iMix: Publishing Your Playlists

You've crafted the perfect playlist? Share it with the rest of us by publishing it at the iTunes Music Store. (You must have an account at the music store or with America Online before you can publish a playlist.)

A published playlist is called an iMix, and it appears in its own screen, much like an artist or album page. Each iMix is available for one year. After you create one, you can tell your friends by sending them e-cards or by publishing your iMix's address on a Web site.

Giving a Playlist

Want to buy the songs in a playlist for a friend? In the dialog box that appears after you click the arrow to the right of the playlist's name, click the Give Playlist button.

iTunes displays a list of the songs that are available in the music store, along with options that let you notify the recipient via email or print a note that you can tuck into a card.

For more music-giving options, see page 42.

Creating an iMix

iTunes asks if you'd like to give the playlist as a gift or publish it as an iMix. For details on giving the playlist as a gift, see the tip at lower left. Otherwise, click Create iMix.

If iTunes displays its sign-in screen, supply your account name and password.

Step 2.	Describe your iMix.
Step 3.	(optional). Tell the world, or at least a friend. To let someone know about your iMix, click the Tell a Friend button that appears after you publish the iMix. After your iMix is published, you'll receive an email containing a summary of its tunes as well as a link that you can include in an email or on a Web page.

iMix Tips

Exploring iMixes. To explore the iMixes that other people have created, click the iMix item in the Genre area of the music store's home screen.

You can view mixes chronologically or in order of their rating. On the iMix page, you can also search for songs, artists, and albums that others have included in their iMixes. Highly rated iMixes also appear in relevant artist and album pages.

What else? If you like someone's iMix, you might want to explore other iMixes that he or she has created. In an iMix window, click the link that reads See all iMixes by this user.

Linking to an iMix. Want to grab the Internet address for an iMix? Control-click on the iMix's name or artwork, and choose Copy iTunes Music Store URL from the shortcut menu. Paste the resulting link into an email or the Web tool of your choice.

As with individual songs, you can also create a desktop icon for an iMixjust drag its title or artwork icon to the desktop.

Updating an iMix. To make changes to an iMix, edit the original playlist, then publish it again. When you've published a playlist, a link arrow appears next to it, even when the playlist isn't selected.

A Piece of the Action: iTunes Affiliates

Now that you're recommending songs to people, you might as well get a piece of the action. It's easy: if you have a Web site of your own, you can join the iTunes Affiliate Program and receive commissions when you send customers to the iTunes Music Store.

Start by signing up for the iTunes Affiliate Program at Apple's Web site (www.apple.com/itunes/affiliates). Be prepared to provide some information, such as the Web address, a brief description of your site, and a Social Security number. Then wait a few days for your acceptance email to arrive.

Once you're enrolled in the program, you can build links to specific songs, albums, artists, iMixes, or audiobooks. You can also embellish your site with banner ads and other graphics that shuttle visitors off to the music store.

What's in it for you? A commission (at this writing, five percent) of any purchases made through your links. If you have an obscure, infrequently visited blog, don't expect any instant riches. But if you have a heavily visited sitemaybe one that deals with musicthe commissions can add up.