Information DS2STREAM (DirectSound to Stream)

From UCube Systems 1998
-----------------------

This is a shareware which you can use up to 90 days for personal use only.
Program will NOT expire after 90 days but you should mail back to 
UCube Systems after 90 days and ask for terms/conditions of using afterwards.

if you have downloaded this software from a web or ftp server. You MUST
mail back and ask for permission if you want to distribute this in anyform 
( by CD-ROM or e-mail or copying to a web or ftp server.)

if you have obtained this software by a CD-ROM, you can not distribute or use
on more than one machine.

E-mail address: ucube@thor.prohosting.com
E-mail address: ucube@geocities.com

main web page is : http://thor.prohosting.com/~ucube
download web page is : http://thor.prohosting.com/~ucube/Download.htm

Mirror at http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Foothills/7797/Download.htm
Mirror at http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Foothills/7797/Ds2stream.htm

Alpha Version 0.98.138

Contents :
==========
-Introduction
-About Notation
-What is New
-Revision History
-Requirements
-Functional Definition
-Installation
-First Time Setup
-Procedures
-Troubleshooting
-Tips & Tricks
-Information on MENUs
-Dialog Boxes
-Modes of Operation
-Uninstall Operations
-Known Limations and bugs
-Additional Copyrights

-Appendix A:More on MPEG Layer-3 support
-Appendix B:More on Velocity/Volume Control
-Appendix C:More on Selection Mode
-Appendix D:More on PlayList Mode
-Appendix E:More on Alpha/Beta/Release Candidate and Bugs.
-Appendix F:More on Microsoft vs. Others
-Appendix G:More on Asf vs. Wav
-Appendix H:More on AutoSync Mode
-Appendix I:More on SoundActivated Recording
-Appendix J:More on ForcedStop Recording
-Appendix Z:Y2K or Year2000

Introduction :
==============
Read whole file before sending  complaining e-mail.
Read Functional Definition at least, before doing anything.

About Notation :
================
About Arrow notation:You will see Something1->something2->something3

They mean you must select something1 first then second then something3 to reach
the point you want which can be a button ,a menu ,a tab control or ComboBox.

What is New :
=============
Version 0.98.138 :
------------------
Little improvements everywhere.

Version 0.98.116 :
------------------
Sound/Voice activated recording added.
Settings at View->Properties->Record->Advanced
New File Limit is 2097152 KByte

Version 0.98.115 :
------------------
VolumeMeters added for Playback and Record
Playback VolumeMeters are affected by file itself not mixer or other
volume settings.Record VolumeMeters are affected  by mixer and other
volume settings.More Internal improvements and visual improvements

Version 0.98.113 :
------------------
Minor Visual Improvements for windows 98.
Microsoft relased a new MediaPlayer 5.01.0701 or
mplayer2.exe .Installing this on top of Windows 95/98 will
generate problems for RealAudio 5.MPEG Layer-3
support of Ds2Stream program is limited with new MediaPlayer
installed.

Version 0.98.112 :
------------------
Everything is new as its first Public Relase.


Revision History :
==================
Version 0.98.138:Alpha released in November 16,1998
Version 0.98.116:Alpha released in September 14,1998
Version 0.98.115:Alpha released in September 4,1998
Version 0.98.115:Alpha released in August 24,1998
Version 0.98.113:Alpha released in August 11,1998
Version 0.98.112:Alpha released in July 24,1998

Requirements :
==============
A Pentium 90 Class Machine with 16 MB RAM
( You can try your chance with 486 and 8 MB RAM )
Windows 95/OSR1/OSR2/98
Direct X Version 5 or higher
Sound Card with 44.1kHz Stereo IN/OUT (Full duplex, 16 Bit)
1MB Hard Disk Space Free


Functional Definition:
======================
Ds2stream is a Wave Player AND Recorder for Windows 95/98 :

Part 1: Player Features
Part 2: Recorder Features

Part 1: A Wave Player with the following features :
---------------------------------------------------
1. Uses DirectSound (Part of DirectX)which is faster requires less CPU Power.

2. Most Recent Used FileList(MRU),Remembers last Opened Files.This Feature
is available in WordPad but neither MediaPlayer nor SoundRecorder has one.
Requires AutoPlay to be selected.

