"For streaming music, it's basically music that you go to the internet and you listen," explains CheapStingyBargains blogger Mike Glozman. "You don't have a permanent stored version on your computer or your mobile device."
Pandora.com, Last-fm, GrooveShark and Slacker.com are all free music-streaming sites. You may have to listen to some ads between songs. But Glozman says you don't have to use one of those services to listen to streaming tunes.
"Another free option that I like to use personally all the time is just going to YouTube.com, and basically , I open another browser window," Glozman explains. " keep it in the background and I cue up the music that I like and I can listen all day. and pretty much every song is available on YouTube."
The downside to using YouTube is that it may slow your computer, if you don't have a great internet connection.
And none of these sites lets you download or store what you're listening to.
"When you download a song, you basically have a digital copy that goes onto your computer," Glozman explains..
"If you want to keep songs, you can buy them off iTunes or Amazon..Or you can subscribe to services like MOG or Rdio or Rhapsody. They charge about ten dollars a month for unlimited downloads, though they vary on on how many devices you can download to.
Again, there are some free options. Every day, Amazon offers a free downloadable song, and they have a catalog of about 2000 free tunes for download. A lot of classical music, which is past its copyright, is available for free downloads, and sometimes bands, including The Grateful Dead and Phish will offer free tunes on their own sites.
Glozman warns against using other sites that offer free downloads. Many violate copyright law, and they can expose your computer to spyware and viruses.
