Hints and tips

1) Studio 5000 waveforms

Tim Sketchley

The Studio 5000 offers 14 predefined waveforms which can be used as part of an instrument definition. When defining an instrument, it can be largely a matter of trial and error to find the ones you need for that instrument until of course you know them.

Details about the sound and purpose of each waveform are given at the back of the Studio 5000 User Guide (pp 127-129). However, I have some tips which I will now explain.

I find it convenient to divide the waveforms into three 'tone groups' thus:

 Low tone:  Pure Round

 Mid tone:  Bright Hollow Watery Hard Clear

 High tone: Pipes Sharp Reedy Broad Metal High

The effect of these groups is similar (broadly speaking) to the effect of the tone controls of a radio set. You should easily notice that the two low-tone waveforms sound, so to speak, as if the tone is turned down; the waveforms in the mid-tone group as if the tone is half way up; and the high-tone group contain a fair amount of treble, as if the tone is turned up.

To put it another way, they are grouped according to the brightness of the sound, with the high-tone group being the brightest. I am missing out Syncer, which is a silent waveform.

We can now set up a simple instrument whose tone is easily adjusted.

"toneins" [ 2 CHANS
 1 CHAN
  Pure 128 AMP
 2 CHAN
  Broad 100 AMP
 EVERY CHAN
  ON PHSET Flat Long]

Note that channel 1 plays a low-tone wave and channel 2 plays a high-tone wave. The tone of the instrument is adjusted by varying the two numbers; for instance, in our example, changing '100 AMP' to '128 AMP' will make the instrument a lot brighter.

2) Ignored natural signs

Roger Sapolsky

If the first note entered in Notepad following SCORE, normal settings and the signature word (e.g. 'sig') happens to be preceded by the natural sign ('='), the effect of 'sig' will not be cancelled as it should. To play the expected natural note, simply enter 'sig' AFTER this note, the natural symbol being then unnecessary. All notes going after 'sig' will now play correctly when preceded by '='.

3) Three little words

Roger Calkwell

In the last issue of AMPLINEX both QUIT and 7 MODE were suggested as ways of clearing PAD off the screen to make way for disc cataloguing and the like.

QUIT has the disadvantage of switching PAD off, requiring PAD and "word"GET before it reappears.

To return after 7 MODE, "word" GET (or "word" NAME) suffices.

A screen-clearing utility word will speed up your programming. I use "q" to remind me of QUIT, thus

"q" [7MODE]

This may be prefixed to a variety of commands;

qSHOW

q"word"TYPE

q*CAT

If you wish to switch to other modes, omit the 7 from the definition. The q will now take a number prefix;

7qSHOW

1qdisplayword

Another approach is;

"q" [26#OUT 12#OUT]

#OUT is the equivalent of BASIC's VDU - it treats the preceding number as an ASCII code and sends it to the screen. In this case 26 is the control code for 'default windows' and 12 is 'clear screen' - the effect is the same as VDU26, 12 in BASIC.

If you're in a hurry and don't want to take the time to define a word you can send some control codes directly with the CTRL key. Pressing Z followed by L whilst holding CTRL down throughout is equivalent to the #OUT version of q.

Two more one-letter utility words;

"s" ["*SPOOL "$+]

"x" ["*EXEC "$+]

Both *SPOOL and *EXEC like to have a space between them and the filename, so this is built into the word. The result is that

xpiano = *EXEC piano

P.S. Why did I use "x" instead of "e"?

4) AMPLE abbreviations

Robin Johnson

One small tip, not mentioned anywhere that I have seen - AMPLE accepts abbreviations like BBC BASIC does.

So, you can enter, for example, 'TY.' instead of 'TYPE'. It works for Instruments and other words too. But beware of confusing the system as the abbreviation for 'VOICES' will give 'VOICE' - which may not help much!

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

The ACT command

Andy Thomas

The AMPLE Nucleus ROM does not contain a music specific language, but a general multi-tasking operating environment. The computer knows how to play a note from a command called ACT. This command is called every time a note or rest is played, and has seven pieces of information passed to it. These pieces of information correspond to the pitch, volume and duration of the note, and which voice the note is being played on.