3. Dockable Toolbars.Size of the main windows may be large but you can Undock
toolbars enable/disable them also enable/disable status bar.Missing in
MediaPlayer and SoundRecorder.You Can Placed Main Window outside the Desktop
and use Toolbars only.You can Resize main Window in Vertical(Y) direction but
not in Horizontal(X) which is reverse of MediaPlayer.Also Resize to a minimum
of TitleBar.Maximize button will function but it will size from maximum
size to size you have selected,different than normal.

4. Five controls in Main Window:

a)Position: Playback Position in File
(Same as in MediaPlayer and SoundRecorder)

b)Volume Control: Controls Volume of DirectSound Buffer which is not the same
as controlling volume of System Mixer or Speaker Mixer(which is Icon yellow
and white cone in system Tray at lower right of your desktop).So What,You
must/can adjust main volume from Speaker Mixer or formally known SndVol32.exe
Read Tips and Tricks section for the advantages of having separate volume
control.

c)Balance Control: Controls Left/Right Balance for Stereo Files.

d)Velocity Control: Controls rate of change of volume control(speed of fade
in/out effect)in an Up(higher)/Down(lower)

e)Frequency Control: Controls the Frequency of the Playback.You can change
the frequency which gives you ability change Pitch of sound.In Practical
terms you can change a male sound to a female one and also the female to
male.

5. You can run multiple copies of DS2STREAM with different files on each
copy AND controls effecting only the own copy of the file.So you can Mix
Files in Real Time even with Single Sound Card without additional hardware.
Number of Files that can be mixed by this manner is limited by
memory/processor speed/speed of HardDisk or type of SoundCard but Not by
program by itself.
You can mix 4 or more with even a ISA Type SoundCard.

6. Min / Max values of controls can be adjusted for easier management.

7. PlayList support for WAVE Files with build in Playlist editor.

8. Separate button for Repeat PlayList Function

9. Enable/Disable Control for PlayList.

10. AutoFade In/Out can be enabled/disabled and also speed can be can be
adjusted.

11. Drag and Drop Target for WAVE Files

12. AutoLaunch for Playlist Files (*.plf)Read additional instructions for
this function,disabled by default.

13. Playback VolumeMeters


Part 2: A Wave Recorder with following features :
-------------------------------------------------
This program is actually written to overcome following limitations 
of Windows SoundRecorder:

1. SoundRecorder is limited by Memory.DS2STREAM is limited by HardDisk.
DS2STREAM File size limit is 2097152KByte (2048MB,2GB). 
2GB is limit for DOS also for VFAT16 file system of WIN95.
FAT32 used by WIN98 can support up to 4GB, program will stick old standart 
and support only to 2GB for better compability.
Note:Old 2048KB Limit is removed from Shareware version.
New Limit is 2097152KByte

2. SoundRecorder will not support Real-time compression of Data with 
mainly new high compression ratio codecs such as MPEG Layer III codecs.
DS2STREAM will support Real-time compression of DATA with new CODECs 
and is limited by Processor Speed for supported codecs,
read supported codecs section for more info.

Plus following :
----------------
3.Stereo Record VolumeMeters

DS2STREAM currently has no editing capability so no Insert file
Cut,Paste also no effects menu.Some of them will be supported in
future but DS2STREAM is not a WAVE editor.

Installation :
==============
Run DS2STRZIP which is a zip file which will
install itself to C:\Program Files\UCube Systems\Ds2stream 
directory.Run the Exe File DS2STREAM.EXE

First Time Setup :
==================
1. Select View From Menu 
2. Select Properties and Playback Sub Menu
3. Select Device Tab
4. Select Playback Driver From ComboBox
5. Press Apply then OK
6. Select View From Menu 
7. Select Properties and Record Sub Menu
8. Select Device Tab
9. Select Recorder Driver From ComboBox
10. Press Apply then OK
11. Select File and exit

These are instructions for minimal settings.


