Just when you thought that you couldn't get enough radio time on the actual radio. Now there are all sorts of services on the Internet (which are free, by the way) that you can sign up for and take advantage of as long as they're free. If you're looking for such an application to join, Blip.fm is great. Blip.fm is a neat musical site for those who not only love music but who love to discover new music that they may have otherwise never heard before. It's almost like Twitter but for music. In addition to being able to link up to Twitter, Blipf.m allows you to sync up to your Twitter profile so that every time you upload a new song or “give props” to another Blipf.m DJ, it will show up in your Twitter profile. As an added word-to-the wise, however; if you plan to comment on a lot of songs or upload a lot of songs, you may want to change your settings so that you don't overwhelm your Twitter followers!



When you give “props” to another Blipf.m user, you are essentially telling them, as well as other people who follow your blips, that you like the musical choice that they put out there. Each time someone gives you props for a song you blip, your profile tracks it in the upper right hand corner. Obviously, the more props you get, the better known you are. It's sort of looked at in a lot of ways as a type of popularity contest- which is what Twitter is a lot of the time. Additionally, the more listeners you have, the better because as you hit increments of fifty listeners, there is a star that appears beside your name each time you blip a song that lets others know how many listeners you have- essentially, how popular you are. Blip.fm is also mindful to let you know how many “props” you have left to give out. The way to earn props is by having other people give you props on songs that you blip. Typically this operates in a reciprocal fashion. For instance, if you give props to another DJ for a song that he or she has just blipped, they will, in turn, give you props back for a song that you have blipped. You also earn props when someone re-blips a song that you have blipped.

On Blip.fm, everyone who is a subscribed user is referred to as a “DJ”. You can give a t'humbs up' to songs that other Djs post, which is referred to as “giving props”. You also have the option of “reblipping” songs that other Djs post. This simply means that you re-post a song that they have posted. When you reblip someone elses song or if you choose to blip a song yourself, you have the option to type in a brief 160 word message to the other Djs who are following you. The DJ's who like your musical selections and who choose to follow you are classified as your “listeners”. At any time, you can check to see who is listening to your music.

There's a whole lotta blippin' to be had on Blip.fm, and while it may seem like another Twitter popularity contest, it's all in fun. The people who belong to Blip.fm really love music and are more than happy to share songs with other people. Not only that, but Blip.fm has a feature that allows you to play songs like you would if they were on a play list (in a continuous stream), similar to having a radio on or listening to your itunes. You can visit other Djs profiles and click on their props to see what songs they like, or you can click on their play lists to see what songs they enjoy listening to. It's also a fantastic way to meet new friends who like the same music as you.