Windows Media Player for Handheld PC

About Windows Media Player for Handheld PC
Playing music
Working with playlists
Working with skins
Adjusting sound quality
Playing licensed content
Managing and storing music

About Windows Media Player for Handheld PC

You can play Windows Media audio (.wma) and MP3 (.mp3) files using Microsoft Windows Media Player for Handheld PC. You can also copy and convert digital music from your computer to your Handheld PC using Microsoft Windows Media Player 7.

The controls for Windows Media Player for Handheld PC operate similar to the controls on a compact disc player. The first time you start Windows Media Player, a default playlist called All My Music is created; it contains all the music found on your portable device. Windows Media Player for Handheld PC also comes with skin support. Skins enable you to change the look of the player and, depending on the skin, how the player works. You can also select the sound quality of the playback.

Note Windows Media Player for Handheld PC now supports bitrates from 32 Kbps up to 160 Kbps for both .wma and .mp3 files.

See Also
Playing music
Working with playlists

Playing music

Using the player controls
Adjusting the volume
Navigating a track
Adjusting sound quality
Displaying track information

Working with playlists

Playlist overview
Creating a playlist
Playing a track in a playlist
Deleting a playlist
Adding tracks to a playlist
Deleting tracks from a playlist
Displaying track information
Copying and renaming a playlist
Organizing tracks in a playlist

See Also
Editing a playlist

Working with skins

Skins overview
Changing a skin
Adding a new skin

Playing licensed content

Some media files that you download from the Internet have associated licenses. Use your computer to obtain licensed files and then use Windows Media Player 7 to copy them to your Handheld PC. For more information on copying licensed files, see the Windows Media Player 7 Help.

Note Do not use ActiveSync or File Explorer to copy licensed files to your portable device. Neither ActiveSync nor File Explorer will copy the associated license and the file will not play.

See Also
Copying music to a portable device

Managing and storing music

If a playlist contains tracks located on a PC Card (PCMCIA) and the card is removed, its tracks will be unavailable and appear dimmed in the Playlist Management window. When a different PCMCIA card is inserted, the All My Music playlist will be updated to reflect any new tracks and missing tracks are not displayed. The icon indicates that a track is stored on a flash card.

Warning When you rename the Windows Media Player folder and then click Player.exe, Windows Media Player does not open.

See Also
Copying music to a portable device
Working with playlists

All My Music

All My Music is the default playlist that is automatically created the first time you start Windows Media Player. It contains all the music found on your portable device. Although you cannot edit the default playlist, you can create a new playlist based on All My Music.

See Also
Creating a playlist
Editing a playlist

Using the player controls

The following table lists the controls available in Windows Media Player.

Select | To do this
/ | Toggle play/pause
| Stop
| Skip to beginning of the current or previous track. Select once to return to the beginning of the current track. Select twice to return to the previous track.
| Skip to next track
| Repeat playlist
| Shuffle playlist
| Display track information
| Mute volume
| Manage playlists
| Adjust sound quality
| Change the skin
| View all playlists
| Open the All My Music playlist
| View the Help file

See Also
Adjusting the volume
Navigating a track

Copying music to a portable device

You can use Windows Media Player 7 to copy music from your computer to your Handheld PC. Using your desktop computer, navigate to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia and download Windows Media Player 7. For more information about using Windows Media Player 7, see the Windows Media Player 7 Help.

When you copy licensed content using Windows Media Player 7, the file's license is also copied to your Handheld PC. Using File Explorer or ActiveSync to copy licensed content copies the audio file, but not its license. Licensed content will not play without a valid license.

See Also
Playing licensed content

Creating a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon to open the Playlist Management window.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select All Playlists or select it's icon on the toolbar.
   The All My Music playlist is visible when you first run Windows Media Player.
3. Select New and then type the name of your playlist. Press ENTER.
4. In the Add Tracks window, select the check box next to each track you want to include in the new playlist.
5. Select the Close button to save your choices.