The ACT command normally has the following format:

ON ACT(
1 FVAR #? VOICE
2 FVAR #? PITCH
3 FVAR #? VOICE
4 FVAR #? VEL
5 FVAR #? VOICE
6 FVAR #? GATE
7 FVAR #? DURATION
)ACT

The 1 FVAR #? just references which piece of data is being accessed. The command after this takes this piece of data and uses it. Most are self-explanatory. For instance, the first piece of data sent contains which voice the note is being played on. The fourth piece of data is used by VEL (velocity) and controls the volume of the note. The sixth item is used by GATE, and controls whether the note is on or off.

As hinted earlier, these commands do not all appear in the Nucleus ROM. Some are contained in the modules loaded when the system disc is booted. For example GATE, PITCH and VEL are contained in the 'M5' module. To catalogue all of the modules present type:

MCAT

To display the contents of a module type:

"modulename" MSHOW

Notepad, Mix and Staff are all written as modules, and I would be interested to hear if anyone has managed to list or write a module.

Well that's probably lost half of you, so what is the use of knowing all this? The answer is that a number of special effects can be achieved by altering the ACT command. I have included a couple of rewritten ACT commands in the file 'ACTdemo' (included on this AMPLINEX disc).

The first, 'newact1', enables sixteen part music to be played. All I have done is to change the VOICEs to CHANs. This means that every note is played on one channel rather than a VOICE, a couple of channels.

So to hear sixteen part chords, you need to set up a sixteen part instrument. I have already done this (with 'instrum16') so you just need to type:

newvoices

This turns on the new ACT command, sets up the sixteen part instrument, and then plays a sixteen part chord.

You could also play two lots of eight part music for instance, by setting up two eight channel instruments.

The second ACT command makes each note play twice, by taking the note length of the original note, halving it, and playing it twice (by placing an ACT command inside the new ACT command). You can try this by typing:

ON newact2

and playing some notes.

Finally please note that SCORE and READY perform a SIMPLEACT command which resets the ACT command to its original format, cancelling out any changes made. So put any new ACT command after the SCORE statement in your programs.

---

The program 'ACTdemo' can be LOADed into AMPLE in the usual way or selected from the menu in the Features section. Brief instructions are given in the word 'info'. These are displayed automatically (via RUN) if the program is loaded via the AMPLINEX menu.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

History of AMPLINEX

Roy Follett

Exchange versus User Group

Now that the first issue of AMPLINEX is out I would like to pen a few words why I felt, together with Kevin Doyle, that there was a need to 'talk' to other owners of Music 500/5000's. I have spent many hours sat in front my monitor struggling with a particular aspect of AMPLE and thought - someone out there must have been down this path already, and found a satisfactory answer. If only I could get together with other users.

This is when the idea of an 'exchange' first emerged. Quite by chance I was put in contact with Kevin who had had almost parallel thoughts, and we pooled our ideas on how to make it work.

I would like to try and explain what I feel is the difference between a 'User Group' and an 'Exchange'. I am, like many others, a member of Beebug, and I feel that this organisation is run (commercial considerations apart) by a group of very knowledgeable people who have a greater awareness of computing than I. Therefore, I have nothing to offer; I can only take from them. In other words I am 'using' them.

AMPLINEX, in contrast, is run by three people whose understanding of AMPLE has been learnt in exactly the same way as has its members': by struggling through the User Guide and cribbing programming techniques from other's music pieces. So, unless we have personally encountered your problem, you will not get 'expert' answers from us - only from other members who have had the same problem and have, by hard work, sorted it out for themselves. With the advent of AMPLINEX, this information can now be passed on to others in the exchange.

So don't feel that anything that you may have to offer is too trivial or that your compositions might not be up to some sort of standard. Let's have them - if only one member finds your contribution useful then THERE HAS BEEN AN EXCHANGE OF IDEAS!

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

Structures in AMPLE – part 2

Kevin Doyle

There are three main types of structure available in AMPLE:

a) Loops;
b) Conditionals;
c) Conditional loops.

I will examine each of these in turn over the next few issues of AMPLINEX and give examples of their use. In this issue I will look at conditionals.

Conditionals in AMPLE

One of the facilities available to the AMPLE programmer, which is absent from many non-language based computer music packages, is the ability to interact with the listener by passing him or her a degree of control as the music is playing. Another is the ability to introduce random elements into the music which can generate a different result each time it is played.

To develop either of these techniques fully the use of conditional structures will become necessary.

Many people will be familiar with the conditional structure in BASIC of -

IF test THEN action1 ELSE action2

where 'test' is normally an expression (e.g. X=2 or A$="Y") which is evaluated to be TRUE or FALSE. IF it is TRUE then 'action1' is performed; if FALSE then 'action2' is performed.

