How to Legally "Download" Music for Free (Mac)

 by scikidus
This Instructable is for a Mac. If you're on a PC, click here.



Hi there! This Instructable shows you how to "download" any song you want to your computer, absolutely free.

From this Instructable, you'll be able to save to your hard drive your favorite music, expanding your music library.

Note: this system requires no outside reworking of your computer: no cables, no amps, nothing.
 
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Step 1: How it Works

This system is called "internal recording." It's legal, free, and it's impossible to get a virus from it. (Then again, you are on a Mac, so this shouldn't be an issue.)

This system is the equivalent of plugging in a microphone and recording the music as it comes out of your speakers. However, this way, no quality is lost, because the audio being recorded has never actually left the sound card.

Legality: internal recording is legal under the DMCA, because it's essentially the equivalent of recording radio. (Note: I might be wrong, so don't sue me.)
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rickharris says: Jan 1, 2013. 6:14 AM
Sorry to rain on your parade but the legality of recording music depends on your country. In the UK as it stands at present it is even technically illegal to rerecord an album/CD/from the web any thing even if you ALREADY OWN it.

your copyright licence only covers the actual thing you bought.

If your strict you should pay a licence fee to allow anyone else outside your family to listen to your music.

There are similar laws in most other countries. with the exception that many are moving toward allowing you to rerecord an item you own but for your use only.

Recording ANYTHING from the web is almost certainly breaking copyright.

Sorry

PS Audacity is great and works well on PCs too although can get confused if you have more then 1 sound card fitted.
howtodownloadmusicfrom-youtube says: Aug 7, 2011. 6:00 PM
Go to http://www.downloadmusicfrom-youtube.com They have a TON of info there that will help you understand the process.
bdettering says: Jun 10, 2011. 1:59 PM
It's a lot easier with Jaksta for Mac. http://jaksta.com

Jaksta for Mac will even tag the songs for you with artist, title, album etc. Incredibly slick.
JAM-160.jpg
pittytiffykitty says: Jun 19, 2010. 4:22 PM
can you explain step by step how to get the lame thing? cuz everything worked perfectly until i tried to export what i recorded it and it said I didn't have the lame library dingy :(
ThaAWESOMEducttapeguy says: May 7, 2011. 8:50 PM
What's 'LAME'
horsegal says: Sep 28, 2010. 8:23 PM
So trying this - set it up exactly as you said..... and its working (records & playsback) but i get no sound DURING the recording.... am i overlooking something obvious...?
MacG5User says: Feb 26, 2009. 10:27 AM
How to Legally "Download" Music for Free (Mac) " it's impossible to get a virus from it" DID YOU USE THE WORDS MAC AND VIRUS. Everyone knows macs' don't get them!
fwjs28 in reply to MacG5UserFeb 27, 2009. 6:23 PM
actually, macs are just as vulnerable, however, nobody bothers hijacking them, they just steal 'em :p
bishopdante in reply to fwjs28Feb 7, 2010. 9:22 AM
not so much, no. A well admin'd mac is UNIX grade bomb proof. They've been wargaming BSD for decades now & most of the entry points are plugged.

The core of OSX is as secure as a bank.

There are of course app-specific exploits, some of the OSX apps such as ichat & safari are notorious for swiss-cheese. Flash player is also full of holes. But there's ways to keep these apps in secure prisons so they don't get naughty on you.

I can honestly say that when it comes to OSX, you've got a strong chance of admin keeping the nasties at bay. When it comes to windows, Microsoft have left a lot more doors wide open.

