9
FAQ
s
freqUently aSked qUeStIonS
Q: What is Internet radio?
A:
Internet radio simply identifies any radio station or network distributing its signal
over the Internet. As long as your computer connects to the Internet, you’ll be
able to listen to the radio without any proximity limitation. You can literally listen
to a whole world of music from any location.
Q: What is “kbps”?
A:
Kbps
— displayed in a column on some of the Internet Radio screens — is the
number of kilobytes of a radio signal transferred each second. The bigger the
number, the more data being transferred, which means that the sound quality
will be better but more bandwidth will be used, which could affect other programs
in use on your computer.
Q: Does any software need to be installed to use the USB Internet Radio?
A:
No installation is needed. However, the first time the USB Internet Radio is
installed you may need to download an ActiveX control file. Simply plug the
stick into a USB port and click “OK” when prompted. It’ll take just few seconds
to complete the download. After that, you won’t need to download the file again.
Q: What are the software/hardware requirements of the USB Internet Radio?
A:
Your computer needs to have Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) or Internet Explorer 7
(IE7) installed, and the operating system needs to be Windows 2000, XP or
Vista or Mac OS X 10.5. It also needs Windows Media Player version 9 or above.
For optimal music quality, connect to the Internet using a wired LAN.
Q: Why can’t the USB Internet Radio start automatically after plugging it in?
A:
Settings of each computer will depend on the operating system, the selected
language and user preferences. See the Installation Suggestions... section for
operation details.
Q: Why can’t some radio stations be played on the USB Internet Radio
?
A:
Many Internet radio stations are non-profit entities with minimal funding (often
operated by students or even home-office hosts), so they may not be “up and
running” 24 hours a day or provide enough bandwidth to support an unlimited
number of connected listeners. As a result, minimized budgets and less-than-
top-grade equipment can lead to connection problems. In order to maintain the
highest possible degree of reliability to ensure user satisfaction, stations are
regularly reviewed and, when necessary, removed from the database.
Another reason is that some sources may be blocked by the firewall.
Q: What causes noise and interrupted sound?
A:
Noise can be caused by an unstable signal transmitted by an Internet radio station.
Interruptions (“broken” sound) can occur when the bandwidth is insufficient or
the Internet is congested. In the latter case, select a station with a lower bit
rate (kbps).
Q: Can I listen to Internet radio after unplugging the USB Internet Radio?
A:
No. The program shuts down automatically when the stick is removed from the
USB port. If you inadvertently unplug the stick while listening, you can select
the History list after you plug the device back in to see the station(s) you were
listening to.
Q: Why do some stations disappear suddenly?
A:
To ensure all stations that are made available remain connectable, their