In AMPLE the equivalent form is -

test IF( action1 )ELSE( action2 )IF

so that the result of evaluating the expression 'test' is either ON (true) or OFF (false). If the result is ON then 'action1' is performed; if OFF then 'action2' is performed.

So, using the AMPLE expression #= which tests the equivalence of two numbers, the following trivial example can be constructed:

"equal" [
#= IF( "Yes" )ELSE( "No" )IF $OUT
]

which takes two numbers and reports whether they are equal. Thus, entering '3 4 equal' gives the result 'No' and entering '5 5 equal' gives the result 'Yes'.

Using more complex conditions it is possible to construct an interactive music program. Suppose you have written four different melody lines for a particular player in a piece. Normally you may decide on a suitable sequence for these and then construct a word to play them in that order. So, if the melody lines were stored as mdy1, mdy2, mdy3 and mdy4, and were to be assigned to player 1 you might create:

"part1" [ mdy1 mdy3 mdy4
          mdy2 mdy1 mdy3 ]

to play the melodies in the sequence you wanted.

To allow the listener (or yourself) to control the order of the melody lines as the piece is playing, you could construct the following word:

"part1" [
6 FOR(
 "Choose a melody (1-4) " $OUT
 #IN
 #11 49 #= IF( mdy1 )ELSE(
 #11 50 #= IF( mdy2 )ELSE(
 #11 51 #= IF( mdy3 )ELSE(
 #11 52 #= IF( mdy4 )IF)IF)IF)IF
 #2
 )FOR
]

This word uses 'nested' conditional structures to test for four possibilities. When the message "Choose a melody (1-4)" is displayed the AMPLE word #IN is used to wait for a keypress and to return its ASCII number. The AMPLE word #11 is then used to duplicate this number. This is because the following test (#=) 'uses' the two numbers supplied to produce the ON or OFF flag and the keypress number may be needed for further tests if the result of the first test is OFF.

The first test takes the keypress number and compares it to 49 (the ASCII code for "1"). If they are equal this will leave the ON flag and the action between the IF( and the )ELSE( statements will be performed - in this case the word 'mdy1'.

If the keypress number is not equal to 49 then the action after the )ELSE( statement will be performed - in this case this is another IF()ELSE()IF structure.

Again the keypress number is first duplicated for further use and then a test is performed to see if it is equal to 50 (the ASCII code for "2"). If it is then 'mdy2' is performed, otherwise another IF()ELSE()IF begins.

This happens two more times and at the end each of the four conditional structures is terminated by its )IF statement. In this case all four occur together.

Finally, there will be a redundant keypress number left over from one of the conditional structures and this must be discarded using the AMPLE word #2.

In this example the keypress tests are performed six times to generate a sequence of six melody lines.

There are, however, two problems with this example as it stands. Firstly, if another key is pressed other than 1-4 then nothing will happen. To get round this problem we could change the structure so that a default melody is chosen, for example:

"part1" [
6 FOR(
 "Choose a melody (1-4) " $OUT
 #IN
 #11 49 #= IF( mdy1 )ELSE(
 #11 50 #= IF( mdy2 )ELSE(
 #11 51 #= IF( mdy3 )ELSE(
               mdy4 )IF)IF)IF
 #2
 )FOR
]

which would select 'mdy4' if neither 1, 2 nor 3 were selected.

Alternatively, we could construct a loop which would repeat the question until an answer within the range 1-4 was returned. I will look at this type of conditional loop in the next issue.

The second problem with these examples is that of timing. The word 'part1' waits for a keypress in order to select a melody line - but this might mean that the melody begins at the wrong point in the piece or that no melody is played at all.

It might be easier in this case to let the system select the melody lines as it requires them but still allow for variation in the melody lines played.

To achieve this we can use the random number generating facilities of AMPLE.

In the above example we could replace the keypress number with a random number generated by AMPLE. To do this we can use the AMPLE word RANDL.

This takes the form:

n RANDL

where n is a number in the range -32768 to 32767 and which produces a number in the range 0 to n inclusive.

