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SynZap10.Txt Page 1 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ Welcome to the world of SOUND, MUSIC, and FUN... It's all yours now that you've decided to try teaming up your Ad Lib Music Synthesizer Card* with Machina Sapiens' brand-new program SYNTHE/ZAP! GET SMART First of all you should read the file README.!!! that came in this archive. It contains important instructions, descriptions of the files, and other things you will hate yourself for not reading, so DO IT. After all, that's why it's called README.!!! Finished? Wasn't that exciting? Did I lie? Sorry. CRANK 'ER UP Now that you've done that, let's get set up. Here is what you need to run Synthe/Zap!: An IBM PC* compatible computer, the faster the better An EGA* or VGA* display with at least 256k of RAM A monitor able to display the EGA's 640x350, 16-color mode A Microsoft or compatible mouse and driver program An Ad Lib music synthesizer and its sound driver program Both the mouse driver and the sound driver must be installed in memory before you run Synthe/Zap! If the mouse driver is missing, just about all you'll be able to do is quit (use the Esc key). If the sound driver hasn't been loaded, your computer will almost certainly lock up, forcing you to turn the power off or press the reset switch to reboot. For Synthe/Zap!'s purposes, you need not specify any extra music-queue buffer RAM when loading the sound driver; just go to the directory with the driver in it (or have an active DOS path to it) and type SOUND. Copy this and the other files in the package all into one subdirectory, change the active directory to that one, then type SZ and hit enter to run Synthe/Zap! You'll see a banner plaque telling you that this is a demonstration copy. It will tell you that Synthe/Zap! is shareware, and that you can receive the fully functional copy by sending your registration fee of $22.50 (check or money order) to me at: J Meeks / Machina Sapiens 3808 Greenbay Rd. #3 Richmond, VA 23234 Please consider carefully where your checkbook or wallet is, and prepare to be generous, because I think this program will grab you and knock your socks off! Ahem -- I do not accept socks or footwear of any variety as payment... SynZap10.Txt Page 2 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ GRAB YER AXE To get rid of the banner (or just about any plaque that doesn't disappear after a second or so) just hit any key or click either the left or right mouse button -- my programs do not use the center button. You will see the control panel, with a plaque asking you for the name of a file to load. Assuming you have all your .INS files in the same directory the program is in (and you ought to), just type in the name of any instrument you want to work on. PIANO1 is the default; to choose it simply hit Enter. As an aside, whenever you are supposed to type something into one of those white data-field boxes (like the filename field) you can edit what is already in the field by using the arrow keys to move left or right, the End and Home keys to move to the end or beginning of the entry, and Delete and Backspace to erase, just like you expect them to act in a word processor. If you begin to type instead, whatever was originally in the field will be wiped clean and replaced by your new value. If this is not clear, try experimenting a few times and it will soon become second nature. For now, choose whatever instrument you'd like to hear and play around with. If you aren't sure, just pick one at random. A directory listing (at the DOS command line, before starting Synthe/Zap!, type DIR *.INS) may come in handy here; I like to sort my directories' files too so the list is in alphabetic order. Got it typed in? Good; press Enter to load that instrument file into the program's control panel. If you want to start with an empty instrument (it won't make any sound until you change the controls from their 'zero' settings), you can hit the Esc key and the file load operation will be aborted, so no file will be loaded. You will always have these options when loading or saving files. TWIDDLE THEM GIMMIX Now it's time for the real fun -- what the program's all about -- changing the way the instrument sounds! For now, ignore the technical terms labelling all the controls. Just move the mouse around and watch the hand follow it on your display screen. That hand is your hand. It will do your bidding. It will turn the switches on and off -- try it. Move the fingertip so it's on top of one of the purple rectangles marked 'On' or 'Off'. Now click with the left mouse button. The switch will illuminate momentarily, then change from On to Off or vice versa. You can toggle these On-Off switches back and forth repeat- edly. Each has a different function, but they all behave in exactly the same way, so you can control them all in the same simple way. In general, once you have dealt with a certain kind of control on the panels (or 'plaques') used in Machina Sapiens programs, you need never worry about being surprised by that kind of control again. It will always behave the way you remember it. Any exceptions to this rule will be additions to function, never changes or deletions. SynZap10.Txt Page 3 