Procedures:
===========
How to Play a File ?
--------------------
Select File->Open->(File form)Open Dialog.The file will start playing if
setting Autoplay(In Edit Menu)is already selected leave Autoplay selected
unless you have good reason.when you finished with file Select File->Close
to select new file.(you must close the current file to open new one this
may change in future)

How to Record a File ?
----------------------
Select File->New Write a new filename in the directory selected.(If you
select an existing file the file you selected will be overwritten.
Select CODEC and Format details in Combobox.All CODECS installed in your
machine is not supported.read Supported/Known Codecs section.
Select OK and you can press Red button to start recording later press stop
to stop recording Select File->Exit.(There will be a MessageBox  when you
press stop box this may change in future.)

How to make a Playlist ?
------------------------
Select Playlist->New PlayList write a new PlayList filename(Select Open
Playlist and EditPlaylist to modify a existing Playlist).PlayList Editor
pop ups select the wav file in File open box select add and your filename
added to playlist you may select add all to autoselect all wave files
in a directory.To move a file inside the list select file click on arrows
under the list.Finally Press Uselist button to start playing (If Autoplay
is selected.)Empty Playlists will generate problems use cancel to if you
want to terminate.

How to Export a MPEG Layer-3 file (.mp3) ?
------------------------------------------
Select File->Export and write a file name.Conversion is supported for
uncompressed WAV (in PCM format) and compressed WAV (MPEG Layer-3)
to mp3 requiring a suitable CODEC installed in ACM.
Most of PCM sampling frequencies are supported.

How to Import a MPEG Layer-3 file (.mp3) ?
------------------------------------------
Select File->Import and select the file you want.Temporary Wav file
will be generated in temp directory(Program will not decode it,it will copy
the file and add a Wave header to it so it will be fast but there will be a
delay you may use Layer-3 compressed for faster operation.)Currently imported
limited to 44100 Hz Stereo with 96,112,128 Kbits.Requires a Layer-3 Codec
installed in ACM.

How to Check installed CODECs in ACM ?
--------------------------------------
Select START->settings->Multimedia->Advanced TAB,Expand Audio Compression
CODECs branch for MPEG Layer-3 you are looking for Fraunhofer IIS MPEG
Layer-3 Codec it may be (Advanced) comes with Internet Explorer 4 and
NetShow 2.0 (Free from Microsoft)with a limit of 22.050 Hz
or (Professional) version (You can buy one from Opticom) supporting 44.100Hz.

How to Check Version info and Driver info ?
-------------------------------------------
There are two programs if installed they are in Program Files\directx\setup
directory Dxinfo.exe and Dxtool.exe.Dxinfo gives version info of each file
Dxtool.exe is more user friendly.you must have at least one device in
Directsound branch to play with DS2STREAM and at least one device in
DirectSoundCapture to record.The emulated means No direct driver is used ,
instead Wave In or Wave Out (pre Direct X) is used.Most cases you do not
have DirectSoundCapture driver so this is main reason you have losing speed
in recording (remember no DirectSoundCapture in Direct X Version 3
so This program will not record in NT4 in any way.NT5 will have Direct X 5
or 6 so you may try NT5 Beta(untested mail me if you are sucessfull
in your attempt)

How to Add ACM CODECS to Windows 95 ?
=====================================
Select START->Settings->Control Panel->Add/Remove Programs->Windows Setup
->Multimedia->Audio Compression which will install default codecs to
your system.

Technical Note 1:What is a WAV or WAVE file ?
---------------------------------------------
WAV files are Multimedia Files optimized Sound Related Data.
A Microsoft standart from Windows 3.0 Multimedia Extension and Windows
standard
starting from windows 3.1 
Following functionality requires wave files.
These are important as they are part of the answer of question why not just
support .mp3

1) START->Settings->Control Panel->Sound icon gives a menu which you can
 assign wave files to following :
a)Close a Program.
b)Exit of Windows.
c)Start of Windows. 
  and many more actions to windows itself and windows explorer

2) You can have Sound Schemes and Desktop Themes which require a wav file.
Unless you use some special program the sounds you hear when windows starts 
and ends are wav files
3) Wav is standart clipboard format which most sound editors understand.
4) Also a standard for OLE Automation and MS Office Doc Format.
   You can insert a Wav file inside A word document.
5) Only sound file format soundRecorder and original MediaPlayer supports.
 
