Zune Movie Downloads

By Dana Goldberg

Want to download audio, video, and games to your Zune player, but can't afford it? Downloads can get really pricey, and if you want to watch video, its highly difficult to find videos that play in the right format for your Zune. This is because Zune players don't recognize most popular video file extensions such as AVI, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and XvID. There is a lot of free software available to convert most video files you have stored in your computer, to Mp4 format, which is accepted by the Zune player.

Accessing free videos, music and game applications can be a headache if you don't know your way around the internet, and even more so if you are not hip to the online lingo for getting free stuff. There are some popular ways of getting free downloads for your Zune player, that can be very dangerous at the same time. P2P sites are popular because they are generally easy to use, and allow direct person-to-person sharing of files. However, because of this, you leave yourself completely vulnerable to viruses, spyware, and other things that are not good for your computer or your Zune player.

Also so called Torrent sites are becoming more and more popular nowadays. A torrent is a small file containing a link to all information required to download a certain movie, song, or game. Torrents are safer than P2P, but both are illegal in the US. There are people who have been sentenced with several years of prison and thousands of dollars in fines just internet piracy. All in all it is not a good idea to use torrent sites or P2P networks, taking into consideration that you might download viruses or have to face a fine.

So what to do? I highly recommend joining a Zune membership site. You will have to pay a small fee, which is around $50 for lifetime and unlimited access, with no additional fees. Once you have paid the fee you are free to download unlimited Zuen movies, music, and games. In addition there is no need to spend hours converting files you downloaded, because they are already in the right format.

The biggest Zune download site hosts over six million music files, alone. They also provide downloads of all available media players for free, just in case. Customer service is prompt, courteous, and there are rarely technical issues with the site. All around, the best place to find free movies, games, and music of any genre, for your Zune! - 18758

About the Author:

To learn about the most recommended Zune download sites visit Zune Downloads. You could start downloading unlimited Zune movies, Zune music, and Zune games within minutes from now.

Beginner, Never Overlook the Basic Guitar Chords Chart!

By francois arcoix

Usually 10 to 15 guitar chords are what you need to learn well to play most of the songs you like. Chords are joined with other instruments to provide the background music of most songs. If you are wondering what is meant by a chord, the playing of three of more notes together is what this means.

Three strings being strummed on a guitar if your chord consists of three notes is the way to play the chord. The guitar can only play a chord consisting of six notes because the guitar has only six strings. The chords consist of three groups - Major, Minor and Seventh. The three have their own sound. The major chords are consistent, the minor chords are almost sad and the seventh chords are jazzy.

Although everyone does not agree that there exists a standard number of chords, there is an overall consensus that from 8 to 18 chords exists that every one who plays the guitar must know. These are the chords that are used in everything from country to jazz to rock. These chords should be the first ones learned. By learning them you will be able to play more songs and get more pleasure from playing.

So what are the basic chords we are talking about? They are the minor and major chords of A, D,E, and the major chords of G and C. The chords are made by not pressing some of the strings in the chord out. In other words do not press that string(s) down with your finger when you fret. Fret means to hold the strings on the neck of the guitar with the fingers on one hand while the other hand strums. Leaving one or more strings out while pressing on the others is called an open chord.

The easiest chords to learn for a beginning player is the open chord. Basic chords consist of Am, A, C, Dm, D, Em, E, F and G. When playing these chords if you use a guitar chords chart you will see exactly where your fingers are supposed to be on the guitar to play the chord. Newbie guitarists often use this method to teach themselves to play.

When you begin to learn the chords the most used method is to learn the chord families. The notes of the family are mixed to produce chords that are the basics of many songs that people are playing today. This makes learning more fun when you think of it in this way and the families are learned much easier than just choosing chords randomly. You will be playing in no time.

Many songs are based on only three chords. The best way to confuse yourself is to try so many chords that you will never learn them. If you want to start playing soon, the easy chords are the ones you want to concentrate on first for the first time guitar player. There are places that have more than 2000 chords and trying to learn all of these is just a waste of time for the player who is just learning as well as those who know how to play.

There is no need to learn all of these chords (which would take a long time) when you can be having a great time playing in just a matter of a few days. When using the basic guitar chords chart you will have the information right in front of you so seeing where your fingers need to go to produce the beautiful music you like is just a few days away. - 18758

About the Author:

Visit beginner-guitarlessons.com to learn more about simple guitar chords chart and find other useful tips to spice up your guitar playing!

Whisky Galore at The Islay Festival of Malt and Music

By Rachel Wilson

The last weekend in May sees the small Island of Islay in celebration mood. The Islay Festival of Malt and Music brings crowds of whisky enthusiasts to mingle with fans of Gaelic music and culture. Islay's eight working distilleries produce some of the world's most famous whiskies as well as being one of Islay's most important industries.

The festival programme includes a variety of cultural and musical events including Highland dancing, the Islay Pipe Band, guided walks, sporting events and children's amusements. However I don't think anyone would argue that Islay's whisky will take pride of place. The malt whisky enthusiast will be able to visit each of the distilleries on their open days. On offer will be distillery tours, master classes and whisky tastings. Refreshments and food tastings featuring local produce and ingredients will be available at many of the events.

Immerse yourself in Gaelic culture at An Evening of Gaelic Song and Traditional Music at the Gaelic College Bowmore on the evening of 27th May. Enjoy performances from local artists including the Islay Gaelic Choir. There will be a raffle and refreshments.

A highlight of the week for the real whisky aficionado will be a whisky tasting Ceilidh on the evening of the 25th May. If you think you can tell Ardbeg from Bowmore or Bruichladdich then all the distilleries will be there with their whiskies so go along and test your whisky tasting skills. Musical entertainment at the event will be by the Islay Fiddle and Accordion Band.

