Where's that song?

Find music on your computer

If you're still searching for music on your computer by opening folder after folder in the hope that you'll somehow stumble across what you're looking for, have we got news for you.

There are fast and easy ways to find your music and they're built right into Windows, Windows Media Player, and Windows Media Center.

Search box on the Start menu

One of the best new features in Windows Vista is its vastly improved search performance. This feature is simple and powerful, but it's sometimes easy to overlook because it's so subtle.

Let's say you previously ripped an Elvis Presley CD to your computer and now you want to find the song "Blue Suede Shoes." All you have to do is click the Start button , and then type Blue Suede Shoes in the Search box.

As you type, items that match your text will appear on the Start menu. The search is based on text in the file name, media information associated with the song, and other file properties. You don't need to press ENTER; searching happens automatically.

To play the song, click its name in the Search menu. Your default music player (such as Windows Media Player) will open and start playing the song.

You can also find artists and albums by typing their names in the Search box. For information about other Windows search options and techniques, see Find a file or folder.

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Windows Media Player

If you want a more robust method of finding your music, try Windows Media Player. Its library feature lets you see all of the music on your computer, even if your songs are strewn across your hard disk in multiple folders.

	To open the music library in Windows Media Player
	1. Open Windows Media Player by clicking the Start button , clicking All Programs, and then clicking Windows Media Player. 2. Click the Library tab.

Navigation pane in the library

If you don't know exactly what you're looking for, use the Navigation pane on the left side of the library to browse your music by categories, such as song title, artist, album, genre, and so on.

Library navigation pane in Windows Media Player

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Search box in the library

If you're looking for something specific, use the Search box near the top of the library.

Search box within the library in Windows Media Player

Type a song, artist, album, or other term into the Search box. As you type, items that match your text will appear in the details pane below the Search box. Double-click the item that you want to play.

For more information about searching your library, see Find items in the Windows Media Player library and How do I perform advanced searches in Windows Media Player?

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Windows Media Center

If your computer is running Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Ultimate, you can also use the Windows Media Center feature to find and play music on your computer.

Windows Media Center works great when your computer is hooked up to a standard computer monitor, keyboard, and mouse, but it really shines when you hook it up to a TV and stereo and use a remote to find and play your music from the comfort of your living room couch.

To search the music library in Windows Media Center

Windows Media Center is only available if you are running Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Ultimate. 1. Open Windows Media Center by clicking the Start button , clicking All Programs, and then clicking Windows Media Center. If your computer came with a remote control, you can also start Windows Media Center by pressing a button on the remote. 2. On the start screen, scroll to Music, scroll to the right, and then click search. Enter letters by using the numeric keypad or your keyboard. You can also use the remote control to enter your search criteria.

For more information about finding and playing music in Windows Media Center, see Listen to music in Windows Media Center.

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