WAV Standart Uses a Header which describes what is stored inside.You can
store different types data such as cue points also different type of sound 
file.if you store different type of sound data other than most common format 
PCM you will need A CODEC.

PCM: Pulse Coded Modulation.A standart way of presenting Analog signal in
digital form of 1 and 0`s.Used in Telecom applications and It is How ISDN
will transmit your voice.also known as uncompressed data.Actual format of
CDs is PCM + Error Correction.

Technical Note 2: What is A CODEC ?
-----------------------------------
CODEC: Coder Decoder.A Hardware or in our case a software that encodes
(changes the way your data is presented into other format such as
PCM to ADPCM,most cases it is used for compression.other most use is
encryption.(we are insterted only compression so coder is a compressor
in our case)and Decodes which is reverse of a Coder from format such as
ADPCM to PCM.
 
CODEC named with the formats they use.  

Supported CODECs :
------------------
These are CODECs DS2STREAM KNOWNS :

1) Lernout & Hauspie CELP 4.8kbit/s :

8000 Hz 16 Bit Mono Source to 4800 bits per second when compressed .
Given 2048Kbyte file limit you can record up to 59652 minutes or 994 hours
or 41 days if your machine can stand .This  is voiceband (8000 Hz Mono)
High compression ratio 1:26 CODEC.

Comes with NetShow 2.0 also part Explorer 4.0 .Normally installed as a
part of Explorer 4 install.

2) CCITT A-Law Developed for 8000 Hz but you can used  up to 44100 Hz in 
Mono or Stereo.Low Compression ratio 1:2 Fast(You can safely use with 486s).
One of most common standarts.

Comes with Original Windows 95.

3) CCITT u-Law Developed for 8000 Hz but you can used  up to 44100 Hz in 
Mono or Stereo.Low Compression ratio 1:2 Fast(You can safely use with 486s).
One of most common standarts.
A-Law is American and u-Law European standard.

Comes with Original Windows 95.
4) Microsoft ADPCM Developed for 8000 Hz but you can used  up to 44100 Hz in 
Mono or Stereo.
Medium Compression ratio 1:4 Fast CODEC. One of the best if you do not have
High Pentium II machineand want compressed recording at 44100 Stereo.

Comes with Original Windows 95.
5) IMA ADPCM or Intel DVI you can used  up to 44100 Hz in Mono or Stereo.
Medium Compression ratio 1:4 Fast CODEC. One of the best if you do not have 
High Pentium II machine and want compressed recording at 44100 Stereo.

Comes with Original Windows 95.

6) GSM 6.10 Mono CODEC upto 44100Hz

Comes with Original Windows 95.

7) MSN Audio Mono CODEC upto 44100Hz.A high compression ration option codec.

Comes with NetShow 2.0 also part Explorer 4.0 .Normally installed as a
part of Internet Explorer 4 install.

8) DSP True Speech .A high compression ration option voice codec at 8000Hz.
High Compression ration 1:16.But requires high CPU power.

Comes with Original Windows 95.

9) MPEG Layer-3. Slow requires a High Power Pentium II for recording or at
least A pentium for Playback at high sampling rates.

There are two versions of this CODEC so be careful.One which comes with
NetShow 2.0 also part of Explorer 4.0 (Normally installed as a part of
Explorer 4 install.)is limited to 22050Hz when recording and 44100Hz when playback.
and a professional version with 44100Hz Stereo record capability. Both are supported.

Troubleshooting :
=================
A)Playing a sound file but hearing no sound at all.
---------------------------------------------------
1)Check if you have a sound card or not.
a)I Can hear sound from other programs so Can I hear sound without
a soundcard ?
Short answer,yes you can.Long answer, a historical one:Original IBM XT
and IBM AT and even IBM PS/2 has no Sound Card installed as a standart
device but have a speaker connected to output of timer.So in the days of
windows 3.1 it were common to install some software which gives these
machine having capability of playing wav files.Bad news is these programs has
no unintall option also it requires technical knowledge to uninstall.
Good news there are ways to solve the problem without unsintalling them.
The result, the problems you are having may be caused by these problems.
(Read on if your are having a problem of this type as there similiar reasons
which can similar problems.)These programs are called SoundCard emulators.
The word emulation is used more one meaning but simplest one is
When something1 is used instead of something2.where something1 and something2 
depends on what type of emulation you are talking. Emulation term is used for
different types meanings through out this is text so be careful.