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ The hand will also turn the knobs that festoon the control panel. Move the hand over to one of the green circles and click the right mouse button. The knob will rotate toward the right, or clockwise (unless it's already turned all the way to the right already). Click the left mouse button to rotate the knob to the left, or counterclockwise. As with the On-Off switches, the knobs all behave in the same way. Some, however, have only a few 'notches', and so seem to jump from position to position quickly (Envelope Scaling, for example), while others have an intermediate number of notches and so move more smoothly but more slowly (such as the Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release banks); still other knobs act more like smoothly spinning volume controls, with notches so small they seem not to be there (the Output Level controls), making them turn quite slowly. If you need to move rapidly to a certain position, particularly when using one of the smooth-but-slow knobs, you may prefer to try clicking simultaneously with BOTH mouse buttons. This will cause the knob to jump instantly to its maximum (fully clockwise) position, then the next such click (or just holding the buttons down) will make it jump to the minimum (full counterclockwise) position, then to the middle of the scale. This pattern will repeat with a failry fast action (at least on my AT compatible with NEC EGA), so you will have to be quick releasing the buttons when you get to the desired position. LET 'ER RIP There you are -- you are now fully qualified knob-knoodler and switch-smasher. Time to hear just what's going on with your sound. Got the amp hooked up and everything? If you're not sure the Ad Lib is connected for sound, you may want to quit Synthe/Zap! for a moment and try using Ad Lib's Jukebox or some other program to play a .ROL file. Once you hear the sound and have it set at a volume level you like, start Synthe/Zap! back up again. To hear the sounds you've been working on, move the hand up to the box marked 'Test Play', the one that has the musical staff and all the notes in it. Now put the fingertip on one of the notes and click with the left mouse button. Hallelujah! Sound! Do you like it? If not, you now have the ability to make it sound exactly the way you want. Try a few more notes, and see if you can pick out a tune. The staff has notes in the key of C major, from middle C on the ledger line just below the staff up to the A on the ledger line just above; there are no sharps or flats, just the white keys on the piano, so choose something simple, or easy to transpose. I can just manage a fair rendition of "Lean on Me". What's that? You say you want to work on a bass guitar sound, and the treble clef has notes too high for you to test it? Well, are you ever in luck! Just move the hand to the clef, click the left mouse button, and it will change to a bass clef! You will also hear a deep bass chord when you switch. All the notes will, of course, now be in the bass staff so you can test your bass guitar (or whatever). To get back to the treble clef, you just click on the bass clef and you will have the treble clef, along with a high chord, again. Easy, no? SynZap10.Txt Page 4 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ CAREFUL WITH THAT AXE, EUGENE Suppose you've mangled the sound you're working on beyond both listenability and belief. Your dog is howling, the wife is packing the kids into the car, the neighbors are pounding on the door, and someone has called the cops... It's time to reload. No, no! Not your gun -- your AXE! To load the instrument of your choice back into the synth, you can either move the hand up to the box marked 'Name' and click the left mouse button, or you can press the F3 function key. Either will have the same result: a plaque will pop up saying that you have not yet saved the instrument you are working on, and asking if you want to save it now. Now, you might want to save it, but if you answer Yes, you will just get yet another notice asking you to send me money, since (as I mention in dozens of other places) this is the demonstration copy and will not save instruments. Only the registered shareware copy will save them. I hope this does not sound too messianic... So answer No, you do not want to save, you want to load another instrument on top of the old one, obliterating your previous work. At the same time, resolve to mail your registration fee in so you can save your valuable instruments! Now the file load plaque will ask you to enter the name of a file to load, just as it did when you started the program. You can hit Enter to re-load the last file again. Or you can edit the existing filename (you might change PIANO1 to PIANO2, for instance, by hitting End, Backspace, 2) or type in a new one. Now you're all set for more musical adventures! THAT'S ALL, FOLKS! I hope this tour of Synthe/Zap! has entertained you, and shown you that there is a lot more to your Ad Lib synthesizer than you had realized. If you enjoyed making your own sounds, being your own sound engineer and playing synthesizer programmer for a day, why not register your copy? You will have an ideal tool for realizing the music that beats deep, deep within your soul... and