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Conference napalm::commusic_v1

Title:* * Computer Music, MIDI, and Related Topics * *
Notice:Conference has been write-locked. Use new version.
Moderator:DYPSS1::SCHAFER
Created:Thu Feb 20 1986
Last Modified:Mon Aug 29 1994
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2852
Total number of notes:33157

886.0. "Altech's MIDIBasic for Apple II/Macintosh" by STAR::MALIK (Karl Malik) Thu Jul 23 1987 21:55

    
    	I'm not very good at product reviews, but for those of you
    with either a MAC or Apple IIc (and MS or Z BASIC) and who would 
    like to muck around with home-brew MIDI software -- Altech's MidiBasic 
    is a great time-saver.
    
	From the manual - "In essence, MidiBasic is a set of handcrafted
    machine language routines packaged either as a MicroSoft BASIC
    Library file, or as a BASIC source program for ZBasic."
    
    	"...With MidiBasic, a user can do just about anything short
    of major sequencing and do many, many things impossible to do
    with any application program."
    
    	It does all the port initialization, and other tedious stuff
    with just a few simple BASIC commands.  I had a simple random
    note generator running in less than an hour.
    
    	Also, they give you permission to use their code in any
    compiled program you care to write, market, and sell.  The
    latest Keyboard Magazine also has a mini-review of it.
    
    					Happy Hacking, Karl
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886.1Useful but limited.DSSDEV::HALLGRIMSSONFri Jul 24 1987 05:1620
    I have MidiBasic, and I have much the same reaction as Karl.  One
    thing though.  You won't be able to write much of a sequencer with
    it.  I was trying to trying to build a simple MIDI delay line with
    it and the lack of timestamping of input data, and the lack of realtime
    features in MS Basic made this virtually impossible to do at all
    well.  Their OTIS sequencer uses timing loops, much like I had to
    resort to.  You can't build something that does more than one track
    this way.  I had great fun working on a wind chime simulator, though.
    
    This package is, however, cheap and flexible.  It will let you build
    software for orphan equipment (like my Seiko DS-250/DS-310).

                                                                         
    So, you won't build a professional application with it, but it's
    great for getting into the guts of MIDI.
    
    	My 2 cents,
    
    	Eirikur
    
886.2Limited but Fun.STAR::MALIKKarl MalikSat Jul 25 1987 03:5610
    Eirikur,
    
    	I have Version 2.2.  The info supplied with it says that Version
    3.0 will have time-stamping.
    
    	Otherwise, (day 2), my simple one-channel random note generator
    has turned into an 8-channel (TX816) random note generator.  Next
    comes octave filtering and program changes.  Random music is fun.
    
    						- Karl
886.3my time's been occupied with other things...DSSDEV::HALLGRIMSSONSat Jul 25 1987 04:218
    I mostly usedidiBasic for random things, myself--like the wind chimes.
    It sounds like I'd be interested in a copy of your program when
    you have something that you're happy with.
    
    	Have fun,
    
    	Eirikur