b)How to check you there exists a sound card in your system ?
-------------------------------------------------------------
Quick ways :if your sound system has stereo output(two or more speakers)
you probably have sound card.also if you have a proper sound device such as
line or mic in you probably have one.More technical will come later in text.
 
c)I have a soundCard in my system but is it still possible that my problems 
are generated by soundcard emulators.Yes,it is.
It is hard to have a Desktop machine without a soundcard these days (Although
there Laptops or portables wihout one)but it is still possible to install a
soundcard emulator on top of a machine with a soundcard.Although This is a
little possiblity section you are reading is having a title is
Troubleshooting which means there is something unsual in your system or
you are a new user.

d)Are there a different type emulators other souncard emulators which can
cause problems.The most type of emulator in these days is MIDI soft
synthesizers.If your soundcard has no MIDI option or with only FM synthesizer
(OPL2 or OPL3)and if you want quality of Hardware Wave Table synthesizer
you can install a emulator type soft synthesizer.These are not real devices
but some sort of vxd or dll files installed in a way there were a midi
synthesizer but wave output device instead.

Additional Note:There are two devices which commonly found on soundcard
(windows sometimes called them sound devices and list under topic or
listing of sound devices due to installation or detection or no other
type suitable for them to be classified but they are not real sound devices.
1)Game or Joystick port.
2)MPU 401 port.MPU401 is used for communicating other MIDI devices
with a special protocol.
Joystick is not a sound device.

Solution or things try to cure :
--------------------------------
There are two places you can change default sound device:
i)START->Control Panel->Multimedia->Audio section where you select one device
for input (Record) one for output(Playback)Select A different device Press
Apply then Press OK Close the Window an Control Panel.Check the Volume
setting is not its minimum also unchecked use only preferred device option to
if you want following section more device options.If the device you selected
have solved your problem you can keep check box as checked.
ii)Program specific:View Menu->options->Playback->Device->Playback driver.
Select a different driver Press Apply And OK select File Menu select
Close if it is active then File menu and  exit for changes to stored then
restart program and retry.

You can not Change Playback driver during Playback is active(Playing a song)
it is ignored.close all files in File Playlist menus make your selection.
store it and reopen the file.Also one for Record device which requires all
files to be closed before you can select
View->options->Record->device-Record Driver option.

Additional Note:Even if I eliminated sections a,b,c,d Playback Driver reports
I am using emulated driver.Emulated driver means you are using a driver which
is not specifically written for Direct Sound(or no Direct X driver is
installed for that device)

2)Check Volume Control or Volume Level.
a)Check It is not mute condition.
b)Check It is not in its lowest level.
c)Check System Mixer (SndVol32.exe Normally in c:\WINDOWS directory)for
Playback option and Options Menu Properties Playback section.
If there is a Check in mute box remove it and increase the volume level.


Record related problems :
=========================
1)How Do I select sound source ?
--------------------------------
In Windows:START->Settings->control Panel->Multimedia->Audio Recording
section.
In Program:View->options->Record->device-Record Driver option.

2)There are some quality losses in my recording what may be the cause ?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
a)Program controls Frequency, Balance, Velocity are playback only control
so how to control volume and balance in recording. Use System Mixer
WINDOWS\SNDVOL32.exe or speaker Icon in system Tray.check that you are
changing record volume settings by Selecting Options->Properties->Recording
section also Advanced box.Be sure that your record source is muted AND
unused sources are muted.If there is a unused source and left unmuted
(mute box unchecked)you will have noise added to your recording.
b)You may use PCM Format for higher quality as most cases compression will
lose some quality although it depends on sound source type recording
frequency and type of codec.

