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diff --git a/DOCUMENTATION/FAQ b/DOCUMENTATION/FAQ deleted file mode 100644 index 6ac38e8f2f..0000000000 --- a/DOCUMENTATION/FAQ +++ /dev/null @@ -1,613 +0,0 @@ -The Ardour FAQ -January 23, 2004 - ---Problems-- -1.1. Why can't I get configure to run when ... -1.2. I'm getting syntax errors during build. -1.3. I get the warning: "Gtk-WARNING **: Unable to locate image file in -1.4. What's an xrun? -1.5. The region area overlaps the buttons in the editor. -1.6. Ardour keeps freezing. Here's the strace... -1.7. What is "ardev" and why is it a shell script? -1.8. How do I debug this thing? -1.9. I want Ardour to run faster. - ---Features-- -2.1. Are plugins supported? -2.2. Are VST plugins supported? -2.3. Does Ardour run on non-Linux systems? -2.4. Ardour needs to have this feature now. -2.5. Why doesn't Ardour support MP3s? -2.6. Does Ardour support MIDI? -2.7. What soundfile formats are supported? -2.8. Can I use multiple cards? -2.9. How do I save captures across partitions? - ---Usability-- -3.1. How do I pan stereo outputs? -3.2. Where's the patch bay? -3.3. How do I do stuff? - ---Misc-- -4.1. What's the deal with JACK, LAAGA, and Audioengine? -4.2. Is Ardour internationalized? -4.3. How do I get support? -4.4. Well, where's the manual? -4.5. Why are all these libraries included? I already have ... -4.6. Why not another frontend to libardour? Why not QT? - --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - ---Problems-- -1.1. Why can't I get configure to run when ... - -You can only run configure at the top level of the Ardour source -tree. You don't want to know why this is true. Don't try to work -around it. - -1.2. I'm getting syntax errors during build. - -This probably means that you are using an out of date library. Or you -might be using a very new library that has changed its API. Check the -version number. If it is lower than what is listed in the BUILD file, -update your library. If it is higher than what is listed in the BUILD file, -email the mailing list. Note that you have to be a member of the mailing -list to send mail to it, which is done to prevent the list from receiving -much spam. - -1.3. I get the warning: "Gtk-WARNING **: Unable to locate image file in - pixmap_path: "set-next-button.xpm" - -The most common cause of this error is simply that you have not set -the pixmap pathname correctly. It can be specified in the Ardour -config file. See the BUILD file. - -1.4. What's an xrun? - -It's a generic term used to describe a situation where the software -did not keep up with the hardware, either by feeding it data, or by -collecting data from it. It generally means that you're having -trouble with latency. This can be caused by several factors. You -could have a misconfigured system, you might be trying to do to much, -or both. - -If you're haven't read http://www.linuxdj.com/audio/lad/resourceslatency.php3, -then your system is probably misconfigured. - -If you are running many many tracks, with multiple LADSPA plugins, then it -is possible that your system just can't keep up with what you want to do. -Either simplify your music, or upgrade your machine. A dual processor does -wonders. - -You can test your setup with the latencytest tool, available at -http://www.linuxdj.com . - -Jan Depner's HOWTO is loaded with latency tuning tips for Ardour: -http://myweb.cableone.net/eviltwin69/ALSA_JACK_ARDOUR.html - -1.5. The region area overlaps the buttons in the editor. - -Make sure that you are using the appropriate font size for your monitor's -resolution. If you are running at 1024x768 or below, you should use the -75dpi package, not the 100dpi. This is usually set in /etc/X11/XF86Config. - -1.6. Ardour keeps freezing. Here's the strace... - -The results from strace aren't very useful. To provide helpful information -to the developers, run Ardour under gdb. If you don't know how to use -gdb, this isn't the time to learn. If you do know how to use gdb, read -section 1.8. - -1.7. What is "ardev" and why is it a shell script? - -This is only applicable if configure was run with --enable-development-build. - -To speed up the process of developing Ardour, we do not statically -link Ardour and its library, libardour. Instead, we use dynamic -linking, which allows the developers to avoid the (very) long -relinking step when they make certain kinds of changes to libardour. - -This means that the executable image for Ardour relies on the system -being able to find libardour whenever you start it. Rather than leave -this to chance and/or the whims of your