Copyright: Looper Help File Copyright ® 1993 TASsoft
Citation: This Is Copyright (c) 1993 TASsoft, All Rights Reserved


Looper Help Index
Looper       [image]       Version 2.2

Written By Tim Tschirner & Christoph Sundergeld, Copyright © 1993 TASsoft

Looper is a Windows application that plays digitized audio files in wave format (files with the .wav extension) continuously in the background. It can handle all the types and formats of Wave files that your sound card is capable playing of. The size of the Wave file to be looped must not be greater than half of your installed physical memory (not the virtual memory Windows provides). Looper can turn your computer into a sampler, a beatbox or a drum machine. You can sing or rap along to your favourite tunes or try out how one sample or instrument sounds when played together with a backing track. Used in conjunction with Player it offers even more fun.

Requirements

Installation

Starting

Operating

Installing A Looped Wave File In A Program Manager Group

Registering The Wave Utilities

Updating From A Previous Version

Comments

Special Note For Owners Of A Pro AudioSpectrum 16 Or Compatible Sound Card

Legal Disclaimer And Notes

Version History And Improvements


Requirements

The following things are required to let Looper run successfully on your system:

Hardware Requirements:

286 or better PC with at least 1 Megabyte of RAM

VGA or better graphics hardware

A sound card that is capable of playing back digitized audio files (Looper does NOT work with Microsoft's SPEAKER.DRV)

Software Requirements:

Microsoft Windows 3.1 or higher  or  Microsoft Windows with Multimedia Extensions

BWCC.DLL in your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory


Installation

The installation process is simple. Just copy LOOPER.EXE and LOOPER.HLP to any directory of your choice. We suggest copying them to C:\WINDOWS\WAVEUTIL.

Then move the file BWCC.DLL to your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory.

After that install LOOPER.EXE in any of your existing Program Manager groups, for example in the Windows Applications group. You may want to put it into your Autostart group as well.

You should also assign the directory where you store your Wave files as the working directory by using the FILE...PROPERTIES menu from the Program Manager.


Starting

To start Looper, double click on the Looper icon in the group where you installed it. Looper now appears on your desktop as an icon, but is still inactive.

There are two ways of getting Looper to work when it is started the first time:

The first is to doubleclick the Looper icon on the desktop. Then a File Open Dialog will appear from which you can select the Wave file Looper shall process.

You can also drag a Wave file from a File Manager window and drop it onto Looper's icon and it will be looped in the background.

(Note: The registration reminder will disappear if you register Looper.)

After loading or dropping a Wave file you will see that Looper's icon changes, a note is added and it looks like it is lit up.


Operating

After starting Looper for the first time you have several options. The easiest way to operate is to drag a Wave file from a File Manager window and drop it onto Looper's icon. Then it will be looped in the background.

To let Looper process another Wave file just drag it onto the Looper icon while Looper is still playing.

You can stop the playing by doubleclicking the Looper icon. Doubleclicking the icon again will restart looping the last loaded Wave file.

You can also stop the playing by selecting the Stop Looping option from the System Menu. If you want to restart looping the last loaded Wave file, select the Restart Looping option.

Looper's icon changes while you do the different operations. When you load or drop a Wave file for the first time a note is added and it looks like the icon is lit up. When you stop the looping it looks like the light has been switched off.

If you select the Load A Wave File command from the System Menu, a File Open Dialog will appear in which you can select the Wave file Looper shall process.

If you need Help, select the Help On Looper command and you can access this Help File.

The menu item About Looper... shows you the Copyright notice and gives the version number.

To exit Looper, select Close from the System Menu or press ALT+F4 while Looper is active (when the icon undertitle is highlighted).


Installing A Looped Wave File In A Program Manager Group

If you like, you can install a Wave file in a Program Manager group so that it will be looped by simply double clicking on it. To do that, select a group in which you want to place the Wave file. After opening that group, select FILE...NEW in the Program Manager. Choose PROGRAM and enter the full path to LOOPER.EXE (e.g.C:\WINDOWS\WAVEUTIL\LOOPER.EXE).

Do NOTselect the OK button or press Return yet!

Now enter the full path to the Wave file that you want to be looped. Let's assume that it is D:\WAVES\LOOPME.WAV. The full name of the new program to appear in the selected Program Manager group should now read like this:

C:\WINDOWS\WAVEUTIL\LOOPER.EXE D:\WAVES\LOOPME.WAV

Now you can select the OK button or press Return and the Wave file will be looped when you doubleclick the Looper icon that you just created. If you like, you can give the sounds better descriptions or different icons by using the FILE...PROPERTIES menu from the Program Manager.


Registering
Registering The Wave Utilities

The Wave Utilities are Shareware. Please pass a copy to your friends and upload them to your favourite BBS. You are encouraged to use them for two weeks, but after that period you must either register or delete them. When you register, you will receive the latest versions of Looper and Player which do not contain the registration reminders plus you will get a lot of Waveformat audio files for free.