the author's eternal THANKS!!! IN CONCERT -- COMING SOON If you are interested in seeing what else is in store for future releases of Synthe/Zap!, just check out the Coming Attractions section of the README.!!! file. There you'll find enough new features to turn this already pretty darned good (if I say so myself, and I DO say so) program into a first-class elec- tronic music education aid. Also looming portentously over the distant horizon is Synthe/Zap!'s companion program, Synthe/Seq! This will be a sequencer, or composer, program. It will let you compose music by placing notes on a staff in a way somewhat reminiscent of the early (but great) program Music Construction Set, but considerably more powerful. SynZap10.Txt Page 5 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ TH' BAND'S LAWYER SEZ... ╓────────────╖ ║ IMPORTANT! ║ ╓──────────────────────────────╨────────────╨────────────────────────────────╖ ║ The Synthe/Zap! program, all associated files (except Borland's ║ ║ BGI driver file), and all elements of the JSys-3 User Interface are ║ ║ Copyright (C) 1990 by J Meeks & Machina Sapiens! ║ ╙────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╜ This software is the copyrighted intellectual property of J Meeks and Machina Sapiens; I am distributing it as shareware. This does not mean that it is free; it means that you have a limited right to try the program and decide if it fits your needs. If you decide to use it, please pay for it. Send your registration fee of $22.50 (check or money order) to: J Meeks / Machina Sapiens 3808 Greenbay Rd. #3 Richmond, VA 23234 and I will send you the latest version of the fully-featured program. The program in this package is a demonstration with all the capabilities of the full version except the save-an-instrument function. You can use it to exper- iment with sounds, loading old ones to alter or creating new ones from scratch. You can also play simple tunes using the mouse and the test play staff. But to save your audio creations, you will need the registered shareware copy. I've made every effort to ensure that the software runs correctly and performs its intended function. However, the variations in computer systems and the uncontrolled nature of the uses to which they are put forces me (like virtually every other programmer in the known world) to make the following tedious and horribly familiar-sounding disclaimer: Machina Sapiens, its parent company, Intellectronics, and the author, J Meeks make no warranties, either express or implied, concerning the suitability of this software for a particular application. Under no circumstances shall Machina Sapiens, Intellectronics, or J Meeks be held accountable for any damages resulting to a computer system due to the use or operation of this software package; this includes but is not limited to damage to equipment, storage media, and programs and/or data files. Of course, if your copy does not run as it should, PLEASE let me know so I can make it run correctly! I will need to know exact details concerning both your hardware (computer, CPU, clock speed, amount of RAM, disk drives, display type, monitor type, mouse type, etc.) and your software (what's in your AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files, what other memory-resident programs you use, what version of the Ad Lib sound driver you're using, of course, what version of Synthe/Zap! you have, and so on). I want this program to run on every PC compatible that has an EGA or VGA with enough RAM and a matching monitor, a Microsoft compat- ible mouse, and an Ad Lib synthesizer. SynZap10.Txt Page 6 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ FREE distribution of this demo package is welcome, as long as ALL THE FILES are distributed unchanged, and no files are added or removed. Bulletin Board Sysops are welcome to convert the archive format into their local favorite (Arc, Zip, Pak, Zoo, LHArc, etc.), as long as none of the contents are deleted or modified, no files are added, and NO ARCHIVE OR FILE COMMENTS ARE ADDED! IT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN TO CHARGE ANY FEE OR PRICE for this software, nor for media containing the software, nor for the service of providing it! This means that shareware/freeware libraries who pack disks with programs and sell the disks MAY NOT PUT THIS SOFTWARE ON THEIR DISKS FOR SALE! I plan to make more software for the Ad Lib music synthesizer, as well as programs for MIDI, and I want to make them generally available. If there's no problem with unauthorized distribution, then we will all be the beneficiaries. Thanks! ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── * Trademark notices Machina Sapiens, Synthe/Zap!, Synthe/Seq!, and JSys-3 are trademarks of Machina Sapiens and J Meeks. Intellectronics is a trademark of Intellectronics and J Meeks. J Meeks is very likely a trademark of Mr. Meeks' mother. Ad Lib, Ad Lib Personal Computer Music System, Ad Lib Music Synthesizer Card (ALMSC), Ad Lib Instrument Maker, and Ad Lib Visual Composer are trademarks of Ad Lib, Inc. Borland and Turbo Pascal are trademarks of Borland International. IBM PC, EGA, and VGA are trademarks of International Business Machines Corp. Music Construction Set is a trademark of Electronic Arts.