The four melody example above might then become:

"part1" [
6 FOR(
 3 RANDL
 #11 0 #= IF( mdy1 )ELSE(
 #11 1 #= IF( mdy2 )ELSE(
 #11 2 #= IF( mdy3 )ELSE(
 #11 3 #= IF( mdy4 )IF)IF)IF)IF
 #2
 )FOR
]

Here the random number range is 0 to 3 giving the four options required. Using RANDL means there is no need to consider the possibility of a number outside this range as there was with the first keypress example.

There are two other AMPLE words related to random numbers. The first, RAND, generates a random number in the range -32768 to 32767. The second, RAND!, allows a 'seed' number to be set for random number generation so that the same sequence is produced by the use of RAND or RANDL. So in the example above we could allow the listener to enter a number and thereby generate a 'random' but repeatable sequence of melody lines. Thus:

"Enter a number :"$OUT #IN RAND!

could be inserted at the start of the piece, perhaps in the 'RUN' word before the players begin.

By careful setting of random number limits and use of conditional structures complex randomly generated pieces can be created. The tests used in these conditional structures may themselves be complex and there are several logical operators in AMPLE to enable such tests to be performed.

The operators are shown below with truth tables for their results and examples of their use.

AND        | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––
       OFF | OFF | OFF |
       –––––––––––––––––
       ON  | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––

E.g. to test if a number n is in the range 3 to 7:

n #11 2 #> #12 8 #< AND

(#12 swaps two numbers - in this case it swaps the result of the first test with the second copy of the number n.)

OR         | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––
       OFF | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––
       ON  | ON  | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––

 E.g. to test if a number n is either greater than 10 or less than 5:

n #11 10 #> #12 5 #< OR

XOR        | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––
       OFF | OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––––––––
       ON  | ON  | OFF |
       –––––––––––––––––

E.g. to test whether either, but not both, of two numbers n1 and n2 are equal to 3:

n1 n2 3 #= #12 3 #= XOR

NOT        |     |
       –––––––––––
       OFF | ON  |
       –––––––––––
       ON  | OFF |
       –––––––––––

E.g. to test whether a number n is not equal to 12:

n 12 #= NOT

---

In the next I will be looking at conditional loops using the AMPLE expression REP( )UNTIL( )REP.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November1987

Questions and answers

Answer: Use of Slide

The answer to R.Allen's question can be found in the word "solo", part of the tune "feet" contained in 'COSMIX'. By comparison, it shows that the command definition on page 125 of the User Manual is incomplete and erroneous.

It should read:

12=L ON Slide
48, 12 8 -L   % down by 3 semitones
0: c///////   % = 12 eighth tones
...
OFF Slide

The missing statement 12=L makes the descending slide (see the minus sign that follows) start 3 semitones above 0:c. Entering -12=L...+L would make an ascending slide going from 0:a to 0:c.

As to the length setting, I suspect '48,' to be an error. Going down 3 semitones over 8 crotchets has little practical utility! Perhaps '6,' should have been printed, yielding 48 as the total slide duration.

Here is an example of two slide instructions:

"twoslides"[
 1: 2,
 ON Slide
 -48=L 48 48 +L
 C 47 holds
 192,/
 OFF Slide
 3, ON Slide
 20=L 20 24 –L
 g 23 holds
 OFF Slide
 96,/^
]

The first slide goes from 0:C to 1:C with a duration of 48x2=96. The second starts 20/8=2.5 tones above g, and thus goes down from 1:C to g, over 24 beats with a duration of 24x3=72. The smoothness of a slide varies with the instrument. The result obtained with "clarin" (from September's AMPLINEX) is particularly good.

Note that the word 'holds' (used above and in 'COSMIX') is simply 'FOR(/)FOR'. It avoids an abundance of ///////.

Roger Sapolsky

"slidemo" [ % demo of sound effect using slide
 ON Slide
 3, 120 144 –L
 2: C/// //// //// //// //// ////
 5FOR( //// //// ////
       //// //// //// )FOR
 OFF Slide
 0,^
]

B J Dawson

Answer: Oboe sound

An oboe sound has been sent in by Roger Calkwell and is included in the Instruments section. He makes the following points:

Winds are notoriously difficult to synthesise! This is more like an organ 'oboe' stop. The waveform is close(ish) but the general effect is wooden. Try adding vibrato if you like but I think EW pitch envelopes are too drastic. Try 2CHAN Tailed for resonant release. Play around with PITCH. Best range - 0:G to 1:A.

