Translations by Petri Järvisalo

If you have a portable music player which can also display photos and videos, you may prefer to use <ulink url="apt:banshee">Banshee</ulink>, which is a music player with good support for such devices. iPod owners may also like to try specialized applications such as <ulink url="apt:gpixpod">GPixPod</ulink> and <ulink url="apt:gtkpod">gtkpod</ulink> for handling multimedia.

Once installation is complete, the video should begin to play. If not, try closing and then re-opening the video.

Download a suitable Linux installer from the <ulink url="http://uk.real.com/player/select/"> RealPlayer website</ulink> and save it in your Home folder.

Open a Terminal (<menuchoice><guimenu>Applications</guimenu><guimenuitem>Accessories</guimenuitem><guimenuitem>Terminal</guimenuitem></menuchoice>) and type the following, pressing <keycap>Enter</keycap> at the end of each line and typing your password when prompted:

You should see the text <guilabel>Extracting files for Helix installation</guilabel> on the screen if the installer has started properly. When asked a question by the installer, press <keycap>Enter</keycap> to accept the default.

When the installer has finished copying files, press <menuchoice><guimenu>Applications</guimenu><guimenuitem>Sound &amp; Video</guimenuitem><guimenuitem>RealPlayer 11</guimenuitem></menuchoice> and follow the instructions on the screen to complete set-up.

For more in-depth instructions, see the <ulink url="https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RealPlayerInstallationMethods"> community help wiki</ulink>.

You can change the default file format used by Rhythmbox when copying CDs. Click <menuchoice><guimenuitem>Edit</guimenuitem><guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem><guimenuitem>Music</guimenuitem></menuchoice> and change the <guilabel>Preferred Format</guilabel> to the format of your choice. In future, all CDs copied to your computer will be copied in this format.

Ubuntu will work with most portable audio players, including iPods. Normally, all you have to do is plug the player into your computer and then use Rhythmbox to copy songs to and from the player. The audio player should appear in the <guilabel>Devices</guilabel> section of the list which is underneath the <guibutton>Play</guibutton> button. See the <ulink type="help" url="ghelp:rhythmbox">Rhythmbox manual</ulink> for more information.

Not all portable audio players are able to play files in the Ogg Vorbis format; for example, iPods cannot play this format. In order for your player to recognize your songs, you must convert them to a format which it supports. Nearly every player on the market supports the MP3 format, so this is usually a safe bet.

You can convert existing audio files to other formats using <ulink url="apt:soundconverter">Sound Converter</ulink>. The output format can be selected in the Sound Converter preferences.

You can use Rhythmbox to download and play podcasts; select <guilabel>Podcasts</guilabel> from the <guilabel>Library</guilabel> section of the Rhythmbox window to get started. The <ulink type="help" url="ghelp:rhythmbox">Rhythmbox manual</ulink> has further instructions. Alternatively, you may prefer to use a dedicated podcast manager such as <ulink url="apt:gpodder">gPodder</ulink> or <ulink url="apt:penguintv">PenguinTV</ulink>.

<emphasis role="strong">RealAudio streams</emphasis>, as used by some Internet radio stations, are not supported by Rhythmbox. To listen to this type of stream, <link linkend="video-realplayer"> install RealPlayer</link>.

Ubuntu is able to play most audio formats, including MP3, WMA and AAC. However, it does not support the various DRM (Digital Rights Management) schemes which stores sometimes use to restrict access to their music. If you download audio files which are DRM-restricted, they are unlikely to work in Ubuntu. In particular, nearly all music from the iTunes music store is DRM-restricted and so cannot be played.

For more advanced recording needs, you may like to try a multi-track audio editor such as <ulink url="apt:jokosher">Jokosher</ulink> or <ulink url="apt:audacity">Audacity</ulink>.

Many other professional-level recording tools are available for Ubuntu. See the <ulink url="http://ubuntustudio.org/"> Ubuntu Studio website</ulink> for more information.

Right-click the speaker icon on the panel at the top of your screen and select <guilabel>Open Volume Control</guilabel>. If you do not have a speaker icon on your panel, press <keycombo><keycap>Alt</keycap><keycap>F2</keycap></keycombo>, type <userinput>gnome-volume-control</userinput> and click <guibutton>Run</guibutton> instead.

Under the <guilabel>Playback</guilabel> tab, make sure that all of the microphone settings are unmuted and that their volume is set high enough. If a microphone is muted, a speaker icon with a red cross over it will be displayed underneath its volume slider; click that icon to unmute the microphone.

You may also find it necessary to change other settings to get your microphone to work properly. For example, the <guilabel>Mic Boost</guilabel> and <guilabel>External Amplifier</guilabel> settings under the <guilabel>Switches</guilabel> tab and the <guilabel>Mic Select</guilabel> setting under the <guilabel>Options</guilabel> tab can all affect the volume of your microphone.

Check the volume control in the recording application

Some applications allow you to change the volume of the microphone from within the application. Check the volume settings in the application that you are using.