[fluid-dev] Announce: FluidGUI Version 0.8

[Ken Ellinwood]

I am pleased to announce the availability of the first version of my GUI for
FluidSynth.  FluidGUI (name subject to change, suggestions welcome) can be
found at the following location.

http://home.comcast.net/~kellinwood/fluidgui/index.html


INTRODUCTION

FluidGUI is a graphical user interface for fluidsynth, a software
synthesizer based on the MIDI and Sound Font specifications.  FluidGUI
currently does not include fluidsynth -- you must install it
separately.

FluidGUI is written and maintaned by Ken Ellinwood
mailto:address@hidden


PURPOSE

The purpose of FluidGUI is to make using fluidsynth easier.  It
supports managing multiple configurations of fluidsynth; each
configuration can contain customized command line options and
settings, loaded sound fonts, channel assignments, etc.  There is a
virtual keyboard feature which allows the user to hear the presets in
a loaded SoundFont.

INSTALLING

You must already have (or install) the Java Runtime Environment (JRE)
version 1.4.0 (or greater).  The JRE can be obtained here:

http://java.sun.com/products

Download and run the fluidgui-installer.bin (self-extracting) file.
E.g., "sh fluidgui-installer.bin".  Follow the instructions during the
install.


RUNNING

Before FluidGUI will work, you must have fluidsynth installed and in
your PATH.  The GUI launches fluidsynth as a sub-process and
comminicates with it via the TCP command port.  Before running
FluidGUI, be sure that you can get fluidsynth running without errors
using the following command: "fluidsynth -i -s".


Run FluidGUI by executing the script: install_prefix/bin/fluidgui.

QUICK TIPS

The value column in the settings table is directly editable.  Most
settings changes require restarting the fluidsynth process before they
take effect (use the "Stop/Start Fluidsynth" or "Restart Fluidsynth"
menu actions or buttons).  Realtime setting changes take effect
immediatly if the fluidsynth sub-process is running.

Presets from the Sound Font tree can be assigned to channels using one
of four methods.  1) Click on a preset, click it again and drag it to
the channel table. 2) Click on a preset and select "Select for channel
assignment" from the action menu or right-click popup menu.  Then
select a row in the channel table and use "Assign channel" from the
action menu or right-click popup menu. 3) Ctrl-c while a preset is
selected in the sound font tree.  Ctrl-v while a row is selected in
the channel table. 4) Right-click on a channel in the channel table,
and select "Virtual Keyboard..." from the popup menu.  Use the drop
down lists in the virtual keyboard window to change the
font/bank/preset for the channel.


KNOW BUGS/LIMITATIONS


* Version 0.8 only works on Linux since the TCP command port feature of
  fluidsynth is not currently available in the Windows and Mac
  versions.  I plan on upgrading fluidsynth to enable this feature on
  Windows in the near future.  This effort should provide the
  framework for implementation on the Mac (which I can't do since I don't 
  own a Mac).

* The sound font tree may not show the banks/presets in sound fonts
  under certain conditions (rare).  For example, if the fluidsynth
  sub-process fails to start for some reason (i.e., it can't aquire
  access to the ALSA driver since your listening to a CD, etc) and you
  attempt to expand the sound font tree before successfully starting the
  sub-process, the bank entries will never re-appear.  Workaround: reload 
  the configuration using "File/Open...".

* The channel table may not be correctly populated unless fluidsynth
  supports the -verbose option to the "channels" command.  In this case,
  only explicity assigned channels will appear in the table.  The other 
  channels will appear empty even if fluidsynth defaults the assignments
  based on the last loaded sound font.

* Error handling is inconsistent.  Error popups may contain irrelevant
  messages since they currently contain all of stderr/stdout from
  fluisynth.


TODO LIST

- Add an "Effects" tab, to expose control of reverb, chorus, etc in
the GUI.

- Since FluidGUI is a heavyweight application, provide an alternative
means of launching fluidsynth with a given FluidGUI configuration
(e.g., export configuration as a shell script).


PROVIDING FEEDBACK

Report problems, bugs and enhancement requests to the author via email
- address@hidden



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