Set up the following TRY line with the oboe definition in Notepad and press RETURN:

"24, 0: G/C/D-Ed-Ec/G///^"TRY

Roger Calkwell

Question: Loading BCE from disc

After upgrading my Music 500 and buying a Watford, Acorn compatible, disc drive, I have transferred the BCE tape content onto disc, as described on page 8 of the Music 500 User Manual. For some reason, the disc won't load. The leaflet supplied with the upgrade kit says that the commands *BASIC and */AMPLE should be used. I only get the error message: 'bad command'.

However, after loading BCE from cassette, the example programs, preset1, etc. load correctly from disc, a proof that it is OK. Has anyone met (and solved) a similar problem?

Roger Sapolsky

Question: Sync track for tape

Can anyone help with synchronizing the Music 5000 to a 4-track tape recorder for multi-tracking for those without the MUSIC 2000 or MIDI?

I believe it is possible by feeding a "clicktrack" signal from a tape into the User Port of the Beeb and then using a spare player, for example player9, as the timing controller.

This player reads the User Port and advances the time by an amount corresponding to the time frame of the "clicktrack" - 24 pps for example. Does anyone have the code for AMPLE Nucleus and info on connection to the User Port?

S Wilkie

AMPLINEX

Finally, two questions from Tim Sketchley with answers from Kevin Doyle.

Question: How do you pronounce "Amplinex"? Is it Am-plin-ex, Ampleenex or Am-ply-nex?

Answer: Roy Follett, the inventor of the name, pronounces it Am-plin-ex - so I think that must make it the 'received' pronunciation.

Question: How many copies of Amplinex are sent out?

Answer: About 50 copies of the first issue have been sent out so far. We are currently trying to increase membership via publicity in the micro magazines. Existing members can help in the membership drive by spreading the word and, if they enjoy AMPLINEX, writing to the micro press and telling them. A larger membership should be good news for all of us.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

Next issue news

The next issue is planned for release mid-January 1988. This means that all applications for a FREE copy (i.e. those containing contributions) must be received by WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 16TH. Anyone paying the £2.00 fee has until the 12th of January to apply.

Already planned for the January issue is a feature on the use of 'conditional loops' in AMPLE and some notes on translating AMPLE BCE programs into AMPLE Nucleus.

We are also planning a feature on 'customising' the Studio 5000. This will cover the redefining of function keys, altering !boot files and organising disc files. We already have contributions from Roger Calkwell and Frances Wymans but would like additional material on these and similar subjects. So, if you have made some time-saving or frustration- avoiding change to your system - let us know.

We hope to provide another interesting mixture of music and text and to maintain the high standard provided by member's contributions to this issue.

So send us your words or your music and let other members have the benefit of your particular experience or expertise.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

Printing out AMPLINEX information

There are three ways to print out information seen within AMPLINEX.

You can print out an AMPLINEX file as it is displayed on the screen from within AMPLINEX; you can print the files themselves as you would any other text file; or you can load the files into your own word processor and reformat them as required before printing.

1) To print a file from within AMPLINEX choose the 'SET PRINT ON/OFF' option from the Introduction menu. This allows you to toggle a software 'print switch' on or off. If the switch is set ON then any AMPLINEX file which is displayed on the screen will be sent to the printer. This will continue until you set the switch off again using the same Introduction option. An asterisk is displayed at the top of the screen next to the issue number when the print option is ON and the print status is shown at the bottom right of the screen as text is displayed within AMPLINEX.

2) If you prefer to print the parts you require outside of AMPLINEX - all the data is held in files on the AMPLINEX disc. The files are in directory 'A.' and named according to the sections in which they appear - e.g. A.intro1 is the first option in the Introduction section. The file names can be seen at the foot of the screen as they are displayed in AMPLINEX so you can make a note of the ones you require.

The exceptions are the AMPLE instruments, utilities and music - these are held under their own names (as shown in the AMPLINEX menu choices) within the default '$.' directory. All the AMPLE instruments can be printed directly from within AMPLINEX. Music and utility programs written in AMPLE can only be printed by LOADing the programs into the Studio 5000 and using the WRITE command (see Studio 5000 User Guide page 100).

