Mp3 faq - What is MP3

What is MP3?

MP3 is an acronym for MPEG layer 3 which is a format/algorithm to tightly compress audio files. MP3 files have the .mp3 file extension on them. Up to 12 to 1 compression is attainable and produces high sound quality with very little loss.
The beauty of the MP3 format is that it contains to file header information - it is all contained with in the audio stream. This fact makes it perfect for the internet where audio can be streamed with quality and at relatively low transfer speeds.

The downside to all this, is that it takes a really good decoder (player) program to properly decompress the mp3 stream. This means high CPU usage. Its also the reason older platforms like Win3.1 have very few mp3 players available.

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