t support wma files ,but it does ,so i have no need to convert the files anymore.
thx,
Jim

 

oh and by the way i will never ever download anything else from cnet other than game demos.cnet was the first place i looked for a free utility.well all! of them cost money even though many dn t tell u until u have it installed!!!!wouldn t be that much of a problem if not one of the ones i though was free put adware on my laptop which i can 't freaking delete with any spyware killer around,thx cnet !!!
Be Warned!!!!!if u don t want popups talking about genital herpes (this is no hoax) on your desktop!!!!!
greatings,
Jim

 

I didn't really know that about cnet, I usually filter for freeware so only the free programs are shown. Alas though, in the end i don't even find what I want and usually find it elsewhere, but it can give an idea of what to look for. WMA has become quite a mainstream format now, most things have compatibility with it now. Would be surprising if it didn't. That really sucks that those programs gave you adware that is hard to get rid of. Lots of luck with removing them.