Linux Music & Sound - Softcover

Phillips, Dave

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1886411344 ISBN 13: 9781886411340

Publisher: No Starch Press, 2000

Synopsis

Are you interested in creating, recording and mixing your own music with Linux? If so, then you've found the right book. Linux Music & Sound is an in-depth introduction to recording, storing, playing and editing music and sound on a Linux system. Musician/programmer Dave Phillips has reviewed dozens of Linux music and sound applications and presented his top picks in this one-of-a-kind volume.

In concise, easy-to-understand English, this book demystifies the Linux audio system set-up, describes basic and advanced use of the system, and profiles the broad range of sound and music applications and development software available for Linux. You'll learn how to:

• Record, mix, and add effects to your own tracks or others'
• Work with Mod, Midi, and Mp3 files
• Perform hard disk multi-track recording
• Explore software sound synthesis programs like Csound
• Set up your network to share sound resources
• Use realtime synthesizers
• Produce high quality scores with music notation programs
• Broadcast live over the Internet

The CD-ROM includes all of the software mentioned in the book, including MIDI applications, digital audio and music notation software, games and utilities.

You'll also find out about digital audio basics, the hardware you need to get started, and configuring Linux for sound. Don't spend hundreds of dollars on applications that you can get for free--let Linux Music & Sound be your guide to the world of computer and electronic music under Linux.

About this title

Review

One of Linux's chief attractions always has been the wealth of fun toys that are available to its users. For people who like to play with shaky software that's emerging from some hacker's brain, the open-source operating system has no peer. The Book of Linux Music & Sound explores one of Linux's rougher facets and the software that's emerged to enable audiophiles to combine their interests in sound and Linux. The book is primarily a survey of what's out there, and one might conclude that a careful scan of Linux software archives and some attention to documentation files would reveal most of what Dave Phillips covers in these pages. That's probably true, but Phillips (who includes most of the software he talks about in the book on the companion CD-ROM) has done a service to readers by saving them the trouble of tracking down the information themselves, and providing also informed criticism of the software.

Coverage of a given software package--and Phillips documents several score of them--typically begins with a data capsule that explains where to go for the latest version, and some instructions on how to install it. From there, he explains how to use the program. The form of this coverage varies, for obvious reasons, among the packages that he covers. However, it's rather deep universally, and reflects his honest understanding of what each program is good for and how it fits with other software. Taken in concert with his instructions on how to set up and configure (in both hardware and software) Linux machines for audio work, this book is a fine resource for Linux users who have an interest in sound. --David Wall

Topics covered: The state of the art in Linux audio, including the native capabilities of the operating system, and (especially) Linux software for sound and music work. The book has a well-annotated catalog of Linux software, including WAV file recorders and editors, MIDI editors, MP3 utilities, synthesizers (both real-time and otherwise), and music notation programs. A special section deals with software for DJs who are interested in using Linux to generate techno, hip-hop, and house music.

From the Author

Interested in recording and playing digital sound and music on your computer? Interested in distributing your music as MODs, MIDI, or MP3s? Would you like to experiment with digital signal processing software? Would you like to do all this and more with free applications? If so, then this book and Linux are for you. In concise, easy-to-understand English, this book clarifies the Linux Audio system set-up, describes basic and advanced use of the system, and profiles and evaluates the broad range of sound and music applications and development software available for Linux. In addition, to help you evaluate the prospects of Linux sound and music, I have included sections on the history, current status, and possible future for the Linux audio system. This book is the first attempt to collect and present Linux audio information in one place. At the heart of the book are my evaluations of selected software packages and brief tutorials describing the basic installation ! and use of those packages. However, the examples I give are only a small taste of what lies in store for you, and it is my sincere hope that you will be led to install the other software packages and try them out yourself. The CD-ROM The CD-ROM contains a wealth of HOWTOs, FAQ sheets, programming examples, comparison charts, and other relevant documentation. It also offers most of the applications discussed within the text, and many others are included as well. Where possible (always in the case of software protected by the GNU Public License), source code is included; packages in the popular Red Hat RPM (Red Package Manager) format are provided if available; and binaries have been built for most of the packages.

Edition details

• Publisher: No Starch Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 1886411344
• ISBN 13: 9781886411340
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 408