3) If you wish to reformat the text before printing you should load the files into your word processor. The files are all justified to 38 columns width. To re-justify the text change all multiple spaces to single spaces and then use the justification option in your word processor. The files contain only printable ASCII characters except for a control code (ASCII 11) which marks the screen page breaks. View treats these as left margin tabs and if necessary they can be removed with a C/^L// command.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

How to contribute to AMPLINEX

To receive your next issue of AMPLINEX free of charge you must send a contribution of your own. This could be an AMPLE music program, an instrument definition, an article about some aspect of the AMPLE language or Hybrid Music System hardware or software, an AMPLE utility, a useful hint about AMPLE or an answer to another user's question.

Under copyright law we cannot publish programs or music unless we have the permission of the copyright owners or their licencing agent. It is important to realise that in the case of an AMPLE music program, copyright exists in both the program itself and the music it represents. There may even be a separate copyright in the arrangement. If you wish to contribute transcriptions into AMPLE of someone else's music you must credit the copyright owner(s) of the music, the arrangement (if applicable) and lyrics (if included). We can then try to obtain permission to publish.

To protect ourselves from copyright actions we must ask you to sign the copyright declaration on the 'NEXT ISSUE' request form which was sent to you with this issue of AMPLINEX. All submissions made to AMPLINEX will be regarded as permission to publish within the AMPLINEX membership. Beyond this, the submission remains the property of the author.

You can also use your returned disc to pass on questions which you would like answered on any issue relating to the Hybrid Music System or AMPLE language. We will do our best to answer them (or will pass them over to the other members for help) and publish the results in the Questions and Answers section of AMPLINEX.

You can also use AMPLINEX to advertise any (un)wanted items. Just put the details of your advertisement onto the return disc and we will try and include it in the next issue.

Send all contributions, on a standard DFS format disc (40 or 80 track).

Suggested file formats are:

a) AMPLE Music programs - save these in normal Studio 5000 format.

b) AMPLE instruments - save these in text form via *SPOOL using the AMPLE 'TYPE' command to save the word(s) you want.

c) Text (hints, questions etc.) - use View or Wordwise and save it (without embedded commands). If you have not got access to one of these products you can use the Studio 5000 Notepad to create some text-only words by putting a '%' at the start of each line. After MAKEing the word(s) you should use *SPOOL and the AMPLE word 'TYPE' to save the word(s) you want to your return disc.

In all cases please put your name somewhere in the file. In the case of AMPLE music programs use the DISPLAY facility in the 'RUN' word. For instrument definitions put a '%' comment line at the start of the word.

In the case of instrument definitions some description of the sound itself and hints on its use (e.g. which parameters could be changed) would make it more useful.

Ensure that your discs are well packed as we will be using the same packaging to return it to you.

Make sure you enclose a return address label and postage and that both the packaging and the disc are marked with your name and address.

Send it to:

AMPLINEX
26 Arbor Lane
Winnersh
Berks
RG11 5JD

to arrive by the date specified in the 'NEXT ISSUE' request form.

We look forward to reading and hearing your contributions.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

Update – changes/corrections/comments

This section is a focus for news about the workings of AMPLINEX, corrections to items in previous issues, and other small items of information which might otherwise be missed amongst the details of each issue.

Copyright and AMPLINEX

Several members have asked for clarification of the copyright rules outlined in the first issue. We have sought advice from several sources and have now written to the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society to advise us on the legal position. Although some bulletin boards have taken the view that where no fee is being charged for downloading a program, no royalty obligation exists, this seems to be more an assumption on their part than an established fact.

Copyright law is complex and one aggrieved author could put AMPLINEX out of business, so we are being deliberately careful.

If you have AMPLE music programs of which you are not the full copyright owner you can still send these in to AMPLINEX. We will simply hold on to these programs until the copyright issue is resolved.

AMPLINEX protection

We had a couple of complaints about the protection present in the first issue of AMPLINEX. This was present mainly as a safeguard since copies were being made available to the press and others outside of the membership.

This protection has now been removed and members are welcome to examine the AMPLINEX environment program. If there is interest in the workings of particular features, these can be documented and discussed in future issues.

File display in AMPLINEX

One member used the survey to request a means of escape from the file display screen without having to read through to the end of a file. Such a mechanism does exist - but we forgot to mention it in the instructions for the September issue. If you press the ESCAPE key whilst the file is being read, the "Press RETURN to continue" prompt will be displayed, and pressing RETURN will take you back to the menu.

This technique only works whilst the file is being read - pressing ESCAPE once the "Press RETURN to continue" message has been displayed will have no effect.

Another request was for the ability to step back a page during file display. Since the file is read in a byte at a time (using OSBGET) this would require some complex file control programming and is unlikely to be tackled at present. If any members can suggest alternatives to the current method we would be only too glad to consider them.