Note You cannot use the characters " / \ [ ] : ; | , =, &" in playlist names. Also, colored icons indicate that a track is stored on a storage card, not in local memory.

See Also
Editing a playlist

Editing a playlist

The following table decribes the controls used to edit a playlist.

Select the Playlist icon.

Select | To do this
| Select tracks in the Add Tracks window. Select the checkbox next to each track you want to include in the playlist.
| Delete tracks from the playlist.
| Move tracks up in the playlist.
| Move tracks down in the playlist.
| Exit the Playlist Management window and play the selected track.

Note You can only edit a playlist when it is loaded or in use.

Adjusting the volume

- Select and drag the slider.
- To mute the volume, select .

See Also
Using the player controls

Navigating a track

- Select and drag the slider. By doing so you can restart the content at any point. The amount of time the current track has played is displayed in Windows Media Player.

See Also
Using the player controls

Playlist overview

A playlist contains a list of links to the audio files on your computer and flash cards. You can use a playlist to organize your audio files. The All My Music playlist, which contains all the music on your device, is automatically created the first time you start Windows Media Player for Handheld PC. The next time you open Windows Media Player, the last playlist you opened is available first.

Note You can only edit a playlist when it is loaded or in use.

See Also
Editing a playlist
All My Music

Skins overview

A skin is a file (.skn) you can use to customize the look and functionality of Windows Media Player. Windows Media Player includes a default skin, but you can download additional skins from the Internet.

When you select a skin you'll see a preview of it in the window pane. Third-party skins require the proper version and bitmap names to preview them. For more information on skins, navigate to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/.

Changing a skin

1. Select the Skin Chooser icon.
2. Select the forward or backward button to view the available skins. (The skins are previewed in the graphics pane.)
3. When you've decided on a skin, select OK.

Adding a new skin
On your desktop computer, navigate to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/en/software/players/Skins.asp. Here you can download new skins and learn how to install them.

Note You cannot use the " & " character in skin file names. In addition, skins you add while the Skin Chooser dialog box is open are not available until the dialog box is closed and then relaunched.

Displaying track information

- Select the Track Information icon. to view the current track's properties including frequency, copyright, file size, bitrate, etc.

Adjusting sound quality

1. Select the Sound Quality Chooser icon.
2. For Foreground, choose between High or Low.
3. For Background, choose between High, Low, or Off.
4. Select the Close button to save your choices.

You can also select the option to attempt to play unsupported bitrate files.

Note You must have a selection for each set of option buttons.

Playing tracks in a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select the name of the playlist that contains the desired tracks.
3. Select the track you want to play and then select the Play icon.

See Also
Editing a playlist

Adding tracks to a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select the desired playlist.
3. Select the Plus button on the toolbar.
4. In the Add Tracks window, select the check box next to the tracks you want to add.
5. Select the Close button to save your choices.

Deleting tracks from a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. From the Select Playlist menu, select the desired playlist.
3. Select the track you wish to delete. Then select the Delete button.
4. Select the Close button to save your choices.

Note Deleting a track from a playlist using Playlist Manager does not remove the file from local memory. To delete content from local memory, you must use Windows Media Player 7 or File Manager.

Organizing tracks in a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select All Playlists.
3. Choose the desired playlist. Select the desired track, then select the Up or Down arrow on the toolbar. Each time you select the track, it moves up or down one place in the list.
4. Once your tracks are organized, select the Close button to save your choices.

Deleting a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select All Playlists.
3. Select the name of the playlist you want to delete.
4. Select the Delete button and then select Yes or No when prompted.

Note Deleting a playlist does not delete the tracks it contains from memory.

Copying and renaming a playlist

1. Select the Playlist icon.
2. On the Select Playlist menu, select All Playlists.
3. Double-Select the playlist you wish to copy or rename.
4. Select Create Copy or Rename from the menu.
5. Type the new playlist name and press ENTER.