Kazaagold: is it worth $10?

Subject: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 01:46 AM

I finally broke down and bought a CD burner for my computer. And it only took me 3 days to get it working. (It would have been shorter if I'd remembered to plug it back in after re-installing the driver.) After a bit of snooping around the 'Cat and Google, it seems that kazaa (now known as kazaagold) is a popular choice for finding music to download. (And before we start in the old debate about downloading music, I do buy CD's, mostly from independent artists and labels, and I expect to continue to do so--no doubt including those by artists whom I will discover by finding their music online.) But as I was saying, does anyone have experience with this site? Is it worth paying them money to "join"? My tastes tend toward the not-all-that-popular: folk and folk-like, "world", jazz and popular standards from long ago, and even the dreaded s****r-s********r. Are there better alternatives? (Just buy the friggin' CD's, dude...) OK, wise guy, I heard you.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Cluin
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 05:07 AM

You could try WinMX, Mark. It's small, efficient, free and has no scumware, spyware, ads or nag screens. I've used it and usually been able to find any tune I was looking for... eventually.

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 05:37 AM

I have not used the gold.

But, I have used Kazaa. It is outstanding. For example, I now have a respectable collection of Jimmy Rodgers, Burl Ives, Sons of the Pioneers, Carter Family, etc. etc. etc.

Like Cluin, eventually I have found everything I was looking for including obscure things like "Dangerous Dan McGrew" by Guy Lombardo.

Sincerely,
Gargole

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Cluin
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 05:58 AM

Oh yeah? I got Hank Snow reciting "The Ballad of One-Eyed Mike" and Sebastian Cabot doing "Like a Rolling Stone" and "It Ain't Me Babe".

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: michaelr
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 09:46 PM

well... how stingy would you have to be to resent spending ten bucks on any software?

Cheers,
Michael

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 Apr 03 - 10:55 PM

Mark,

My daughter wanted me to install the KaZaa program so she could download music, but I read the 'agreement' that one must accept before the download and installation. It's horrible--they have access to information about what you view, what you do, and the software reports back to the company with this information. It's my opinion that it's insane to accept this software, even if they charge $10 for it now.

There are other programs out there, and a couple came with my computer, though I've never bothered to use them. Go visit Tucows and search on their various download offerings and I bet you'll find something far superior to KaZaa. The more cows, the better. Good luck--maybe it will only take 24 hours to get this part of it running!

Maggie

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 12:13 AM

I use the "free" version of Kazaa.

In another thread today there was a discussion about "Wing and a Prayer" and "Paise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition."

While familiar with the expressions in the American slang...I never knew that they were songs.

Both were available through multiple sources and in multiple versions on Zazaa. I downloaded them. Academically, these are files I would not normally have sought out in the university library...but because they were immediately and easily accessable...my knowledge is now enriched in breadth and width.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Gurney
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 02:13 AM

I'm no computer expert, but pcmag.com are, and they have been investigating spyware. Frightening. The only spy-ware free filesharer they tried was Shareaza, a shareware program. Kazaa (not gold) commonly installed five spyware programs on your computer, if I've read it right, which Stilly River Sage points out they do WITH YOUR PERMISSION!

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: Cluin
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 02:40 AM

I think there is a hacker out there who was distributing a "cleaned-up" version of Kazaa that had the extra junk removed from it and The Kazaa people were suing him for piracy of their program.

Sort of ironic, non?

Subject: RE: Kazaagold: is it worth $10?
From: clansfolk
Date: 14 Apr 03 - 07:24 AM

$10.00 to buy a crowbar to break into your local music shop?

not bad if that's what you're into!

Pete :-(