Newbie advice: Downloading WMA files ripped from CD to portable player

Hello colleagues
I have a large collection of CDs and i want to transfer them to digital
format so I can download them to
a portable player. I was proud of myself when I managed, using windows media
player, to transfer
tracks into WMA files on my computer. Now my question is this. i have heard
that some brands, eg Philips, make it virtually impossible to use their
players to download WMA files created this way because their programmes
incorporate digital copyright protections softwear etc. before I buy I want
to make sure my player will not stop me doing this. Othewise why bother ?

(1) Is this the case for all brands of players? How can i find a player that
will not block me in this way.
All i am doing is trying to enjoy some clasical music for my own use?
(2) A simple solution would be apppreciated as I only have a work computer
and cannot download
programmes into it.

I am a complete computer nerd so be gentle with me. All help appreciated.
Best Regards
Mikey