Linux...anybody using it?

[glokraw]

Merry Christmas, thread denizens! And a happy and music filled 2013
to all.

[glokraw]

Wow... such a lot of vitriol, for certain.

I consider this a fine discussion from people
with good insights, and with a noteworthy lack of vitriol,
considering how camp mythology is deeply entrenched in many locales.
Various opinions, conclusions, and choices, all change with
the tides of knowledge and circumstance, and the flow of information
brings fresh water to the thirsty

I did set up a ubuntu clone recently, with KX repos enabled, but sadly
have had no spare time to learn the new session management apps
that falkTX has successfully implemented. Sounds like they are
worth exploring in depth. I should update the apps tonite, not that
it will grant me 30 hour days, with which to study them.
Cheers

[glokraw]

The Christmas gift from WOK is a jewel, and works fine in linux with
fst or reaper, you must hurry, unwrapping expires midnight 12-26

The Podolski synth from U-he, is another gifted jewel that also works
without problems, and with wonderful donated sounds.

[ret]

It really is a matter of opinion but I personally think these LADI-based session handlers just add yet another layer of complexity instead of solving the obvious underlying linux audio problems.

[StudioDave]

Wow... such a lot of vitriol, for certain.

Are you referring to my comments re: Reaper ? Not very vitriolic, IMO, but I'm sure others are more sensitive to such estimations.

So, I apologize if anyone was offended by my opinion re: Reaper. Doesn't change it though.

Best,

dp

[MIDI4Radio]

There is a major radio network/syndicator just outside of Washington DC, USA, which is an almost complete Linux house.

The company uses CentOS to drive its servers, audio management systems and automated playout machines; running a suite called "Rivendell Radio Automation". With the exception of desktop Windows machines for producers to edit audio (using the old Cool Edit program), and a trio of Mac machines used for video editing, the guts of the operation is Linux.

The engineering staff has agreed that audio editing is the only thing holding the place back from going all-Linux on desktops too. Ardour is the preferred choice, but is too cumbersome for radio production. Audacity is in use everywhere, but doesn't have the features needed for contemporary radio production. Cool Edit runs under WINE (the Linux Windows emulator), but not well enough to be depended upon.

Linux works for audio --- just not all aspects of it.

[pljones]

Great example -- and one I hope inspires open source developers on Linux further. It's inspiration and positive user support that pretty much keep developers afloat, unless some sugar daddy comes along and sponsors development. That doesn't happen unless they can see a return on investment happening, though - and audio, really, is too small a catch to be of interest.

[reteo]

Wow... such a lot of vitriol, for certain.

Are you referring to my comments re: Reaper ?

No, it was the post right after the previous one I made, re: codec_spurt. He took my first sentence as a quote and called it insightful. I'm not sure if he was referring to the whole post I made, or was simply insulting me, but the rest of his post had the feeling of him calling me psychotic and masochistic. I could be wrong, but the language he used was pretty strong.

All the same, a number of other posts pretty much had some strong responses as well, so it wasn't just the one. However, that was the one that stood out the most.

It really is a matter of opinion but I personally think these LADI-based session handlers just add yet another layer of complexity instead of solving the obvious underlying linux audio problems.

Actually, LADI has nothing to do with Linux audio problems. It interfaces with Jack in order to give you the ability to:
1: Visually direct audio between applications (which include audio drivers) in an easy-to-understand way.
2: Save and restore application loadouts, including auto-launching apps and restoring the previously-saved connection.
3: Encapsulate layouts so that they can be re-used on different projects.
4: Provide centralized locations for each project to save its data.

Issues with Linux audio should be handled by the audio driver (ALSA/FFADO). Jack is not a driver, it's just the server that handles the connections. Either way, fixing sound problems may be important, but making the redirection of audio easier and more convenient should not be ignored, either.

[ret]

Actually, LADI has nothing to do with Linux audio problems. It interfaces with Jack in order to give you the ability to:
1: Visually direct audio between applications (which include audio drivers) in an easy-to-understand way.
2: Save and restore application loadouts, including auto-launching apps and restoring the previously-saved connection.
3: Encapsulate layouts so that they can be re-used on different projects.
4: Provide centralized locations for each project to save its data.

Issues with Linux audio should be handled by the audio driver (ALSA/FFADO). Jack is not a driver, it's just the server that handles the connections. Either way, fixing sound problems may be important, but making the redirection of audio easier and more convenient should not be ignored, either.

I probably used wrong words but in a nutshell what I meant is that there is linux audio base system, then there's jack and now add these LADI-based session handlers on top of that. It's a mess of way too many layers when compared to mac or windows. Why can't linux audio software be as simple as those other systems are? It just doesn't make any sense.

I know this gets responds of how jack is flexible but is there a project you cannot do in those other two systems? Or is there a sound you cannot build on windows or mac?

It is soon 2013 and having anything other than a simple file save as and file open for your songs and audio connections is an excuse for an unfinished system. Same goes for not having a working count-in. Or track freeze. Or even a simple export song as audio.

On a more positive note it seems that Studio One works so well on linux that I'm thinking of switching from Cubase to Studio One. By doing that I can have a same workspace on all computers I use. And keep waiting for native linux software finally to catch up.

[pljones]

Given that JACK runs fine on Windows and MacOS, the answer to "is there a project you cannot do in those other two systems?" is probably "no" - but I'd have to use JACK because Windows and MacOS do not provide the flexible routing. Reaper's ReaRoute is very close, though, if you want to run everything into and out of Reaper multiple times -- but it's far, far more painful to set up and means you're tied to one DAW.

[ret]

I doubt that other than some very specific situations there is no need for jack kind of routing on windows or mac.

[StudioDave]

Wow... such a lot of vitriol, for certain.

Are you referring to my comments re: Reaper ?

No...

Whew. Thanks. Sorry, I got a bit paranoid there.

Too much late-night holidays.

Best,

dp

[pljones]

I doubt that other than some very specific situations there is no need for jack kind of routing on windows or mac.

I imagine it depends on the kind of project you usually work on and your preferred approach to working with tools. If you'll adapt the problem to the tools you have, then you can often get by without learning anything new. If you love learning new things, you'll find a reason to even if there's no need. Different strokes...

[glokraw]

Reaper gives me a windows DAW inside linux, and jackd lets me
route it's output to any linux audio input, some of which are
wonderful, and a windows equivalent would cost hard money, and
use many more system resources, which are limited enough already.

If jackd routing freedom inside windows, breaks some traditional barriers,
considering the many innovative apps, it should open a treasure chest.
Cheers

[ret]

How about Ardour 3 and it's midi features?

I really like the audio side but the midi. Damn I *need* a dedicated piano roll - matrix editor or whatever people call it nowadays. Also I think Ardour looks and for most part is professional tool but the interface could be a bit slimmer.