Chapter 3 - MP3rat User Guide

Installation
Chapter 3

3.1 System Requirements

Prior to installation, please verify that your computer is capable of running MP3rat.

MP3rat system requirements:

Windows 95, 98, ME, NT, 2000, or XP
600KB disk space

MP3rat is compatible with the following external players: Winamp, MusicMatch, RealPlayer, Windows Media Player, and the Windows default mp3 and m3u player.

3.2 Downloading

If you do not have a MP3rat disk, or you wish to upgrade to the latest version, you will need to download the MP3rat install program. The latest version can always be downloaded from the MP3rat Download Page:

http://www.kaylon.com/mp3rat/download.html

MP3rat can be downloaded to a directory on your hard disk, however, this can confuse beginners because they may not know where the file was downloaded to. Therefore, this section provides instructions for downloading to a floppy disk, which is easiest for novices.

Step 1

Place a blank formatted disk into the floppy disk drive. These instructions assume the use of drive A, if another drive is used, just substitute that letter wherever A appears.

Step 2

Direct your web browser to the MP3rat Download Page:

http://www.kaylon.com/mp3rat/download.html

Step 3

Click on the download link and save the file to the floppy drive: A

You have now created an install disk for MP3rat and are ready to proceed to Section 3.4, Installing MP3rat.

3.3 Upgrading from a Previous Version

To upgrade an existing MP3rat installation, just install MP3rat as described in the next section, Installing MP3rat. The install program will automatically upgrade the appropriate files while maintaining your song database.

The install program will retain any existing song data, however, it is highly recommended that song data file is backed up prior to upgrading. See Section 7.9 for details regarding backing up song data file.

You can use the Version Check feature to determine if you have the most recent release of MP3rat.

3.4 Installing MP3rat

The MP3rat install program will do the following:

Create a user specified directory to place the MP3rat program into
Copy the program and help files into the aforementioned directory
Add a MP3rat group to the Windows Start Menu
Optionally add an icon to the Windows desktop
Add registry information so that MP3rat can be uninstalled via the Windows Control Panel

Files are not copied to any directories other than the MP3rat program directory so that you do not have to worry about MP3rat overwriting other program files. Also included is an uninstall program that may be used to remove MP3rat from your system, please read Chapter 10, Uninstalling MP3rat, for complete details. To run the install program, place the MP3rat disk into the disk drive, select Run from the Windows Start menu and type in A:\rat_inst.exe. Remember to substitute the correct drive letter and path if the disk drive being used is not drive A.