The Tao of Walking Ridge

This panel has 11 links and 4 hidden gems - click on the airplane.

Ardour is an open source DAW (Digital Audio Workstation).  I tried to get it up and running ever since I started using Linux nearly a year ago, but each time I quit from frustration.  I read much online explaining many of its capabilities, but found little about getting past the very first step - getting the sound to your speakers and doing something with it.  Anything.  Basic stuff.

With renewed plans to record and mix a new album that I call the Open Source Album Project, I decided to install Ubuntu Studio on an old desktop I had sitting around.  If I could get Ardour to work, I’d have a pro quality DAW.  I thought I would write about three things that were key to getting me started with Ardour.  Once you get started, then you can build from there.
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I still consider Yeager’s Air Combat to be the best combat flight simulator I ever flew.  Sure, the graphics are simpler polygons.  But the controls, flight information and above all the responsiveness of the flight controls were the best I’ve ever flown.  The only one that comes close was SVGA Air Warrior, but that flight simulator was better suited to heads up modem play than play against the computer.  Dosbox lets you run this classic on Linux with USB Joysticks on a basic laptop with a nothing special graphics card.  What better way to recycle (old computers) and save money (on operating systems and new games).

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The simpified estimatation of hole placement for typical Native American flutes developed in method-tuning-native-american-flutes-pt-1 enabled the development of a Flash based GUI that allow for quick comparison of the hole placement for flutes of different modes and even custom scale flutes.   It shows combinations of notes that are impractical to make (without cross fingering).  It also provides a graphical view of what the hole placement will look like.

For example, on longer flutes the space between playing hole D and E is not an issue.  But for short flutes, the holes can become closer than is comfortable.  An optional 7/8″ “finger pad” gives an idea of the space between fingers to make decisions about the trade off between moving the holes closer together and accepting a slightly smaller E hole that would be closer to the TSH.

Once the length of a barrel is known, then the length can be put into the tool and starting points for placement of playing holes are easily calculated.  They are based upon flutes that typically had about 0.3″ playing holes, with the E hole closest to the TSH typically a bit smaller. The tool easily calculates the hole placement for different key flutes.  It also quickly caclulates the difference in placement for Mode 1, Mode 4, and Mode 5 minor pentatonic scales.  Depending on the particular details used by a flutemaker, the estimate may be high or low.  Input for improvement of the tool is welcome.  Send comments to WalkingRidge.

The GUI is avalailable on this static page for convenient access.

An empirical approach to creating a simple intuitive tool and GUI for determining the hole placement for five hole pentatonic Native American style end blown flutes.  Part 1 covers the basic approach and conclusions for calculating placement of the playing holes.

The following represents the author’s opinions and observations based upon flutes that he owns.  Apply to your flute projects at your own risk.
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One of my back burner project is to build a cool retro RC airplane.  I’m still working on which one, but decided to start to get the skills ready so I could crash less at the flying field.  The newest sims have great graphics, but I’d be happy with just something that would let me learn the reflexes, in particular getting used to reversed controls when flying at myself and adjusting the elevator in a turn.

Before I started using Linux, I picked up an old old copy of RealFlight for the dark side with a “transmitter” controller that had a USB adapter.  It was supposed to work with Win2K and WinXP, but I couldn’t get it to work with either.  Finally after much searching I finally found an open source RC flight trainer for Linux that was really hard to find, but worked remarkably well for the purpose of honing your RC flying skills for model airplanes.
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Until now, the only way I knew to move, copy, delete, or edit files or directories in Linux that were in protected directories was by using the terminal and typing sudo (for super user) before the file management commands.  I am running Ubuntu Hardy Heron.  If you have many files to move, this isn’t bad once the exact phrases are worked out, but after not needing them for a while I forget and they are just enough different than the old DOS commands to cause me grief.  Then I found a great time saving trick (especially for Linux newbies) that provides a GUI (graphical user interface) file manager for protected files:

sudo nautilus

Open a terminal and type “sudo nautilus”.  Copying, moving, deleting, or editing files in a protected directory requires the root user password.  Starting nautilus from the terminal with the sudo command asks for the root user password, then opens Nautilus in the root directory.  You now have the normal file management GUI but it has super user authority.  I find I am less likely to make mistakes this way, as I’ve become used to the file manager GUI in Linux.

I find the terminal a great part of Linux that lets you accomplish things a bit out of the ordinary.  Without it, you are limited to the capabilities built into the GUI.  In this case, you are limited to normal user authority using Nautilus.  This is a good thing, as it prevents you from accidentally altering protected files.  But when you are sure you want to work in the protected area, it can be launched from the terminal with sudo authority.

I struggled to get Audacity to record in Ubuntu Hardy Heron.  Then I discovered that all I needed to do was install the previous version of ubuntu (Gutsy Gibbon) and Audacity recorded fine.  A simple great easy to use multi-track recorder.  My struggles to get the recording function to work caused me to overlook the potential of Audacity to be used as a mixdown app.

My usual workflow is to record to a mult-track digital recorder and transfer the files as wav files to the computer to process and mix.  I’ve used ACID to mix the various tracks together and other programs to add compression, EQ, or reverb.  I generally don’t need other effects, one would hope that a good studio recording did not need noise reduction!  Then I discovered the list of effects available in Audacity.  How nice to apply effects without exiting an application!

The EQ effect is incredibly flexible and intuitive.  Just click on the line and a point or “anchor” is added.  Click at another point and adjust.  You can quickly draw the EQ shape that you want.  Quick, intuitive, and all open source!  As I’m preparing to create my next album tentatively titled “The Coffeehouse Chronicles” I now plan on making it a Windows free album, mastered entirely in Linux using Audacity.  Though Audacity has a version available for Windows users as well.

In addition to the EQ, other useful functions included are the normalize function, fade in, fade out, invert, compressor.  The tremolo, delay, high pass and low pass filters, and pitch change functions may also be handy occasionally.

Audacity is one of the most intuitive and stable multitrack mix software applications I’ve tried, and it is open source!

This review is a sequel to my comparison of the Bluebird to the Shure SM58 dynamic microphone.  I was so impressed with the microphone that I wanted to add more comments specific to the Bluebird.
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I’ll explain why in just a few lines, but what follows will be MP3s of the Bluebird condenser microphone and my trusty SM58 dynamic microphone in a studio setting that will let you decide for yourself if you agree with my conclusions. I came to the conclusion that the Bluebird has clearer sound for my vocals, which becomes especially important when mixing. But I’m still going to use my SM58 for live performance. And as I’ll explain, the disappointing sound that led me to purchase the Bluebird in the first place was mostly due to stuff other than the choice of microphone.
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I was looking to write a socially conscious song and started writing lyrics a couple of weeks ago. Inspired by the self serving actions of government (the man) and the self serving motives of marketing and advertising (madmen). After letting the lyrics sit for a while, I picked up the guitar and tried to put them to a reggae rhythm. That didn’t work out well, but I did find a vibe that I liked. The vocals and guitar were recorded together in one live take. The organ and tambourine were then added.

Madmen and Money, - © 2009 Brian Kelly