Track Types

There are a number of different track types you can use with Rhapsody. The type of track determines what you can and cannot do with that track. To find out a track's type, look at the Track Type column in My Library. The track will be listed as Subscription

(streamed

Process of breaking a large audio or video file into smaller pieces and transferring it, piece by piece, so it can be viewed immediately rather than waiting for the whole file to be downloaded.), Subscription

(downloaded but not purchased), Purchased

, MP3, or Imported (no icon)

Tell me more about track types.

Use this chart to get more details about the various track types.

Icon	Track	Properties
	Streamed Rhapsody Tracks	Streamed Rhapsody tracks are streamed to your computer by Rhapsody's servers. With the appropriate membership, you can add streamed Rhapsody tracks to My Library from the Music Guide. No file exists for these tracks on your computer; they are like bookmarks. You can choose to download streamed Rhapsody tracks from My Library or the Mixer without purchasing them by using the right-click menu. To automatically download streamed tracks when they are added to My Library, select Download tracks to my hard drive... from the My Library preferences. Streamed Rhapsody tracks cannot betransferred to a portable player or device unless they are downloaded and they cannot be burned to a CD unless they are purchased. You will be prompted to purchase any tracks you do not yet own when you begin the CD burning process. Streamed Rhapsody tracks are part of your portable Library. When you sign in to your premium Rhapsody account from a different computer your streamed tracks will appear in My Library. Any playlist you make from streamed Rhapsody tracks (or any combination of Rhapsody tracks) will be available for Sharing> *You must have the appropriate membership and hardware to transfer downloaded Rhapsody tracks. Streamed Rhapsody tracks appear in the Track Types column of My Library as Streamed .
	Downloaded Rhapsody Tracks	With the appropriate membership, you can choose to download Rhapsody tracks to your hard drive without purchasing them. To set Rhapsody to automatically download tracks you add to My Library from the Music Guide, select Download tracks to my hard drive whenever possible in My Library preferences. You can also download streamed Rhapsody tracks in My Library by right-clicking the track, and selecting Download Track(s) from the right-click menu. Once you have downloaded a Rhapsody track, a file for that track exists on your hard drive, so you can play the track whether you are signed in to your Rhapsody account or not. You are granted the rights to use downloaded Rhapsody tracks with your Rhapsody Software, and (with the appropriate membership) to transfer them to a compatible portable device* and play them. Once you transfer downloaded Rhapsody tracks to your portable player or device, you must renew the "subscription" to these tracks at least once every 30 days. To do this, simply connect your portable device to your computer while you are signed in to your Rhapsody account. *Not all portable players support the download of this type of content. See this list for more information. Downloaded Rhapsody tracks cannot be burned to a CD until you purchase them. You will be prompted to purchase any tracks you do not yet own when you begin the CD burning process. Downloaded Rhapsody tracks tracks are part of your portable Library. When you sign in to your premium Rhapsody account from a different computer, your downloaded Rhapsody tracks appear in My Library as streamed Rhapsody tracks ( ). You can choose to download them to the new computer if you wish, using the right-click menu. Any playlist you make from downloaded Rhapsody tracks (or any combination of Rhapsody tracks) will be available for Sharing. Note: Downloaded Rhapsody tracks are only available to users on Windows XP systems. Operating systems prior to Windows XP cannot support downloaded Rhapsody tracks at this time. Not all downloaded Rhapsody tracks can be transferred to a portable player or device. Some artists and labels have not granted subscription transfer rights to their tracks. If you attempt to transfer a subscription download that does not have transfer rights, the "Purchase" dialog will open. Downloaded Rhapsody tracks are "membership" tracks. If you end your Rhapsody membership, these tracks are no longer playable. Downloaded Rhapsody tracks appear in the Track Types column of My Library as Downloaded .
	Purchased Rhapsody Tracks	Purchased Rhapsody tracks are tracks you have purchased and downloaded from Rhapsody's Music Guide, either directly or during the CD burning or transfer processes. Once you have purchased a Rhapsody track, the track is downloaded as a file on your hard drive. You own the track. You can play it whether you are signed in to your Rhapsody account or not, you can burn it to a CD, or transfer it to a portable player or device. Purchased Rhapsody tracks are part of your portable Library. When you sign in to your premium Rhapsody account from a different computer , your purchased tracks appear in My Library as streamed Rhapsody tracks ( ). Any playlist you make from purchased Rhapsody tracks (or any combination of Rhapsody tracks) will be available for Sharing. Purchased Rhapsody tracks appear in the Track Types column of My Library as Purchased .
	Purchased Rhapsody MP3s	(No icon) Purchased Rhapsody MP3 tracks are tracks you have purchased and downloaded from Rhapsody's Music Guide, with the Buy MP3 button. Once you have purchased a Rhapsody MP3 track, the track is downloaded as a file on your hard drive. You own the track. You can play it whether you are signed in to your Rhapsody account or not, you can burn it to a CD, or transfer it to a portable player or device. You can burn and transfer your MP3 files as often as you like, and copy them to another computer. You will not be able to re-download these files. Purchased Rhapsody tracks are part of your portable Library. When you sign in to your premium Rhapsody account from a different computer , your purchased MP3 tracks appear in My Library as streamed Rhapsody tracks ( ). Any playlist you make from purchased Rhapsody tracks (or any combination of Rhapsody tracks) will be available for Sharing. Purchased Rhapsody MP3 tracks appear in the Track Types column of My Library as MP3 (no icon).
	Imported Tracks	(No icon) These are local files that have been imported from a CD or downloaded from the internet and saved to your hard drive (but not purchased from Rhapsody's Music Guide). Once you import a CD, its tracks are automatically added to My Library. You can add local files from your hard drives into My Library by selecting File > Add Tracks to My Library from the Rhapsody menus. Imported tracks belong to you. You can listen to them whether you are online or not, burn them to a CD, or transfer them to a portable device. Imported tracks are not available for Library synchronization or Sharing, as they exist only on the hard drive of your computer. Imported tracks appear in the Track Types column of My Library as Imported (no icon).

