new Common Music release

[Rick Taube]

A new experimental release of Common Music is now available. The

release is stable but contains major new additions that will

not be finalized until some time in November. 

 

Binaries:

  MacOs   
ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/binaries/xcm-ppc.sea.bin

  Linux   
ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/binaries/xcm-linux.tar.gz

  Win95/NT
ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/binaries/xcm-win32.zip


Sources:

  MacOs    ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/xcm.sea.bin

  Unix     ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/xcm.tar.gz

  Win95/NT ftp://ccrma-ftp.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/xcm.zip


The highlights:


o Mindy, a new (graphic) facilty for working with interactive

  networks. A network consists of user-definable, typed nodes and
links.

  Networks can be run in forward or backward modes. Forward chaining

  is similar to the way Max works; backward (dependancy) mode is
similar

  to the way in which Lisp evaluates expressions.

  Mindy's grapic interface works only on the Macintosh. The kernel
should

  work in all ports. To learn more about Mindy see the files in

  cm/doc/tutorials/mindy and cm/doc/examples/networks.cm

  To see a pretty picture of Mindy, get:

       ftp://ftp-ccrma.stanford.edu/pub/Lisp/cm/automaton.gif


o A complete rewrite of the low-level MIDI syntax by Tobias Kunze.

  Major new functionality includes a cross-platform MIDI scheduler
(C++) 

  and the ability to read/write unlimited "logical" channels of MIDI

  data.

  On the Macintosh, CM is now an OMS client  This means that CM no

  longer uses the (unsupported) Apple MIDI Driver and Manager and that

  you MUST install OMS to use Midi with CM on the Mac. You can get OMS

  free of charge from

        http://www.opcode.com/downloads/oms/mac/

  The realtime portion of the new MIDI system currently works only on

  SGI and Macintosh. With any luck, Linux and Nextstep will be done in

  October.  Windows would be nice but I am not familiar enough with

  Microsoft's MIDI API. Porting the new MIDI system means writing
about

  six or seven interface functions to the native driver...

  any volunteers? :)


o Much improved CLM support, including the ablility to define note

  classes that automatically call clm instruments without themselves

  being definstruments. Many many bug fixes.


o Two new analysis/resynthesis functions for working with Markov. 

  markov-analyze analyzes the user's input sequences and computes the

  transition table for any order; this table can then be used by the

  Markov pattern to generate new material based on the chracteristics

  found in the original input data. See the dictionary for more
details.


o New on-line Help facility now uses Netscape, OmniWeb or Linx.

  Type Help Help in Stella or use the new Help item in the Common
Music

  Menu (Macintosh only).