system adminstrator (probably -yourself), we instead use a short shell script to make sure that the -connection between the two of them can be established. - -This has almost zero impact on any aspect of Ardour's operation. The -only noticeable effect is that it makes debugging slightly more -difficult. See 1.8 for more on this. - -1.8. How do I debug this thing? - -+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ -| NOTE: Newer versions of gdb and/or glibc and/or the kernel have broken -| gdb in a critical way that make it impossible to run ardour. The gdb -| development group claim to have fixed this, but on many -| distributions, the version that is provided is still broken. -| -| Under such circumstances, you will have to get a core dump from -| ardour, and then use gdb to analyse the core dump, rather than -| using gdb as a "live tool". -| -| Many distributions set the default core dump size to 0, to prevent -| core dumps completely. So the first step is to do enter this -| at your shell prompt (in a terminal window): -| -| ulimit -c 9999999999 -| -| Then run ardour in whatever way causes a crash. after the crash -| you should find a file called "core" in your working directory. -| then run: -| -| gdb ardour core -| -| When the gdb> prompt appears, type -| -| backtrace -| -| Collect the output, and file it as an attachment to a Mantis -| bug report at http://ardour.org/mantis -| -| Thanks for helping to improve Ardour. -+------------------------------------------------------------------------+ - -A) How to start gdb .... - -A1) IF YOU DID NOT USE --enable-development-build - -You can use gdb the usual way: - - % cd /where/you/built/ardour - % gdb ardour - - -A2) IF YOU USE --enable-development-build - -The first and most basic thing you need to know is how to invoke -gdb. Because of the dynamic linking between Ardour and its library you -can't just invoke Ardour and get it to work. Besides, "ardour" itself -is a shell script (see 1.10 for more on this). So, what you need to do -is to invoke gdb with LD_LIBRARY_PATH set to point to the place where -libardour is installed, and use the name of actual executable image. - -If you installed in the default location, this command will invoke gdb -correctly: - - env LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/lib/ardour gdb /usr/local/lib/ardour/ardourx - -If you used a --prefix argument during the build process so that -Ardour would be installed somewhere other than under /usr/local, then -replace /usr/local in the command above with whatever "prefix" you -used. - -You could easily make the above a shell alias or a 1 line shell script -if you think you'll be debugging Ardour with gdb a lot. - -A3) ABOUT LADSPA PLUGINS AND GDB - -Moving all your LADSPA plugins out of the way will make gdb very much -quicker to start. For example, if you normally keep them in -/usr/local/lib/ladspa, you could do something like: - - mkdir /usr/local/lib/LADSPA - mv /usr/local/lib/ladpsa/* /usr/local/lib/LADSPA - -gdb doesn't do very well when forced to handle dozens of dynamically -loaded objects, as typically happens with LADSPA plugins. - -It might be easier to redefine LADSPA_PATH to a dummy path. - -B) What to do with gdb - -When Ardour has crashed or is "stuck", issue the following command -to gdb (you will need to use Ctrl-C if its "stuck" to get back to the -gdb command prompt): - - thread apply all bt - -collect the output from this, and then go to - - http://ardour.org/mantis - -and file a new bug report with the output attached. This will allow -us to get the most out of your misfortune. - -If you compiled ardour from source and want to be even more helpful, -recompile it after running - - ./configure --disable-optimize - -at the top level. This will make the debugging output more useful. - -1.9. I want Ardour to run faster. - -The --enable-optimize flag is enabled by default which turns -on compiler features that can make Ardour run up to 50% faster. -If you downloaded Ardour as a binary package, it should have been -compiled with that flag already. - ---Features-- -2.1. Are plugins supported? - -LADSPA plugins are supported. To use them, click the middle mouse -button in the top box at the top of the mixerstrip you wish to have a -plugin for. This opens up a window which lists all the plugins. Double -click on the one you wish to use. In the mixer window, click on the -plugin to toggle it on and off, option-click to edit its values, or -shift-click to remove it. - -2.2. Are VST plugins supported? - -There are several issues here: - -1) Generic VST support - - Many