Quick chart: Which tracks can be used for what tasks?

Use this chart to quickly find out what you can do with the various track types in My Library. (See the Track Types chart, in the link above, for more information on the track types and icons.)

Track Task	Streamed	Downloaded	Purchased	Imported
Exists as a file on your hard drive(s)	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Can be Shared	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Can be transferred to a portable player or device	No*	Yes**	Yes	Yes
Can be burned to CD	No***	No****	Yes	Yes
Can be played when not signed in	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Available in My Library when you sign in from any computer	Yes	Yes*	Yes*	No

* A streamed Rhapsody track cannot be transferred to a portable player or device unless it is downloaded or purchased. If you drag a streamed Rhapsody track to your portable device name in the Sources area, the track will either be downloaded, or the "purchase" dialog will open, depending on your membership level, and whether your portable device supports Rhapsody downloads (subscription content).

**With the appropriate membership, downloaded Rhapsody tracks can be transferred to a compatible portable player. Not all portable players can transfer subscription content such as downloaded Rhapsody tracks. See this list for more information.

***A streamed Rhapsody track cannot be burned to a CD unless it is purchased. If you drag a streamed track to Burn a CD in the Sources area, the "purchase" dialog will open.

Note: Not all tracks are available for purchase. If you drag a track that can only be streamed to Burn a CD, you will be notified.

**** A downloaded Rhapsody track cannot be burned to a CD unless it is purchased. If you drag a downloaded track to Burn a CD in the Sources area, the "purchase" dialog will open.

Note: Not all tracks are available for purchase. If you drag a track that cannot be purchased to Burn a CD, you will be notified.

Types of Tracks in Rhapsody