How to Use Winamp Playlists

To get the most out of MP3 software such as Winamp, you must master playlists. A playlist is a list of songs you create and instruct the software to play. The ability to create a playlist is what separates digital music from compact discs.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Create a winamp playlist. To create a playlist, click the "PL" button to open a new playlist window. Simply drag and drop MP3 files to the playlist in the order you want them played. You can also click on the "Add Dir" button in the playlist window to navigate to songs you want to add.

2. Save the playlist. After you have the playlist configured just the way you like it, you can save it for later use. To do this, click the "List Opts" button in Winamp's bottom right corner. Choose "Save List" from the menu, choose a name and save the playlist in a place on your hard drive where you can find it later.

3. Open a playlist. To open an a playlist you have saved, go back to the "List Opts" button and choose "Load List" from the menu. Then, navigate to the place on your hard drive where you saved the playlist.

4. Check out the "Misc" button on the playlist. Here you'll find ways to sort your playlists, such as alphabetically or even randomly. You can also move songs up or down the playlist by selecting them and using the up and down arrows. To reverse the order of a playlist, hold down the "Ctrl" button on your keyboard and press "R."

5. Remove songs from the playlist. If you want to remove a song from a Winamp playlist, right-click the song and choose "Delete." You can also remove all songs from a playlist by double-clicking the "Sel" button and then hitting the "Rem" button. The songs are removed from your playlist, but the MP3 files stay on your hard drive.