How to Open and Listen to Sound Files

WAV (.wav), MP3 (.mp3), WMA (.wma), MIDI (.mid), AU (.au), or AIFF (.aif) files

Double-clicking on the file: If you don't care what program the computer uses.

Open the folder containing the sound file and double-click on the file (or right-click and select Open). That will let the computer choose the program.  This might be Windows Media Player or it might be some other program that you have installed, such as MusicMatch.  

If double-clicking the file opens the wrong program, or displays an error message:

1.  Right-click on the file and select Open with..., then select Choose Program....

2. Look through the list and select one of the programs.  

3. Click the little box that says "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file".  

4. Then click OK.  Thereafter, double-clicking on files of that type will open the selected program.

(In Windows 98,  Click Start => Settings => Folder Options. Click on the File Types tab.  This lists all the file types that have been registered on your computer and the programs that will be launched when you double-click a file of that type.  To change an assignment, select the file type and click Edit. 

If you want to open the file in a specific program, you have several choices:

A. Open the desired program first (Start => Programs and select the desired program), then pull down the File menu within that program, click in the "Look in" menu at the top and open the desired file
OR
B. Right-click on the file, select Open with...., select a program to open the file from the pop-up menu.
OR
C. If the desired program is already open, open the folder containing the file and drag the file onto the window of the program.  (This will work in most but not all programs).  In some programs (e.g., Windows Media Player, MusicMatch, WinAmp) you can even drag a whole folder of sound files onto a program window and they will all be listed in the Playlist of that program.

If the desired program is not one of the choices in the "Open with..." pop-up menu:

1. Right-click on the file and select Open with..., then select Choose Program....  This displays a scrolling list of programs that could possibly open that type of file.  

2. Look through the list and select one of the programs.  If always want that program to open files of that type, click "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file".  Then click OK.  

3. The selected program will be launched and the file will be opened.  

If I recorded a sound with Sound Recorder or some other program, won't that program be opened when I double-click the file?

No.  Sound Recorder and other sound editors programs can save its files in generic sound file formats (e.g. .wav or .mp3).  When you double-click on a file it recorded, the computer launches whatever program is assigned to .wav or .mp3 files (might be Windows Media Player, or MusicMatch, or some other program).

Why does MusicMatch open when I double-click on a sound file?  

Because if not installed properly, MusicMatch takes over the file type assignments of several common file types.  To fix that, follow the steps in "If double-clicking the file opens the wrong program" above.

(c) Tom O'Haver (toh@umd.edu), December 2005