Re: [Jsynthlib-devel] The addWidget(...) design

[Joe E. <jo...@em...>]

Brian wrote:

> In the future, I would like to do a *much* more sophisticated cross 
> breeder, including this kind of functionality. Two issues though: One 
> is that a "Filter Envelope" would not be a name of a Param Model.

Actually, I've been pondering a few ideas about that. Either ParamModels 
could be made so that they contain *other* ParamModels (like AWT 
containers being able to contain more containers). The utility of this 
(that I can think of right now) would be limited to: 1) You'd be able to 
select the granularity of crossbreeding (ie, you could use the entire 
Filter Envelope from Patch #1, or you could use the Attack point from 
Patch #1 and the Hold point from Patch #2, etc.). 2) If designed well, 
it might make it easier to code for complex data items which appear in 
numerous places. For example, if your synth uses 12 different envelopes 
(and the format of their data in the sysex is the same, just at 
different offsets within the data), then it should be possible to just 
make a FilterEnvelopeParamModel at each of those 12 offsets.

> An envelope widget is actually an editor for many values, each with 
> its own model / sender.

Well, in a nestable-ParamModel design, the overall FilterEnvelope 
probably wouldn't have a sender, but the individual points within it 
would. Granted, this might be making things too complicated, but I 
wanted to just put the idea in your head to see if you could envision 
any extra functionality that it might allow.

> Anyway, this is long term stuff.

Yet, there's no reason we can't be laying the foundation for it early.

> I have some other ideas for the crossbreeder, Right now its pretty 
> stupid, but we can do a lot of interesting stuff with it by giving it 
> some more smarts about the patches its combining.

One interesting idea that I thought of parallels what I've seen some 
photo-editing software do. I think Photoshop Elements does this. You 
tell it that you want to correct the color balance or something, and it 
shows you a 4x4 grid of thumbnails of your image, each with a different 
color correction applied to it. You click on one, and I *think* it then 
shows you another grid, with each of those being variations of what you 
picked. So, you're able to gradually "zero-in" on what you're after.

I think that we could do that with JSL. MidiQuest currently does 
something like this, but it's not itterative. MQ lets you pick some 
number of patches and then it fills the current bank with random blends 
of them. I think that the most-clever tool, however, would be one that 
works like the Photoshop tool, where the user gets to itteratively pick 
the closest sound, and then JSL gradually converges on what the user is 
after.

- Joe