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kJams turns your computer into a karaoke jukebox, allowing you to play karaoke tunes with a full-screen lyrics—quickly and easily. kJams Lite offers all of the functionality you need to enjoy karaoke in your home; kJams Pro offers additional functionality for the professional KJ. The best part is, kJams is simple enough for the newbie and awesome enough for the fanatic karaoke diva!

But don’t take my word for it. Try it out for yourself. It’s SHAREWARE, meaning you can download and use it for free in Tryout mode.

kJams Documentation

The documentation that follows will help you navigatge the kJams world. If you are technically adept and familiar with karaoke--well,you wont' read the documentation anyway, right? There are links to technical material that you may find useful, and I suggest you check out the forums. If you are technically challenged and/or new to karaoke, I suggest you look over the sections below, in the order they're presented.

  1. System Requirements Temp
  2. Tryout Version of kJams


Using this Documentation

If you’re new to karaoke or a computer klutz, I recommend you follow the steps outlined in this documentation. I’ve tried to keep it simple, but let me know if something is confusing.

When you see a word or phrase hyperlinked, that means there is additional information available. Often this information is geared toward the techies and the karaoke fanatics, but not always. If you there is something you don’t understand, click on the available hyperlinks.

kJams menu options are described using this shorthand:

Click on Edit --> Preferences --> Stores

This means:

  1. Find the Edit menu title at the top of your screen and click on it.
  2. From the menu that is pulled down, click on Preferences.
  3. In the list presented there, click on Stores.


Keyboard Shortcuts

Many of the kJams menu items have keyboard shortcuts, which are documented on the menus themselves. If you prefer using your keyboard, rather than your mouse, go ahead and learn these shortcuts.

For you techies, you can customize your own keyboard shortcuts here.

Downloading

Downloading kJams is simple. Find the version that you want at the top right corner of this page.

By the way, the download is the same for the trial version and the registered version. Why? Because you have to download the trial version first in order to purchase. This keeps it very simple in that once you purchase, there’s nothing more to do to get the registered version. You already have it!

For Mac Users It's drag and drop! Don't you think all applications should install that way?

  1. Click the link of the version you want to download.
  2. In the Finder, unzip it.
  3. Drag it to your applications folder.
  4. Don't forget to trash the zip file.
  5. Drag it from your Applications folder to your dock. Now you can laugh it from your dock with a single click.

For Windows Users

  1. Click the link of the version you want to download.
  2. Respond Save to Do You Want to Open or Save this File?
  3. Once the file has been saved, click on it to install kJams and follow the instructions.
  4. The kJams icon automatically appears on your desktop and in your Start Menu.

If you want to rip from CDs

In order to rip a music file to your hard drive, it needs to be converted from the CD-audio format into a computer-file format. (This is known as “format shifting” or “encoding.”) This requires a specialized software library called an encoder. QuickTime (which you should already have on your computer) includes several built-in encoders that are quite excellent, so you don’t need to download an encoder unless you want a file format that QuickTime does not support.

If you are okay with AAC, AIFF, WAV, or AppleLossless encoding, then all you need is QuickTime.

However:

  • If you want encode to MP3, then download LAME.
Translation for non-techy types: if you want to copy songs from a CD and have them end up as MP3 files, you will need LAME installed on your computer.
  • If you want to encode to Ogg Vorbis, then also install XiphQT.
  • Some formats require a QuickTime decoder:
    • ffmpeg for MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 playback (free) Note: for MPEG2 you still need ANOTHER MPEG2 plug-in, below.
    • MPEG2 for Lion (OS X 10.7 or higher)
    • MPEG2 For Pre-Lion (Earlier than OS X 10.7) $20 required for MPEG2 playback, sorry
    • Perian for AVI, DivX, FLV, MKV, GVI, VP6, and VFW
    • Flip4Mac for KMA and WMA playback
    • DivX
    • AC3

Don’t forget--Your drive may not be able to read CD+G disks.

Other downloads

  • If you are a Mac user and you want to burn CDs, download the tryout version of the Mac Burner plugin
  • If you are trying kJams Pro and you want to be able to create new karaoke songs by syncing lyrics, download the Producer plug-in. (This applies to Macs only.)
  • If you would like to download sample songs, click here.Sample Files. (This download includes Twist and Shout from Tricerasoft.)Once the songs are downloaded into the kJams folder, the songs are ready to be added to the kJams library.

