◊ This application is distributed as shareware: if you like it, please honor the shareware system by sending $15 (cash, US checks, or international money orders) to the author at the address above. You can choose “Register…” from the Apple menu in SoundEffects to print or save a registration form. If you don’t like printed stuff, just write down a note with your name, your address and the version of the program you’re registering.
◊ If you think the suggested fee is too much or too little, you may send anything you think is reasonable. If you really can’t afford it, postcards or letters will be welcome.
• Introduction
◊ SoundEffects is a powerful sound editor. Its strength resides in the capability of applying many digital effects to recorded sounds, and since the effects are plug-in modules, you can enhance the program at any time by just adding any new modules as they become available. Not only can SoundEffects change sounds in many ways through its variety of effects, but it can also handle multi-channel sounds, sampled at any rate up to 64kHz and with any sample size between 1 and 32 bits.
Recording rate and sample size are only limited by your Mac or your sound input device.
◊ This version is still a preliminary one. One feature it doesn’t have is Undo. I am very sorry for this, and I promise the next version will support it. Many more features and many more effects will be added in the next release, hopefully in September 1994.
• Installation and System Requirements
◊ SoundEffects requires System 7, but it works on any Mac from the Mac Plus up to the latest coolest models, unlike the few other sound editors available for the Mac.
◊ Be sure that the “Effects Folder” is in the same folder as the SoundEffects application or in the Preferences folder inside your System Folder. SoundEffects looks inside this folder for its effects whenever it is launched.
• Working with SoundEffects
◊ When you first launch SoundEffects, you will see a new empty document window. Every document window is divided into three parts:
the top part contains information about the sound, such as its sample rate, number of channels, and size.
the middle part is where all the editing takes place: you can select portions of the waveform with the mouse or with the arrow keys and then cut, copy, paste, apply effects and so on.
at the bottom there are various buttons, much like in a tape recorder. You can record a sound, play the sound and control the sound that is playing.
◊ To record a new sound, click the record button at the bottom of the window. A recording window will show up: you can then begin recording, pause or stop recording, play the recorded sound or choose options for recording. When you are done, click the “Save” button if you want to insert the recorded sound in the document, or “Cancel” if you don’t. Inside the recording window a small waveform shows what is coming through the microphone. The wave is red when it is being recorded, otherwise it is green.
◊ To add new channels to the sound, you just need to drag the “New Channel” icon to the right of the waveform. A new channel will be inserted. You may want to add channels to the sound not only to make stereo (or multi-channel) sounds, but also to use them as a temporary work space.
◊ To delete an existing channel, drag the icon next to that channel into the trash.
◊ To switch channel positions, drag a channel icon on top of the one you wish to switch it with.
◊ You can choose how every channel will output sound. At the left of every channel there are two buttons, one for the left speaker, one for the right speaker. Turn them on or off, whether you wish to make that channel play through the left, right or both speakers.
• Applying the effects
◊ To apply effects to sounds, select the portion of the sound you wish to modify (if you don’t select anything, the whole sound will be used), then choose an effect from the “Effects” menu. If the effect you chose has a settings dialog, it will be shown, otherwise the effect will run immediately. If you choose an effect from the menu while holding the option key down, it will not show the settings dialog and it will use the last settings. If you choose an effect while holding the option and shift key down, it will only show the settings dialog, but it won’t run.
◊ If you choose an effect from the “Effects” menu while holding the shift key down, a window will be displayed containing information and help about the effect.
• Keyboard Shortcuts
◊ Some keys may be used as shortcuts in SoundEffects:
- space = Toggle play/pause.
- function keys = Play a single channel (F1 plays channel 1, F2 channel 2, and so on).
- option-function keys = Mute a single channel.
- arrow keys = Move the insertion point, like in a text editor.
- shift-arrow keys = Extend the selection, like in a text editor.
- delete = Delete the currently selected portion of sound.
- shift-Select All = Select a single channel.
- option-Select All = Select a stereo pair of channels.
- option-Open = Open any file.
- option-Revert = Revert without asking for a confirmation.
- option-Leave Silence = Don’t show the dialog, use the last used settings instead.
- option-Select Peak = Don’t show the dialog, use the last used settings instead.
- option-Find Clipping = Don’t show the dialog, use the last used settings instead.
◊ If you hold down these keys when clicking these buttons, the behavior will be slightly different:
- option-Zoom To Fit = Zoom to fit the selection, not the whole sound.
- option-Zoom In = Zoom in as much as possible.
- option-Play = When the Loop button is pressed, don’t loop the selected sound. Instead, use the portion of the sound chosen as a loop (with “Set Loop” in the “Selection” menu) for looping.
• Known limitations and future improvements
◊ There are some features that didn’t make it into this release. One of them, Undo, is an essential feature of every program, and it will be the first one I will work on. The others (such as Spectrum, Mixer, Paste Mixing and saving “.wav” files) will be added in the next version, along with more snazzy effects, which will come out after summer ’94.
◊ The next release will support native PowerPC effects.
◊ Look out for new cool effects!
◊ Recording a stereo sound sometimes inputs the sound at half the sampling rate. If you chose 44.1kHz, it will be recorded at 22.050kHz. As a temporary workaround, you can manually set the correct rate in the “Change Sound Info…” dialog, otherwise it will play at double speed. I will fix this as soon as possible.
◊ One of my beta testers reported a bug that shows up on a Performa 550 when opening the Preferences dialog. I will fix it as soon as possible.
• Writing plug-in modules for SoundEffects
◊ Programmers may wish to add their own effects to SoundEffects. The next release will come with a developer’s toolkit that contains everything you need to write an extension in C.
◊ All online services and bulletin boards may make it available to their users at no charge other than the normal connection fees.
◊ All non-profit user groups may distribute it.
◊ All magazines may publish it on floppy disk without asking me first, as long as I get a copy of the issue containing my software.
◊ All CD-ROM shareware collections and CD-ROM magazines may include it without my prior consent, as long as I get either a copy of the CD-ROM or an offer to buy the CD-ROM at a discounted price.
◊ For more information, contact me at the above address or by e-mail.
• Version history
◊ 0.9 - First public release (after 32 beta versions…).
• Thanks to…
◊ Lots of help and suggestions came from Alessandro Levi Montalcini, Craig O’Donnell, Jamie McCarthy, Martin Obrist, Thomas Baker, Chris Breen and Fabrizio Oddone.
◊ Thanks to Alessandro, for the layout of this document.
◊ I’d like to thank all my registered users one by one, but they are now way too many to list.
• Disclaimer
◊ SoundEffects shouldn’t cause any damage, but you’re using it at your own risk.
• Have fun!
◊ And don't forget to register your copy of SoundEffects! I worked hard for many months to make it powerful and solid, yet I’m keeping the price very low so that everyone can afford it.
