Searching for Files MP3, Video and Other Types



This is a guide to help you learn how to go about searching for other files like movies and applications.  We will also discuss a few tips on searching and what the buttons are all for.


There are many options on the search screen to allow you to search for files other than mp3s.  There are also settings to allow you to improve your searches for all files.
This looks like as good a place as any to mention that WinMX is under heavy attack from the RIAA/MPAA companies.  Meaning you as an individual are fairly safe but the network is not.  They are flooding the WPN with fakes of all names and file types.  If you not already now is the time to get a patch that filters those out of your searches and keeps the network clean.  You can get it and more info from here:
WinMX Community Patch




Here you see your typical search screen, we will got through the options one at a time.

Artist and /or Title
Here is where you type in the name of a artist, title of a song or movie, or the name of an application you want to search for.  You can also use key words if your unsure of a specific name, or put a artist in the top bar with a title of a track in the second to refine your searches.  You can refine your searches or exclude words by using the following charcters in from on a word in the second line

-words -you -don't -want -included -in -results
~words ~you ~want ~added ~to ~your ~results

 

Audio, Video, Pictures, buttons
These buttons allow you to quickly change from searching for mp3s to searching for Audio, Video, or Picture formats.  Useful for example if I didnt want to change the title in my search for a mp3 by an artist, but then wanted to find a cd cover or a video by that artist also.


MP3 Audio - Any Bitrate button



This button allows you to select other file types to search for.  From here you can choose different Audio qualities by choosing "MP3 Audio" then...



You can choose the bitrates you want to search for.



This allows you to choose the best quality of MP3 files to include in your search.


The MP3 Audio - Any Bitrate button is what you will use to search for other types of files on WinMX, such as movies, games, and applications.  The formats for each are as follows:

Video files - (*.avi, *.asf, *.mpg, *.mpeg)
This format is where you want to search for movies and video files.

Picture files - (*.jpg, *.png, *.jpeg, *.gif)
These formats are for photos and pictures.

Text files - (*.txt, and *.rtf)
These formats are for text documents and some E-books.

HTML files - (*.htm, *.html)
These formats are for web page files.

Archive files - (*.zip, *.iso, *.rar, *.exe)
These formats are for program, application, and game files.

Server files - (*.wsx) open nap server formats.
These are files for connecting to OpenNap on WinMX.

Colour Scheme files - (*.clr)
These are for changing colors of your WinMX.

Audio files - (*.wav, *.au, *.aif, *.midi, *.mpc)
These are some other types of audio files.

Any Non-Mp3 file Use this for times your unsure what format a file you want might be in.

Any File / Bitrate - For any file as the name implies.


All Available Networks button



Here you can choose what networks you would like to search.  If you connect to OpenNap to help you avoid some of the fakes or are looking for rare and hard to find files, you can choose from the different networks you are connected to.  
If your looking for a rare or hard to find file choosing All Available Networks is best.  This will search all of the OpenNaps and WinMX networks, giving you a better chance to find the files.
If avoiding fakes is your reason for using OpenNap picking a network one at a time to search is best.
For help on 'How to Use OpenNap' click Using OpenNap


Any Connection button



This button will allow you to search on specific connection types.  You can choose All Connections or specific one such as Cable, T1, DSL, or others.


Search, Stop and Close buttons

These are fairly self explanatory, your Search button is going to begin your search for you once clicked.  
The Stop button will stop more results from being found, very important to use this if you find the results are more then WinMX can handle.  For example an artist that is being flooded with fakes will have thousands of results per second, totally up to 50,000 results on some, this will damage and overload the network.  Be sure to stop your searches in these cases at around 1000 results.
The Close button will close a search.  
NOTE:If your WinMX has frozen up and the Close button does not respond try opening and closing your cd drawer this allows you to interrupt WinMX for a moment to click the button.


Search New Window

This simply opens a new search window for you, while leaving others open.


Download button

This will start a download that you have high-lighted in your search screen.


Manually Resume button



This button will allow you to resume downloading a file, if it matches the file you already have a part of.  You will see the file in yellow on your search screen, high-light the yellow file, click the Manually Resume button and a box will pop up like above.  You can choose to add this to your existing file or download it starting separately.


Auto Find Sources - 10min

This button allows you to set a time for finding sources automatically.  Its recommended you set this at 10 minutes.  This will then look for additional sources for your files that are downloading or sources for your incompletes you have waiting to be downloaded.


Auto Enter Que

This button will let you decide how big of a line you want to get into to wait your turn for a file.  When you are Remotely Queued it means your waiting your turn and the file turns purple.  Many people with lots of files to share will have several users waiting in line, so to ensure you line up for your turn you can change this to 100.
This means that you will be in line up to 100th place to get a file.


Available Files On Top button

This puts the users with upload slots available on top for you. These will be shown in green under Status in your search.



Show Full Paths

This will show a users full path of a file.  What this means is "where on their computer" the file is located.
Its not used much when searching, the file path will be found when you begin to download, so clicking on  this only places extra strain on the network and slows you searches down.


Ping Results buttons

These two buttons will ping either Results on your search screen or All results.  
A ping is a way your computer tests a connection speed to another computer, by sending out a bit of data and telling you how fast it is returned or responded to.  The faster the ping the better the connection speeds.  
This sounds like you will always want fast numbers, however, with all the HIGH speed computers flooding WinMX with fake files right now you may have better results with slower or unknown ( ? ) result as shown below.



The question marks in this picture indicate the ping sent took too long to respond and these are slower connection but also more then likely real files as well.

Now that you are "all knowing" about how to search for different types of files and what the buttons on your search screen do, we hope this will help you to enjoy WinMX.

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