The registration fee is $10 (U.S. funds). Sorry, but we do not accept cheques. To register, print out the file REGISTER.FRM, fill it out, put it together with the $10 into an envelope and send it one of the addresses below.

As soon as your order reaches us, we will mail you your individual registered copies of Looper and Player. We will fill up the remaining space on the diskette with Wave files. Make sure that you specify the diskette type on which you want to receive the files and the specifications the Wave files shall have.

If you have an E-Mail address that can be accessed from the Internet, we can also send you your registered version via uuencoded E-Mail, which will be much faster than normal mail.

If you're already a registered user of The Wave Utilities see Updating From A Previous Version.

Send the Registration Form to one of these addresses:

1) TASsoft

      c/o

      Tim Tschirner

      Clarenstr. 19

      32052 Herford

      Germany

2) TASsoft

      c/o

      Christoph Sundergeld

      Beckhausstr. 175

      33611 Bielefeld

      Germany


Updating
Updating From A Previous Version

If you're already a registered user of The Wave Utilities, you can get Version 2.2 for only $5 (U.S. funds).

If we can send you the files via uuencoded E-Mail the update fee is only $3 (U.S. funds).

To update print out the file REGISTER.FRM, fill it out, put it together with the money into an envelope and send it back to us. Remember to check the Update Box!

Please Note: When you update your copies, you will NOT get Wave files along with your registered copies of The Wave Utilities 2.2.

For addresses and more details see Registering The Wave Utilities.


Comments

We would really like to hear your comments on Looper and Player!

Feel free to let us know any comments, questions, problems or bugs!

You can contact us at the following Internet E-Mail addresses:

1) Tim Tschirner

     ittschir@techfak.uni-bielefeld.de

2) Christoph Sundergeld

     icsunder@techfak.uni-bielefeld.de


Special Note For Pro AudioSpectrum 16 Owners
Special Note For Owners Of A Pro AudioSpectrum 16 Or Compatible Sound Card

If you have a Pro AudioSpectrum 16 or compatible sound card installed in your system, you can use it's special feature to play back two Wave files at the same time together with The Wave Utilities. To do that, you must have a second wave device driver installed under Windows. If you do not know if this is the case, you can find it out by looking at your SYSTEM.INI file which is located in the Windows directory. Start the Notepad, load SYSTEM.INI and look for the [drivers] entry. It should look like this:

[drivers]

timer=timer.drv

midimapper=midimap.drv

MIDI=opl3.drv

MIDI1=mvproaud.drv

Wave=mvproaud.drv

Wave1=sbwave.drv

Aux=mvproaud.drv

Mixer=mvmixer.drv

If your [drivers] entry in the SYSTEM.INI does not contain the Wave1=sbwave.drv entry, close the notepad and exit Windows. Copy sbwave.drv from the Pro AudioSpectrum 16 Windows Driver Disk to your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory. Then add the Wave1=sbwave.drv line to your SYSTEM.INI manually. After that save the SYSTEM.INI file and restart Windows. Then go into the Control Panel and setup the SndBlaster Compatible Wave Audio driver in the Driver Applet to match your correct Sound Blaster part IRQ and DMA selections.

(Please note: If you use Pro AudioSpectrum Windows Drivers earlier than V1.42 the name of the second wave device driver is tbwave.drv. We strongly recommend that you get the latest version of the Windows drivers.)

It is also necessary that you associate .WAV files with Player. If you set up everything correctly, you can use the PAS-16's special feature with a lot of programs.

Here are some examples:

Example 1:

Start Looper, drag a file on it's icon so that it will be played continuously. While it's being looped, you can doubleclick on a Wave file in the File Manager and it will be played back simultaneously.

Example 2:

Drag a Wave file onto the Looper icon and let it play in the background. Then start the Pocket Recorder, load a Wave file and play it back. If you have Pocket Recorder 2.1 or greater you can also use it's new feature to have even more fun with Looper! To do so, start Looper and drag a Wave file on it's icon. Then start the Pocket Recorder, minimize it so that it appears as an icon on the desktop. Now drag a Wave file from the File Manager onto the Pocket Recorder icon and it will be played back while Looper doesn't stop it's playback.You can also drag multiple files onto the Pocket Recorder's icon, they will be played back one after another.

Example 3:

Start the Pocket Recorder, load a Wave file and play it back. While it's being played back, you can doubleclick on a Wave file in the File Manager and it will be played back at the same time. If you have Pocket Recorder 2.1 or greater you can also use it's new feature. To do so, start the Pocket Recorder, minimize it so that it appears as an icon on the desktop. Now drag a Wave file from the File Manager onto the Pocket Recorder icon and it will be played back. While it's being played back, you can doubleclick on a Wave file in the File Manager and it will be played at the same time. You can also drag multiple files onto the Pocket Recorder's icon, they will be played back one after another.