people have asked about VST support within Ardour. Work has been - done on this, but there are both license issues and technical - ones. The licensing issues seem relatively easy to resolve. - - On the technical front, given that the goal is to not require VST - developers to build new native Linux versions of their plugins, the - most promising approach involves using Wine to support native - Windows VST plugins. It is already possible to run most VST plugins as - JACK clients and thus use them as inserts with Ardour, but the process - of doing so is not what most users would term "convenient". - - However, Wine cannot currently be used within a complex - multithreaded application. The Wine development team are working on - this, and as a rough guess, I'd expect progress within about 6 months - (i.e end of 2003). At that time, it will be possible to use most VST - plugins that have their own GUI ("editor") from within Ardour. - - However, initially, this functionality will be available only as - part of a for-cost distribution of Ardour. - -2) Specific plugins - - a) executable format issues - - Plugins are pieces of executable code. The format used for - the files that store this code is different under windows - and macos than it is for linux. Some people have managed - to find workarounds for this --- there are reports of people - running windows-derived buzz plugins under linux, but nobody - has looked into trying it with vst plugins. - - Linux also runs on a lot more hardware than windows or MacOS. - We assume that when you say linux, you mean "linux on an intel - compatible processor", but keep in mind that to most of us, - linux means more than that --- it includes the PPC, Sparc, Alpha, - ARM, MIPS and many other chip architectures. Of that list, - only PPC has any VST plugin support at all. - - This problem would go away if a VST plugin was available as source - code, but to my knowledge, only 1 is (freeverb). - - b) OS dependency issues - - Most VST plugin writers do not follow Steinberg's design advice, - and write plugins that have operating system dependencies. As - a result, even if you could find a way to actually use, say, - a windows-format VST plugin on Linux on an Intel machine, the - plugin would contain calls to operating system services that - don't exist (in the same way) under Linux. - -So, the basic answer is "no". I am an active member of the VST-plugins -mailing list, and I try to encourage people who write free plugins to -make their source code available so that we can use it under Linux, as -well as reminding people to try to avoid operating system dependencies -in their plugins. I think this mostly falls on deaf ears. - -2.3. Does Ardour run on non-Linux systems? - -Ardour depends on the JACK system to access the sound hardware. Jack -has (as of this writing) support for Linux, Solaris, and MacOSX. There -have not been any reports of running Ardour on any platforms besides Linux -though. - -In addition, Ardour has abstracted the JACK dependency, so it can be ported -to use another sound library. But at the time, it only uses the JACK -library. The JACK website is http://jackit.sf.net/. - -2.4. Ardour needs to have this feature now. - -Paul accepts donations through his paypal account. The feature will -(probably) be added more quickly if you pay him. Contact him first. - -2.5. Why doesn't Ardour support MP3s? - -Ardour is meant for serious audio work. MP3 is a lossy format -unsuitable for this. Ardour does export sessions to wav format, which -is trivial to convert to MP3. - -2.6. Does Ardour support MIDI? - -Ardour currently supports MIDI in the sense of: - - * functioning as a MIDI Timecode master (it generates MTC) - * functioning as a MIDI Timecode slave (experimental; send reports!) - * understanding MIDI Machine Control - * allowing the user to bind GUI controls (sliders, etc.) to - MIDI Continuous Controller and NoteOn/NoteOff messages - -It does not offer any facilities for editing or arranging or recording -or playing MIDI data. There has been talk of integrating Midi -Mountain, an excellent midi editor. There hasn't been any progress in -this direction lately, mostly due to other areas that need to be fixed -up. It's not a trivial affair if the integration is going to proceed -in a way leaves the result feeling "natural". - -2.7. What soundfile formats are supported? - -It depends on what version of libsndfile is installed. This link lists the -latest formats: http://www.mega-nerd.com/libsndfile/#Features - -Please note that Ardour requires the 1.x series of libsndfile. - -2.8. Can I