Given enough time & effort anything can be broken into.
fwjs28 in reply to bishopdanteFeb 7, 2010. 9:47 AM
true..but you are also talking about say a school campus or University/workplace type setup where there is an admin.. In most cases, i would assume the end user would just setup an account, maybe install a firewall because of paranoia, and off they go, so it is possible, and is on the rise..
scikidus (author) in reply to fwjs28Feb 27, 2009. 7:13 PM
This argument makes no sense, for three reasons: 1. Mac OS X makes up something between 2-10% of the computing market share. If we say there are about 250 million computers globally (that's really conservative), that's 5-25 million Mac users. That's more than enough users to want to hack their computers. 2. You'd think someone would write a Mac virus by this point just to prove this point, a la Everest argument. 3. The writer of the first Mac virus would achieve international hacker fame. Isn't that a motive?
fwjs28 in reply to scikidusFeb 28, 2009. 5:56 AM
WRONG! i can't remember exactly where i read this, but at a hackerfest somewhere, the mac was the first out of three computers to be hacked (it was a mac windows and then ubuntu) so no i am right, and yes you are for the most part right....
bishopdante in reply to fwjs28Feb 7, 2010. 9:24 AM
Yeah, they cracked open a macbook air with a default setup (ie: firewall off etc.) If a mac is set up properly I don't think it'll go.
scikidus (author) in reply to fwjs28Feb 28, 2009. 6:09 AM
That was a live hack: the competitors have local access.. I'm talking about viruses, as in "download this TOTALLY SAFE program and start having your computer overrun by pop-ups.
fwjs28 in reply to scikidusFeb 28, 2009. 7:27 AM
true, however, safari isn't a very safe browser, so don't expect Mac's to be safe forever...
cameron20020 in reply to fwjs28Jun 1, 2009. 8:22 AM
well excuse me while i go back to debian
REA in reply to cameron20020Jun 1, 2009. 10:21 AM
Fedora is better.
ReCreate in reply to REAOct 14, 2009. 1:39 PM
Slax...
fwjs28 in reply to ReCreateOct 14, 2009. 2:09 PM
slax, 'nuff said
ReCreate in reply to fwjs28Oct 14, 2009. 3:09 PM
Woah...what happened here...i replied to REA and i got a notificationthat you posted a reply...O_O
REA in reply to ReCreateOct 14, 2009. 6:32 PM
ya, it does that. i just got 6 emails about the KDE 4 argument below.
fwjs28 in reply to REAOct 15, 2009. 12:18 PM
silly instructables, pfft 
ReCreate in reply to REAOct 14, 2009. 11:07 PM
Strange....
fwjs28 in reply to ReCreateOct 15, 2009. 12:18 PM
very 
ReCreate in reply to fwjs28Oct 15, 2009. 3:22 PM
Very?
fwjs28 in reply to ReCreateOct 16, 2009. 4:26 PM
dont know 
ReCreate in reply to fwjs28Oct 16, 2009. 5:19 PM
Huh?
fwjs28 in reply to ReCreateOct 17, 2009. 12:20 PM
42? 
ReCreate in reply to fwjs28Oct 17, 2009. 12:39 PM

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REA in reply to ReCreateOct 17, 2009. 2:46 PM
  
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ReCreate in reply to REAOct 17, 2009. 3:44 PM
4920646f6e5c2774206b6e6f772c20497473206a7573742066756e2120203a44
fwjs28 in reply to ReCreateOct 17, 2009. 8:45 PM
%61%68%61%68%61%2E%2E%68%65%78%2C%20%6E%69%63%65%2E%2E%00 
ReCreate in reply to fwjs28Oct 18, 2009. 4:07 PM
SGVoZWhlLi4uLnlvdSB3aWxsIG5ldmVyIGZpZ3VyZSB0aGlzIG9uZSBvdXQh
REA in reply to ReCreateOct 18, 2009. 5:22 PM
b3JseSBub3c/IGl0cyBCQVNFLTY0LiBhIHR5cGUgb2YgY29udGVudCB0cmFuc2ZlciBlbmNvZGlu ZyBjcmVhdGVkIGluIDE5ODcuIHlvdSBjYW50IGJlYXQgbWUuIGkga25vdyBqdXN0IGFib3V0IGV2 ZXJ5IHRyYW5zZmVyICJsYW5ndWFnZSIgdGhlcmUgaXMuDQ==
ReCreate in reply to REAOct 18, 2009. 5:41 PM
72 109 109 109 109 46 46 46 46 46 46 46 104 111 119 32 97 98 111 117 116 32 116 104 105 115 32 111 110 101 63
REA in reply to ReCreateOct 18, 2009. 6:26 PM
touché. what language is that?
fwjs28 in reply to REAOct 19, 2009. 2:24 PM
ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US! 
ReCreate in reply to REAOct 18, 2009. 7:19 PM
"DEC / CHAR"
Anyways, I win hahaha!
REA in reply to fwjs28Oct 18, 2009. 12:21 PM
.-.. --- .-.. ..- .-. .-.. -.-. --- -.. .
ReCreate in reply to REAOct 18, 2009. 4:04 PM
.-- --- .-- / --- / .-. .-.. -.-- ..--..
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