Frequently Asked Questions answered by Teijo

Generic questions:

Are there plans to port OctaMED for Mac/PPC/Linux/A\Box/whatever?

OctaMED will only be further developed on the PC platform by me.

Why?

The author happens to be a very busy student, so there are definitely no resources (time),
to develop actively for more than one platform.The PC/Windows platform is the best
choice considering its market dominance and future prospects.

Can I use the OctaMED player routines in my own programs?

Yes, that's what they are for. OctaMED routines may be freely used,
without a licence/payment etc., in public domain, (free) programs.
A licence is required only if OctaMED routines are used in software that is SOLD.
(see the documents accompanying the developer support files).

PC-specific questions:

OS and hardware requirements, please.

The PC version of OctaMED Soundstudio is written for Windows 95/98and Windows NT 4/5.
For proper operation, Windows95/98 and a DirectSound supported sound card will be required.
While OctaMED will run under NT 4.0 with DirectSound emulation, there are big latency
times which will make it uncomfortable to use and MIDI output doesn't work properly.
The situation with NT will change when Microsoft releases NT5 with support for
native DSound drivers instead of emulation.

The exact hardware requirements have not yet been defined, but here's an estimated outline:

More information about the sample side...

OctaMED will use Microsoft's DirectSound API for achieving low-latency digital sound output.
It will support both 8 and 16 bit mono and stereo samples with trackwise panning.
Audio mixing frequencies of 11, 22 and 44 kHz are available with optional interpolation.
It's also possible to save the module as a large sample file for e.g. direct transfer to CD.

There are also optional DSP effects available which can be applied to groups of tracks
or all tracks, the effects include echo, stereo separation and LP/HP filters.

More information the MIDI side...

The MIDI parts of the program are only just being commenced,
but according to plans, there will be:

Can't you say when it will be available?

The development of the PC version is still in the early stages,
and the completion of the program depends on many factors.
So, I'm sorry, I can't give any accurate release date at the moment. I can only give a very rough guess:
the first PC version will be ready in early 1998.

Here is a short list of what is currently working (20-Aug-97):

Currently under work: The rest of the tracker editing functions

How will the PC version differ from the Amiga version?

In short, it will be practically rewritten from scratch.
It will look different,and also feel quite different,
but I hope it will be better than the Amiga version.
The basic functionality of tracker editing will be more or less the same,
but some functions will be removed, some added, some considerably modified.
It should be better judged as a completely new program than a "port" from the Amiga.

What does it look like?


OK... you asked for it! :-)
Here's a screenshot of version V0.004, (A test version released 12.07.1997 ),
the outlook may change much from this, but here it is.

Will the PC version of OctaMED support the existing Amiga OctaMED files
(MMD0/MMD1/MMD2/ST etc) and IFF samples, with simple'CrossDOS'ing?

Yes. The PC version will load existing OctaMED modules directly.
It will also load MODs,S3Ms, IT (normal and compressed ),
MIDI files, as well as XMs ,(not all xm features).
All significant sample formats will be supported as well.

OctaMEDPlayer?

Yes, it is already available for the PC. You can download it from this page
It is freeware and at this time, very basic in use and no
updates for the Player are planned until the main program has been finished.
After OctaMED has been released, a new version of the Player will
become available supporting all the upcoming new features and MIDI.

OctaMEDPlayer looks nice, couldn't you add MOD, S3M, XM... support
as well as extend it to a complete player program?

Yes, I could. But my main task is to develop OctaMED the music editor.
If I were to make OctaMEDPlayer a complete player program with multi-format
support,I could say goodbye to OctaMED...( not enough time for both ).
I think there's also need for a very compact, simple single-format player
like OctaMEDPlayer and therefore it will remain as such.

However, look at it this way: once the main OctaMED program is ready,
it will be able to import a multitude of module formats, and besides
being a music editor, it can be used as a player program, too.

How can I become a beta tester for OctaMED PC?

Sorry, no more beta testers are being taken at the moment.
Last updated 20-Aug-97
( I will update this as soon as I can )

You can mail me if your realy need to Teijo.
Please don`t expect a quick response, you would be better off mailing:
The Publishers with your general questions

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webmaster RAY : info@octamed.co.uk