The peaty soil and brown peaty water, together with the exposed position of Islay have combined to create the unique characteristics of the island's whisky. The island is almost completely covered in peat, soaked through with the salty sea spray brought far inland by winter gales. In balmier summer weather the gentler salty, seaweed scented breeze dries it out. The result is some of the strongest flavoured of all the malt whiskies.

The distilleries in the south of the island include Ardbeg and Laphroaig. These produce some of the most powerful of Islay's whiskies. The brown, peaty water is used together with a heavily peated malt in the distilling process. The whisky has a flavour that has been described as peat smoke, brine and iodine. Sometimes even "medicinal".

The Northern Islay Distilleries, including Bruichladdich, produce a much milder whisky. They use the spring water before it comes into contact with the peat and only lightly peated malt. This results in a much lighter whisky with mossy rather than peaty flavours, with the same dry finish but with less of the flavour of the sea about them.

Bowmore Distillery lies in the middle of the Island, on the shore of Loch Indaal. Its whisky also lies in between the characteristics of the North and South. It's peaty but not medicinal. The sea, salt and iodine flavours can be detected but are balanced by delicate floral notes with a peppery finish.

In addition to the Festival, Islay offers visitors stunning scenery, amazing wildlife, sandy beaches and a long and rich human history to investigate. There is bound to be something for everyone. - 18758

About the Author:

Rachel Wilson is a travel writer with a fondness for Bowmore whisky. The Malt & Music Festival is the ideal place to sample a wide range of single malt scotch whiskies.

Learn About Virtual Surround Sound Systems

By Dave Heebs

It seems like everyone is looking to create a home theater setup nowadays. The marriage of the visual components (TV and DVD), as well as the audio components (stereo), attracts many people to the entertainment possibilities of a home theater. As with most things in the United States, bigger is better for many people so they naturally gravitate to larger televisions and louder stereos. But, all too often the financial issues creep up and they then must consider their limitations on what they can afford. For this reason alone, virutal surround sound systems are a boon.

One big consideration you will need to address is the size of the room which you are planning to place the home theater in. An extremely large television or speaker system will not allow much room for your guests to sit comfortably in a small room. For this reason, you will want to scale down your speakers if you are going to place the home theater system in a small room.

If your space is limited, all is not lost. Technology has advanced to the point where speakers are not only smaller but can be used wirelessly.

Another technological advance is one of virtual surround sound. This technology simulates the sound characteristics of true surround sound systems. Virtual surround sound systems basically come in two flavors that are not too different from each other. These two are the 2.1 surround system and the digital sound projection system.

Traditional surround sound systems are typically displayed using 5 speakers. These speakers start with a center speaker which is placed directly in front of the audience. The other 4 speakers are then arranged in a circle that literally surrounds the audience. These traditional surround speakersd are usually denoted as 5.1 and 7.1 sound systems. With virtual surround sound, at least 2 of the speakers are replaced. Digital sound projectors utilize small speakers that are placed in a line in front of the audience. The 2.1 system places only 2 speakers in front of the audience with a third, the subwoofer, placed elsewhere in the room.

The virtual surround system is designed to take advantage of our knowledge of how humans process auditory stimuli. When the human ear is processing the sound waves internally, these new systems fool the auditory process into thinking that more speakers are in use than actually are.

With the invention of virtual surround sound, those people living in small apartments in major cities can also enjoy the same type of entertainment as those who live in single family homes in the suburbs. - 18758

About the Author:

Dave writes articles about wireless outdoor speakers and outdoor stereo speakers

You Should Have These Three Electric Guitar Effects In Your Collection

By Matt Rushton

If you play the electric guitar then I'm sure you know how easy it is to make different sounds. Because the electric guitar uses electric signals to create the sounds, it becomes possible to manipulate those signals for even more unique sounds. There are 3 essential effects that every guitarist should have in their effect collection.

The first type of effect I'd like to discuss is the Distortion pedal. Distortion pedals add lovely harmonic overtones to your guitar signal by compressing and clipping the sound wave. This gives your guitar a very thick and warm sound.

There are literally hundreds of distortion pedals for you to choose from. Everything is available from a light overdriven distortion to a scooped our, modern metal distortion. A distortion pedal is essential to have in your collection whether you play Country, Metal or Rock-N-Roll.

The second effect I'd like to talk about is the Delay Effect. The delay effect is created by replicating your original guitar signal and playing it back at an interval after the original signal. You can have the signal be repeated once or as many times as you wish to create the desired echo effect.

Having a delay pedal in your effect arsenal will give you the ability to add depth to your sound. You can also use a delay effect set to longer delay settings for creating complex, layered harmonies. All types of musical genres use delay effects.

To round out the top 3 effect pedals you should own for your guitar, you must have a Chorus pedal. The way a Chorus pedal works is by putting a slight delay with added modulation to your guitar's original signal and then combining that signal with the original one. This creates a lush, full sound as if two guitars were playing simultaneously.

The Chorus effect is most commonly used to give the guitar a thicker sound. You can also run a chorusing effect in stereo for a wide, spatial sound that is fabulous mixed in stereo. Again, every genre of music uses the chorus effect.

Every guitarist I know reaches a point where they want their guitar to sound different. Effects are the easiest and best way to achieve unique electric guitar sounds. The most essential effects to have in your collection are Distortion, Delay and Chorus. - 18758

About the Author:

Matt Rushton is the author and developer of Live Musician Central. You can find all kinds of tips and instruction for improving your live band. Matt also custom programs sound effect patch presets for the Fender Cyber-Twin SE amplifier.