Starting up AMPLINEX

In a couple of survey responses members asked for a method of bypassing the title screen to speed up access to AMPLINEX. Such a method has been incorporated into this issue - just press the CTRL key as the AMPLINEX display appears and this will speed up the display process.

Another request was for the ability to boot the AMPLINEX disc directly as opposed to using "AMPLINX"LOAD and RUN. We did originally plan to use this method, but during tests discovered that the Studio 5000 waveform information was being corrupted giving unexpected results when music was played.

Index for AMPLINEX

A suggestion was made in one of the survey responses that we should have an index of the AMPLINEX contents. We do not feel that this would be possible for each issue given the short timescales in which we are working, but we might try to create an index after several issues, of the main topics covered.

KBgate utility

An omission from the instructions which accompanied the KBgate utility in the September issue caused some confusion and disappointment. What was not mentioned was the need to have set up the instrument on a voice before using KBgate within Notepad. In this respect, KBgate is the same as any other command used in a TRY line (including the default "RETGATE"). Typing 1 VOICES at the "%" prompt and then pressing the f1 (play) key will do this (see Studio 5000 User Guide page 58). Sorry for the confusion.

Miscellaneous corrections

Chris Jordan of Hybrid Technology has written to point out that the reference to a 'CZ505' drum machine in September's 'Acorn User Show Report' is incorrect and should have read 'TR505'.

He also points out that the instrument template discussed in the Hints and Tips section does not need the FM, RM or SYNC instructions on channel 2 as these are redundant.

Commenting on the feature on Modules in the first issue, and the reference to the module 'M5' as a 'sub-mix utility' Chris Jordan writes:

"A classic human anatomist believed that the function of the largest organ in the head was the secretion of nasal fluids, on the grounds of its proximity to the nose and the large quantity of fluid secreted during a common cold."

A quick look at the results of the command "M5"MSHOW confirms that the role of this module is rather different to that implied in the feature, as it contains the words used in instrument definition.

Comments

Your comments are always welcome on any aspect of AMPLINEX - suggestions for improvement, problems with the contents, etc. Please remember, each article expresses the opinions of its author and we cannot guarantee its validity or completeness. So if you think something is wrong - let us know.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987

Welcome to AMPLINEX 002

Kevin Doyle, Roy and Jackie Follett

Welcome to the second issue of AMPLINEX. In a sense, this is the first real issue as this is the first one to include member's contributions - and this was the real purpose of AMPLINEX.

We have decided to make this a Music issue and have included ten original pieces of music submitted by members. The standard is satisfyingly high with a wide variety of musical styles and imaginative use of the medium. It has been a pleasure to listen to each disc as it arrived. A particular favourite of ours is 'The Terracotta Army' (filename 'Terracb') by Michael Mellor - especially since Mr Mellor's accompanying letter expressed some worries that it might not 'reach the standard' of other contributions. The message is, don't hesitate - let your compositions be heard.

Also of particular note are two short atmospheric pieces by Jim Redfarn ('Whale' and 'Storm') - both excellent examples of concise and effective AMPLE composition.

In addition, we have another promotional track supplied by Hybrid Technology from their AMPLE compilation disc 'AMPLE Bytes Back' (reviewed in the September issue).

One appeal to all music contributors - wherever possible, please put some comments in your music programs. These could be information about the structure of the piece, how or why you wrote it or how it could be changed. Good examples in this issue are 'Fyer' by Roy Atkins and 'Nitrawl' by Richard Bettis.

Use of the word 'info' to contain such text seems to be an accepted standard and we would suggest that it is NOT displayed automatically every time the music is played. Please note that the words '?info' and '?' are AMPLINEX control words added to each program and not the author's comments.

Several members have queried the position of AMPLINEX and copyright. The latest information about this is contained in the Update part of this section, but the main message at the moment is - please send in music even if it is not your own copyright but please ensure you credit the copyright owner(s).

The good response in music programs has persuaded us to postpone the BBC keyboard utility mentioned in the previous issue, but the utility for creating title screens is included in this issue.

There is also an interesting feature on the ACT command by Andy Thomas with an example program to illustrate the points made.

We hope you enjoy this issue as much as (or more than) the first, and look forward to your contributions to the first issue of 1988.

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Published in AMPLINEX 002, November 1987