Additional Note:The program DS2STREAM try to make real time recording which
means the data written is already compressed form which will save disk space
but limitation comes when you select a high CPU power requiring codec such
as MPEG Layer-3 at high frequency 44100 and 2 channel recording such as
stereo on Low Power CPU such as 486DX-66 what will happen is youer recording
will be distorted,some Skip sections and even you have no recording without
even a proper error box.Windows 95 is a non-realtime multitasking environment
which you cannot warranty the process power reserved to your program.In  more
common terms even if your system is a High Pentium II your recording
temporally may fail due to some program (or the user has started a Disk
utility such as Scandisk or even worse A Defrag utility.

Things you may try to improve your recording disable all running program stop
or close them or minimize the number of them ( Closing is best option ).
Try to experiment with volume level (Max is not always gives best results).

You may track how Cpu power is used by a utility Sysmon or WinTop (from
Microsoft) or any shareware CPUMon or CPULoad (remember Cpu monitors uses Cpu
power so use them if you are already having problems.)If you read more
%80 of CPU power is used you may have problems.Why in such conditions
program does not give error messages.Giving error messages will stop
recording even if speed loss is transient one.Program tries record maximum
length with ignoring some error it encounters.This may change in the future.


Tips & Tricks :
===============
How to add a Program to start menu of Windows ?
-----------------------------------------------
Find the Folder where program stays Such as Program Files\UCube directory
Select START->Settings->Taskbar->Start Menu Programs->Advanced
Expand Programs branch
Drag FileIcon(DS2Stream) into Contents Window of Explorer with title 
Exploring - c:\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
Select exit and close window.Press OK on TaskBar Properties.
To test the link ,Select start->Programs ,you must see
DS2Stream in menu list.

How to Remove a Program from Start menu of Windows ?
----------------------------------------------------
Select START->Settings->Taskbar->Start Menu Programs->Advanced
Expand Programs branch
Instead of Draging a Icon select a item in contents Press Del.
Important Note:This will not Uninstall a Program from your system
It is Adviced to Use Add/Remove Programs,Uninstall utilities for unInstall
or Follow uninstalling Instructions.

How to Create a shortcut in Desktop ?
-------------------------------------
Find the Folder where program stays Such as Program Files\UCube directory
Drag FileIcon(DS2Stream) into desktop,at is all
if you are prompted for if you want a shortcut, answer yes.

How to Remove a shortcut from Desktop ?
---------------------------------------
Select Icon and Press Delete.
This Procedure is for Icons created by above procedure

How to associate Playlist files(.plf) with the Program ?
--------------------------------------------------------
Select a Playlist file(.plf)or Create one and exit from program then
select the Icon of File you have created.
Press right click a pop up menu opens select top item Open with.
A Open with Dialog will appear (make sure always use this program checkbox
is selected.)select Other, find Program file and select it.Press OK.
Program must be AutoPlay Mode to start playing.if not press Play.

Information on MENUs :
======================
File Menu :
-----------
New :Create A New Wave File
Open :Open an existing Wave File
Close :Close an Open Wave File
Save :Save a Wave File with different Wave Format.
Works only PCM files.

Export :Export a MPEG Layer-3 File Requires a PCM Wave File
opened first. 
Import :Import a MPEG Layer-3 File

Edit Menu :
-----------
Selection :Selection related operations:From,To,Use,Clear
AutoPlay :Auto Starts Play Operations(Some functionality requires AutoPlay
to be selected first.)

View Menu :
-----------
Main ToolBar :Toolbar for File Menu enable/disable
Play ToolBar :Toolbar for Audio Menu enable/disable
Status ToolBar :Status Info enable/disable

Properties :Properties Dialog for Playback and Record.

Audio Menu :
------------
Play :Start Playing
Stop :Stop Playing or Stop

Pause :Pause 
Record :Start Recording (Select File->New first to enable recording)

First :Move to Start of File/Selection/Previous File in Playlist
Reverse :Move in Reverse for Playback only(in Stop mode)
Forward :Move in Forward for Playback only(in Stop mode)
Last :Move to End of File/selection/Next File in Playlist

PlayList Menu :
---------------
New PlayList :Create A new Playlist
Open PlayList :Open a existing Playlist
Close PlayList :Close a Playlist

Edit PlayList :Edit an opened Playlist
PlayList in Use :select Playlist mode
Repeat PlayList :Repeat Playlist when end of Playlist reached

Help Menu :
-----------
About Ds2Stream :Displays Program information.

