Attach a tape player to your computer. Use a two-way stereo cable to connect the two devices. One end of the two-way cable needs to be plugged in the output of the tape player. The other end has to be plugged in the blue input of your computer or laptop.
Install audio converting software after downloading it from the Internet. Some common choices include Audacity, Foobar2000 and iTunes.
Put a tape you want to convert into your cassette player, and adjust it by rewinding or forwarding to the exact point from which you wish to start the recording. Adjust the volume on the cassette player to just below the maximum.
Run the audio converting software you installed on your computer. If you are launching Audacity, note that first you have to edit the 'Preference' part of the program and set your computer's sound card to be the default recording device.
Select the option 'Record' in the Audacity program. Then quickly go to the next step, although the two start buttons do not need to be pressed at the same time.
Click the play button on your cassette player. Before pressing the button, check if the cassette player and the computer are still connected with the two-way cable.
Select the 'Stop' option in Audacity when you finish recording and converting.
Click on the 'File' section in the Audacity program and choose the option called 'Export as WAV'. The recording can then be saved as an MP3 format as well.
Save the file you converted to the digital form anywhere you want. After saving it on your computer in an MP3 format, you can burn in onto a CD via a common CD burning program. This way your music or audio recordings will be saved as a digital format.
Use the Audacity program to edit the recording if you want to and if the recording is not of good quality. You can cut empty spaces, background noise and recorder clicks as well.