I often tune to the bottom of the FM dial and look for eclectic Internet radio stations like RadioIOAcoustic . This earthy, folksy, sophisticated, soothing mix of folk, alt-country, pop, rock, jazz, and blues has something for everyone. The problem is, some of the aritsts you hear on stations like this are not mainstream and their music is often difficult to find on services like iTunes, Napster, and such. How disappointing! The solution is simple: record the streams. Then you can pull out the tracks you like and ditch the rest. Here are three applications that do just that (one of them for you Mac lovers out there), courtesy of ZDNet’s Anchor Desk:

RipCast Streaming Audio Ripper uses ShoutCast technology and lets you use a Napster-like interface to search for your favorite types of music. Once you begin downloading, it automatically splits the songs up by title so that you can later find the songs you like quickly. (Shareware/Windows)

Streamripper for Winamp, a plug-in for Winamp, lets you record streaming music. I like this one on my PC because I never have to leave Winamp to find and download new music. From there I can pick and choose what I want to save. (Free/Windows)

RadioLover for Mac OS X lets you record iTunes streams and automatically separates the songs into individual MP3 files. This software is the best of its kind for Mac users, letting you fill up your iPod for free. (Shareware/Mac).