UnInstalling

If you really want to utterly remove everything related to kJams from your system, just search for "kJams", and get rid of everything that is in the Application folder (Macs) or the Programs Folder (Windows). Don’t delete the kJams folder that is under your My Music folder, or you will end up deleting all of your music. for Macs, is it called My Music?

Purchasing

I recommend that you play with the kJams Tryout version—have fun with it!—before you decide to purchase. The Getting Started section will help get you up and singing in no time. And be sure you test ripping music to your hard drive and burning music to a CD, since not all computer drives are compatible.

Once you realize how cool kJams is, you will of course want ALL of its functionality. Purchasing a license is quick and easy.

  1. Open your Tryout version of kJams.
  2. Click Help  Purchase.
  3. Follow the directions EXACTLY.
  4. Select the application and plug-ins that you want. (Note: the shopping cart allows you to purchase only one application at a time.)
  5. Do not enter the serial number. (This happens automatically.)


Applications

kJams Lite: $40

kJams Pro: $110

  • kJams Lite is for home/private party use only. That means you may use it in your home with no more than 20 people participating. (If you are a cat person, you do not have to count the cats. Unless they sing.) If you plan to use kJams in a private venue where there are more than 20 people, or in any public venue, or in a professional setting, you must purchase kJams Pro.
  • kJams does NOT include the burner plug-in. You have to purchase this separately.
  • You will be asked to read the License Agreement before purchasing. Salient points:
  1. Your license is tied to your computer—one computer, one license. With one exception: You may activate a single license on 2 computers, but both computers must be yours. You cannot use one license for both you and your wife. Or you and your kids. And yes, you can activate kJams on both your Mac and your PC. I allow two activations so that you can have a backup computer in case one falls off a cliff right before a show.
  2. Your license is transferrable.
  3. Your license is tied to your computer and may become inoperative if any of the following occur:
  4. You replace your startup drive .
  5. You replace your networking card (ethernet).
  6. Your operating system makes a major change—for example, going from 10.4 to 10.5 can sometimes cause a deactivation).
  7. You switch to a different computer.

Plugins

Burner Plugin (works with both Lite and Pro): $20

Keep in mind:
  • To burn more than 3 songs, you must have a registered version of kJams.
  • You really should test your drive first to make sure it’s compatible with the burner plugin.

Producer Plugin (for use with kJams Pro): $70

iPhone or iPod Touch Apps (for use with kJams Pro) iJams: 99¢

For more information on iJams, click here.

Updates

Updates to kJams are always free, and they happen frequently. Perhaps one day if I ever get to version 2.0, that will be a paid upgrade.

If the auto-magical updater that is built into kJams fails for some reason (or you're crashing on startup), it's probably due to a newly introduced bug, which is probably now FIXED in the current version. So just go download the latest version and install it manually, replacing the one that was there before. Hopefully from then on the auto-updater will work again. (Note: Even though the version number shown on this page does not include the "r" designation, it will always, in fact, link to the very latest "r" build.)


If there's a brand new release and you update to it and it crashes on startup, believe me I already know about it and am working to fix it as you read this. (However, please tell me anyway. The more people that report it, the faster I work). Meanwhile, you can easily downgrade to the previous version. When you run the downgraded version, do not update until there's an even newer version available, which should happen very shortly.

Upgrades

If you purchase kJams Lite and then decide to upgrade to kJams Pro:

  1. Open kJams.
  2. Click on Help  Upgrade
  3. Follow the instructions.

The cost to you is exactly the difference between a Lite license and a Pro license.

Discounts and Site Licenses

  • There are no coupons—please don't ask.
  • If you represent a place of worship or a non-profit: 50% off.
  • If you are a student: 50% off
  • If you represent a school and you need a site license for school-use lab computers: 70% off
  • If you are doing humanitarian work or are in the military: 100% off (Free... and thank you for what you do.)
  • Site Licensing: pay for 4 licenses, get the 5th one free

Getting Started

This section will help you get a feel for kJams. If you are super technical, you probably won’t bother reading this section. (But you should anyway.) If you’re software-challenged, read on!

Starting kJams

Once you download and install kJams, the kJams icon will be in your Start Menu (Windows) or in your Dock (Mac).