Example 4:

Doubleclick a Wave file in the File Manager. While it's being played back, doubleclick another Wave file and it will be played back together with the first one.

This feature does also work with WinMOD, WinMod PRO and a lot of other programs!

If you have a fast computer you can also play a MIDI file in the background using the Media Player while Looper and Player are both playing Wave files.


Legal Disclaimer And Notices

This package (consisting of the LOOPER and PLAYER programs and associated documentation) is Copyright © 1993 by TASsoft. The software and the documentation were written by Tim Tschirner and Christoph Sundergeld (further referred to as 'The Authors'). All rights reserved. It is provided 'as is' without representation or warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including without limitation, any representations or endorsements regarding the use of, the results of, or performance of; its appropriateness, accuracy, reliability, or currentness. The entire risk as to the use of this package is assumed by the user. In no event will the authors or TASsoft be liable for any damages, direct, indirect, incidental or consequential, resulting from any defect in the package, even if the authors or TASsoft have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Any and all use of this package, for any purpose, with no regard to the legality of such use or purpose, is the complete and sole responsibility of the user. All terms are subject to change without notice. This disclaimer shall supersede any verbal or written statement to the contrary. Should any part or parts of this disclaimer be deemed unlawful or unapplicable, the remainder shall continue to apply. If you do not accept these terms, you must cease using this package immediately.

This package is offered as 'Shareware'. Shareware is defined as a software package that is copyrighted, and which you may not reverse-engineer or otherwise modify, but which you may distribute freely. You are encouraged to use LOOPER or PLAYER for 2 weeks. After that period you must either register or stop using them. With the registration you will receive the latest versions of the software that do not contain the registration reminders plus you will get a lot of Waveformat audio files to use with LOOPER and PLAYER free.

Vendors approved by the ASP (Association of Shareware Professionals) are granted permission to distribute this package for a fee without prior written permission. All other vendors must contact us for further information.

Windows and Windows With Multimedia Extensions are registered trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation.

Sound Blaster is a registered trademark of Creative Labs.

Pro AudioSpectrum 16 and Pocket Recorder are registered trademarks of Media Vision, Inc.


Version History
Version History And Improvements

Version 2.2          Released July 07, 1993

fixed a bug that occured when an non-existing file was dropped on Looper while it was playing

updated help files and documentation

smaller executable through code optimization

Version 2.1          Released March 23, 1993

the bug that occured when an invalid file name was passed as the command line parameter has been fixed

the registration reminder has now a help button, with which the user can get more information on how to register

improved the Help file and documentation

new layout for the File Open Dialog

new default icon

Version 2.0          Released March 03, 1993

new look by using Borland's Windows Custom Controls

added the 'Load A Wave File' option which brings up a File Open Dialog

this new option can also be accessed by doubleclicking the Looper icon after it has been started for the first time without a Wave file

added the 'Help On Looper' option and a Help file

Version 1.1          Released January 27, 1993

added the 'Restart Looping' option, which restarts looping the last loaded Wave file

the 'Stop' and 'Restart' options can also be accessed by doubleclicking the Looper icon

changed 'Break Actual Loop' System Menu entry to 'Stop Looping'

added Wave output device detection

new icon on startup

Version 1.0          Released January 19, 1993

initial release


The file BWCC.DLL is a freely distributable Dynamic Link Library which is Copyright (c) 1991-1993 by Borland International.

It is absolutely necessary that you copy it to your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory as Looper will not run without it!

If you already have a copy of it in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory you should only keep the one with the latest date.


To access the System Menu, click once onto Looper's icon while it's on the desktop.


The current version number of the Pro AudioSpectrum Windows Drivers is 1.45. You can get the latest drivers directly from Media Vision, from their forum on CompuServe or from their BBS. The file to download is WIN145.ZIP.

If you have Internet access, you can download them via anonymous ftp from the PAS ftp site, FTP.UWP.EDU. The file is called PASW145.ARJ and is located in the pub\msdos\proaudio directory.


Player is also part of The Wave Utilities 2.2 and you should have received PLAYER.EXE and PLAYER.HLP with this package.

To get more information on Player consult the file PLAYER.HLP.


To associate Wave files with Player do the following:

Load File Manager and select a .WAV file. Choose FILE...ASSOCIATE from the File Manager menu. The ASSOCIATE dialog box now appears.  Click in the ASSOCIATE WITH... text box and enter the full path to PLAYER.EXE, for example C:\WINDOWS\WAVEUTIL\PLAYER.EXE. Then click the OK button.


When playing back two Wave files at the same time on a Pro AudioSpectrum 16 one of these two files must be a Wave file that can be played back by a standard Sound Blaster sound card, which means it must not exceed 22.050 kHz, 8 Bits. It can be either Mono or Stereo.


The current version number of Pocket Recorder is 2.5. The latest version is always available with the Pro AudioSpectrum Windows Drivers.