Digital sound is nothing more than numbers. What separates one container from another is how those numbers are packed, how much data (if any) is thrown away, and which devices understand the result.

Scenario: You’ve obtained an audio or video file that’s either in a format unsupported by the device you intend to play it on—an iOS device, traditional iPod, or your Mac, for example—or in a form ...

Even if you don't own an iPod, it can be easy to get sucked into the AAC trap. It's the default format used by the popular iTunes Software to rip CDs, and the program will prompt you to convert WMAs ...