  1. Click the icon to start the program.
  2. The Main Screen opens and displays your main music library (which is empty) and the kJams menu bar.
  3. If there are any new music stores available, you will be asked if you want to download them. I suggest you always download the new stores as they become available.

Ways to Play

There are three ways you can play karaoke music through kJams.

  1. You can play music directly off of a karaoke CD. (This assumes your drive can read karaoke CDs, which is not always the case.)
  2. You can stream karaoke music from internet music sites.
  3. You can play music that has been downloaded to your computer. This includes music that you purchase through kJams, but also music files that may already reside on your hard drive.

And of course, you can do any combination of the three.

A note about streaming music: To stream music, you purchase a subscription, kind of like Netflix, and then you can access any songs you like, as many times as you like. Keep in mind, however, that in order to stream, you have to have an internet connection. Also, there can be a considerable lag time as the songs buffer.

Regardless of how you intend to access your music, the next step is to build your library.

Building the Library

Just like with iTunes, all of your karaoke music is organized through a library. From this library, you can search for music, build playlists, and of course play karaoke. The library allows you to organize music that is on your system—that is, music that is purchased through Kjams, as well as music that resides elsewhere on your hard drive—but it also allows you to include music that you don’t “own,” such as streaming music.

You have many options in building your library. You can:

  • Index sample songs that you downloaded during installation into your library. If you didn’t download the sample songs, you can get them from this link.
  • Purchase downloadable karaoke music using the built-in kJams store. This is the way most kJams users obtain their music.
  • Download music from other music sites and index them into kJams.
  • Copy music from your karaoke CD-Gs into the kJams library. This is called ripping.
  • Index karaoke tunes that are already on your hard drive into the library.
  • Download free songs from Karaoke Version and Chartbusters.

Note:I used the word “index” rather than “copy” because kJams does NOT COPY when you add music to your library. It only makes a note of where the song resides on the internal drive and it then uses the original files right where they are. This can be a big problem for newbies who download music to their desktop and then add the files to the kJams library. Once the files are added, they think they can trash the file from the desktop. But in reality, this is the only file that exists.

If you are new to karaoke, you probably don’t have any tunes on your hard drive or any karaoke CDs to rip. No problem! To try out kJams’ features, you really only need to download a few songs. Free songs will work just fine.

You can also go to the Chartbuster music store to find free streaming songs, but I’ll talk about that in a minute.

Understanding Tags (Meta Data)

To fully enjoy your karaoke experience, you’ll want to know something about the songs in your library. Besides the name of the song and artist, you might want to know the album, track #, or even the duration of the song. (Especially if your neighbor Bruno is singing Light My Fire.) This meta data is displayed in your kJams library and can be customized to suit your needs.

When you purchase music through the kJams Store, I magically “tag” your music files behind the scenes and voilá—your library displays song name, artist, album, song duration, and whatever other meta data is available. While karaoke stores differ in the kind of meta data provided—for example, some stores provide Composer, while others do not—all stores provide the basic meta data. Unfortunately, if you obtain your music from any other source, I can’t promise you’ll have adequately tagged files. In fact, I can almost guarantee you will have to do some tag editing.

If you want to expand your meta data (for example, to include Composer, Song Writer, Date, etc.), you will most likely have to enter this data manually, even if you purchase through the kJams stores.

It’s completely up to you how much meta data to include in your library, but to start, I recommend that you keep it simple. For now, let’s just add some songs to the library.

Adding Sample Songs

The first step in building your library is to index the sample songs you downloaded when you installed kJams. (By the way, it’s okay to skip this step. If you know you want to purchase music right away, then you don’t really need any sample songs.)

  1. From the kJams main screen, click on File.
  2. Click on Add to Library.
  3. Locate and open the folder that contains the downloaded music files. (This is the file you specified during installation.)
  4. Select the file.
  5. Click on Open.

The music file is indexed to the library and is ready for playing.

Purchasing Music through kJams

kJams offers 1-Click shopping at several karaoke websites. This option offers a huge advantage in that your account information (credit card #, etc.) is maintained by kJams, so you don’t have to re-enter the information each time you want to purchase a song.

