I would like to edit some long mp3 recordings that I have.  Nothing
fancy--just the ability shorten them into bite-size clips.

I have no experience in this area, but am vaguely aware that there is
software I can purchase to accomplish this.  I am interested, however,
in finding out the cheapest way possible to edit these
mp3s--especially, whether there are good, easy-to-use shareware or
freeware programs I can download for this purpose.

Thanks!

Hi stancranley,

You can edit MP3 files with free software.  This page lists four free
programs that claim to be able to edit MP3s:

http://www.snapfiles.com/Freeware/gmm/fwaudioedit.html

I have personally used the open source editor Audacity listed on that
page for basic editing and found that it worked fine.  The only
problem is that it doesn't work directly in the MP3 format, so you
have to import from MP3, edit, and then export to MP3, and the
importing and exporting take some time.  I just ran a test with a
5.2-megabyte file and it took about 6 seconds to import it and about
42 seconds to export it.  This was with Audacity 1.0.0; it is possible
that the latest stable version, which is 1.2.2, may be faster.

The Audacity home page:

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

A couple of the other programs listed on that page operate directly on
the MP3 format, so they should be faster, but I can't attest to their
usability.

There are also many shareware audio editors, as well as expensive
commercial products, but since you asked for the cheapest way possible
and I know Audacity works, I have not researched them.  A more
expensive, feature-rich product is likely to be less simple to use,
anyway.

I hope this information is helpful.  If you need any more information,
please ask for a clarification.

--efn

I used the link you gave me and downloaded the program mp3DirectCut,
which works great.  Thanks!

FWIW, I use Nero wave editor - I probably have as much knowledge about
editing music as you do... I find it easy to use. The software came
along with Nero CD burning program.

You can goto http://www.download.com and search for mp3 editor and you
can download the trial before you purchase any software.