Re: [Bluemusic-users] New ideas

[Steven Yi <ste...@gm...>]

Hi Kevin,

Yeah, it's been a really good year for blue dev I think!  I'm glad
you're finding a lot to check out.

> render end time:  I see you can set this by right clicking on the
> timeline.  I think this deserves a text box entry similar to the
> render start time.

Sounds logical and should be a quick thing to add.
=20
> postroll time:  A preset length to continue render after the last
> event.  This is useful for allowing global instrument effects like
> reverb and delay to tail off gracefully when using <TOTAL_DUR>.  I
> currently accomplish the same thing using a score object with i0 to be
> a placeholder.

I have been using a method for doing global reverb instruments where
in the instrument I have a global score like this:

i<INSTR_ID> <PROCESSING_START> [<TOTAL_DUR> + 3 - <PROCESSING_START>]=20

This takes advantage of Csounds score expressions (the expression in [
] ) and works with soundObject freezing.  The score statement above
means:

instantiate a note for this instrument using the assigned instrument
id, processing start time, and last for 3 seconds longer than the
duration of the generated blue score

It's pretty much the standard statement I use for all global
instruments I use and it is stored with the instrument's global sco so
that it is portable between projects and easy to use, no messing with
having to add a note yourself.  In the examples folder of blue I have
my piece "On the Sensations of Tone" and in it is a pass-through
instrument that has a similar global sco statement, but doesn't
account for soundObject freezing. (If you don't use processing start
but do use soundObject freezing, then the note will be on for the
duration of the piece, even if all of your soundObjects in the first
10 minutes of the piece are frozen.  This is extra overhead where the
processor just isn't needed, so using processing start, which is the
time of the first soundObject that is not a frozen object, ensures
that the effect instrument is on only when it needs to be.)

> instrument library groups:  It would be great to categorize instrument
> libraries similar to the custom code in the repository editor.
> Looking at the XML for instrument library, I would expect the
> functionality, but when I tried, it only loaded the first category,
> and overwrote the file deleting the second.  My guess is that blue
> only loads the first one, then stops.

There is already the feature, but perhaps it is not apparent (there is
a picture in the manual for the orchestra manager that has folders
showing).  To add a folder, just right-click on a folder node and
choose "Add Group".  You can nest and organize your instruments
however you like from there.

> time labels:  Possibility to edit the font color used in the timeline
> would be nice.  I changed the start script to use the metal look and
> feel, and I can barely see the time labels.

I will see about a better way to grab the color for the label.  Right
now it is hard coded to grab from the Blue Look and Feel, perhaps I
can find a better generic method to grab from the current look and
feel.

> object properties:  I think this is more of a minor bug.  If I change
> the duration of an object in it's properties dialog, the end time
> doesn't update until I close the dialog and reopen it.

I see, should be a quick fix. For the interim, you can click off and
click back on the soundObject, but I'll have this fixed in the next
release.  I just noticed another bug if you nudge the soundObject
using the arrow keys, the values don't update.  Shouldn't take too
long to fix that too. =3D)

> tab hotkeys:  I like the tab hotkeys (alt+#), what do you think about
> adding arrow support as well (for example alt+left to move a tab to
> the left).

Sounds good to me.  Will go put in this evening.

> zoom hotkeys:  Something to make it easier / faster to zoom in.  Would
> need both horiz and vert keys.

That sounds like a really great idea!  What shortcuts should be used?  Mayb=
e:

Ctrl-Plus          - zoom in horizontally
Ctrl-Minus       - zoom out horizontally
Ctrl-Shift-Plus   - zoom in vertically
Ctrl-Shift-Minus  - zoom out vertically

I'll give these a try and see if they don't interfere with other key
combinations.

> line objects:  This is one of my favorite new features, and plan to
> use it extensively.  I wouldn't mind being able to select color for
> lines (for grouping certain ones together visually).  If it interests
> you, you could probably reuse the color selector on objects in the
> timeline too.  How about possibly even using some of the other
> linear/exponential segment routines in line objects?  Could this same
> concept be applied to generating "normal" global tables?

Coloring lines and objects sounds good.  Not sure what's a good way to
go in terms of the selector.  I know with Macromedia Director, you can
color objects from a fixed color panel of something like six or eight
colors.  I could also use the Java Color Selector that is built in to
the Swing library.  I'm not sure when I'll have a chance to give this
a try.  Please do add a note to the RFC's on the Sourceforge page for
blue so I don't forget this one!

> close / accept / cancel on dialogs:  Some dialog windows (like object
> properties) have no button to accept changes.  I don't have a close
> button on my window manager, so I always end up reverting to a hotkey
> to close the window.  If no button is present, how about escape as a
> key to close or cancel?

For the Object Properties, you can commit a change by either making
the text field lose focus or by pressing enter while in the field.=20
The object properties is not meant to be opened and closed for every
object change, but rather to have up and around for changing values.

> Let me know what you think.  Blue is looking great!

I think these are great!  Thanks as always for all of your
suggestions.  A lot of them shouldn't take long at all so if I can get
through so maybe in a few days another release. =3D)

steven