In addition, two of the stores, Chartbuster and TriceraSoft, offer streaming music. For this option, you purchase streaming time (essentially a subscription), and then you can stream music whenever you want. Please note that you must purchase your streaming subscription ahead of time. For more information on setting up streaming accounts, refer to Chartbuster and TriceraSoft.

Take note:

  • iTunes does NOT sell karaoke music!
  • Karaoke Locker does not sell music for public performances. Therefore, this store is available only to kJams Lite users.

Setting Up Purchase Preferences

Prior to your first purchase, you will need to set up your account information and provide an email address. The email address is used by the music stores to notify you of your order information.

Also, if you plan on streaming music, you will need to set up your account to allow this. To understand the Preferences relating to streaming music, refer to Chartbuster and TriceraSoft.

Please note that kJams keeps your credit card information encrypted at all times.

To set up your basic purchase account information:

  1. Click on Edit --> Preferences --> Stores. The Stores information page is displayed.
  2. Click on Edit Credit Card Settings.
  3. Enter your credit card information.
    1. Note that your card #, expiration date, and security code are immediately encrypted, so be sure to enter them correctly.
    2. The expiration date must be entered in the following format: MM/YYYY
  4. Click OK.
  5. Click on Edit E-mail Address. (It’s important to use your real address because this is how you get your receipts.)
  6. Enter your email address, then click on OK.
  7. If you want true “one click” shopping with no questions asked, deselect the Confirm All Purchases box. This is not recommended for newbies, as it is very easy to purchase songs without realizing it.
  8. The option to Include Music Store Songs in Main Library allows you to do an exhaustive search when you’re looking for a particular song. With this option activated, kJams searches your Library, plus all enabled music stores. You also have the option of limiting the search to streaming songs only.
  9. If you decide to set up your preferences as described above—deselecting Confirm All Purchases and selecting Include Music Store Songs in Main Library—then there is an additional preference that you should deselect. Go to Edit  Preferences  General and deselect Pre-cache Next Song. Leaving this preference selected will cause kJams to purchase the song you are playing, but also the next song in the playlist.
  10. If your are planning on streaming music, purchase your subscriptions and then set your preferences according to the information located here: Chartbuster and TriceraSoft.
  11. Click on OK to exit the Stores preferences screen.


IMPORTANT: The option described above under #8 is potentially dangerous if you have Confirm All Purchases turned off. For example, you can scroll to any music store song and press play, and it will happily purchase the song for you without asking. And then without asking, it will purchase the next one that plays, and the next one. However, this option can be very useful if you are a KJ and you want Singers to be able to search for and submit songs that are in your music stores (which you will gladly purchase for them).

Now you are ready to purchase karaoke music!

Purchasing Songs

  1. Click Music Stores to display a list of available stores OR click the disclosure triangle (twirly arrow) on the Music Store icon.
  2. Click on a store.
  3. Scroll through the song selections or use the search box at the top to look for a particular title or artist.
  4. To hear a sample, double click the song.
  5. Purchase songs by EITHER clicking on Buy Now or by dragging the song to your Library.
  6. Once a song is purchased, it is automatically downloaded into your library and an email confirming your order is sent to your email address.

If you order from Karaoke Locker, you receive two versions of each song: one is an m4wav for playing and the other is a CDG for burning to disc.

Buying multiple songs? When you click Buy Now, the transaction is completed without the option of adding more songs to your purchase. So if you want to buy 6 songs, you will end up with six separate transactions. By dragging your selections to the library, you can purchase multiple songs with one transaction.

Streaming Songs

  1. Simply click on the Stream button for that song. (There could be a bit of a wait while the song buffers.)
  2. Or you can drag the song to your Library and play it later. Note that streamed songs appear highlighted in green.

About purchasing

  • The first time you start with no music store, kJams must download and parse the store. Only AFTER that will the store appear in the list on the left. Watch the activity window to see when these tasks complete. what do you mean “start with no music store”?
  • Click on the little Music Stores shopping bag icon to get info about each store.
  • Each music store will ask you to update it once per month. If you decline to update it, it will wait another month to ask you. You can update a store at any time, however, by right clicking on its name and picking "Reload Music Store."


Denied Credit Cards Your credit card company might accept the first few purchases and then start denying the transactions. In this case, you just need to call your credit card company and tell them to allow micro-purchases. For more information on this, click here.


Problems with Your Orders If you have problems with your purchase...

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