Dialog Boxes:
=============
Playback Properties :
---------------------
How to select:Menu View->Properties->Playback
General Tab :
-------------
General options about Playback.
File Tab :
----------
Info about currently selected File

Device Tab :
------------
Info about currently selected Driver also you can change it before opening
a file

Advanced Tab :
--------------
maximum and minimum values of controls.

Record Properties :
-------------------
How to select:Menu View->Properties->Record
File Tab :
----------
Info about currently selected File.Useful When you created a new file
but before you start recording,not after you stop recording.
Device Tab :
------------
Info about currently selected Driver also you can change it before opening
a file.

Modes of Operation:
===================
Stop Mode:Requires a Opened Playlist or Opened File,But not currently
in Playing or Recording condition.When Playing a file Pressing stop button
selects Stop mode where Reverse and Forward buttons start functioning.
Play Mode:Requires a Opened Playlist or Opened File,Pressing Play button
selects Play mode.
Record Mode:Requires a Newly opened Wave File.Pressing Record button 
selects Record Mode.
Pause Mode:In Play Mode moving Position selector Puts program in Pause mode
when released playing will continue where you have selected.

Uninstall Operations:
=====================
Manual UnInstall:Select Program in explorer and press Delete.
That`s it,Although some small number settings will left in registry
all are Program specific will not effect other programs.but next time
you install DS2STREAM you must install to same directory.More advanced
clean up can be done with regedit.It is for advanced users and It is not
explained here.

Known Limations and bugs:
=========================
1)Programs assumes you have properly installed Direct X.
Minimum check is done.

2)Empty,Corrupt,Invalid Playlists will generate Problems.
Minimum check is done.

3)Microsoft relased a new MediaPlayer 5.01.0701 or
mplayer2.exe .Installing this on top of Windows 95/98 may
generate problems for MPEG Layer-3 support of Ds2Stream 
Program may not work with new MediaPlayer for Layer-3 files.


Additional Copyrights:
======================
All Names are copyright of respected Companies/Coparations.

Program uses Tooltip control originated by S.A.J. Wilson (Technisoft Ltd.)
A Mpeg type checker based on one from Jeff Tsay.

Both of them are modified, a more proper Copywright message will be added
later.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Appendix A:More on MPEG Layer-3 support
=======================================
This Program is optimized for Layer-3 compressed .wav files but not .mp3
files There is why:Altough some of the microsoft standards are out of
date but they are here will stay  longer than you think ;Internet uses GIFs
and JPEGs but Microsoft API does not understand GIFs actually There is no
utility (even without a single one)comes with Windows 95 that understand GIFs
in its first relase.(OSR2 has Explorer 3.02 OSR 2.5 has Explorer 4.0 but they
are browsers but consider Paintbrush with no gif support.)Net result Your
WallPaper must be BMP even if you are using Windows 98.Only solution Use
Active Desktop with a DHTML file having JPG inside.(Why to Load HTML engine
to have WallPaper?).Any question on how bmp is common on windows may look
c:\Program Files\Winamp\skins directory all skins must use bmp format even
if www.microsoft.com uses GIFs and no BMPs.

MP3 support limited to Import and Export but Layer-3 compressed wav is
almost fully supported.Disadvantage of Layer-3 wav to mp3 is limited to
less than 100 bytes added to whole file (A typical MP3 will be 5 000 000
or more less than 1/1000 actual zero(%99.99 of cases) if you are using FAT.
(FAT uses clusters where 1 byte and 3Kbyte file uses same disk space)
even on New FAT32

Appendix B:More on Velocity/Volume Control
==========================================
What is Velocity control:Velocity control automaticly changes
Volume smoothly from one setting to another by increasing or
decreasing volume Normally used by Auto Fade In/Out.
AutoFade In:Increases Volume  from its Min setting to Max setting
at the start of play
AutoFade Out:Decreases Volume from current setting to its Min setting
at the near end of play
both can be enabled/disabled by View->Properties->General->Fade Group
If both AutoFadeIn/AutoFadeOut is Disabled you can change velocity
manually by velocity control.If velocity control is not in its zero(middle)
condition volume will either increase or decrease smoothly.If you set
velocity control to its middle mode you can change volume manual way.
Both Min and Max values can be changed by View->Properties->Advanced Dialog
Maximum value of Volume is zero(Standard of Direct sound)range changes
between zero and negative values.You can change volume in system mixer but
it will effect all Wav files currently playing(Important In AutoSync mode)
Selection Mode and Playlist Mode will affect the behaviour of Volume  and
velocity control.

