igorski81

Great looking package and game!

Just a little bump for those still interested: as stated in my previous post I am focusing on the trackers core before returning to the Atari 2600-ishness of it all. The first beta is now online here : http://igorski.nl/experiment/efflux and features: actual sound output shapeable synthesizer sounds / wave tables support for MIDI input (Google Chrome only) instant note input using keyboard shortcuts import / export of songs live recording of songs (Google Chrome only) revised UI (I took some pointers from Omegamatrix on note input ) Once the application is stable, I will continue with Slocum Tracker which will then inherit the features mentioned above, though with only two available channels and no synthesis shaping options but hardwired saw and square-type sounds (which shouldn't be a true emulation of the TIA, but helpful enough to give you an idea of what you're composing before exporting it as a .bin) YouTube promo video

Awesomesauce About your comments: you don't have to save when switching between patterns. Saving is only necessary if you'd wish to close your browser / switch projects. Regarding your issues with the undo/redo and duplicate songs I'm in the process of revising that code. As a matter of fact, I will temporarily park the "slocum"-bit of the project. I am currently building upon the tracker core and will make a standalone application that allows people to create any type of music within their browser, it will feature : Actual audio output! Ability to draw waveforms and use these as the wave table source for synthesizers Ability to design synthesizers with ADSR envelopes and output chains Ability to hook up a MIDI keyboard and record the note output into the tracker Ability to use MIDI keyboard for live playback of the synthesizer instruments Ability to save songs to local files (and import them from local files) Another revision of note input (it can currently be done solely using keyboard shortcuts, but can benefit from some optimizations) After that has been completed, Slocum tracker will inherit all of the above (I see no need to make the audio output actually sound like the 2600, the audio should in that case act as a guide omitting the need for frequent exporting to the emulator). Thanks for the pointers. The BPM values are indeed NTSC. I'll consider adding a PAL switch. I am very curious about the in-application ROM export, can we continue discussing the possiblities on that in a PM ?

I do like your idea of having a simplified selection. Something where the user for instance selects percussion and can immediately choose between kick, hat, snare, snare2 and optionally with an accent. I'll have to ponder how to do a decent note overview for any of the waveform types. I'm tempted to build a rudimentary audio sequencer in there. With rudimentary I mean that it will not attempt to emulate the sound of the TIA as that is beside its purpose, but perhaps use simple square waves (at the correct TIA pitch though!) and noise to render the melodic and percussive contents, just so you can have a melodic and rhythmic reference while entering the notes.

Just released it's a bit strange to have no confirm button in the note entry window as there is no way to add a note on a tablet ! I wouldn't say that working with this tracker on a tablet is the most likely usage scenario, but hell, we can at least try to make it work as best as possible I have updated the tracker, the URL remains the same : http://www.igorski.nl/experiment/slocum-tracker I have noticed that not only do the native HTML <select> boxes behave differently across browsers, but also across operating systems (Chrome on OS X handled keyboard shortcuts quite differently than the same version under Windows 7 does...) ! As such I have replaced the default HTML components with a custom component so I could ensure that all keyboard / mouse behaviour works consistently. It's still open to debate whether this is the most user friendly means to edit a note, but it now works like this : In the pattern editor overview: (single) clicking anywhere in a pattern will jump the cursor to that slot double clicking will open the note entry editor for the clicked slot, when navigating using the keyboard the same happens when hitting <enter> or <space> on the currently highlighted slot In the note entry popup: Hitting <space> will open/close the options list for the currently focused selection component. By using up/down or left/right you are able to page through the available options. By typing the first character of an option, you will jump immediately to that option (type the same letter multiple times if multiple options begin with the same letter (for instance: snare, snare2, square and saw)) By hitting <enter> you will confirm the selection of the currently selected options list and jump to the next list By hitting <tab> you will jump to the next list By hitting <shift>+<tab> you will jump back to the previous list If there are no options to select (for instance percussive sounds will not have a pitch or octave selection) <tab> will jump over these "disabled" options Hitting enter in the last list (the accent selection) will close the window and add the note in the active pattern at the selected slot Hitting <esc> in an open select list will close the list. Hitting <esc> when no select list is opened, will close the note entry popup. Everything can also be selected using the mouse should you choose to do so. Could you guys give it a try and see if this works better for you ?

Hey that's pretty darn impressive already!

Just out of curiosity, what web browser are you using ? The note entry input are standard select boxes which behave differently across browsers (on Chrome and Safari you can use the space bar to open them, tab to jump between them and the arrow keys/first letter of an option to select it, in Firefox on the other hand...). I think I will just have to put in the extra effort to make this a custom component so it behaves consistently across browsers. Since I'm asking question anyways ( ), what do you mean by tabbing 13 times ? To get to slot 13 ? You should be able to directly click on the slot or use the arrow keys to navigate there... Maybe we can use this space to think up how the interface should work ? I'm currently considering : clicking on a slot will jump to the slot (currently it also opens the note entry popup) double clicking on a slot will open the note entry popup (so will <spacebar> for the currently highlighted slot) in the note entry popup: you can open each of the selection windows using space, or directly type the first letter/number of one of the options upon selection the focus will automatically jump to the next selection (so for speed you could add a bass note in A3 with an accent by typing : B, A, 3, A and hitting enter if the option of your choice is selected by default, simply press <tab> to jump to the next option Or do you have suggestions for a faster workflow ? The application is open for improvements

Thanks for the kind words ! I actually missed the initial announcement of your tracker and was a bit bummed that similar tools would be released around the same time haha But like you said, they are two very different utilities and I'm looking forward to the amplitude controls and more varied "auto" patterns, TIA music should be getting a whole lot more interesting!

A question regarding "the "Pure combined" instrument lets you create a virtual instrument that combines waveforms (AUDC values) 4 and 12, since they sound the same but have different pitch ranges. The "Export to dasm" feature will automatically split them into two different instruments later." What does this exactly do ? It sounds like waveform addition to enrich the resulting sound, how does the usage of this feature it affect the channel count ?

While we're all (rightfully!) awaiting the easter release of Kylearan's TIATracker I'd like to share a small application I wrote. While TIATracker is a much more mature product, this application might be of interest to those who have experience dealing with Slocum's Music Kit/Sequencer Kit (I've noticed the naming hasn't been very consistent). Slocum Tracker is a web based interface for the aforementioned Sequencer Kit. Even though Slocum's documentation is of a high standard and the text based writing of songs a simple enough solution, the workflow is quite spartan. At least in the sense that if your goal is to quickly compose music, the writing of binary codes and the declaring of pattern lists at multiple levels can be cumbersome. Slocum Tracker looks and behaves like many trackers do, offering the possibility to store and revisit your projects, provides hotkeys for quick sculpting of patterns as well as a state history and lists all features of Slocum's Sequencer Kit in easily accessible pulldown menus. Once you're satisfied with your work and want to listen to your patterns, you hit the "export" button to generate the required code for use with Sequencer Kit. You can then assemble the Atari program like before. The tracker is geared towards composers who aren't comfortable enough with writing for Sequencer Kit directly. Homebrew developers can now call in the help of musical friends to deliver a soundtrack while they can rely on the tried and tested performance of Sequencer Kit to ensure that their game / demo is making optimal use of the Atari's available resources. A short video demonstration : You can run Slocum Tracker directly using any modern web browser by navigating here. Would be interested in seeing if it can be of any help to you guys as I basically wrote it to speed up proceedings when enjoying some downright edgy TIA tones