use multiple cards? - -In a word: maybe. - -The sync issues that arise even between the same make and model of a card -aren't worth the effort of fixing. If you want to have more than two -channels, buy a professional card. - -On the other hand, if you already have two professional cards with word-sync, -you might be able to get them to work. This is several layers removed from -Ardour; the proper place to ask for help is at http://www.alsa-project.org . - -There is more information at http://www.linuxdj.com/audio/quality/#multi - -2.9. How do I save captures across partitions? - -Ardour lets you specify multiple directories to save captured audio -in. In the options editor, in the session path box, specify the full -paths of the directories you wish to use, seperated by colons (:). -These can be on different partitions or even different disks. Using -this "software RAID"-like setup can greatly increase your disk -bandwidth. - ---Usability-- -3.1. How do I pan stereo outputs? - -Panning works over JACK ports. So even if you have two outputs -connected to one port, Ardour doesn't consider this to be stereo. You -need to make sure that you have two ports, and then add one (or more) -destination to each port. - -You need to think of the ports as if they were physical sockets to -which you can connect as many plugs as you want. A single port means -mono, even though you can send the signal to many different -places. Two ports means stereo, even though the right and left signals -can each go to any number of different places. - -3.2. Where's the patch bay? - -There is no separate dedicated patch bay. Patch bay functionality -is integral to the mixer. The mixer can have any number of inputs, -any number of busses, etc. In other words, it *is* the patchbay. - -3.3. How do I do stuff? - -Region Dragging (object mode) ------------------------------ - - click-drag => moves region - shift-click-drag => moves region with time position held constant - (i.e. across tracks) - ctl-click-drag => moves a copy of the region - ctl-shift-click-drag => time-constrained movement of a copy of the - region - snapmod-click-drag => ignores current snap setting - -Region Alignment (clicks without motion) ----------------- - - [ all alignment uses: - - 1) current region selection, if it exists - 2) else the edit cursor - ] - - ctl-click => aligns start of region - ctl-shift-click => aligns end of region - ctl-alt-click => aligns sync point of region - -Marks ------ - - click in tempo track to create a new tempo mark - click in meter track to create a new meter mark - click in marker track to create a new marker - regular edit op for tempo/meter allows editing - regular delete op for all markers (except initial - tempo/meter markers) - snapmod-click-drag to move a marker while ignoring - current snap mode - -Editing -------- - - default is ctl-button3 click - - -Deletion --------- - - default is shift-button3 click - -Context Menu ------------- - - button3 click - -Snap Modifier -------------- - - default is mod3 (typically meta/windows/start key). using - ctl or shift or alt will cause problems. you can also - use combinations, but again, combinations using ctl and shift - will cause problems. mod3 or mod4 are probably your best - choices. - -Selection (RANGE MODE required) ---------- - - click on a region => make a region selection - shift-click on a region => add region to region selection - click-drag => make a range selection - shift-click-drag => add to range selection - ctrl-click-drag => move selection - -Separation ----------- - - in range mode: - - a) make a single range selection - - then, to split existing region apart - - b) right click => Selection => Separate region - - OR, to creates a new region without splitting original - - b) switch to object mode - c) click on selection and drag - - -solo/mute/rec-enable --------------------- - - to toggle solo/mute/RE for EVERYTHING: - - ctl-shift-click on a solo/mute/RE button - - to solo/mute/RE mix group (when group is not active) - - ctl-click on solo/mute button - - to toggle solo-safe status (which appears to not work - correctly right now) - - shift-click on solo button - - to momentarily engage solo while pressing a mouse button - - use button2 instead of button1 - - -gain sliders ------------- - - shift-click to reset to 0dB - ctl-click-drag for finer scale - ctl-alt-click-drag for even finer scale - -panners -------- - - (stereo): shift-click to reset to center - ---Misc-- -4.1. What's the deal with JACK? - -JACK is the Jack Audio Connection Kit. There is a basic problem with -audio+MIDI