Appendix C:More on Selection Mode
=================================
A Selection is part of file Mark by Select From marker to Select To marker.
How to Select(mark)From marker.Place slide on Position control where you
want From Marker and Press From button on Play toolbar or
Edit->Selection->From menu also you can enable/disable from marker by this
way.Same for To marker.You can clear both and the selection by
Edit->Selection->Clear and Change operation mode by
Edit->Selection->Use
What happens when you mark a selection and not select Use selection
if AutoFadeIn/Out is selected Volume will constant inside selection
if Use Selection is selected Player will Stop after To marker is passed.
No Clipboard Cut/Copy/Paste is supported.

Appendix D:More on PlayList Mode
================================
What is a Playlist:Playlist is a List of Files where Player
will Play one after another.All Playlist operations are controlled
by Playlist menu.

Appendix E:More on Alpha/Beta/Release Candidate and Bugs
========================================================
Alpha means Programmer(s) are aware of missing functionality also you
expect bugs.

Appendix F:More on Microsoft vs. Others
=======================================
This section is removed.

Appendix G:More on Asf vs. Wav
==============================
There is a New format ASF (Active Streaming Format)There is already two
versions One for NetShow 2.0 ASF 1.0 and One for NetShow 3.0 ASF 2.0
expect ASF 3.0 with extensions near future.ASF will replace AVI as
Microsoft hopes.The number of Programs supporting it is too small compared 
to AVI,MPG,even compared to MOV.

Appendix H:More on AutoSync Mode
================================
You can have running two or DS2STREAM on one machine on one processor AND
on single SoundCard.Select View->Properities->General  and Multi radiobutton
on Mode group Press apply ,Press Ok,Select Close and exit program.
Restart Program .When you click DS2STREAM Icon a new DS2STREAM will start
and will place itself just under the first version.Drag DS2STREAM you will
see the new window under it(if not you are still under single mode).you can
start more than two DS2STREAMs and play a different file on each one.
Which all will be mixed in realtime.


What is AutoSync Mode ?
------------------------
AutoSync mode is optimized for DS2STREAMs running together.Combining two
Mono Files into a stereo one.Open one File with first DS2STREAM for left
channel move balance to far left.Open second file with DS2STREAM for right
channel move balance to far right Press Play both files will start play.
Multi Mode and AutoSync Mode must both be enabled also disabling AutoPlay
may give more control.Stop will not stop both files.If AutoSync  is used
on more two files only first two will AutoSync(This may change in the future)

Appendix I:More on SoundActivated Recording :
=============================================
You may Auto Pause recording when soundlevel drops below a certain level with
SoundActivated Recording .Recording level controlled at
View->Properties->Record->Advanced.Check Voice Activated Recording Box to use

Appendix J:More on ForcedStop Recording :
=========================================
You may Force Stop above a given file size with  force stop option 
View->Properties->Record->Force Stop At Limit and giving File Limit Size.
Normally program will stop recording when file size is larger than your limit
actual file size will be depending on type of CODEC and sampling frequency.

Appendix Z:Y2K or Year2000 :
============================
This program designed to be report dates between 1980 and 2029 correctly.
But it is not tested fully.If your system (RTC+BIOS+Operating System) reports
dates correctly this program hoped to be reporting correctly too.If you are 
using special utilities for fixing Y2K problem they may/may not work with
this program.

In worse case even if program reports dates incorrectly, still basic 
functionality of it will be active by design.(NO warranty of anykind.)

If you have technical knowledge of Y2K problem and thinking that there is a
special problem related to THIS program, please mail back.






