Audiogalaxy is a small web-based program that allows you to share mp3s with other users. You must download, install, and run the program for it to work. You will know that it is running when the Audiogalaxy logo is displayed in the system tray.

I was very surprised to see all the good reviews about this product. I guess these people have not tried Kazaa. Kazaa is a much more reliable and stable program that allows you to share more than just mp3s. I would recommend Kazaa over Audiogalaxy anyday. However, I would recommend Audiogalaxy over Napster.

After Napster started going down I went searching for a new file-sharing program. I must have tried to 20 or 30 of them. Audiogalaxy was one of them. I used it for a couple months and had nothing but problems with it. This was before I discovered Kazaa which I now share over 700 songs with.

But, if you don't plan on downloading a whole lot or just need something plain and simple to use every once in a while, I guess Audiogalaxy will work.

Here is what I liked about the program:

Pros

Free: Remember that this program is free. There are a couple of programs that will ask you to pay for the service. Most of them don't. This one will never ask you for money.


Auto-resuming: If the file you are wanting to download is not available right away, it will automatically start downloading when it is available. Or if the file is only partially completed it will automatically start downloading from the next person. However, you must realize that a lot of programs now have this feature.

Allows you to request offline files: If there is a file that you would like to download and the user is offline, it will automatically start downloading that file when the user is online.

Bandwidth Reductions: This program will automatically chose the person closest to you to download from. This helps speed up the download.

So, what don't I like about the program?

Cons

Control: You have no control on what files you want to share. Other programs will allow you to "stop sharing" what ever files you want.

Mp3s only: You can only download mp3s. Other progams will allow to download just about anything from software to videos to documents to mp3s. So this is a very big drawback that makes the program very limited.

Spyware: Be very careful when downloading the program. You have the option to install the spyware. The first time I downloaded the program I wasn't paying attention and also downloaded the spyware. From that point on my computer started running slow. When I found out the spyware was on my computer and where it came from I uninstalled it. This caused my internet explorer to stop working and I had to reinstall Windows.

Previewing: You cannot preview the mp3 before it is done downloading. Just a minor drawback.


One more issue that does not fit into either category is Blocking:

Audiogalaxy does block certain songs. Not as many as Napster, but close enough. However, you can get around this, so it is not that big of a problem. I would still recommend finding a program that does not block anything.

As for connecting, I have had no real problems with that. I did find that downloads tend to be slow at certain times.

I know how hard it is to find the "perfect" file-sharing program that includes all the features that you want. If you are not big on extra features then Audiogalaxy may be right for you. Through my file-sharing searching, I found that I liked the programs that have more to offer.

So before you download Audiogalaxy I would recommend you try Kazaa first. It offers everything that Audiogalaxy offers but a lot more.




Recommended: No