apps on Linux at this time: they are not able to exchange -data with each other in situations where low latency is a system goal. -There are systems (aRts, MidiShare, parts of alsa-lib) that allow data -sharing, but not when the latencies get down below 20ms. - -JACK is an API that solves this problem. Also, and quite importantly, -JACK drastically simplifies the programming of audio applications. -Applications that use JACK do not need to know anything about audio -hardware. They do not interact with it directly in any way -whatsoever. All they do is provide a few callbacks to the server they -connect with; the primary callback is responsible for producing and/or -consuming a specified amount of data whenever it is called. This is a -'callback' model, and is extremely different from ALSA, OSS, and -several other audio APIs. It is, however, very similar to Apple's -CoreAudio, Steinberg's ASIO, the PortAudio library, and most plugin -APIs. See http://jackit.sf.net/ - -4.2. Is Ardour internationalized? -Parts of Ardour are. Work is ongoing to fully internationlize Ardour. If -you speak a language besides English, feel free to volunteer to help -translate. - -These languages have translations: - -gtk-ardour: -French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian - -libardour: -Italian - -4.3. How do I get support? - -Ardour is a volunteer project. There is no one devoted to providing -support. However, there is a members only mailing list where someone -might answer your question. You can join at Ardour's website: - - http://ardour.org/ - -There is also the IRC #ardour channel on the FreeNode network. - -Alternatively, you can pay Paul for specific support. Check with him -for hourly rates. - -4.4. Well, where's the manual? - -Currently, the existing documentation is sparse. You might want to check out -the Protools reference; Ardour is rather similar to it. Also, Paul wants -users to be able to complete the Mackie HDR tutorial using Ardour; so that -is another manual to check out. Both are available online from -<a href=http://digidesign.com/support/documents.html>DigiDesign</a> and <a -href=http://mackie.com>Mackie</a>. - -There is the begining of a manual in Ardour's manual directory. Feel -free to create your own HOWTOs, tips and tricks sheets, tutorials, or -whatever you feel like adding. - -A couple people have written some documentation to get people started with -Ardour. It is available at http://www.djcj.org/LAU/ardour/ - -4.5. Why are all these libraries included? I already have ... - -Yes, we know that it's quite likely that you already have gtkmm or -sigc++ installed on your machine, let alone others. There -are 2 problems. - -Ardour requires either the latest version of these libraries or even a -version with a patch that has not yet been incorporated into a release -of the library. Rather than require you to get the library source, -patch it, recompile and install it, Ardour keeps its own copy, builds -a static, private version of the library and links against it. That -way, we don't have to worry about crashes caused by you having the -wrong version of the library. - -The second problem is more general. C++ does not yet have a unified -"Application Binary Interface", even on a single process -architecture+OS combination. This is unlikely to ever change (it was -encouraged by the inventor of C++). This means that libraries compiled -with one compiler are not always compatible with applications compiled -with another compiler. By "another compiler", we can mean something as -subtle as a different version of g++. Worse, because many C++ -libraries feature inlined code, we even need to be sure you compile -against exactly the same version of the library as other parts of -Ardour will use. Even worse, there are compile time flags you or -someone else could give to a C++ compiler that would make the library -incompatible in subtle ways with code compiled with different flags. - -After a year of trying to address these problems "the normal way", the -Ardour team gave up and decided to include every necessary library -that is written in C++ and/or has patches required. You may not like -this very much, but trust us, you would like the alternative even -less. - -4.6. Why not another frontend to libardour? Why not QT? - -The GTK+ frontend to libardour is almost 7 times the size of libardour. GUIs -for these sort of programs are very large and detail orientated. It would be -a waste of time to try to reimplement Ardour with another widget set. This is -also why there won't be a native port of Ardour to MacOS X. |