It doesn't have to be so complicated. I don't know what all the other cd rippers are like, I only use 'easy cd ripper'
just put in a cd, open easyripper, and tell it what kind of file you want it ripped as, for example mp3 , specify the sample rate(eg 128kbs as Cluin suggested,this sounds fine, enter the destination for the file and press 'start', all done!. it's all much less complicated than it sounds too. Once you download it you should see what I mean.
go to this page
here
and look for 'easy cd ripper', it tends to move around a bit but it will be somewhere on the page.   However!, if your computer is too slow, it probably wont work very well. good luck, and persevere! it's worth it! all this file compression and expansion, is a bit like playing an acccordian .moocowpoo